Circles Robinson Online

Havana Times Editor Quizzed on Cuba

2011-12-29T09:06:00.000-08:00

HAVANA TIMES, Jan. 14, 2011 — The Communist Party of Great Britain’s online/print publication “Weekly Worker” published Thursday an interview conducted by journalist Maciej Zurowski with HT editor Circles Robinson. The interview gives some background on the starting up of Havana Times as well as some of Robinson’s views on current issues facing Cuba.

The following is the full text of the interview:

MORE GLASNOST, LESS PERESTROIKA

Maciej Zurowski interviews Circles Robinson of ‘Havana Times’, a web magazine that features critical writing from Cuba

Weekly Worker, January 13, 2011 – Ever imagined a post-revolutionary scenario where Socialist Worker becomes the only widely available source of information? Well – that vision is very much a reality in Cuba, where Granma, the organ of the Communist Party since 1965, relentlessly hammers home the central committee’s line with little regard for discussion, controversy or stimulating thought. Fidel Castro’s increasingly surrealistic editorials might lift Granma a notch above the drabness that plagues its cousins Trabajadores and Juventud Rebelde, but many would argue that the paper’s relationship with the truth is ambivalent at best.

Publications that serve the cultural needs of the country’s intelligentsia do contain some critical thought. Cine Cubano, for instance, is a glossy film magazine that takes the liberty of castigating the “artistic straitjacket of socialist realism”,[1] while enriching its reviews and discussion pieces with eclectic quotations, from Jean-Paul Sartre to Slavoj Zizek. But beyond the three officially approved national dailies, there has been a distinct lack of critical everyday reporting and analysis of Cuba’s political, economic and social spheres throughout the country’s 50-odd year revolutionary history.

In 2008, a group of Cuban residents founded Havana Times,[2] an internet magazine that prides itself on “open-minded writing from Cuba”. A Cuban news and opinions website that neither consists of sycophantic Castro apologetics nor of its mirror image – the rabid anti-communism peddled by Florida-based Cuban exiles – will come as a surprise to many. Broadly socialist in its outlook and critically supportive of the revolution, it gives a voice to those who are not content to let untouchable leaders do the thinking.

As we interview the editor of Havana Times, Circles Robinson, a wind of change is blowing through Cuba, though hardly the wind of progress. Raúl Castro has announced massive layoffs, employing rhetoric that eerily echoes David Cameron’s talk of a ‘big society’, while paying limp lip service to the paternalistic ‘socialism’ of the past. Meanwhile, foreign investors have been touting Cuba as a potential new emerging market for some time. Against the background of growing class divides and a bureaucratic Communist Party (redefined as the “party of the Cuban nation” rather than a “party of the working class” since 1991), it is high time that Cuban workers began the fight for independent political organisation to defend and advance their interests.

In our interview with Circles Robinson, we spoke about the Havana Times project, the imminent changes in Cuban society, and the Cuban revolution more broadly.
Weekly Worker: Please tell us in brief the story of Havana Times. I understand that you used publish it from mainland Cuba, but have emigrated to Nicaragua more recently. What were the reasons for your move?

Circles Robinson: Havana Times began in Cuba when I, a US citizen, was still working at ESTI, the Cuban government’s official translation and interpretation agency. My job was to translate and revise materials for the official Cuban online media into English. As a member of the Cuban Journalists Association (UPEC), I took part in numerous meetings and workshops to discuss the status of Cuban journalism and ways to improve its credibility at home and abroad, as well as its visibility.

After taking part in the July 2008 UPEC Congress as a voting delegate and studying my notes of what had been discussed, plus certain recommendations the Communist Party had not long before given the Cuban media, I decided to start Havana Times (HT). The idea actually dated back about three years, but it finally seemed like the right moment to launch the website. For nine months I edited the site from Havana. Really, that was an ideal situation despite the slow internet connections in Cuba.

Subsequently, I had a major conflict at work resulting from some of my co-workers and myself openly questioning the unethical conduct of our immediate boss. To get me to support his behaviour he threatened to make a case against me using Havana Times and the fact that I had started it “without permission”, though this was done in my free time. In the end, they simply refused to renew my yearly work contract. While no reason was given, I never felt that HT was the main issue in this.

Since my residency in Cuba was dependent on the job, I was given a month’s notice to leave the country. My family is from Nicaragua and I had lived there for many years before coming to Cuba, so we decided to return there. My commitment to the site remained firm, and having a decent internet connection helps in keeping it updated on schedule. I have returned to Cuba three times for a few weeks each since leaving in June 2009. During those stays I was able to update the site and meet with the HT writers with no problem.

WEEKLY WORKER: Is it risky for those who live in Cuba to write for Havana Times?

C.R.: After initial pressure placed on two HT writers, the contributors have thus far been able to continue without further problems. State security has questioned some of them for matters more related to their environmental or community activism, although the topic of HT has been present.

Information about Cuba falls into two main categories. You get bourgeois anti-communist sources on the one hand, and uncritical pro-Castro websites on the other. Because Havana Times is neither, I suspect that both friends and enemies of the Castro regime are wary of it.

Your suspicion is correct. Extremists on either side don’t like the site. I’ve been accused of being a senior Cuban government agent on the one extreme and attacked for having stopped supporting the Cuban revolution on the other. As an online publication I am trying to promote a combination of conventional and new-style reporting, as well as commentary that reflects critical support for the Cuban revolution, which is not necessarily synonymous with its leaders.

This involves seasoned writers and people from different walks of life who want to share their opinions. We try to present a balance and let the readers make up their minds on the different issues. We try to present different aspects of the situation in Cuba, breaking away from both the official monologue and the ill-intentioned imperial discourse.

Though the extremists criticise us, I truly believe that most people who visit Cuba will find their perceptions and observations more closely reflected in Havana Times than in any of the other online publications at this time.

When I visited Cuba, most young people I spoke to had a low opinion of Fidel Castro, while at the same time holding Ernesto ‘Che’ Guevara in very high esteem. Do you feel that there is continuity between Che’s and Fidel’s politics, or do you think they had radically different visions?

Che’s life in Cuba was during the time of great feats: the toppling of Batista, turning the country’s institutions upside down and starting over, and the most intense attempt by the US to destroy the young revolution. It was a time when most youths in Cuba were inspired and more than willing to give their best to forge a country radically different from that of the past. Che was/is seen as a symbol of that period, and as a selfless hero and visionary. The study of his politics takes a distant back seat and the complexities of his thought and vision are not required reading. I think that he continues to be seen in a favourable light.

Fidel, on the other hand, has been in the driver’s seat for over 50 years. Young Cubans are bombarded with his past and present speeches and writings, which are cited like others would cite from the Bible. He carries with him the weight of both the good and bad decisions made over that long period, and many young people put greater emphasis on the latter since they did not experience the former. A large percentage of young people in today’s Cuba do not feel positive about their present and much less the future. This is a huge difference from their counterparts in the 60s. Therefore, I would agree that Fidel, while publicly receiving massive support, is not quite as popular these days in private – especially among the youth.

Working class people in Cuba have been subsidising the country’s bureaucracy for decades. Their efforts have received little reward, and since the 90s their salaries have been insufficient to meet even basic needs. Raúl Castro has said this in different words, and the economic changes occurring in the country today are supposedly geared to reversing the situation.

Some claim that the Cuban revolution was not genuinely socialist because a minority of guerrillas substituted themselves for the working class. What is your view – can socialism be passed down to the working class from above?

Socialism is power in the hands of the people themselves. I personally do not believe that socialism can be achieved through intermediaries. And time has proven, not only in Cuba, that supposedly ‘short-term intermediaries’ do not end up seeing themselves as short-term and are prone to entrench themselves at the expense of the working class.

Apparently, one million public sector workers will be dismissed over the next one or two years. What are your thoughts about the economic liberalisation – is this only a temporary measure comparable to Lenin’s New Economic Policy, or is it the end of Cuba’s socialist project?

The mass layoffs are the kind of move that makes a company’s share values shoot up on stock markets. President Castro and his lieutenants are telling people that unlike the liberalisation measures taken in the early to mid-90s, which were touted as being temporary, this time they are designed to remain in place.

The government and party have even summoned the main workers’ confederation, the CTC, to be the main supporter of the layoffs and the main persuaders of working class people that such a move is positive for the revolution and for a socialist Cuba.

What can Cuban workers do to defend themselves?

With the leadership of the only trade union in Cuba totally behind the layoffs and reforms, I would say that workers have been left orphaned without any defence. The CTC leadership has for a long time advocated government policies as the best way to defend workers’ rights. The notion that a given government/party policy might be ill-advised is almost never considered.

A great example is that just two years ago the CTC was given the task of convincing workers that it was a good idea to raise the retirement age by five years (for men to 65 and for women to 60). The justification was the ageing of Cuban society and the need for people to stay on the job longer due to a lack of workforce replacements. Now, two years later, the same government and its main advocate are saying there are inflated payrolls with huge numbers of excess workers who need to be laid off as soon as possible.

This does not mean that new forms of worker defence will not emerge, but at this time it is hard to predict.

Likewise, allowing greater opportunities for self-employment and a limited number of small businesses that can hire non-family labour make sense, as the government concentrates on the major industries where there are plenty of problems to resolve.

Nonetheless, if this shift is to succeed, the people who embark on a livelihood outside the state payroll will need assistance for their start-up investments and stocked wholesale markets where they can buy at reasonable prices the products they need. The government says some cooperative businesses will be allowed, but a law that regulates such activity is still forthcoming.

There are those who blame Raúl Castro personally and consider him a traitor to ‘socialism’. Others say that all nationalist-socialist countries inevitably end this way. Our writer, James Turley, concluded in a recent article that “at the end of the day, socialism in one country is socialism in one country – however long it takes, it will only end in tears”. Which view do you agree with? Is it possible for Cuba to be socialist in a capitalist world?

Highly centralised, top-down state-socialism has proven a failure in the long run, while capitalism – despite its longevity – has bred inequality and exploitation and the destruction of our planet. I personally think that Cuba needs to work toward a form of socialism ‘from below’, one that its people consciously decide upon and participate in. Attempting to incorporate aspects from other countries and being creative in both new policies and untried ‘old’, truly socialist ones is where I see most hope.

What are your thoughts on Hugo Chávez’s Bolivarian movement – do you think the Venezuelan connection and Chávez’s oil might save Cuba’s economy?

Venezuela and Chávez’s Bolivarian movement is another very different scenario. I have only been there for two weeks in 2006, so I do not have the practical day-to-day experience that I have had in Cuba and Nicaragua. I do support the effort to spread some of the national wealth around to benefit social and economic programmes for the majority population. At the same time, I also have my reservations about too much authoritarianism. There is a tendency to speak in a monologue of absolute truths that sometimes prove false, or to speak in half-truths.

As to Venezuelan oil and the Cuban connection, the big danger for Cuba would be if Chávez loses the next presidential election or something was to happen to him. I remember during the 2002 coup attempt, the first statement by the de facto president, Pedro Carmona, was that not one more drop of Venezuelan oil would be sent to Cuba.

Such an event would be a huge economic blow to Cuba, just like when the Soviet Union folded or maybe worse. Remember, Cuba pays for much of the oil through in-kind professionals who work in Venezuela. If it had to purchase the same oil products elsewhere, it would be on a cash basis and the country is already saddled with a tremendous debt and liquidity crisis.

When I visited Cuba, I noticed some evidently wealthy Cubans, especially in certain parts of Havana, and striking poverty in other parts. Although the official unemployment rate in Cuba is only 4%, it looked as if half of Havana was jobless. The streets were crowded with jineteros (hustlers) attempting to latch on to the tourist industry by selling black-market cigars, rum or drugs. Prostitution was widespread near hotels and tourist-frequented restaurants. What I saw looked like a class society with vast differences of wealth. Is this a development that only began with the advent of tourism? And do you think that the introduction of the convertible peso (the ‘CUC economy’) was a mistake?

I think the downside of the tourist industry, as well as the allowing of family remittances from abroad, has played a big role in the inequalities that you saw.

Years before coming to live in Cuba, I was always impressed with the revolution’s ability to survive the exceedingly difficult times of the early to mid-90s – far more difficult than the early 30s in the USA, for example. One of the possible reasons for survival was implementing the dollar economy (only more recently it became CUC-based), allowing joint ventures to obtain investment capital, as well as turning to foreign tourism to generate revenue. So I would not call it a mistake. The Cuban economy did lift itself up from the ashes. However, the lasting mid-term effects of what was supposed to be a short-term survival strategy have proved quite demoralising to most Cubans. Many of the HT contributors write about the growing inequality in the country.

Do high-ranking Communist Party officials accumulate personal wealth in a way comparable to politicians in capitalist countries?

That is a difficult one to answer, since there is no real investigative journalism allowed in Cuba. What one can say is that numerous high-ranking officials have been dismissed in the last few years for unexplained reasons, although many people believe these were related to corruption, influence trafficking and other types of malfeasance. The details have never been made public and the Cuban press is not allowed to delve into the issue.

One of your guest writers, college student Daisy Valera, wrote an article about Leon Trotsky.[3] Do you think that Trotsky’s ideas might offer a way out of Cuba’s political and economic crisis?

I would say that the writer believes that Trotsky’s ideas should be studied by Cuban students, especially his critique of bureaucratic, non-participatory socialism. She thinks they may find some solutions or ways of implementing socialism that differ from the course taken thus far by the Cuban leadership.

I would like to quote from the words of the late Celia Hart from an interview in which she answers the question: Why does Trotsky’s theoretical contribution seem so important to you?

“In Cuba anti-Stalinist feeling has always existed, because people thought that communism was the Stalinism of the Communist Party. And the Communist Party was one of the last to join the revolution … But, when Fidel announced in 1961 the socialist character of the Cuban revolution, people said: ‘If Fidel is a communist, you can sign me up too’.

“I always felt that there was something missing in my thinking about the revolution. That’s what I’ve found through reading Trotsky: I discovered that social justice and individual freedom were not contradictory and that we weren’t condemned to choose between them, that socialism could only be built by walking on both feet.”

Trotskyists hold the view that countries such as Cuba are ‘deformed’ or ‘degenerated’ workers’ states. They advocate a political revolution to overthrow the bureaucracy, but keep the planned economy intact. But there are no avenues in bureaucratic socialist countries through which workers might organise such a political revolution. What do you feel must be done in order to establish workers’ power in Cuba?

