MADRID, Spain.- The former director of the university magazine Alma materArmando Franco Senén, revealed the reasons for his recent dismissal from office and denied the Union of Young Communists (UJC).
According to a detailed explanation offered through Facebookon April 26, he was summoned to the office of the director of Editora Abril, where he was informed that he had been “released” from his position as director, due to “continuous errors in the editorial work of the magazine.”
“For ethical reasons I do not include the details of the mentioned works; In my opinion, except for a couple of valid points that were corrected at the time, the rest of the texts are probably the best journalistic results of Alma mater during my direction”, emphasizes Senén.
When trying to explain “the nonsense of what they exposed”, Nislay Molina (Ideology of the National Committee of the UJC), replied: “We should have thrown you out a long time ago, there is nothing more to talk about, we are doing you the favor of freeing you . You can do whatever you want, it’s our decision.”
According to Nislay Molina, the president of the University Student Federation (FEU), Karla Santana, considered that during her time at the head of Alma materthe magazine neglected the FEU.
However, “this is an easily detachable argument”, said Senén, since “those who frequently read Alma mater During the last couple of years they witnessed that for us the coverage of the life of the FEU, the Cuban universities and university students was a priority. Of course, from the vision of our team. The multiple published contents are there to prove it”.
It was not a natural renewal
About the statements of the First Secretary of the UJC, Aylin Álvarez, considered that the only exact thing was the reference to the fact that the managerial positions of the media of the Editora Abril are the responsibility of the National Committee of the UJC and its Committee of Cadres.
Franco Senén assured that previously Aylin Álvarez had shown satisfaction with the results obtained by the magazine and ignorance about the alleged errors that had been attributed to her.
Armando Franco Senén denounced that, contrary to what he was told at the time of his dismissal, it was not a natural renewal, since the process did not include a job location for him or a director for Alma mater.
In his publication, the former director of Alma mater He also recalled that the refusal of those responsible for the dismissal to talk to the magazine’s team, the disagreement with the “release” and the lack of explanations, caused some members of the publication they will request their discharge.
“There were no pressures or conditions. In each case, it was a personal decision. A journalist and the editorial secretary decided to stay. The rest, all young people, today are looking for other work destinations,” said the journalist.
“Alma mater It was neither better nor worse during these almost three years. She didn’t pretend to be. We try to do journalism and we respect the criteria that each reader of our work has.(…) We try to understand how and why we got to this point; what are the next steps for each of us. (…) In the coming days, weeks, months, everyone will choose their path within or outside of Cuban journalism. I only aspire to believe again, to find reasons to keep trying”, he concluded.
Reactions to the impeachment
After the news of the separation from the post was announced, the editor-in-chief of Alma mater, Yoandry Ávila Guerra, left the university magazine. Ávila Guerra, a graduate of Heritage Management and Preservation, at the San Gerónimo University College in Havana, made public through Facebook change of employment status.
For his part, the renowned journalist Joaquín Borges Triana stated: “In the 36 years that I have been a journalism graduate, I have been a witness again and again to stories like the one that now motivates multiple comments on the networks. Let’s suppose that yes, that Armandito made a mistake in something and for those mistakes he has to be released. In such a case, this corroborates that in the exercise of journalism in a society like Cuba’s, there is no margin for error. A doctor can make a mistake and someone can die because of him, but it may not come to light. In journalism it doesn’t happen like that.
“His departure as director of the magazine Alma materhaving carried out a commendable job that made this media outlet the only one of the Cuban state media that was taken into account in the most important national debates of recent times, sadly remembers the ‘liberation’ of Darío Alejandro Escobar, another young director media outlet in Cuba, for what I suppose are the same reasons”, were the words of journalist Ariel Montenegro.
Even the troubadour Silvio Rodriguez, a well-known defender of the regime, pointed out: “I find it worrying that, instead of opening up, the leadership continues to show signs of closure. It even seems very serious to me, at this point.”
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