The VCSC (Vancouver Communities in Solidarity with Cuba) is a local, non-profit organization “fighting in defense of Cuba.” As you may recall, someone visited our class a few weeks ago to inform us of the Cuba, Venezuela & Bolivia Solidarity Conference that was going to be held Sept. 30. According to their website, the organization is endorsed by (among others) the Latin American Studies Program from UBC.
I’d like to focus on the problematic VCSC mission statement. The organization claims to be fighting in “defense of Cuba.” They also claim to support “actions in support of Cuba’s sovereignty.” These points are where the problem lies. There is a complete lack of defense from the VCSC of the Cuban citizens individual right to choose the direction of said sovereignty. There are no free elections in Cuba. You will not see election results, you will not see the breakdown of candidates, and you will never see an article in Cuban media about opposition to Castro (unless it is to accuse somebody of “subversion” or “collaborating with the US”). It is a dictatorship. Cubans, as the VCSC implies, deserve the right to self determination. I agree. However, this also means internal self-determination, not just against foreign aggression.
There is often defense of the Revolution by citing health statistics and education. Cuba fairs much better than most third world countries in this regard. They also have strong cultural institutions, as well as a low level of violent crime, compared even to many countries with a wealthier population. However, in the fight for human rights, all citizens should be fought for. Segments of the population, such as political opposition, should not be oppressed just because there are more doctors per capita in Cuba than Peru. This is a weak justification. Could this not be achieved democratically? Also, people are restricted on movement within and outside Cuba. I enjoyed watching Yuniesky Betancourt play shortstop for the Mariners this season. He had to pay smugglers to leave Cuba because athletes are one of the many segments of Cuban society that are tightly restricted in their freedom of movement.
Another problem I’d like to point out from the VCSC’s approach is that the organization hosted a talk by Cuban ambassador Ernesto Santi in March. And at the most recent conference, consul general Laureano Cardoso was invited. The October 3 edition of the Ubyssey covered the recent talk by Cardoso. According to the paper, Cardoso dispelled “various myths perpetuated by the mainstream media” about the Revolution. The paper also says that Cardoso discussed the government structure of Cuba. You can be sure he didn’t elaborate on the elections too much. The point here is that the speakers do not represent the Cuban people. They are propaganda arms for a dictatorship, no matter how “mild” the dictatorship may be. In another example, I happened to catch ambassador Santi on local cable in the summer stating that the Cuban elections were (paraphrasing here), “freer than the American elections.” That is a pretty profound statement for someone representing a government that presently has 71 political prisoners in jail. You can read Amnesty International’s Report on Cuba about that and some of the other HR violations. These spokespersons have absolutely no right to speak on the peoples behalf.
Cuba deserves democracy. I don’t think it is fair to impose a system on the population from the outside. Siding with the Cuban government without the peoples consent does such a thing. Perhaps with elections Cubans would choose to stay the course. That is their decision to make, not ours. What I do know is that many Cubans want change. Some want more freedom to earn a little more money in private business (no third world country restricts the informal market like the Cuban government). Others are completely disillusioned with the system. These people deserve a platform for expression.
In sum, I respect many things the Revolution has accomplished. I respect that the VCSC is trying to support what they believe in and it is their right to lobby for what have been real gains of the Revolution. However, given the lack of democracy and numerous human rights violations in Cuba, in no way should the problems be ignored to support the gains.
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6 comments:
Thanks for this Dave. I am likely one of the few who knows little about the Cuban Revolution, and what the present situation is like. But I've heard a mix of reactions, and I tend, from the little I know, to feel I fall on your side of the agreement. BUt I have more to learn yet. I do know that when friends of mine have visited Cuba, they were surprised at some of the complacent attitudes some of the citizens had, as they were quite satisfied with certain things being dictated by the government and them thus not having much say or a need to say things. For example, jobs are handed out so to speak, and thus people don't have a need to suffer, work for, and dedicate themselves to work in a field or thus discover their own passions. Not that I want to generalize for a population I know little of. But perhaps you can comment or offer insight on that.
I found this blog surfing.
Your approach to Cuba is balanced. Castro never took off his military uniform.
I worry that the reforms in Cuba, are so tied to Castro, they may be lost, if not defended by the masses.
If there was more democracy from below, the revolution would be safe.
Zahida,
I think you make some valid points. My experience is that many do in fact complain about many aspects of their lives. However, they are not often politically active, just as your friends have found. For example, amongst the Cuban community here in Vancouver, there is virtually no public protest of Castro and his policies. It should also be noted that they don't generally (from what I can tell) attend the pro-Revolution functions. It is kind of strange given that the majority of Cubans here in Vancouver left Cuba because I assume they were dissatisfied with the opportunities they had in Cuba. In personal conversations, some have no ill will towards Castro, others will complain all night if you get their engine started. Cuba society and the people, for me, are both very complex to understand. But the point is that many people do in fact oppose the government, and the idea of my post is that those people do have a right to opposition. Democratic principles shouldn't be ignored because a person approves of who happens to be in charge.
As for the work situation, there is a saying in Cuba: "The people pretend to work and the government pretends to pay them." Quite honestly, the difference between working and not working is not that great financially, unless you can get a job that somehow can bring in some euros on the side. On the other hand, pilfering at work is endemic in Cuban society (brief article here: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/5397926.stm , so in that sense perhaps there can be advantages - - despite the Cuban government, not because of it.
Bob,
You brought up some excellent points for comparative analysis and case studies of hypocrisy. However, the point I'm trying to make, and this is my belief, that when assessing a country’s own human rights record, at least regarding its own people, the actions of that government have to be isolated. What happens in Mexico has no bearing on how Cuba should treat its citizens. These are all sovereign nations, and each has a duty to respect human rights on its own. If any comparison should be made, it should be with rights charters, or a country that is considered to have a good HR record. I understand these ideas can be arbitrary too, but it is much better than judging Cuba compared to what, say, El Proceso did in Argentina during their reign. I don’t think that is fair to Cubans. I know you weren’t making this comparison, but unfortunately many people defend Cuba in this manner. They simply can’t restrain themselves from making unfavorable comparisons to justify, or ignore, the lack of democracy and HR violations within Cuba.
A good example of Cuban government action isolated is the Ladies in White. Here’s a brief article: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4527018.stm. The government denying these ladies visas has absolutely nothing to do with the successes of the Revolution, or Republican lobbying in Florida. These ladies’ rights were violated. Plain and simple.
So, if the other arguments and debate is discarded for a moment while looking at some of the internal policy towards Cubans, the violations can start adding up very quickly.
sorry, this might be a kinda nife thing to ask, is there any cuban comunity in vancouver where i could go chatting some cuban people?
castro was a good man and still is, just lost the way, and cuba's dream has become only his dream, cuban people is dreaming his dream only, not the way they or he wants it but just how he dreams it... we are powerless in our dreams, unless you know how to dream surfing, but thats another chapter. he's powerless but the dream is powerfull and has become kinda a hopeless nigthmare or just a too long annoying nap for most of people in cuba... just came to canada 4 months ago from there so i know what i mean, thanx.
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