The Cuban revolution has achieved much in terms of social justice and a sense of some rights. A sustained push for real participation in a more horizontal decision-making process in the workplace and community, the acceptance and encouragement of critical thought, outlets for freedom of expression and space for new forms of organisation would go a long way to creating the conditions necessary for workers to take the reins of their workplaces and the country.

As the “historical leaders” are now well into their late 70s and 80s and a bureaucratic administrative mechanism is well in place to the exclusion of democratic participation by workers, my greatest concern is that we will see a repeat of what occurred in eastern Europe … that we will see the repeat of history.

Can you tell us if there exists any workplace democracy? Are Cuban workers involved in planning and decision-making? And what rights do workers have when in dispute with the company leadership?

Cuban workers are rarely involved in planning and decision-making. They are informed of centralised planning and decisions made from above, but their voices are rarely taken into account. From what I could see at places where I worked, and in those of friends and colleagues, Cuban workers are pretty much defenceless in disputes with the administration.

The union usually takes the company position against the worker. There are cumbersome channels to appeal, but the success rate is very slim and the worker is usually told by friends or family that it is not worth the trouble to protest with the deck stacked against them. Without support from the union, the worker is pretty helpless to defend what he/she believes is an injustice.

Can workers express their opinions about company matters without the fear of being disciplined?

I myself was surprised that my boss routinely sat in on our union meetings in our office. Workers in most workplaces are extremely cautious about expressing their opinions on company matters if they differ from the party/management/union line. Time has told them they could be the victims of reprisals or have their opportunities for advancement cut short.

Is it easy for the management to sack workers?

It used to be more difficult to fire a worker and if that occurred the government was committed to finding them another job. Today, with the coming massive layoffs, that will no longer be the case. Fear of getting fired has become a new reality for Cuban workers.

Castro apologists outside Cuba are enthusiastic about the democratic election system, whereby Cuban workers stand their own candidates. What can you tell us about this?

The Cuban electoral system looks far better on paper than it does in practice. Virtually no campaigning is permitted: the posting of candidate résumés is as far as it goes. Moreover, candidates have to go through an initial party screening process that is seldom discussed.

How much influence do the elected candidates have over government policies?

Those who are finally elected have relatively little influence on policies and in the case of the nation’s parliament the 600-plus legislators meet for only two very brief sessions a year, during which time they are presented with figures and explanations by the different ministers and the top leaders. Many appear to simply go along with what is put forward out of trust in the revolutionary government.

There is the widespread belief that the Cuban bureaucracy is a lot less repressive towards its people than was the case in countries such as the USSR, Poland, East Germany and China. What can you tell us about the levels of political repression?

I never had the opportunity to visit the USSR, China or the eastern European countries before or after their change of systems. I did recently have a long conversation with a Romanian acquaintance who has travelled to Cuba many times. To her, the controls and repression that existed in her country were far greater than what she sees in Cuba. We agreed that this may be one of the reasons that the revolution and its leaders have survived such difficult times.

The rest is pretty much common knowledge … Cuba is a one-party state with official-only media (except for cracks in the internet blogosphere) and a highly vertical decision-making apparatus increasingly dominated by ageing, white, military men. Those who do not support the party or who question decisions by the leaders do not have much public space in society. The level of repression depends on how vocal an individual is. Speaking out at work, school or in neighbourhood meetings or trying to organise a group that differs from the official line can lead to reprisals at work and even affect the families of the individuals involved.

Do you think that Cuban Marxists should work inside the Communist Party of Cuba or organise outside it?

I think Cuban Marxists should do both. For some, depending on their positions and sphere of influence, the best thing they can do is to work from within. Others, whose space has been cut from under them, are better off expressing themselves and organising outside the party.

To what degree is there freedom of expression within the Communist Party?

I was never a party member, so I am not an expert on the freedom of expression within it. What friends and colleagues have told me is that dissenting opinions and the questioning of the top leaders’ ideas or policies is not well received.

I noticed that bookshops in Cuba were packed with Fidel and ‘Che’ anthologies, as well as José Martí and Napoleon Bonaparte biographies – but the works of Marx, Engels and Lenin were nowhere to be seen. I wonder if young people study Marxist theory at school. Or is socialist consciousness in Cuba limited to nationalism and following infallible leaders?

Yes, students are required to study Marxist-Leninist theory, but it is taught from the old Soviet manuals that go in one ear and out the other. The lack of debate or diversity of ideas makes these classes totally boring for most students. I think your last question says it all.

Poland, where I am originally from, had a very bad experience with ‘socialism’. The Communist Party was widely perceived as a party of bureaucrats and liars – arrogant and patronising at best, tyrannical and corrupt at worst. The long-term effect is such that the majority of Poles will not touch anything that resembles socialism in any shape or form – even though the turn to free-market capitalism did not do the country any good. Can you see the same happening in Cuba, or would Cubans choose socialism today?

I would like to give you an analogy from Nicaragua, which like Cuba used a rationing system during its attempt to move toward socialism in the 80s, when it too was under a blockade from the United States. Statistics show that most of the country’s very low-income majority received more basic foods from the ration system than they can buy today on the open market. However, if you ask people if they would prefer to go back to rationing, the vast majority would say no.

After 20 years of especially hard times, I believe many Cubans are at best either tired of hardship – even if it is blamed on the blockade and US aggression – or they do not believe in the system’s ability to solve the country’s serious problems in food, housing, transportation, wages, etc.

The question of what would happen in a hypothetical vote on socialism today I prefer not to answer because a discussion on ‘What is socialism today?’ would need to happen first and involve the population. Socialism is far vaguer, since there are few examples and maybe none that apply to Cuba and its characteristics. Likewise, many of the Cubans I know are aware that not all of the countries that embraced capitalism after the fall of the Berlin Wall are exactly thriving.

Finally, could you tell us what role you would like Havana Times to play in Cuban society and what developments in Cuba you would like to support with the publication of your paper?

Havana Times is an effort to present some of the many different facets that make up the Cuban reality. We give a voice to people usually excluded from the existing media, as well as those wanting to put forth proposals for progressive change. There is also room for those supporting existing policies.

I believe that Cuba, as a country that has invested heavily in tourism, needs media outlets that can serve the information needs of visitors, potential visitors, people following the developments in the country from around the world, as well as locals. We are trying to fill a portion of that void.

Those writing for HT also want the publication to play a role in the debate over where Cuba is today and how the country can move forward out of its present state of stagnation and ‘institutional sclerosis’.

I strongly feel that over the years Cubans have shown a great ability to rebound from difficult situations. It is a society with a generally well educated population and we want to give them a sounding board for their descriptions of daily life and their constructive ideas on making it better.

Notes

Then again, Cuba always stood out among bureaucratic socialist countries for its rich and diverse visual arts. Though Cuban artists have never been put in a stylistic “straitjacket of socialist realism”, there are however certain limitations to their freedom: “There is freedom of artistic creation as long as its content is not contrary to the revolution,” states the constitution of the Republic of Cuba in chapter 5: ‘Education and culture’.
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Cuba-US Should Duplicate Spy Swap

2010-07-09T10:01:00.000-07:00

By Circles Robinson

Russia and the United States made a spy swap today in Vienna, Austria on Friday. The day before, Cuba announced it would release 52 political prisoners in negotiations involving the Catholic Church and Spain.

Both actions show that when there’s a will there’s a way and that seemingly intransigent politicians can actually dialogue effectively when they put pre-conditions aside.

Another similar action that would be a big step towards normalization of relations between the US and Cuba —something that President Obama hinted at during his campaign— would be a prisoner swap with Cuba. This might involve sending US agent Alan Gross (of the defense contractor Development Alternatives, Inc.) back to the US, and Washington finally releasing the Cuban Five.

Gross has been in a Cuban jail since last December and the Cubans imprisoned since September 1998 in the US.

The US government denies Gross was distributing illegal electronic equipment in Cuba saying he was simply on a humanitarian mission, one similar to those his company carries out under contract for the US Defense Department in Afghanistan and Iraq.

Meanwhile, the Cuban Five —considered heroes on the island— have been in US jails for nearly 12 years. Havana claims they had only infiltrated terrorist organizations that are allowed to operate out of Miami against Cuba, but the US says the men conspired to spy on American military installations.

In light of events over the last two days, a similar swap with Gross and the Cuban Five, allowing all to return to their countries and families, would be a historic sign of good will that could lead to the end of a half-century long adversarial relationship between the United States and Cuba.

Cuba Health Travel Insurance Question

2010-03-15T13:34:00.001-07:00

By Circles Robinson

HAVANA TIMES, March 10 — Cuban authorities have created uncertainty in the tourism market due to a new regulation announced earlier this week that all visitors must have a travel health insurance policy approved by or purchased from the Cuban government.

As several Havana Times readers commented on the post “Cuba Imposes Health Insurance on Visitors” it makes complete sense that people traveling to the island have coverage that guarantees Cuba’s ability to treat them at a fair cost and maintain its free health system for locals.

Havana Times has consulted several people in the travel industry who speculate that the price for such a policy to be sold by Cuba as of May 1st will range from 7 Euros (US $10) for a month to 5 Euros (US $7) per day.

With Cuba promoting tourism as one of its top cash revenue sources —over 2.4 million people visited the island in 2009— it makes sense for the authorities to clarify the situation ASAP.

People considering a trip to Cuba need to know if their insurance company is on the list of approved firms and, if not, what it will cost for to buy the Cuban policy and what exactly it covers.

Havana Times: The First Anniversary

2009-11-04T04:45:00.000-08:00

By Circles Robinson

HAVANA TIMES, Oct. 15 — One year ago I was on vacation in Matagalpa, Nicaragua, sitting in a friend’s apartment during the second week of October editing the diary posts and features that would be the first materials to appear in Havana Times. In Spain, our Cuban webmaster was also putting the finishing touches on the initial design.

The idea to start the site actually began years back at my former Havana translating job, where several of us felt the need to take some initiative to get out some better writing from Cuba in English. We believed this would give a broader look at the different realities and complexities of the country, hitting on both its accomplishments and challenges.

We wanted to get away from the hell presented by the foreign mainstream press and the heaven described by the Cuban media.

We first considered a small-format print publication to be made available at hotels on the island, but starting a new publication without institutional support—plus the economic difficulties and bureaucratic controls—made that proposition appear next to impossible. A few years later, frustration finally pushed us to give it a try, but online.

Taking part in several critical discussions between Cuban journalists about the press in their country convinced me that it was time for action. I hoped I would have some supporters and was well aware there would be detractors.

Running a site from inside Cuba is a no easy matter due to the slow dial-up phone Internet connection, if you have one. I had that privilege through my job and as a member of the Cuban Journalists Association (UPEC). For those fond of the figures, the connection in Cuba is between 16 and 50 kbs, depending on where you are and the state of the phone lines.

Other countries had a similar situation one to two decades ago, but most now have much-improved technology. Cuba has lagged behind, officially due to the US blockade, but some believe a lack of desire to offer widespread Internet use is another key factor.

The vast majority of the people writing on the site are Cubans who do not have Internet access, and many could only see the site and their published materials when they dropped by my apartment. Some have e-mail, which facilitates sending in their writing, but not Internet.

No Permission, Work Place Blues

Contrary to what some might think, I didn’t ask anyone for permission to put out HT, and have never had anyone from the Communist Party or the government directly telling me what I should or shouldn’t publish.

Nonetheless, when one of our writers was summarily fired from his job as a professor, one of the reasons given was his writing in Havana Times. A student was close to being expelled for the same reason.

I also had problems at my work place, which I was dependent on for my residency in Cuba.

My boss had been an early advocate of taking initiative with an alternative publication and even collaborated briefly at the beginning of HT. However, once things got off the ground, he threatened me several times, implying that by having started Havana Times without permission from the center’s director —which I never would have received— I should turn a blind eye to his unprofessional behavior at work.

Ultimately, the ugly office scene went from bad to worse, involving my refusal to go along with the nepotism, corruption and poor management practices of my boss, which led to my yearly contract not being renewed, although I was never told why. Having been a “vanguard worker” of the center didn’t even entitle me to a meeting to hear my accusers, much less defend myself.

The ex-boss is one of those “cadres” we’ve talked about previously in HT who are causing so much damage to the Cuban Revolution. Their abuses of power discourage others — especially young people— to take an active part.

They stifle initiative from the rank-and-file while parroting “revolutionary discourse” to impress their higher ups, but gear their efforts to defending personal privileges and perks…kind of like the overly severe preacher who has a dark personal life that needs hiding.

Increased Readership, Now Spanish Too

As Havana Times celebrates its first anniversary, we continue an unabated rise in readership as and I am editing the materials from Nicaragua, where I have lived since my Cuban residency ran out in June.

The Cubans who make up this publication have remained quite committed, some increasing their writing frequency considerably. E-mail, be it their own or a friend or colleagues, continues to make it possible for the writers to get their materials to me for publishing.

For the last couple months we have been receiving between two and three thousand hits a day. Now that we just began putting out a Spanish version, readership has immediately increased another ten to fifteen percent. Reader comments are also up considerably.

I sincerely hope that Havana Times has filled a space for you and has contributed to a better understanding of a highly unique country with the potential to show humanity that “a better world is possible.”

Cleaning House in Cuba

2009-11-04T04:44:00.000-08:00

By Circles Robinson

HAVANA TIMES, August 10 — The Cuban government’s answer to the rampant theft and corruption problem plaguing the socialist economy is a new comptroller’s office, something that exists in many countries.

The lax administrative and accounting controls present in much of the country’s state-run economy are no secret to anyone, much less to the nation’s leaders.

With a major drive taking place to improve work efficiency and productivity and to cut imports at a time of international economic crisis, confronting a problem that has permeated all strata of Cuban society is an urgent but equally difficult task.

President Raul Castro sounded the alarm when he took office in February 2008, when he made it known that tolerance of misuse of state resources was on the out. Since then, little guys scraping to get by, on up to several of the country’s top ministers and political figures in much larger illicit operations, have fallen from grace after being accused of theft or corruption.

The president has made battling such un-revolutionary behavior a priority, while also recognizing that low salaries and a lack of incentives for greater initiative have affected job motivation and efficiency.

Trusting more in the businesses run by the military, Castro has put several former Army administrators in key positions in the civilian state economy.

