Castro's
Health And US Meddling
By Mavis Anderson
25 August, 2006
Counterpunch
Fidel Castro's recent announcement
that he would temporarily transfer power to his brother Raul and others
in the Cuban Government has led to much speculation about the course
of events in both Cuba and Miami. With hard-line Cuban Americans dancing
in the streets of Little Havana, and even preparing boats to sail to
the island to foment unrest, the question on everyone's mind is: does
this signal the beginning of a much-discussed transition for Cuba? And
if so, what will it look like?
The official press in Cuba
adamantly rejects the use of the word "transition" at all.
And no wonder, with the thrust of the recent U.S. "Commission for
Assistance to a Free Cuba" report indicating that succession is
not acceptable, but rather calling for a new transition government in
Cuba, approved by the United States.
Cuba maintains that Fidel
Castro is "recovering favorably" from intestinal surgery and
will likely return to his duties in a few weeks. In fact, post-surgery
photographs have recently been published of the Cuban leader-talking
on the phone and visiting with Venezuela President Hugo Chavez and Castro's
brother, Raul (who had not been previously seen in public since his
ascendance to power on July 31).
It is difficult to ascertain
just what form a government, temporary or otherwise, headed by Raul
Castro, would take. Predictions have been all over the map: more pragmatic,
more likely to institute increased military and security presence on
the island, more hard-line communist, more likely to open up economically,
more likely to crack down on dissent, less likely to have the support
of the Cuban people, less likely to demonstrate political skill, less
charismatic, etc.
While this is mere speculation,
the most important factor for foreign observers to bear in mind is that
the organization and political orientation of the Cuban Government and
its leadership should be the decision of the Cuban people-those currently
living on the island.
This simple concept of self-determination,
so jealously defended in U.S. society, dictates that the United States
should not interfere in any way-openly or surreptitiously behind-the-scenes-in
Cuba's internal affairs.
However, the Bush administration's
recent second report of the "Commission for Assistance to a Free
Cuba," and high-level administration officials' comments after
the transfer of power, have overtly threatened Cuban sovereignty. The
report's interventionist policies move the United States farther down
the path of a failed and outdated policy that has done nothing but attempt
to isolate Cuba, while keeping the United States and its people in the
dark about the island.
A more constructive response
would allow U.S. citizens freedom of association with our Cuban neighbors
to form constructive relationships. Freedom to travel, engage in two-way
trade, organize educational and cultural exchange-to name a few of the
basic liberties currently denied U.S. citizens with respect to Cuba-could
lead to a positive role in the future of Cuba. Today U.S. citizens cannot
be a positive force because they have no direct knowledge of Cuba due
to enforced separation and hostile foreign policy toward the island.
These polices have galvanized
anti-U.S. sentiment in Cuba as well. Even Cuban internal opposition
protests U.S. interference in their country.
Miriam Leiva, wife of Oscar
Espinosa Chepe, one of the 75 Cubans who was charged and jailed for
collaboration with the United States several years ago, wrote about
Cuba's future in a July 15 Miami Herald op-ed entitled " We Cubans
Must Decide :" " It would be extraordinarily helpful to lift
the restrictive U.S. measures adopted in 2004, which haven't produced
positive results I have never understood how a country that has accumulated
so much wisdom and has been so flexible with former enemies has applied
such counterproductive policies to Cuba for 47 years Only we Cubans,
of our own volition and according to the moment's conditions, can decide
issues of such singular importance."
Eloy Gutierrez Menoyo wrote
about succession and the future in an August 7 press release from his
organization, Cambio Cubano(Cuban Change): "The recently issued
document on the transition for Cuba, produced under the auspices of
the current administration in Washington in an intrigue with extremist
factions in exile, breaks the most elemental rules of international
friendship, contravenes the sovereign rights of civilized nations, and
crudely insults the history and the intelligence of Cubans. In reaffirming
our ethical, intellectual, and spiritual repudiation of such a coarse
and inconceivable document, we wish also to make clear our faith that
the Cuban people are capable of gambling on a democratic opening without
ever abandoning their ancestral devotion to Cuba's sovereignty."
The Cuban opposition also
has ideas about the transition that differ substantially from the U.S.
State Department version. In a recent op-ed in the Washington Post,
Oswaldo Paya, the initiator of the Varela Project, a reform movement
in Cuba, laid out some of those differences: "We want to preserve
the right to free health care and education, and to expand our rights
to include freedom of religious education and freedom of expression.
