Vote for Yoani!

Yesterday I asked you all to support Ashin Mettacara for the Weblog log awards as he was nominated in the "Best Asian Blog" category. Today I am asking you to show your support for Yoani Sanchez as her blog Generation Y has been nominated in the "Best Latino, Caribbean or South American Blog" category.

Yoani is Cuba's most famous blogger, her blog has been blocked from within the island, she has gone head to head with Mariela Castro, she has been interviewed by countless TV stations and was voted by Time magazine as one of the world's most influential people.

Yet, her government still finds ways to harass her and the handful of blogger that blog in Cuba about Cuba. In December both her and her husband, along with another blogger Claudia Cadelo, were summoned by the Ministry of the Interior and were told in no uncertain terms that they should cancel a meeting of Cuban bloggers that was planned for the following weekend. These awards help raise awareness about her cause and help keep her out of jail.

Just as you did yesterday by voting for Ashin Mettacara, please take 30 seconds out of your day and show your support for Yoani and all of the other Cuban bloggers who risk their freedom to fight for freedom speech and freedom of opinion.

Muchacho Enfermo

50 years later...

I could start my blogging year by talking about Gaza or about how Russia is cutting Ukraine's gas again, I could speak about the war in Afghanistan or about Hoder who is still in jail for his blog. But instead I'll I'll start the year by blogging, again, about Cuba.

Everyone from Reuters to Al Jazeera was talking about it... Even local papers here were talking about it. The Globe and Mail had a great little slide show. 50 years of Revolution. 50 years of hard times. 18,263 days of censorship. 438,312 hours of living under the same government without a free election.

I didn't get a chance to finish my year in blogs... but here's a just a few (and please feel free to add to the list) few blogs about Cuba that everyone should check out, blogger from within the island and Cuban expats write about their love and their sadness and the hardships. Zurama the other of one of these blogs suggested that Cuban bloggers should dress in black today to mourn 50 years of having no freedom... that, for all of us, should speak volumes.

http://www.desdecuba.com/generationy/
http://octavocercoen.blogspot.com/
http://desdecuba.com/sin_evasion_en/
http://desdecuba.com/reinaldoescobar_en/
http://el-guama.blogspot.com/
http://habanemia.blogspot.com/
http://penultimosdias.com/
http://zuramascuba.blogspot.com/

Muchacho Enfermo

Free the BlogFather

I figured this is important so I put it here too...

Last week I posted about Cuban bloggers Yoani Sanchez, Reinaldo Escobar and Claudia Cadelo who were all summoned by the Ministry of the Interior to "discuss" their dissident views. A few days later I posted about the BlogFather who had been arrested in Iran after being accused of being a spy for Israel. Many other blogs reported this, including a blog by Mark Mackinnon a prominent foreign correspondent and author.

I wanted to say that for those of you who have facebook, there is a group dedicated to his release: http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=37459792838&ref=ts . Our feelow blogger faces death in Iran, his home country and we might be able to help. Please join this facebook group or visit the page and see what you can do!

Muchacho Enfermo (changing my logo in honor of the BlogFather)