Nonetheless, neither the military nor the civilian economy is held accountable to the public as neither the workers nor the general population are privy to the economic performance information that would make possible an educated evaluation of efficiency.

Instead, Cubans are accustomed to being told to blindly trust the judgment of their leaders and the administrators they in turn appoint to manage public resources.

The other catch-all factor has been the ever present “enemy to the north” with its blockade and other attempts to strangle the island’s economy, which serve corrupt officials as a shield.

The New Watch Dog

This weekend Two months ago the government announced that the Comptroller’s Office — conceived as a watch dog over the use of state funds and resources — would be a place where citizens can file complaints on such abuses and expect to get action. The office is headed by legislator Gladys Maria Brejerano Portela, just appointed a week earlier ago.

Created by the legislature, the office will receive and follow up on complaints filed by citizens on the misuse of public resources and other illegalities and acts of corruption, said Jose Luis Toledo Santander, president of the parliament’s Constitutional and Juridical Affairs Committee.

Virtually every Cuban, foreign resident or visitor is in one way or another regularly taken in by the different income-supplement scams that have grown to become as normal as rice and beans for most people, whether they like it or not.

In everyday life, very few people even bother to complain about being overcharged or getting taken on the weight or quality of a product. Instead, they often show understanding or even sympathy toward whoever is doing the taking to make a sorely needed buck.

At the same time, many people speculate privately that for so much theft to take place so rampantly on the ground level, there have to be accomplices higher up — from supervisors to managers, to executives, on up to ministers.

Will people now take advantage of the opportunity to file a complaint that supposedly could bring some action? Or will they continue to avoid picking a fight with a boss or higher up that in the past has often had the cards stacked in their favor.

Some Airline Bomb Plotters Go to Jail

2009-11-04T04:43:00.001-08:00

By Circles Robinson

HAVANA TIMES, Sept. 14 — Three men accused of plotting to blow up several planes in the UK were sentenced to long prison terms on Monday. Meanwhile, across the Atlantic in Miami, two men who bragged about bombing a passenger plane that killed 72 persons are free to continue conspiring to commit more terrorist acts.

Assad Sarwar, Abdulla Ahmed Ali and Tanvir Hussain were sentenced to 36, 40 and 32 years in prison for the plot they were unable to carry out to blow up seven transatlantic flights from London, reported The Guardian.

The plot was defused on August 10, 2006 and led to restrictions on the carrying of liquids on many flights around the globe.

Meanwhile, Cuban-exiles Orlando Bosch and Luis Posada Carriles continue free in Miami despite ample documentation of their having orchestrated the 1976 bombing of a Cuban passenger plane that killed all 72 persons on board off the coast of Barbados.

Declassified files and other evidence point to the reason Bosch and Posada are free is that they worked clandestinely for the US government when “their” bombing took place.

Despite being classified as dangerous terrorists by the FBI, numerous US administrations have protected them under a “good terrorist” policy.

Cuba’s Dual Purpose Newspapers

2009-11-04T04:41:00.000-08:00

By Circles Robinson

HAVANA TIMES, August 14 — Every few months toilet paper becomes scarce in the Cuban capital, where people are accustomed to cutting up old newspapers to fill the gap. This deficit can last for weeks, until the centralized importation mechanism manages to make another purchase and the inflexible distribution chain supplies it to the stores.

Several news publications, starting with USA Today, have run stories on the current shortage. (http://blogs.usatoday.com/ondeadline/2009/08/deep-doodoo-cuba-short-of-toilet-paper.html)

When toilet paper finally appears again, lines will form at shopping centers and other stores for consumers to stock up. Everybody knows the routine.

Why does this problem recur at least a few times a year?

While such information is not made known to the public, I believe it symbolizes the gaps between producers or importers, distributors, retailers and the bureaucrats signing the checks —virtually all State-owned companies and institutions.

The rigid specialization of each aspect of getting the product on store shelves means that if any rung in the ladder fails or somebody miscalculates, the public suffers the consequences, since the other rungs are not empowered to act on their own.

Likewise, when making purchases on such a large scale it’s easy to make a mistake on the quantities or the distribution. Since purchase plans often appear to be overly strict, any error is paid for by 11.2 million Cubans. If anyone takes the time to complain they can expect the US blockade to inevitably be the catch-all excuse for the situation.

And while Cuba’s newspapers do the job when the TP is out, they too are scarce and don’t come close to meeting the demand.

USA Today noted Friday that Cuba imports TP and produces its own, but doesn’t have the raw materials to make it at this moment. The government is short on cash, notes the newspaper, adding that during the current global economic crisis Cuba is spending more for imports and receiving less for its exports.

Cristina Fernandez on Honduras Coup

2009-07-08T21:59:00.000-07:00

By Circles Robinson

The June 28 military coup in Honduras has captivated a lot of people’s attention around the globe and especially in Latin America, and there’s plenty of reason why.

It wasn’t that long ago when many of the continent’s nations were ruled by ruthless leaders whose power stemmed from similar actions.

The 9/11/73 coup in Chile is one of the many that remains fresh in my mind as if it happened yesterday: Images too vivid to forget; too many lessons to be learned. The one most present was surely repeated in Honduras last Sunday.

A friend was on a train traveling from Chile to Argentina on Sept. 11, 1973, when she passed by a car where a group of businessmen were opening numerous bottles of champagne. They were so delighted that my friend couldn’t help but to knock on their door and ask what they were celebrating.

After hearing that President Salvador Allende was dead and his government overthrown, she was filled with terror. And it wasn’t for nothing; her children, husband and dreams were back in Chile and totally vulnerable to the reign of terror that would follow.

Late Saturday night July 4, and on into Sunday morning, the Organization of American States (OAS) held a special meeting to work out a common approach to the critical situation in Honduras.

Foreign ministers from most of the 34-member countries were present as well as the presidents of Argentina, Paraguay and Honduras: Cristina Fernandez Kirchner, Fernando Lugo and Manuel Zelaya.

I watched the entire session broadcast live on Telesur TV. By far the speech that caught my attention the most came from Cristina Fernandez Kirchner.

Today, I received the transcription thanks to the permanent OAS mission of Argentina. Wanting to share it with Havana Times readers we quickly went to work translating it.

To read the speech by Argentine President Cristina Fernandez Kirchner at the OAS click on: http://www.havanatimes.org/?p=11319

Honduras Showdown on July 4 Weekend

2009-07-04T13:50:00.000-07:00

By Circles Robinson

HAVANA TIMES, July 4 — The Honduran military and its civilian face that staged a coup last Sunday told the OAS Secretary General Manuel Insulza on Friday they have no intention of giving up power in the impoverished Central American country.

A state of siege —that here includes a curfew, strict media censorship and general deterioration of the human rights situation— is par for the course during such events. The Cuban media is giving around the clock coverage of the crisis.

The cold reception to Insulza and his call for turning back the clock a week, sets the stage for a larger conflict on Sunday July 5, if Insulza, joined by presidents Cristina Kirchner (Argentina) and Rafael Correa (Ecuador), accompany Zelaya back to Honduras as planned.

The military-civilian government says it will arrest Zelaya and charge him with 18 violations of the law.

The de-facto leaders’ reaction to Insulza reminds one of the Carter years (1977-1980) when cruel dictatorships controlled a good portion of Latin America and the Georgia peanut farmer campaigned publicly for respect for human rights.

Knowing full well that the US under Nixon and Ford and previous presidents had supported the violent takeovers and killings of center and leftwing opposition that followed, rulers like Pinochet in Chile, Videla, Viola and Galtieri in Argentina, Alfredo Stroessner in Paraguay and Somoza in Nicaragua, etc., gave the Carter rhetoric the thumbs down.

They rightly gambled that Washington was not going to take any concrete action that would reverse the coups and open the door to leftwing electoral victories. Kennedy had promised there would be no more Cuba’s in Latin America and that doctrine still prevailed.

If Micheletti and the Honduran military hold firm in the face of possible severe economic sanctions and diplomatic isolation, the ball will be in the court of the OAS, the UN and other regional bodies like the Bolivarian Alternative for the Americas (ALBA) to up the ante or let the coup succeed by default.

As for the Obama administration —which like Carter in his time, has so far offered only rhetoric against the coup— the million dollar question is whether there are any teeth in Barack’s bite?

Cuba Needs Initiative but…

2009-06-27T11:39:00.000-07:00

by Circles Robinson

HAVANA TIMES — Like the seemingly never ending US blockade that attacks Cuba’s economy from without, from the inside a corrosion process is gradually eating away at the relatively young 50-year revolution.

Nonetheless, taking initiative to stop the rust is much easier said than done.

Top Cuban leaders have noted repeatedly that to meet the challenges facing the nation, the country is in dire need of greater productivity, better quality services, and more efficient use of resources to reduce imports.

All these things require new ideas, methods and creativity. At the same time there is a conservative political class of managers at most workplaces and government offices who fear and resist any attempts to change the status quo. Anybody who has lived and worked in Cuba knows what I am talking about.

This group of “cuadros” (cadres), known for their political loyalty to their superiors, exist to guarantee the hierarchical top-down command structure, taken on decades ago in the face of the very real US treat.

While it might not have been the initial intention, their function often serves to stifle participation with the result being that many workers in socialist Cuba feel little different from their disempowered counterparts under capitalism.

Several factors influence the resistance to change from the bosses that consider themselves loyal lieutenants of the Revolution, including suspicion of new ideas as well as a defense of petty (but cherished) privileges and perks, and managerial authority.

A manager’s control over material resources, or access to them, in a country with great shortages can also be a big plus if that person’s ethics run adrift. And this has become so commonplace in today’s Cuba that chains of abuse of power and theft have become the norm instead of the exception, a reality President Raul Castro has pledged to fight.

The role of the media

I believe the media plays an important role in making visible these serious problems affecting the Cuban Revolution.

When we started Havana Times our aim was to put into practice a call made by the Cuban Journalists Association (UPEC) at its VIII Congress last July to leave behind the self-censorship that has characterized the local press.

But taking initiative that could stimulate controversy is also risky in the media, although not in the sense of Mexico, Guatemala, Columbia and many other countries. In Cuba no journalist has been murdered since Ecuadorian reporter Carlos Bastidas Arguello in 1958, the year before the Cuban Revolution.

However, the drive to write about everyday life and problems in Cuba, and their possible causes, can quickly prove damaging to a writer or editor’s career. The fact is that managers in the Cuban media also want to avoid rocking the boat.

Ask young reporters working for the local media what happens when they take initiative to write about thorny or controversial issues in a more than superficial way.

One statistic illustrates the answer: While in countries like the United States, reporters and other newspaper workers have been laid off by the thousands during the current economic crisis, in tiny Cuba there are currently several hundred journalist jobs nationwide waiting to be filled.

Aside from the country’s aging population, one of the main reasons for the vacancies is that the profession, and how it is practiced, has little attraction to young Cubans. The media is seen as an ultra-rigid, monotonous, highly controlled field.

But a lack of workplace motivation is not only present in the media; it runs throughout many sectors of society. Many people agree that the biggest factor is the low salaries, but one could add that the opportunity for taking greater initiative could be a way to improve morale. People might then feel like active participants on the job, rather than alienated and indifferent, while waiting to be told what to do.

Hillary Tough on Cuba Spies

2009-06-10T05:43:00.000-07:00

by Circles Robinson

When you have spent a half century trying to overthrow a neighboring country’s government, assassinate its leaders and officials, and umpteen other types of sabotage, it should be no surprise that somebody’s conscious might go astray from the norm.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton expressed outrage this week about the former government employee Walter Kendal Myers, 72 and his wife Gwendolyn Myers 71, having passed on classified information to the Cuban government, which they reportedly admired.

Clinton did not say whether the Myers put in jeopardy terrorist actions planned against Cuba by Miami exiles with US government support, a practice that has been steadfast policy practically since Fidel Castro rode into Havana in 1959.

"I have directed our security personnel to review every possible security program we have, every form of vetting and clearance that we employ in the State Department, to determine what more we can do to guard against this kind of outrageous violation," Clinton told reporters at a news conference in Indonesia, reported Reuters.

Myers and his wife were arrested and charged with conspiracy to act as illegal agents of the Cuban government and conspiracy to communicate classified information to Havana. A hearing on Wednesday will determine whether the retired couple —who pleaded not guilty— will remain in prison until their trial.

The Myers, who live in northwest Washington D.C. face a possible 35-year sentence that would all but assure their death in prison.

The Obama administration is the 11th consecutive US government to maintain an economic blockade on Cuba and continues to forbid its citizens from traveling to the Caribbean island nation without special Treasury Dept. permission.

Bills are currently in committees in both US House of Representatives and the Senate to relax portions of the blockade and eliminate the travel ban. President Obama has not supported nor said whether he would sign such bills if they reach his desk.

On Tuesday, the Jamaica Business Observer quoted Daniel Erikson of the Inter-American Dialogue and Sarah Stephens for Centre for Democracy in the Americas as saying at a conference in Kingston that at least the travel ban on US citizens wanting to visit Cuba may be lifted “by September or October.”

At the same time Stephens said “It will be very tough to get to that final ending of the embargo (called a blockade in Cuba) anytime soon. But I think that the lifting of the travel ban is real.”

Numerous business and travel related groups lobbying Congress to end the travel ban believe that an influx of US visitors to Cuba will eventually pressure the Obama administration to restore normal diplomatic and trade relations with the neighboring island.

For more on Cuba check out www.havanatimes.org

Obama’s Stand on Cuba

2009-04-11T05:21:00.000-07:00

by Circles Robinson

This month’s upcoming Americas Summit is a perfect chance to see inside the crystal ball of future US-Latin American relations.

With the US election campaign long over, and President Obama to reach his first 90 days in office while at the April 17-19 meeting in Trinidad and Tobago, the time to act is now, not later.

While there is no indication of much policy change in the more complicated near east, except for a slight shift in focus from Iraq to the occupation of Afghanistan, Latin America is the one place where numerous analysts are saying Obama is offered a low-hanging fruit ripe for the picking.

The analogy refers to rapprochement with Cuba and an about-face from a half-century policy of hostility towards the Caribbean neighbor. Doing so would please most Americans, US business people and Cubans and upset few people outside of the hardcore Miami exile crowd.

A CNN survey taken on April 3 found that 71 percent of those polled said that the U.S. should reestablish diplomatic relations with Cuba, while only 27 percent opposed such a move.

