Cuba Solidarity Day 2008: Remembering Our Totalitarian Neighbor
by Ray Walser
WebMemo #1928
May 21 is Cuba Solidarity Day. The day seeks to remind Americans that 90
miles away from the United States is an island nation controlled by a
government that remains by all objective definitions a Communist,
totalitarian regime.
In the globalizing, market-based world and more democratic hemisphere of
2008, Cuba is governed by a Communist one-party regime installed in
1959. At the helm is an ailing Fidel Castro, his 75-year-old brother
Raul Castro, now officially head of state, and a handful of hardened
Communists—an elite whose authority is limited only by the meager
resources of the country's obsolete economy. In Cuba's Orwellian
dystopia, control over all aspects of political, economic, legal,
artistic, educational, and cultural life remains in the hands of
Communist officials.
Because Cuba is not run by a Stalin, Mao or Pol Pot, because there are
no show trials or cultural revolutions, the world has grown accustomed
to Cuba's lesser but omnipresent tyranny.
The number of citizens thrown into Cuba's gulags runs in the hundreds,
not millions. Canadians and Europeans visit picturesque old Havana and
enjoy the attractions of Cuban sun, surf, and sex without incident.
Heads of state visit Havana hoping for a last nostalgic glimpse of Fidel
or to meet with the new power brokers.
With the passage of time, the evils of Cuban Communism have become more
banal, a dull ache rather than a throbbing pain. Cuba is no longer a
giant aircraft carrier for the defunct Soviet Union. Missiles that once
threatened to rain nuclear annihilation on the U.S. were long ago
scrapped. Cuba's interventionist military has returned from wars of
national liberation in Latin America and Africa to take up safe jobs in
the tourist sector and enjoy life as pensioned war veterans.
Cuba slips increasingly into the twilight zone of illiberal,
anti-democratic regimes as diverse as China, Russia, Saudi Arabia, and
Vietnam with which the U.S. maintains correct if not always friendly
diplomatic and trade relations.
Modest Improvements under Raul's Regime
The transition from Fidel to Raul occurred with few signs of instability
and turmoil. Since February 24, 2008, Raul Castro has launched modest
economic changes. Cubans can now aspire, although few can afford, to own
cell phones, DVD players, and computers (without access to the
Internet). A few hated restrictions, such as the ban on patronizing
tourist hotels, have been lifted. Small farmers and the self-employed
will have more latitude to operate and more productive workers may
receive higher wages.
Such are the baby steps toward a less draconian future. Raul Castro
hints at lifting travel restrictions and ending the dual-currency divide
that separates Cubans into haves with dollars and have-nots with Cuban
pesos. Perhaps at the back of his mind is a game plan for following the
Chinese or Vietnamese development model without rocking the political boat.
Cuban reforms are not undertaken with any sense of altruism or love for
the Cuban people, but out of a calculated desire to profit from sales of
goods in state-owned stores and to enable Communism to survive.
The Cuban economy has grown in recent years with the generous assistance
of President Hugo Chávez of Venezuela and from tourist dollars and euros
and higher commodity prices. The U.S. plays its part as a prime supplier
of licensed food and medical sales. American agricultural and business
representatives urge easier access to and credits for the Cuba market.
Yet, the state still controls 93 percent of the economy. The average
income of the ordinary Cuban working under "socialist distribution" is
less than $20 per month. Foreign investments allow the regime to profit
heavily on the labor of a docile, poorly compensated labor force.
The youth of the island, referred to as Generation Y, have known only
the hardship of the 1990s and 2000s. Cuba's best and brightest have
become politically apathetic. They either seek to emigrate or are forced
to hustle for service jobs in the dollar sector.
Conclusion
Sadly, as May 21 reminds us, the political climate in Cuba remains
stagnant and stifling. Raul Castro commands a legion of security agents
believed to exceed 20,000, skilled in surveillance, infiltration, and
the use of agents provocateurs. Gatherings of more than three are
prohibited; individuals are subject to arrest and imprisonment for
"dangerousness." Anyone expressing inconformity with official views
becomes fair game for a visit by a mob and "acts of repudiation."
An estimated 240 political prisoners languish under the most deplorable
conditions that include solitary confinement, and often beatings. Among
the prisoners are many whose offenses were to demand respect for
universal human rights or to call for freedom of ideas and press.
The Cuban regime demands acceptance of its legitimacy and rule without
external criticism or scrutiny. Yet, when 10 Damas en Blanca ("Women in
White") gathered in a central Havana square, as they did on April 21,
seeking freedom for kin jailed unjustly, they were met by a caravan of
police officials and branded "agents of U.S. imperialism." This is not
change.
May 21 is a day for sober consideration. As citizens of a great
democracy that has opposed tyranny and stood for consent of the governed
and liberty and rights for individuals, we must not forget that a
Communist totalitarian regime lies uncomfortably close to our shores.
Ray Walser, Ph.D., is Senior Policy Analyst for Latin America in the
Douglas and Sarah Allison Center for Foreign Policy Studies, a division
of the Kathryn and Shelby Cullom Davis Institute for International
Studies, at The Heritage Foundation.
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