This just in: Cuban journalist tells her story

Marc Masferrer has an interview with Aini Martin Valero

US: What is the biggest obstacle that you and other journalists face on a daily basis?

AMV: The independent press faces two obstacles. One is the harassment and persecution from State Security, which threatens us and blocks us many times from going where the news is happening. They jail us, and many times retaliate against our families.

The second obstacle is the lack of resources to do our work. Most Cuban independent journalists cannot count on having a computer, still and video cameras or even a telephone line at their homes. I consider those tools as fundamental to doing quality journalism.

US: How have the changes since July 31 (when Fidel Castro handed over power to his brother Raúl) affected your job as a journalist?

AMV: After July 31, with the news of Fidel Castro's illness, the monitoring of me and my colleagues by State Security and the paramilitary bands got worse. Every Tuesday, we met at the house of another journalist to share ideas and review our work. Since that date, followers of the government have carried out acts of repudiation at the home of journalist Carlos Manuel Cespedes, and we have had to look for other alternatives.

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