However, that low-hanging fruit—written up in US newspaper editorials as a win-win situation for both countries, and a move that would do a lot to improve the poor US image throughout the continent—is not going to be there forever.

Ripe fruit either is picked or eventually drops and rots. It takes a full year for such a delicious opportunity to present itself again and if a storm in the wrong season occurs, it could take two years for a similar fruit to appear.

Out of Touch Ambassador

Obama’s advisor, Ambassador Jeffrey Davidow, who heads the administration’s prep team for Trinidad and Tobago, has shown the same disrespect for the region that has earned the US such a bad name.

Davidow accused Cuba of being the only undemocratic nation in the hemisphere, the “odd man out,” and thus should not be part of the Summit or its agenda. He speaks as if these are the former times when the US was capable of pressuring the hemisphere to accept its dictates.

"I think it would be unfortunate, actually, to lose the opportunity for this hemisphere - at the beginning of the Obama administration - to set down some guidelines and make some progress jointly by getting distracted by the Cuban issue," Davidow said at a conference on Thursday.

Such an attitude is provoking a whirlwind of meetings and discussions between the different Latin American leaders that could lead to pressing Obama to show his real commitment to change in the US relationship with the region.

Obama already got a dose of friendly advice from Brazil’s Lula da Silva at the White House in March. Lula, who some say may be playing a behind the scenes mediation role, has publicly advised Obama to engage with Cuba and end the blockade.

The same message of the need to open dialogue was brought home by seven US Representatives, led by Barbara Lee (D-CA), who just go back from five days in Havana meeting with top Cuban authorities including President Raul Castro and former President Fidel Castro.

Ambassador Davidow is forgetting that while Cuba was indeed isolated 50 years ago, when the embargo was imposed, it’s now the US that is practically alone in the hemisphere and the world on its Cuba policy.

Just last November, 185 countries voted in the United Nations in favor of a Cuban resolution demanding the US end its blockade. Only two countries joined the US in opposing: Israel and Palau, a tiny former US colony.

The Blockade not the Travel Ban is the Big Issue

My friends in the US, who supported Obama, hope he is working behind the scenes towards dialogue with Cuba and change in US policy. Privileging Cuban-Americans to visit their families or even allowing US citizens to visit Cuba is not the biggest issue for Cuba or Latin America. After all, that is just punishment on US citizens by their government.

What the region’s leaders are demanding is an end to the economic blockade that has hampered Cuba’s development and caused much suffering.

Somehow, Cuba has still managed to provide an incredible amount of medical, educational and sports training assistance to dozens of countries abroad, in a rare policy of “sharing the little it has and not just leftovers or extras.”

The Americas Summit should provide a better picture of what “change” really means and what is just campaign rhetoric. I, like many of my friends in the US, am hoping for the best.

Is Cuba in Her Universe?

2009-03-31T04:34:00.000-07:00

By Circles Robinson

Miss Universe, Dayana Mendoza, is back home from the US Naval Base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and she says she “had a wonderful time” visiting several days with the soldiers as part of the U.S.O. Armed Forces Entertainment Tour.

Occupied territories and prison camps must be a lot of fun when you don’t have to meet the people whose land was taken or the inmates who have faced years of abuse and mistreatment.

One of the highlights according to Dayana’s blog: http://www.missuniverse.com/missuniverse/blog.php was the military dogs who gave her “a very nice demonstration of their skills.”

Something tells me her visit with the cute dogs was a little different than the canine-human encounters inside the Guantanamo Bay Detention Camp, established in 2002.

However, don’t get me wrong, Mendoza who traveled with Miss USA Crystle Stewart, did get a glimpse of the prisoner conditions: “We visited the detainee camps and we saw the jails, where they shower, how the recreate themselves with movies, classes of art, books. It was very interesting,” said Mendoza.

After Miss Universe got a big welcoming lunch it was off to “one of the bars they have here on the base.” There, Dayana and Crystle heard first hand from the soldiers about life on Gitmo.

“We had a wonderful time, this truly was a memorable trip! We hung out with the guys from the East Coast [of the base] and they showed us the boat inside and out, how they work and what they do… it was a loooot of fun!”

One of the highlights for Miss Universe was: “We took a ride with the Marines around the land to see the division of Gitmo and Cuba while they informed us with a little bit of history.” She didn’t elaborate on the content of the lessons.

The US military has held Guantanamo Bay since 1903 on what Cuba considers a totally illegitimate perpetual lease.

“I didn’t want to leave, it was such a relaxing place, so calm and beautiful,” said Mendoza who grew up in Venezuela but has lived in the US as a model for several years.

Miss Universe did not express any interest in visiting the part of Cuba governed by the Cubans. Perhaps because that part of the Caribbean island nation doesn’t participate in the contest that made her famous, or could it be that Cuba and Dayana are not really in the same universe?

Changes Leave You Wondering

2009-03-10T16:19:00.000-07:00

The World Baseball Classic is diverting my attention these days but there is still a buzzing in my head, wondering what has just happened in Cuba where the two youngest key figures in the government were removed in disgrace and numerous other changes were made.

VP Carlos Lage was a virtual prime minister, and former foreign minister Felipe Perez Roque defended Cuba at the United Nations and numerous other forums for the last decade.

Like most Cubans and foreigners that follow events on the island, the fall of both on March 2nd, and their being accused of abusing their posts and pleasing the enemy, was not something to take lightly.

The replacement a few days before without explanation of Fernando Remirez de Estenoz as the Communist Party’s top International Relations officer was another big surprise.

Lage and Perez Roque for the government, and Remirez for the Party, had been the most visible faces of Cuba’s contact with most governments and political parties since I’ve lived in Cuba.

The Surprise Wasn’t the Restructuring

President Raul Castro had said when he first took office a year earlier that he would be making changes to streamline the government, requesting time to do so. It was also understood that in the restructuring new figures would be appointed to some of the top posts.

In that light, several of the changes like fusing the ministries of External Commerce (MICE) and Foreign Investment and Economic Collaboration (MINVEC) and the Food and Fishing Ministries came as no surprise.

Raul Castro comes from a military background with a half century heading the Revolutionary Armed Forces (FAR). Besides defending the nation, that institution has a reputation of being more disciplined and successful in its economic ventures.

Therefore, it’s also no surprise that the President has put some of his most trusted generals in key posts to oversee the economy and other aspects of Cuban life, especially in these difficult times of world economic crisis to which Cuba is not immune.

However, the information to make an intelligent evaluation of Cuba’s civilian vs. military led economic performance, the pluses and minus of both, is simply not available to journalists or the general population.

Most disturbing are the cases of Lage and Perez Roque. Rumors abound as to what the deposed officials actually did. Some say more information is forthcoming and others feel it could take months or longer.

While the bats are swinging in Mexico and San Diego and the air clears as to how far Cuba will go in the World Baseball Classic, I know I’m not alone in also hoping some clarity will emerge soon as to what happened in the political arena.

For more on the subject see articles published at: www.havanatimes.org

Cuba Travel Ban Could be Doomed

2009-02-05T15:48:00.000-08:00

By Circles Robinson

A bipartisan group of US Congress people jumped the gun on President Obama on Wednesday to change US policy towards Cuba.

The first step, contained in House Bill H.R.874, would lift the travel ban on US citizens wanting to go to Cuba.

While attention around a possible change in Cuba policy has focused on whether President Obama would make a bold move to hold face-to-face, unconditioned talks with Raul Castro, Congress may be the scene of earlier action.

During his campaign President Obama promised to ease restrictions on Cuban-Americans to travel to Cuba and send home remittances. While he did not commit himself to taking the ban off the rest of US citizens from traveling to the island, many analysts believe he would not veto such legislation if passed by Congress.

The bipartisan nature of the bill stems from a desire of a growing number of legislators and governors to break fifty years of icy relations and open up trade with Cuba. Restoring Americans right to travel is considered to be a first step in that direction.

Currently US citizens need hard to get special permission to legally visit the island from the Office of Foreign Assets Control of the US Treasury Department. They are subject to heavy fines or possible imprisonment for going illegally.

The four Democrats and four Republicans co-sponsoring the bill submitted by William Delahunt (D-MA) are Rosa L. De Lauro (D-CT); Donna F. Edwards (D-MD); Jo Ann Emerson (R-MO); Sam Farr (D-CA); Jeff Flake (R-AZ); Jerry Moran (R-KS); Ron Paul (R-TX) and James P McGovern (D-MA).

Should Younger Cubans Have a Voice?

2009-02-04T05:01:00.000-08:00

By Circles Robinson

Running an alternative website in a country not used to such endeavors is a complicated matter. Cuban readers of Havana Times (http://www.havanatimes.org/) are surprised to find a source that is pro-revolution but at the same time is not apologetic and prints criticism —sometimes strong criticism— of different government policies.

A fellow editor reminded me the other day that Cuban media professionals draw a danger line for themselves, based on their own or others’ past experiences. The line keeps them from stepping onto shaky ground, where some higher up might perceive their subject matter or focus as too controversial or too negatively critical of an official, institution or organization.

The rationale is always that internal problems should not be divulged or discussed by the Cuban media, because such writing “helps the enemy.”

In its “Diaries from Havana” section, Havana Times brings readers slices of Cuban life from a wide variety of citizens. Some of the younger contributors present a bleaker view of the country and express an urgent desire for changes.

Some of my over-fifty friends resent such a tone, questioning their unconstrained criticism of government policies or structures. They believe the youth should go easy on what they see as dysfunctional aspects of the country’s political and economic system and day-to-day hardships, taking into account the blockade and half century of hostility from the United States as sufficient reason to do so.

Motivated by sincere concern, some colleagues have warned me that by publishing these young voices I might be stepping too close to the imaginary line that no authority has defined but everybody knows is there.

Play the Game or Silence

The issue of whether young people should be allowed a voice if it differs from the establishment is one of contention. You get the feeling there are many in positions of power that dismiss the younger generation’s vision of life on the island, arguing that they lack experience and historical perspective, condemning them to either play the game or silence.

The resulting lack of participation in this society for such young people is a glaring reality. Despite the local media’s glorification of the rebel youth of the 1950s, who risked their lives to break all the rules and challenged the Batista Dictatorship, the young rebels of today are criticized instead of encouraged.

While their parents or grandparents may have dedicated their lives to the victory, survival and advance of the Cuban Revolution, many from the younger generations —while respecting their elders’ feats— show a disconnect between those historic struggles and the concrete incongruities of today.

The result is a considerable number of young people alienated from work or study and who privately express an ardent desire to leave the country; many young professionals have that same wish. The emigration of these talented young people only fuels the troubling situation of Cuba’s aging population.

The difficult economic situation, with severe material shortages, is not the only reason for the desire to emigrate. Young people who would like the country’s socialist system to be more participative and less dogmatic want public debate on the great contradictions they see in their society. Instead, they find themselves on the sidelines, with their main concerns considered taboo subjects in educational institutions and at workplaces.

I don’t think that the disgruntled have all the answers, but I do defend their right and need to express themselves and I try to encourage them to put forth their ideas and make suggestions. The failure to allow such critical feedback is often cited as one of the reasons for the collapse of the European socialist camp.

So, if you get a chance to read the Havana Times diary posts you may find some that seem quite dark and depressing. But I assure you that what is expressed is representative of numerous other young people in the 16-40 range to whom I have listened.

Cuban 5 Case to US Supreme Court

2009-01-30T19:46:00.000-08:00

By Circles Robinson

If the prison camp the US maintains at the Guantanamo Naval Base on occupied Cuban territory is a dark spot that Barack Obama wants to erase on the country’s international image, the holding of five Cubans as political prisoners at federal prisons for over a decade has been equally repudiated, although much less publicized.

As of Friday, the Cuban Five case is now in the hands of the US Supreme Court after the defense team led by attorney Thomas Goldstein of Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP filed their appeal.

Shortly after taking office, Obama signed his first executive order to begin a process to close down the Guantanamo prison. Now it remains to be seen how his administration will act in the Cuban Five case, considered by Havana to be more about a half century of hostile politics than justice.

The Cuban Five were accused of spying in their 2001 politically-charged Miami trial, but any evidence of such conduct was withheld from the defense with the US government alleging “classified information.”

During the court case, the defendants admitted they had gathered information on the plans of Cuban exile groups allowed by US authorities to train and operate in Southern Florida in preparation for attacks on the island or its interests aboard.

It’s now public record that the Cuban government shared intelligence gathered by the Cuban Five with the FBI back in 1998. However, instead of detaining the terrorists, the FBI arrested the informants, who have now been in jail for over 10 years.

The hypocrisy of such an action became even more evident when the Bush administration began its war on terrorism after 9/11.

The UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention and jurists from around the world have said Washington acted in bad faith in the Cuban Five case, which is now reaching the final rung of a long drawn out appeals process.

Doubting the impartiality of a court system influenced by politics, the Cuban government has maintained throughout that pressure from US public opinion could affect the dynamic of the case. However, the media silence has made it difficult for most people to learn about the injustice.

With President Obama hinting in his campaign of new possibilities for dialogue to break the icy US-Cuba relations under Bush, there’s no doubt that this case will be one of the agenda items of any negotiations, as well as the “dissidents” that Washington has said should be released from prison in Cuba.

A decision from the Supreme Court justices on whether to take the appeal under consideration is expected this spring, reported CNN. If the case is added to the docket, oral arguments would be held in the fall.

To read more on the Cuban Five appeal lodged Friday at the US Supreme Court click: http://www.freethefive.org/legalFront/LFAppeal013009.htm

Cuba’s Embargo Quandary

2009-01-11T05:54:00.000-08:00

By Circles Robinson

As Inauguration Day approaches many Cubans and foreign analysts are wondering: Does the Cuban government really want Barack Obama to end the half-century US blockade of the island?

This is a question I have been asked a number of times by people visiting Cuba. I have also discussed it with many locals.

On the surface it’s easy to answer yes, that Cuba longs for the day when it can have normalized relations with its big neighbor to the North. But inside I’m always left wondering, and most of my Cuban friends and acquaintances are not so sure either.

Authentic Protests

It’s public record that the Cuban government and people tenaciously resist the devastating blockade and have fought it tooth and nail in all international forums, led by the annual battle in the United Nations.

Last year, during the October 29 vote on the blockade, 185 countries advised Washington to scrap its timeworn policy, while only Israel and Palau supported a continuation.