We do not want change if it comes at the cost of paying a ransom to
those in power, allowing them to take control of the country's resources,
to define its values, to become millionaires and to leave the people
of the country in distress There will be no uncontrolled privatizations,
but there will be a guarantee for the right of all Cubans to a free
economy, the right to have private enterprise, and to trade freely.
No one will be forced out of his home; the law will prohibit evictions."
A response to the state of
Fidel Castro's health and the provisional delegation of his responsibilities
from nearly 10,000 people, including Nobel Peace Prize winners, notable
authors, religious leaders, and political leaders, quotes U.S. officials'
comments regarding more aggressive forms of intervention. The statement
ends: "Faced with this increasing threat against the integrity
of a nation, and the peace and the security of Latin America and the
world, we the signatories listed below demand that the government of
the United States respect the sovereignty of Cuba. We must prevent a
new aggression at all costs." (See http://www.porcuba.cult.cu/index.php?lang=2.)
What appears to be most striking
about recent events in Cuba is how uneventful the leadership change
actually was. The succession, mandated by the Cuban constitution, from
President Fidel to First Vice President Raul was smooth: no uprising
in the streets of Havana, no response on the island to Miami's call
to civil disobedience, no collapse of the Cuban system of government,
no rapid change to U.S.-desired and U.S.-defined transitional government.
Those who expected a dramatic shift with the departure of Fidel are
out of touch with what is happening on the island.
And Fidel Castro has not
yet disappeared from the scene. While the succession may already be
beginning, and it is still possible that Castro may not return to fully
take back the reins of power, the likelihood remains small for a bold
move from other Cuban leaders, including Raul, while Fidel is still
a force in the country. This transfer of power may indeed have been
a "trial run" for an eventual stable succession. The Cuban
people are perhaps being prepared for the moment when Fidel Castro is
truly absent, but it has just been demonstrated that the change could
be gradual, peaceful, and responsible.
Refrain from Interference
in Cuba's Internal Political Affairs
In light of all these events,
a number of organizations that work on U.S. policy toward Cuba have
joined together in sending out a call to the White House for non-interference
in the sovereign affairs of Cuba.
For the first time in 47
years, Cuba is undergoing a transfer of political power, as President
Fidel Castro has temporarily turned the reins of government over to
his brother, Raul and other leaders of the Cuban Government. No one
knows whether Fidel Castro will recuperate from his illness and return
to office, or whether Raul Castro and his leadership team will continue
in power.
But we do know this: the
future of Cuba should only be decided by the Cuban people themselves-those
living in Cuba, without interference by the United States or others.
The Bush administration has
set criteria for what an acceptable post-Fidel Castro government in
Cuba should look like, and has committed funds to encourage a transition
to such a government in Cuba. This is wrong. The United States should
not interfere in any way in Cuban internal affairs. Not only is it improper
for the United States to take actions that interfere with Cuba's sovereignty,
but these actions are likely to be counter-productive.
In the past, groups within
the hard-line Cuban-American community have taken provocative and belligerent
actions to destabilize the political situation in Cuba. U.S. authorities
should take every appropriate step to prevent these groups from launching
any hostile or provocative actions from U.S. soil.
At a time when events are
unfolding in Cuba, we are missing an incredible opportunity for Americans
to engage directly with Cubans. Under current policy, U.S. citizens
have very little contact with people and institutions on the island.
Cuban-Americans have lost nearly all access to their own family members
on the island. Student study abroad programs have been all but eliminated.
Visits to the United States by Cuban cultural groups and academics have
been sharply curtailed. And new restrictions have reduced contact between
religious groups in Cuba and their counterparts in the United States.
To understand and relate to developments in Cuba, the Bush administration
should permit U.S. citizens to engage with Cuba, through travel and
trade, rather than continuing a failed policy of isolation.
Now is the time for all of
us to work together to make our voices heard in Washington to ensure
that the Bush administration respects Cuba's sovereignty and international
law, and promotes peace by refraining from interference in Cuba's internal
political process.
The full message, including
an action citizens can take, can be found on the website of the Latin
America Working Group http://www.lawg.org.
Mavis Anderson
is Senior Associate at the Latin America Working Group at www.lawg.org
and a contributor to the IRC Americas Program.