Cuba has made it clear that its development has been greatly stifled by the blockade provisions that include extra-territorial sanctions against US and third country companies that do business with the island. The losses are conservatively quantified by Havana at over US $90 billion — over twice the island’s GDP.

The “collective punishment” inflicted by Washington takes on both a tragic and at times ridiculous nature. It is both appalling and unfair when Cuba is denied raw materials to produce medicines or buy hospital equipment.

The absurd prevails when a businessman is punished for selling water purifiers to the city of Havana, or a retired American couple is hounded by the US Treasury Department for having toured the island on bicycles.

The long-term intent of the blockade policy has been to wage a war of attrition against the civilian population, whipping up discontent against the government.

But even many Cuban-Americans opposed to the Castro administration now agree that such a policy has clearly failed to produce the desired results. The government remains intact, despite the peoples’ suffering. Waiting for Havana to capitulate now appears a lost cause, even to many members of the US Congress.

Justification for Deficiencies

Meanwhile, while recognizing the extensive damage done by the blockade, it’s also fair to say that the Cuban government has reaped some benefits as well.

The siege mentality it has produced in the country works in favor of unity and government support, providing a proven rallying cry that can move the masses.

The blockade has also provided a blanket that covers nearly across-the-board management deficiencies, including the poor controls and low productivity in the nation’s economy, which President Raul Castro has acknowledged on several occasions.

Ask a fifth grader anywhere on the island why Cuba doesn’t have more milk, beef or cheese, school books, toys or automobiles and the answer will undoubtedly be “por el bloqueo”, because of the blockade.

Why are buildings crumbling in parts of Havana for a lack of maintenance? You guessed it: the blockade. Why are salaries so low? The blockade; or Why do a large number of young people want to emigrate? Once again, the blockade.

Good Neighbor Policy or New Anti-Cuba Strategy

Whether Obama will move to end the blockade is open to speculation. Another question is what the repercussions of such a move would be in Cuba.

The hardliner exiles in Miami, of course, continue to oppose the idea. They claim that letting up on the pressure would provide additional resources to the government and the bureaucratic elite, thus strengthening the “brutal Communist dictatorship.” This group however is rapidly waning in both numbers and influence.

Some legislators on Capital Hill sincerely want a good neighbor policy and believe that normalized relations can benefit both nations.

A much larger number of Democrats and Republicans favor letting up on the travel ban and some or all commercial sanctions but with a different agenda. Instead of a way to promote mutually beneficial exchange, they see it as a smart business move and a new strategy to rid the continent of the Cuban socialist experiment through an onslaught of US tourists, executives and capital.

Those congress people also believe that without the blockade the Cuban population will point to their government’s failings and demand it make immediate changes to improve their wellbeing.

Is Cuba prepared for the estimated 3.4 million additional visitors each year and the influences of a consumer society that would come with them? Are the island’s institutions strong enough to resist investments that may not be in the country’s overall interests, like McDonalds and Wal-Marts immediately springing up around the island? Will music and other cultural expressions from Miami, New York and L.A. take over the Cuban stages and airwaves?

These are just a few of the scenarios that have many Cubans wondering about an uncertain future. At this point I don’t think anybody has all the answers. Let’s take a look again in a few months.

Fidel to Lead Cuba’s Golden Anniversary

2008-12-28T07:33:00.000-08:00

By Circles Robinson

Fidel Castro will play the lead role at the 50th anniversary celebration of the Cuban Revolution on New Years Day in Santiago de Cuba, whether or not his health allows him to be there personally.

Fidel and his group of bearded rebels entered the city of Santiago on the first day of 1959, just hours after Gen. Fulgencio Batista fled the country. A week later they would ride triumphantly into an expectant Havana.

From then on Fidel and the revolution he brought to Cuba would become major protagonists of world history. They would inspire many supporters around the globe, especially in Latin America and Africa, along with many detractors - including a string of 10 US administrations that have gone to extremes in their failed attempts to isolate Cuba and eliminate its top leader.

To the chagrin of the old-guard exile community in Miami, on this 50th anniversary, Mr. Castro’s influence and stature as a world leader will overshadow any deficiencies in the Cuban political, social and economic systems that they have combated as passionately as he has defended.

Despite overwhelming obstacles, the Cuban revolution has fostered a well-educated and healthy population; an environment that isn’t overrun by cars and pollution; an economy that functions without commercial advertising or credit cards; a thriving Cuban culture, and a strong sense of history. It has also made important inroads in the long-term battle against racism and sexism. These accomplishments have earned the Revolution praise from around the globe, from people who do not worship the marketplace as the regulator of people’s destinies.

Mr. Castro’s clarity of vision is best exemplified by his forecast several years ago that the bubble of speculative finances in the United States was going to burst and hurt masses of people around the world.

Fidel was also a leading voice among those who predicted the damage foreign debt would cause underdeveloped countries back in the 1980s and warned that the privatization schemes that swept the continent were nothing but a new manifestation of economic colonization.

However, Cuba faces many problems as well. Both supporters and detractors would agree that its economy operates at far below its capacity, for a wide-range of reasons, and that many of the younger generations are pessimistic about their future.

The relatively young Cuban Revolution is clearly an open book, and now other leaders including Fidel’s brother Raul, the current president, face the tough challenges of guiding the country within a world in serious recession while at the same time entering a new era.

When Fidel first set out with his tiny rebel army to challenge the US-backed dictator, only those close enough to know his determination and strategic prowess could have imagined that he would be presiding over such a celebration as the one set for New Years Day 2009 in Santiago de Cuba.

For a more detailed look at the 50 years of the Cuban Revolution check out: http://www.havanatimes.org/?p=3341

Cuba Makes Overture to Obama

2008-12-18T16:02:00.000-08:00

By Circles Robinson

Cuban President Raul Castro isn’t waiting for Barack Obama to take office on January 20th to make the first overture that could lead to defrosting US-Cuba relations.

During his first trip abroad since taking office in February, Castro told the press in Brazil that he was willing to free dozens of prisoners that Washington calls “dissidents” in return for the release of the Cuban Five, who have spent more than 10 years in US prisons.

In saying “Let’s do gesture for gesture,” the Cuban leader makes an attractive offer that would please his compatriots on both sides of the Florida Straights, reported the BBC.

“We'll send them with their families and everything. Give us back our five heroes. That is a gesture on both parts," said Mr. Castro.

Who Are the Prisoners?

Washington’s “dissidents” have been the cornerstone of the Bush administration policy to try and build an internal opposition to the governments of Fidel Castro and now his brother Raul. They routinely received funds from Miami based groups and the US Interests Section in Havana and many were arrested during a crackdown on March 18, 2003.

Working for the enemy is not taken lightly in Cuba. The following month they were tried and received stiff sentences of up to 27 years in prison. Some received early release for health reasons.

A dozen or so wives of the prisoners dress in white and parade down Fifth Avenue in Havana’s Miramar district on most Sundays demanding their husband’s release.

Meanwhile, in the US, five Cubans continue in prison after more than 10 years for the “crime” of uncovering terrorist plots against the island being planned in Miami under the complacent eye of US authorities.

Shortly before their arrest, Cuba had made available to the White House the sensitive information gathered by the Cuban Five. However, the FBI proceeded to arrest the informants instead of the terrorists.

Detained in 1998 and convicted in a politically charged Miami courtroom in 2001 for conspiracy and failing to register as foreign agents, the Cuban Five were sentenced to harsh terms ranging from 15 years to double life imprisonment.

To make their imprisonment even crueler, the Cubans faced long periods of solitary confinement and their family visits, supposedly guaranteed by US law, have been hampered at best and denied at worst.

Back home the Cuban Five are considered heroes and are never far from most peoples’ thoughts.

The Cuban people, like many Latin Americans, are very family oriented and the divisions created over the last half-century for political and economic reasons have been heartfelt.

If the new US administration decides to accept President Castro’s offer it would make a lot of people happy on both sides of the Florida Straits, providing a significant break in what appeared to be a never-ending diplomatic stalemate.

The Cape Cod Cuba “Expert”

2008-12-17T16:04:00.000-08:00

By Circles Robinson

HAVANA, Dec. 17.— Somehow our two-month-old Havana Times website from and about Cuba is causing lost sleep for a Massachusetts businessman who claims to be the world’s leading expert on Cuba.

Marketeer Rob Sequin wrote, “When the 100% Communist Cuban propaganda rag Granma endorses a new Cuban news and information website with a title like ‘New website in English presents reality of Cuba,’ I find it offensive. This is not the first time I have been offended by the new Havana Times website, which I am here today to expose as a pure propaganda tool of the Cuban government.”

Sequin appears fixated on convincing the world that HT is unworthy of reading, unlike his many business websites like Havana.biz, which bills itself as “Preparing for opportunities in a post-Castro, post-Embargo Cuba.

He’s not alone; there are several other US “entrepreneurs” who have been selling futures on bits and pieces of the island.

Guys like Sequin have a win-win situation. Their attacks on the Cuban government often allow them to tap into US congressional funds allocated to try and bring it down. This has been going on for decades and is part of the Congressional Record.

One of Mr. Sequin’s many scams is to purchase every Internet domain he can think of and to try and turn a big profit if the Revolution cries uncle, enabling guys like him to move in for the kill.

“We own over 2,400 Cuba related domains that complement our network and are scheduled for development, used for marketing purposes or are for sale or lease,” says Sequin. He goes on to claim to “own the biggest private Cuba-related website in the world.”

With that information, you’d think Seguin would have plenty to do managing all of his many businesses. Nonetheless, he still finds time to slander HT as well. He tries to do the site harm, but I’d like to thank him for getting us new readers. We have received numerous referrals from his ranting, as people with that good old curiosity try to find out if we could be as bad as Rob says.

Sequin says he lives in Cape Cod and “is not Hispanic and has no family ties to Cuba,” as if that were either is something bad or discredits ones’ opinions about issues related to the island.

I have lived in Havana for the last seven years, have a normal translating job, and edit and write for HT in my free time. Maybe I’m a little naïve, but since I haven’t asked anybody else for permission to run the site, I don’t think I need Rob’s approval either?

Lastly, Sequin (who also administers www.havanajournal.com) uses as burning proof of my being “a senior Cuban government agent” the fact that several of my commentaries on Cuba and US-Cuba relations have been published in the Cuban online media, and that Havana Times was able to present itself in Cuba—where it is happy to be based. I hope to give him more hard evidence in the future as I try to get published locally as well as write for a foreign audience.

I feel honored that Sequin says he’s “offended” by the existence of Havana Times. I guess the monopoly he pretends to corner on Cuba has no room for little non-profit upstarts like us!

How will Cuba Receive Soderbergh's Che?

2008-12-05T02:46:00.000-08:00

By Circles Robinson

Benicio del Toro is heading for Havana, Cuba this weekend to be at the screening of the Steven Soderbergh film about Ernesto “Che” Guevarra, the role played by the Oscar-winning actor.

Che (1928-1967) is everywhere in Cuba: on billboards, in numerous documentaries, songs, on three-peso coins and T-shirts. Factories, work collectives, and museums bear his name. His ideas and feats, from his university days in Buenos Aires, his time as a Cuban government minister, to his death in Bolivia, are still front-page news at different times throughout the year in Cuban newspapers.

Che is revered by government leaders, much of the general citizenry, as well as by people who see in him ideals they think have been sidetracked over 50 years of the ups and downs of revolution.

My seven-year-old grandson calls Che his brother, and has wept over the fact he was killed. “Why did the good guy die so young,” he has asked me? Axel, like most Cuban grade school children, says he “wants to be like Che,” considered an icon of altruism, revolutionary commitment and perseverance, values instilled in the Cuban educational system.

A few years ago the full-length film Motorcycle Diaries -by Brazilian director Walter Salles about Che’s motorcycle trip through South America in the early 1950s- was well received by just about everyone on the island who saw it. It played nationwide at movie theaters and had several TV showings.

When the Havana Film Festival (Dec. 2-12) agreed to hold a special showing of Soderbergh’s production, the anti-Cuba foreign press speculated that it must have received former President Fidel Castro’s approval in order to be shown.

What the media didn’t mention is that the Cuban Film Institute (ICIAC) has screened many controversial films at its annual festivals that do not necessarily support aspects of the Cuban Revolution or the country’s system of government.

Del Toro won the best-actor prize for his role as Che at the Cannes Film Festival in May, where the movie premiered.

The four-hour film was made in two parts, “The Argentine” and “Guerilla,” and was shot in Spain and Bolivia, where Che was captured and executed under CIA orders in 1967.

Accompanying Del Toro on his trip to Havana is actor Rodrigo Santoro, who plays Cuba’s current president Raul Castro in the film. Reuters reported that whether Soderbergh would make an appearance in Havana was still unclear; noting the Bush administration’s travel ban could keep him away.

For photos and more articles on the Havana Film Festival and follow up on the showing of the Soderbergh film check out: www.havanatimes.org

Africa Could Bring Cuba and Obama Closer

2008-11-20T15:50:00.000-08:00

By Circles Robinson

Obama’s election has opened a window of hope in the world. In Cuba, the hope is for a semblance of normalization in US-Cuba relations. The task is formidable with five decades of inertia propping up an outmoded policy of hostility and blockade.

Finding a common ground to get beyond the animosity could be a key step towards easing tensions.

Attention will be focused come January on the Obama campaign promise to allow Cuban-Americans to travel freely to the island and send remittances to their relatives; many analysts feel that these will become reality during his first months in office.

Not far behind will be the growing demand of US citizen’s rights groups to scrap the travel ban on Cuba all together and the plea from business people to loosen trade sanctions and provide opportunities for US farmers and exporters.

Those Congress people and citizen groups seeking broader change in US-Cuba policy, with an eye on totally eliminating the US blockade, will be measuring their strength in the new legislature and proceeding accordingly.

One factor that makes any decisions a little easier for Obama is that he won the state of Florida, and would still have taken the presidency without it. This fact will lessen the influence of the old guard Miami - Cuban crowd that has wielded disproportionate clout in shaping US foreign policy.

On the other hand, Barack Obama needs to kick start a US economy heading into the throes of recession. He says that creating jobs is top priority and there probably is no quicker way to do so in Florida than by lifting the blockade against Cuba. Travel agencies, food and building material companies, the entertainment industry, convention centers, shipping companies, importers etc. would be some of the areas where long-term jobs could be created in a relatively short period.

FIGHTING HIV/AIDS COULD UNITE RIVALS

Far from the Congressional arena, another strategy for improving longstanding poor relations could be found many thousands of miles away on the African continent.

It’s logical to think that Africa will receive far greater attention under the Obama presidency than it has under previous administrations, which generally assigned the continent a very low priority.

Likewise, there is no other country in the Western Hemisphere that dedicates more resources to assisting impoverished African nations than, yes, surprise, Cuba, which has been providing doctors, educators, scholarships and sports trainers for decades.

HIV/AIDS treatment and prevention is one of the areas where the Cubans have helped out, but the scope of the problem is beyond their capacity to go it alone.

Speaking at the United Nations on June 25, 2001, Cuban Vice President Carlos Lage, publicly offered to send 4,000 Cuban doctors and health personnel to create the necessary infrastructure to treat millions of persons and to train a large number of local specialists in HIV/AIDS, including nurses and health technicians.

Cuba also offered to provide sufficient professors to establish 20 medical schools, with a staff of Cuban teachers, selected from among the doctors working in those countries.

The island was ready to provide diagnostic equipment and kits necessary for basic prevention programs and follow up and anti-retroviral treatment for 30,000 patients.

The only hitch was obtaining what Cuba doesn’t possess and couldn’t buy.

“All it would take is for the international community to provide the raw materials for the medicines, the equipment and material resources for these products and services. Cuba would not obtain any profits, and would pay salaries in its national currency, thus taking on the most expensive part for international health agencies, as well as the most difficult part, which is to ensure that the professionals are prepared and ready to begin their work,” Lage told the UN.

What could have been an amazing humanitarian undertaking never took place. The Cuban offer went unanswered because of the blockade and uncaring politics.

Now with Barack Obama in the White House, and an ear predictably more sensitive to Africa and African-Americans, the offer should be restated and reconsidered. If the deal gelled a lot of people would benefit, and Cuba and the US would be a new footing.

Damage Assessment Begins after Paloma

2008-11-09T04:24:00.000-08:00

Hurricane Paloma weakened considerably inside Cuban territory late Saturday and early Sunday and is no longer considered a cyclone.

With daybreak, assessment now begins of the damage caused to homes, power lines and other infrastructure mainly in Camaguey and neighboring Las Tunas province.

The storm entered Cuban territory near Santa Cruz del Sur, Camaguey as a Category 3 hurricane with winds of 125 MPH early Saturday evening. Once over land, the storm began to weaken and later dissipated at an accelerated rate.

According to the Cuban Meteorology Institute, what’s left of Paloma is now a broad low pressure area that continues over the island in the eastern part of Camaguey Province and western Las Tunas, but is no longer a serious threat.

Civil Defense authorities will now begin their effort to assess the damage caused by the storm, the third major hurricane to hit Cuba in the last 70 days.

When a similar storm hit Santa Cruz del Sur on November 9, 1932 some 3,000 people died. However, this time around, no deaths have been reported, attributed to the island’s early warning system and massive evacuations of hundreds of thousands of people.

The Cuban Meteorology Institute said at 6:00 a.m. that sea swells would continue on the south coast of Camaguey to Guantanamo, gradually lessening throughout Sunday.

Eerie Feeling Before Hurricane

2008-11-08T06:53:00.000-08:00

By Circles Robinson

Once again we are in that strange, eerie time just before a hurricane strikes. While Havana, where I live, is far from the eye of this storm, concern mounts for the provinces and people about to be affected.

It’s been one heck of hurricane season. If Hurricane Paloma crosses the island as expected, it will be the third major storm to hit Cuba this year.

Instead of trying to concentrate on the prospects posed by the soon-to-be Obama administration in Washington, Cuba must once again put all its priority on Civil Defense.

As of Saturday morning a hurricane warning stretches from Sancti Spiritus, Ciego de Avila and Camaguey in Central Cuba to the Eastern provinces of Las Tunas, Granma, Santiago de Cuba and Holguin. Tens of thousands of people are being evacuated.

The storm, now a Category 4 on the Saffir-Simpson Scale, is expected to touch land in Cuba sometime early Sunday. The hurricane packs winds in excess of 140 MPH.

Strong air currents from the southwest have made it hard to predict the exact landing point of Hurricane Paloma on Cuban soil, reported the Cuban Meteorology Institute.

Cuba is still amid what will be years of recovery from the powerful hurricanes Gustav and Ike that hit the country between August 31 and Sept. 10. Over 400,000 homes were damaged or totally destroyed and losses were steep in industry infrastructure and agriculture.

To keep up on developments of Hurricane Paloma check out: www.havanatimes.org

Sister Cities vs. Runaway Hysteria

2008-11-04T07:26:00.000-08:00

Interview by Circles Robinson for www.havanatimes.org

While Cuba-US government relations have fluctuated from cold to icy over the last 50 years, a citizen’s movement has kept the candle burning between communities of the two neighboring countries. Several US cities have sister city relationships with Cuban counterparts, the effort often spearheaded by individuals who based on their own experiences believe that such an exchange is mutually beneficial.

On the eve of the US elections, Havana Times interviewed Lisa Valanti, the national president of the US-Cuba Sister Cities Association.

HT: What was the first US city that established an official sister city relationship with a Cuban city? What was the last?

LISA VALANTI: The first U.S. city to establish an official sister city relationship was Mobile, Alabama. The relationship was the inspiration’ of City Archivist, Jay Higginbotham, who happened to discover an old treaty between the Port of Mobile and the Port of Habana in the city archives that preceded the U.S. embargo. So Jay, and a group of forward-minded Mobil residents, simply used that pre-existing treaty as the legal foundation of their sister city effort, and formed the Society Mobile-La Habana.

Jay had been previously active in forming a sister city with a community in the Soviet Union during the height of the Cold War, and understood how people-to-people exchanges could defuse, or at least add perspective to runaway political hysteria.

The last sister city to form an official relationship was Ann Arbor, Michigan with Remedios in the province of Villa Clara. I think it might be interesting to perhaps feature different relationships since many of them have existed for almost two decades now.

HT: Are sister cities only a formal relationship that entails occasional visiting delegations and speeches about fraternity or is there more to it?

LISA VALANTI: A sister city, county, region, or state relationship is a broad based, officially sanctioned, long-term partnership between two communities, towns, cities, counties, regions, or states in two countries.

Sister city partnerships have proven to be more effective than any other international program in carrying out the greatest possible diversity of activities because they are naturally inclusive of every type of municipal, professional, business, educational, humanitarian, scientific, and cultural exchange or project.

Sister city programs are unique in that they concurrently engage the communities’ three main sectors: local government, business, and a variety of citizen volunteers representing every sector within the community.

So, they are very complex, diverse and inclusive in their potential, although the blockade has hindered their potential. Still, we are committed and plan to outlast the blockade.

What makes a sister city relationship official? Do unofficial ones also exist?

LISA VALANTI: A sister city becomes ‘official’ when it is officially adopted by a formal resolution in the local government, that creates a sustainable bilateral partnership. A sister city is always an expanding ‘work in progress,’ and yes, people can state their intentions to create a sister city and work for years to build that partnership until they are able to get official sanction. They are unofficial, or ‘engaged’ until they ‘marry’.

Most of the original sister cities took a decade of community organizing to succeed in getting approval from our local governments. The whole process became almost standardized for sister cites formed after 1999, when we formed the national organization. We were able to give them advice and mentor new initiatives. So much so that we think it was the eagerness of ordinary people in the U.S. wanting to embrace an end of the blockade, and wanting to create mutually beneficial community exchanges that made Bush determine to sever and end people-to-people diplomacy.

How does a sister city relationship go about being established. What does that entail?

LISA VALANTI: It starts when a person or group decide they want to create one. Each sister city has a unique story, and builds as it gains support, person-by-person, institution-by-institution. It reflects local people finding issues in common to build relationships on. U.S.-Cuba sister cities have been initiated by US communities, and by Cuban communities that have reached out to US communities.

Has Cuba been receptive to your “citizen diplomacy”?

LISA VALANTI: Cuba has been very supporting and receptive to all of our efforts. Actually, Cuba has been the stronger partner, because they actually represent their community and can dedicate resources to the relationship, whereas US residents are totally impeded by US policy, especially under the Bush regime.

What’s the difference between a sister city relationship and a Cuba-solidarity group?

LISA VALANTI: Sister Cities don’t involve themselves in Cuba’s internal affairs. Rather than ‘solidarity’, we seek to show respect for the human right of self-determination by the Cuban people to build their society without outside intervention of any sort. We seek to exchange ‘best practices,’ and explore our differences, looking for ways we can learn from each other and support each other, but adopting a authentic good neighbor policy, which means we respect the local communities with which we partner. We try and maintain political neutrality, and partner simply as equal shareholders in humanity’s future.

What’s it been like on the US side to get an official sister city designation with a city in a country the White House calls its enemy?

LISA VALANTI: We don’t accept that designation of Cuba, nor its population. We challenge stereotypes. For instance, the Cuban flag flies every day in the Pittsburgh City Council Chambers, because Pittsburgh and Matanzas have been officially partnered for over ten years now. Sister cities refuse, and actively work to defuse, the demonization of Cuba and its government. Cuba is part of our global family, and our firsthand experiences help inform our communities not to fall for US propaganda.

Has the travel ban and stepped up blockade blocked all sister city activity or has some exchange been able to slip through the cracks?

LISA VALANTI: Since a sister city serves as a local ‘umbrella’ group, and is a diverse entity, many facets of sister cities have still found ways to maintain their relationships with our counterparts, mostly in healthcare, sister churches, and some educational exchanges. They share their experiences with the rest of the community, and help support and sustain those people who want to expand into currently forbidden arenas.

The US cities have far more material resources than their Cuban partners. Is the relationship a one-way street or do the Cuban counterparts have something to offer their US partners?

LISA VALANTI: In general, US cities don’t really have more accessible resources. Because of the blockade they can’t use them to develop their relations with Cuba. So Cuba has really invested more in supporting these relationships, until we can end the blockade. Since these relationships are being built with upon the idea of permanence, in time, as policy changes, US cities will invest more. But there is the exchange of ideas, and we have much to learn from Cuba.

Could you tell me a few anecdotes of how the sister cities have had an impact on peoples’ lives both in the US and Cuba?

LISA VALANTI: I have never met a person who hasn’t had their life changed in some profound manner by a visit to Cuba. Sometimes, what changes is people’s thinking about how we live in the US, and our own relationship to our government. Sometimes it helps us understand that many people in the world live differently than we do in a first world nation.

For me, I now devote my entire life to ending the blockade of Cuba, and have made friends that are as dear to me as my family; we have become a ‘blended family.’

We just had two pretty serious hurricanes hit Cuba causing widespread damage, what was the response from sister cities in the US?

LISA VALANTI: USCSCA has put out a call to collect humanitarian aid, and so far we have contributed over four thousand dollars to Global Links that is working with PAHO and the Ministry of Health to provide urgent aid. We are also supporting Pastors for Peace and many of our local sister cities are actively collecting aid targeted for their sister city. Again, hurricane relief is long-term, it will take years to fully recover, and we hope to be working in partnership with our sister cities to restore and repair targeted hospitals, etc. over at least the next two years.

Is your position a paid full-time job, part-time, or totally volunteer? Are there other paid staff and how do you get your funding?

LISA VALANTI: USCSCA is a 100% volunteer organization. We labor for love. Our membership and supporters pay small dues, and we fundraise for special projects.

We know that sister cites are non-partisan. Nonetheless, with the US elections right around the corner I’d like to ask your personal opinion on a couple things. Some people here in Cuba say that on foreign policy there is nothing that resembles a Republican more than a Democrat and expect little change in policy? Others see a ray of hope if Obama wins. How do you see it?

LISA VALANTI: Because Obama was a constitutional lawyer, I believe if Obama wins, he will restore in increments, US residents freedom to travel, remove limits on remittances, and those two acts will create a public constituency that will demand new openings and policy changes. Since the blockade is older that Obama, I think he will find ways to defuse the Cold War rhetoric, and do what he can to begin to open channels for communication; coast guard, disaster management, immigration, etc. I think we can restore at least the status quo of the Clinton administration. If we can lift just the travel bans, people will demand normalization.

Do you see much at stake regarding Cuba-US relations with Tuesday’s elections?

LISA VALANTI: Yes, I think McCain will continue to demonize Cuba to rationalize more US resources for military adventurism, and maintain the blockade. I think Obama will respond to the public will IF people in the US can make visible the issue of Cuba. Obama will offer possibility, McCain the status quo.

Cuba and the World Watch with Angst

2008-11-02T03:17:00.000-08:00

By Circles Robinson

I have a lot of things regarding Cuba that I want to write about, but the US elections on Tuesday have overshadowed my thoughts. I’m not alone. A lot of people on the island are wondering what’s going to happen, as is a good chunk of the world.

Up until the explosion of the current financial crisis, I firmly believed that John McCain was going to be the next president, the same way that I thought George W. Bush would win reelection in 2004.

The race and terror cards and preference for the old but known seemed to me more powerful than anything the Obama campaign could come up with.

I still fear that McCain has a shot to win, but I’m no longer so sure of my predictions for the US electorate.

I haven’t lived in the US for 26 years and totally agree with another ex-pat living in Spain who wrote me yesterday: “This is an interesting election, no? It's a good read on what kind of country it really is.”

Likewise, a letter today from a friend who lives in a small town in Arizona, McCain’s state, and who rarely writes me on politics, made me conclude that what appeared against all odds could actually happen - that Obama and a large Democratic Party majority in Congress may be coming in January.

“In America all is in a state of flux and readjustment, with the "ECONOMY" close to vanishing, as are retirement dreams and budgets of those who weren't ready for such a swift demise. To me, the horizon looks bleak; imagining that what has occurred will simply be the first wave of something deeper and more upsetting to the status quo here.

“Many of the stories are the same as those of old, but the size and scope of what is occurring is completely new and unprecedented.

“Those powers-that-be are going to steal whatever they can, before the political change that should occur next Tuesday will be voted in and then sworn into office in January. That is, unless another election is stolen.

“Folks can no longer deny what is occurring, and I hope that there will be positive repercussions in how we live and use resources, how we spend our money, and our levels of compassion for all people in this global world,” concluded my friend.

There’s a lot of responsibility on the backs of US voters on Tuesday. Cubans like the rest of the world will be watching with angst.

My reports and commentaries from Havana can also be read at: www.havanatimes.org

Cuba Issue Weighs on US Elections

2008-10-18T07:35:00.000-07:00

By Circles Robinson

I’m living in Cuba, not the United States, but even so I’m tired of the US presidential campaign. It’s been going longer than the last three TV soap operas combined!

There has been extensive coverage here, with entire round table programs dedicated to the subject and almost daily reports and opinion pieces in the newspapers.

Most Cubans made up their minds on who they favor shortly after the Democratic Party primary ended. Not that people are enamored with either of the two major parties, but they at least see a ray of hope for improved relations under Obama. This means a lot for many families divided by the Florida Straits and politics.

In a recent informal NBC News survey held in downtown Havana 63 percent stated that they preferred Obama; 2 percent said they liked McCain, 13 percent had no preference and 22 percent declined to answer.

While Cuba policy is not one of the top concerns of most voters across the US it is a major issue in Florida. The two candidates have made a proportionately large number of campaign visits to that swing state “won” by George W. Bush in 2000 and then again in 2004.

Headlines on October 17 included the following: Obama Bets Big on Florida Turnout (L.A. Times), McCain Comes to Miami to Shore Up his Base (Miami Herald). Election Battle Shifts to Florida (BBC).

Numerous polls show that the large Cuban-American population there, formerly a united Republican bastion, is now strongly divided. “Cuba bashing” simply doesn’t attract the younger generations the way it did the exiles that came to Florida around the time of the 1959 revolution.

Younger Cuban-Americans, like the majority of US citizens, are more concerned about the economy, the war in Iraq and other domestic issues, and less obsessed with maintaining a “tough” policy towards Cuba.

The changing times has also taken away the safe-seat status for Cuban-American pro-Bush Congress Reps. Mario and Lincoln Diaz-Balart and Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, who all face tough challenges to their reelection.

While neither McCain nor Obama has said they would consider ending the half century US blockade on Cuba, the lines are drawn when it comes to the rights of Cuban-Americans to visit their relatives on the island and send remittances.

McCain says he will maintain the Bush-strengthened travel ban and limits on Cuban Americans ability to help out their families. Obama has promised to let up on these two issues.

Another factor at play is the voluminous “win-win” Cuba-US trade potential at a time when Florida businesses, like those in the rest of the nation, are hurting and unemployment is on the rise. There’s also the humanitarian issue that weighs on many who would like to help out after Cuba was hit by two powerful hurricanes causing US$5 billion in damage.

Obama and UN Vote on the Cuba Blockade

Barack Obama will make one of his last major addresses to voters in a 30-minute TV message to be aired on several TV networks including CBS and NBC on Wednesday October 29, six days before the US presidential elections.

Earlier that same day, the United Nations is scheduled to vote on a resolution calling for and end to Washington’s blockade against Cuba.
Last year’s vote was 184 to 4 with 1 abstention, showing overwhelming worldwide disapproval of the US stance. When the first vote took place in 1992, Cuba’s resolution received 59 votes in favor, 3 opposed, and 71 countries chose to abstain.

What’s most significant is that many governments that do not approve of Cuba’s system of government agree on its right to make its own decisions without Washington strangling its economy and stifling educational, scientific and cultural exchange.

Commenting on the UN vote during his October 29 address would give Obama a chance to add some substance to his proposal to promote dialogue and a good neighbor policy in contrast to the antagonism promised by McCain.

Havana Times Set to Go Online

2008-10-05T08:09:00.000-07:00

Dear Readers,

I’m writing to announce a new project I’ve been working on with several collaborators. It’s a new website that will be available at www.havanatimes.org as of October 15th. Havana Times will include several personal diary entries from a diverse group of Cubans, a wide range of interviews, photos, features, commentaries, a calendar section and news updates. The slogan of our publication is "open-minded writing from Cuba." I hope you will take the time to check it out and pass on the site to others you think might be interested as well as give me your suggestions and comments. Thanks, Circles

Workplace Theft: Indicator of Mismanagement

2008-09-30T08:44:00.000-07:00

By Circles Robinson

With Gustav and Ike, Cuba’s proven civil defense system once again demonstrated how well Cubans can organize. Despite the hurricanes’ enormous destruction, only seven people died. The population responded with a high level of family, neighborly and community solidarity, customary among Cubans during times of crisis.

However, the storms have greatly magnified the shortcomings in the island’s economy and addressing them has become all the more pressing.

One problem that most everyone agrees has reached epidemic proportions is workplace pilfering. Although by far not the only problem in the Cuban economy, it has combined with other factors including low productivity to keep the country from operating anywhere near capacity.

Workplace theft and cheating of consumers is widespread in both the service sector and industries. The problem exists in many countries, but management oversight, at best, or complicity at the worst, has greatly exacerbated its magnitude in Cuba. It seems particularly contradictory with a people known for their solidarity, and a system whose profits are earmarked for the public good.

A common topic of my co-workers and friends is the habit of overcharging at stores, cafeterias and restaurants. It is so common that being on guard has become the norm. Like my neighbors, I am also wary of adulterated products sold at state-owned facilities, be it a bottle of rum, stick of butter or a bottle of dishwashing liquid.

For those of us who have attempted to report problems to the supervisors, the frustration has only deepened, as their low level of concern indicates that they too may be involved.

Time and time again I’ve personally had the experience at supermarkets, agricultural markets, cafeterias, restaurants, bars and taxis, even most recently at the airport duty free store. Surprisingly though, most Cubans don’t complain about being overcharged, which makes a foreigner doing so seem even more out of place.

Eating at the Soul and Society

Over a month before the hurricanes, economic analyst Ariel Terrero pointed out that "theft is corrupting both the individual soul and society." Terrero was addressing the issue of disappearing building materials and shoddy construction work at different job sites.

His statement rings all the more true today as Cubans begin to feel the impact of the damage caused by the hurricanes that struck between August 31 and September 10.

Hard times, including shortages of some foodstuffs and an even greater lack of building materials are expected. This makes even more troubling the practice of treating state property as booty ripe for the taking and consumers as victims to be fleeced.

Likewise, while price gauging often accompanies the shortages that follow major disasters anywhere, in Cuba such price hikes are likely to serve as even greater incentive to buy or sell goods of a dubious origin.

On September 19, former President Fidel Castro wrote in a newspaper commentary: "It’s now, in the aftermath of the devastating blow dealt by the hurricanes, when we must show what we are capable of."

Without directly pointing any fingers Fidel Castro wrote that "every manifestation of privilege, corruption or robbery must be eradicated" and that "for a true communist, there can be no possible excuse for such conduct."

Where to Begin

How to change the widespread practice of workplace mismanagement and stealing is a matter of contention and opinions abound. Some pessimistically believe it’s impossible to deal with at this point, while others think it’s never too late to begin.

In discussions in my living room, some friends have said drastic punishment is needed for the higher ups involved, which would also serve as an example to those below them.

Others say an incentive system for sound management is needed so the managers will feel motivated to do their best to benefit the state coffers. Most would extend that proposal to labor, saying that employees should have a better grasp on the finances of their workplace, participate in decision making, and then have a clear stake in its performance through pay incentives.

No one is certain exactly where the culture of deteriorated workplace ethics began. Most blame the low buying power of salaries and fewer extras since the early 1990s. Some say the seeds were already there before but hadn’t gotten so out of hand.

Despite the social benefits of free education and health care, subsidized public utilities, transportation and some basic items, the reality is that today’s workers still scramble to feed and clothe their families. The contradiction between resolving ones personal problems and a country that needs to save on resources and make the most of what it has is rarely discussed.

It’s obvious that a major salary increase is not going to happen without increasing production, and most believe that such an increase in production is unlikely to occur without attractive pay incentives.

The idea of economic incentives for those that make a greater effort in a given workplace makes sense and is consistent with the earliest notions of socialism. Such a system should help increase productivity, thus boosting revenue for the recovery effort and for social and economic investment programs.

However, if a manager or employee that is stealing obtains considerably more than what they could earn through incentives I highly doubt they will stop their habit without much tighter controls and strong disciplinary measures.

While the problem is light weight compared to the financial crisis currently sweeping the United States and Europe, failing to put a dent in workplace mismanagement and theft in Cuba will act as a counterweight to the attempts to rebuild from the extensive hurricane damage and continue on the road to a healthier socialist economy.

Cuba Faces Juggling Act after Hurricanes

2008-09-14T14:08:00.000-07:00

By Circles Robinson

Hurricanes Gustav and Ike are now part of Cuban history. While there were some collapsed portions of old buildings in the capital and problems for some with phone service and electricity primarily due to fallen trees, most Havana residents, like our family, are back to relative normality after the anxious weeks of waiting.

Not so for many other places in Cuba. Our personal relief is tempered by knowledge of the many difficulties ahead.

To Cubans and others who love the country, what just happened is truly heartbreaking. Two powerful hurricanes in ten days ravaged agriculture, wreaked havoc with the electricity grid and telecommunications and damaged or destroyed well over three hundred thousand homes. For a poor country, the losses are staggering. Cuba’s development strategies for at least the next several years have been seriously set back.

Ike made landfall in Holguin as a Category 4 storm on September 7, barely a week after Gustav roared across western Pinar de Rio province and Isla de la Juventud. The hurricane then wreaked havoc in Las Tunas and Camaguey before reentering the sea along the island’s southern coast. In a weakened, but still powerful form, it then crossed back through Pinar del Rio virtually in the same place as Gustavo.

“We’ve never seen anything like it,” was repeated time and time again, with comparisons to hurricane Flora in 1963 and Michelle in 2001.

STILL ASSESSING THE DAMAGE

Preliminary estimates speak of several billion dollars of damage, but it will take some time for the government to compile a complete report of losses from both storms. When Ike hit, the damages caused by Gustav on August 31 were still being tallied.

On Friday, one preliminary estimate showed 323,800 homes damaged —many without roofs or windows—, including 47,921 totally destroyed. The United Nations office in Cuba says that the homes of one out of every eight Cubans were affected.

Plantains, citrus and other fruits, corn, yucca, sugarcane and rice plantations, coffee beans, poultry farms, you name it, were flattened or washed away by Hurricanes Gustav and Ike. Processing industries including sugar mills and tobacco drying huts were also hard hit.

Esteban, 65, dropped into my apartment in Havana on Thursday. A farmer from Matanzas, he is usually upbeat about the country and critical of some government policies. Today though, he was somber. He said not one banana or plantain plant was left standing in his area after Ike. All the avocados from his trees were on the ground, but no one was injured in his community and the family’s cows were saved from the flooding as they had been taken earlier to higher ground.

Matanzas, like Havana, was spared the full brunt of the storm. Esteban and I sipped a coffee and imagined what the areas seriously hit must look like.

It is not yet clear how Cuba can mitigate so much damage in so many places. Despite assistance beginning to arrive or promised from Russia, Brazil, Venezuela, China, Spain, Ecuador, Mexico, Uruguay, East Timor, the UN World Food Program and several international NGOs like the Red Cross and Oxfam, shortages of food and building materials are likely, as well as dramatic revisions in the country’s investment plans.

For the moment, the country has been forced to dig deep into its strategic reserves. Almost certainly, the government’s ambitious and greatly needed new housing program, and other social and economic infrastructure projects, will now have to take a back seat for the foreseeable future.

September is an important month for planting vegetables and other crops and it will be even more important considering the losses suffered. In a year that saw the international price of rice and other grains skyrocket, everybody agrees that food must be a top priority.

A SLOW MOVING HORROR MOVIE

Waiting for a hurricane to strike is a profoundly frightening experience. While no two are alike, they all resemble a horror movie that takes a long time to get down to the bloody action.

Hurricanes here usually announce their coming visit well in advance, sometimes as many as 7-10 days before they become a threat. Tension then builds through the last days when you know it’s coming your way.

Cubans are experts on facing such storms. A steady flow of information from the country’s meteorology center provides an atmosphere of calm. As the storm approaches civil defense instructions are widely broadcast. Relative normality begins to give way to preparations usually on the last two days before a strike.

With Gustav and Ike, the most amazing accomplishment of Cuba’s civil defense network was a death toll of only seven, far less that the other countries touched by one or both, including the United States, Haiti, Dominican Republic and Jamaica.

Associated Press correspondent Anita Snow wrote about Cuba’s success at preserving lives: “The secret is the evacuations system.” She noted that 2.6 million people left their homes before the onslaught of Ike, “nearly a quarter of the island’s population.”

Whether to Evacuate

Whether to evacuate is a question on my family’s mind each time a hurricane threatens Havana. While by no means experts, experience has taught us to evaluate the risks and pay attention to neighbors in the same apartment building. In the case of both Gustav and Ike, the reports the last two days told us we could stay home, as it became clear that the eye of both storms was headed further west.

Public buildings and solid concrete housing are the main choices for people who choose to find a safer place to weather the height of the storm. The Cuban civil defense authorities and community leaders in both urban and rural areas know the level of vulnerability of each house or apartment building in their area. This allows for door-to-door visits and assistance to those needing it for evacuation. Many people evacuate on their own account, understanding that it’s a necessity for their safety.

Most evacuees stay with neighbors, friends or family with better conditions to face the storm. About 20 percent of the total goes to shelters, mostly schools and other buildings where the civil defense network provides them with food, mattresses, blankets and medical attention.

“Special attention is paid to the elderly and people with disabilities, a far cry from what happened in New Orleans three years ago during hurricane Katrina,” pointed out Snow.

In our case, we live in a third-floor apartment in a small solid, concrete building. The greatest danger comes from its many large glass windows and being a block from the sea. Plywood is like gold here, so, like our neighbors, we just tape the windows and cross our fingers hoping they won’t shatter if they break.

A family of four, we have spent the passing of several hurricanes in a bathroom where we put chairs, a rechargeable lamp, flashlight, candles, radio, drinking water, snacks, etc. It’s an eerie feeling, especially at night. Fortunately for us, none of the eyes of those hurricanes has directly hit the city of Havana.

For my six-year-old grandson, watching the development of a hurricane on TV is exciting and frightening at the same time. When school gets cancelled and we start putting important papers and other things in plastic bags and suitcases, it sinks in to him that the storm is coming and the danger is real. When the electricity gets turned off in the city for preventive reasons, it means no more cartoons and he starts getting restless. Mican, my grandson’s cat, must also sense something because as the wind picks up he hides under a bed.

PICKING UP THE PIECES

While the Cuban capital was spared from the worst of both hurricanes, many of its residents have family and friends in places that were hard hit. Tamara, 22, a film student studying in Havana and friend of the family, is from Holguin, where Ike first touched land as a Category 4 hurricane.

She wrote me on Wednesday: “I got a message from my mother in Holguin that the city [with about a third of a million residents] was devastated by Ike. The family is OK but the city is a mess without a TV transmitter and without telephone service.

“I also learned that Matanzas is swimming in water and that the situation in Pinar del Rio and the majority of places is very sad. I am truly dismayed; I know that several years will go by before the country is able to fully recover. Nature protests for all the damage that humans have caused. But ironically, its wrath often falls on the countries with the least possibility to recover. I have a lot of faith that we will know how to organize ourselves rapidly; the country has pulled out of worse disasters.”

Cubans don’t have insurance, but they do have a social security system that protects them against disaster. The government takes on the responsibility of providing building materials and helping replace lost appliances and other important possessions.

However, all of this can take a very long time due to the lack of building materials, insufficient construction crews and not enough funds for importing what the country doesn’t produce.

Now the government faces the difficult task of prioritizing limited resources in an under-developed and blockaded country. Repairing damaged homes, the national electric grid, schools, hospitals and other community infrastructure and boosting agriculture will no doubt be top priorities over any new construction.

The big decisions will take place at a time when President Raul Castro has already promised a restructuring and possible down-sizing of government institutions, originally planned to be announced in December when the legislature meets.

IT’S CUBA’S TURN TO NEED HELP

Cuba’s leaders pride themselves on the country’s self-reliance and ability to dig their way out of any hole. The fact that the country’s socialist revolution has survived a half-century of relentless hostility from Washington and out lived the collapse of the USSR and Socialist Europe reinforces their belief that they will overcome the major setback to the economy poised by Gustav and Ike.

On the other hand, as the Revolution turns “50” on January 1, the battle horses of past struggles are aging and time will tell whether the new generations are willing to accept the calls to hard work and sacrifice.

Some analysts believe the government must implement new mechanisms or reforms that make greater local government and individual initiative possible. It will take considerable effort just to get back to the difficult economic situation the country faced before the storms, largely due to the increasing international food and oil prices.

While more accustomed to assisting other countries, the Cuban government is not so good at asking for help. One thing clear is that no aid will be accepted if it comes with any strings attached or politicking from the donors. Hence, Washington’s “offer” to send its personnel to inspect the damage in a country that it has strived to destroy is seen as ludicrous.

What comes to mind as a way individuals can help Cuba in this difficult situation is to step up the campaigns against the US blockade, hoping to influence a new administration in Washington, and promote trips to the island as a way to contribute revenue while getting to know the country, its people and their monumental efforts and challenges.

Havana Spared as Ike Batters Cuba

2008-09-09T09:08:00.000-07:00

By Circles Robinson

Only hours before hurricane Ike makes another landing in Cuba, it now appears that Havana and its many historic buildings will be spared from the worst of the storm that has brought devastating consequences to the island’s housing, agriculture and other economic infrastructure.

Nonetheless, tropical storm force winds and heavy rains could still cause considerable damage in the capital of 2.3 million inhabitants.

The latest report from the Cuban Meteorology Center, issued at 6:00 a.m. Tuesday states that Ike, now a category 1 hurricane, is expected to follow a course similar to that of Gustav in its passing through western Cuba.

Currently churning in the sea south of Havana Province and just north of Isla de la Juventud it is expected to hit land in the fear east of Pinar del Rio province around 35-50 miles southeast of Havana city in the late morning.

As I write at dawn Tuesday, the howling winds are strong and the sea below very rough, but so far without any coastal flooding. The electricity in the city was turned off last night as a preventive measure. The piped gas is still on at our home but could be also turned off at any moment. My phone line is still operating.

While we had planned to evacuate to a friend’s home further inland if the storm was going to cause a direct hit on the city, the path taken by Ike and the downgrading of its force made my family decide to weather the storm at our third floor apartment in a well constructed building.

As is typical in Cuba, the atmosphere of sharing news, concerns, food and even a shot of rum with neighbors keeps you from feeling isolated in these difficult times.

Ike is the second hurricane to hit Cuba in the last 10 days. First Gustav, a category 4 storm, caused severe damage in Pinar del Rio and Isla de la Juventud with over 90,000 homes totally or partially damaged.

Now, while the massive recovery effort was underway to gradually mend the damage caused by Gustav, Ike has left a tremendous wake of destruction from its passing through the eastern provinces of Holguin, Las Tunas and Camaguey.

The hurricane then reentered the Caribbean Sea south of Ciego de Avila province and proceeded on a west-northwesterly route heading for a new landing Tuesday close to where Gustav entered. The tropical cyclone is now a category 1 hurricane; down from the category 4 status it had when it first entered northeastern Cuba in Holguin.

In 2002, a similar occurrence took place in Pinar del Rio when in a 10-day period hurricanes Lily and Isidore struck in the western part of the province, although neither had the intensity of Gustav.

Cuba: Fewer Guns, More Tourists

2008-09-05T12:28:00.000-07:00

By Circles Robinson

Guns tend to scare away tourists and keep locals in their homes after dark. There are few capitals left in the hemisphere like Havana, where you don’t feel like the nighttime is your enemy.

This atmosphere of safety for the tourist is precisely one reason why Cuba has become a favorite vacation destination spot for Europeans, Canadians and some US citizens traveling via third countries to brave Washington’s travel ban on the island.

Following sharp cutbacks in state budgets during the 1990s, many other countries of the Americas made deep reductions in their law enforcement budgets as part of the IMF and World Bank recommendations to reduce government spending. The de-funding of public services directly affected citizen safety, as well as health and education.

In countries from Colombia to Brazil, Jamaica to Guatemala, as in the USA, people’s response to fear was to purchase weapons for self-defense. And in many places this meant not just having a gun, but a high powered one with loads of ammunition.

Cuba’s Approach

Cuba has taken a different approach. Firearms are not sold on the island in any store and are only legally held by authorized security personnel, police and armed forces and a limited number of hunters. Illegal weapons possession is considered a very serious offense.

Citizen safety as well as security for visitors is a top priority in the country. The law enforcement budget allows for sufficient foot and car patrols and a considerable number of traffic cops on motorcycles. Security guards at businesses or offices may carry pistols but you won’t see any automatic rifles except on the guards of the few armored cars that transport cash from businesses to the banks.

Of course the rightwing Miami crowd asserts that the reason the Cuban government doesn’t allow people to own hand guns is that it fears an uprising against the Revolution. Such an accusation is easy to make from afar, but clearly lacks a basis of fact on the island.

My experience is that Cubans value their relative safety, and are genuinely shocked by the stories told by friends and family who have traveled abroad on work missions or for conferences. Likewise, the drug and gang-related violence in Miami is seen as a serious drawback, even for those Cubans who still want to go there for family or economic reasons.

Regardless of their opinions on the country’s political system, most Cubans prefer strong law enforcement with few guns circulating and harsh sentences that discourage drug pushers, any budding of gangs or other types of violent crime.

No Sleepless Nights

While the police do not release crime statistics and the newspapers rarely report on violent crime, the relative lack of fear among the urban population compared to other underdeveloped and some industrialized countries manifests itself in the large number of people in the capital out on the streets in the evening and late night hours, especially on weekends, holidays or during summer.

Having a son or daughter out at a party or going to the late night movies or a concert doesn’t mean a sleepless night for parents as it would be in many cities around the continent.
During the first six months that my family and I lived in Havana, I would go to the bus stop almost every night to wait for teenage daughter to return home from evening classes. When she would be out late for school activities, or just having fun with friends, we would be up until she came home, no matter how late. Finally, and to our relief, we realized it wasn’t necessary; with relatively little violent crime in Cuba, her good judgment was enough to keep her safe.

Another important factor in maintaining a secure environment is that organized crime was expelled from Cuba 50 years ago when the US based weapons-toting mafia led by Meyer Lansky was given the boot. Illicit drugs are strictly controlled and drug or gang related murders commonplace in the US and much of urban Latin America are extremely rare. Accidental deaths by gun shot or people going on shooting sprees at schools or other public places is virtually unheard of.

Of course, tourists do need to exercise some caution. The best common sense advice for a tourist one can offer with regards to avoiding violent crime in Cuba is to stay in public places and not go anywhere isolated with people you’ve just met, something a visitor shouldn’t do anywhere in the world.

Other countries where I have traveled take a different approach. In Guatemala for instance most businesses from hamburger stores to pharmacies, museums, cafeterias and hotels all have guards armed with high-caliber automatic rifles. Banks feel like fortresses. When I asked why, people said it’s because the criminals and gangs are so well armed that they have to be ready.

The Guatemalan legislature is currently debating whether to make it even easier for people to buy weapons. While some civic groups want greater limits, powerful business sectors want fewer restrictions on the number of arms and munitions; just like Republican presidential candidate John McCain wants in the US.

Cuba has taken the opposite path to citizen safety and as far as I can see, it has worked quite well.

Just the other day I was sitting on a bus alongside a first-year Colombian medical student, studying on a scholarship in Havana. She told me she was from Medellin. I asked her what she thought of Havana. She said she liked it a lot because she could move freely around the city without being afraid, taking advantage of the cultural offerings or just hang out, something she said is not the case at night in her country.

Viewing the Olympics from Cuba

2008-08-20T11:05:00.000-07:00

By Circles Robinson*

The last time I saw my father in 2001, we discussed the 2000 Sydney Olympics as best we could, he from his sick bed, imprisoned by his Parkinson’s disease, and me making preparations to move to Havana.

Those were the last Olympic Games he watched on TV, before his death in 2003, but his comments have stayed with me. A patriotic man, grateful for the opportunities he had had in the USA, he nevertheless found his love for sports compromised by the world of advertising and the profit-oriented media business.

“Here it was as if no other country had athletes competing,” he told me. “It was obvious that the business of TV advertising was first and the sports themselves were a far off second,” he added.

I have often recalled those statements when watching first the 2004 Athens games and now the 2008 Beijing Olympics from my apartment in Havana.

There could be nothing more diametrically opposed than Olympics sports coverage in Cuba and the United States.

ROUND THE CLOCK COVERAGE

When Beijing 2008 kicked off on August 8th, 17 days of uninterrupted 24-hour coverage began on Cuban television. Events are beamed in live and also repeated so that everyone gets a chance to see what they want. Like all Cuban TV, the Olympic coverage is commercial free, and virtually all disciplines are shown independent of whether the island has participants.

Much of Cuba is tuned in at all hours watching the events as they happen (despite the 12-hour time difference with Beijing). You know that because the sounds of the TVs can be heard from open doors and windows and if it’s an important match for a Cuban team or individual athlete, collective cheers or sighs can be heard into the wee hours of the morning.

Cuba is a sports-loving country, and interest extends beyond the island’s participation, to that of athletes from other latitudes. In fact, Cuba sends sports trainers to dozens of nations to help them improve their programs.

While many people in the US are also watching the Olympics, the broadcasts themselves are seen as a business venture. This time around NBC Universal, owned by the giant General Electric Corp., “won” the rights to broadcast by paying the International Olympic Committee (IOC) nearly US $900 million. In fact, Reuters reported on August 11th that NBC had already sold over a $1 billion just in ads with plenty more to come. Coverage is focused on the marketable “big names” and the “big rivalries”, with little attention paid to the participation of athletes from other nations.

COMPETING AGAINST THE GIANTS

I am as glued to the TV as any of my neighbors. I particularly like to watch the Olympic track and field events, volleyball and baseball, boxing, rowing and cycling.

The fact that Cuba, a small island nation of 11.2 million people, is competitive with the world powers in several sports adds to the excitement here. The feat is even more significant when taking into account that Cuba uses only Cuban-born athletes while many North American and European countries literally purchase talent abroad.

Cuba’s competitiveness in the Olympic arena began in the 1970s and didn’t fall from the sky. It was the product of a major effort to spread physical education, sports participation and training opportunities throughout the country.

“In Cuba, anyone can become an athlete, whether they are born in Havana or in the most remote village in Guantanamo,” Angel Gutierrez, a retired physical education teacher who taught in primary schools for over 20 years told the IPS news service.

In fact, few of the Cuban amateur stars started their sports careers in the capital. So far, athletes from all over the country have contributed to Cuba’s first Beijing medals including Mijain Lopez (Greco-roman wrestling), Yanelis Barrios (discus) and Idalis Ortiz (Judo) from Pinar del Rio; Yoanka Gonzalez (cycling) from Villa Clara; Anaisy Hernandez and Yanet Bermoy (Judo) from Cienfuegos; Eglys Cruz (shooting) from Sancti Spiritus and Yordanis Arencibia (Judo) from Las Tunas.

The popular Dayron Robles, the 110-meter hurdles world record holder, has qualified for the final heat. He is from the country’s easternmost province of Guantanamo, while javelin thrower Yipsi Moreno, who just won a silver medal, is from Camaguey.

Yes, some top Cuban athletes have decided over the years to accept lucrative contracts abroad and abandon their national team. A “defector” is treated in the foreign mainstream media as another victory for free market capitalism and a triumph of the American dream over a government that sees athletes as stars but does not make them tycoons.

What’s more amazing is how many Cuban athletes refuse the offers, preferring their Cuban lifestyle —which, although above the average living standard for the country, would be considered poverty in terms of material possessions to people from the developed world.

I’m not sure what my father would have thought of life in Havana, but I think he would have greatly enjoyed watching the Olympics with me on Cuban TV – commercial free.

Cuba’s Media Charts New Course

2008-08-06T19:35:00.000-07:00

By Circles Robinson

Since coming to Cuba six years ago, getting the news from the island’s print or broadcast media has been something of a chore. Coverage is often artificially upbeat and boring. The country was and is anything but dull, but you hardly get that impression from the newspapers.

Today, Cuba’s publicly owned print and broadcast media seem to be on a slow path to improvement, delving into subjects that were previously taboo. Like my Cuban colleagues, I had been looking forward to this summer’s Congress of the Cuban Journalists Association (UPEC) to help affirm a new course. The last such event had taken place nine years ago.

As schools had let out and many of Cuba’s workplaces went into their sweltering low-key summer mode, reporters from around the country and invited journalism students met for three days in early July at the Havana Convention Center to discuss the country’s information policy, the educating of future reporters, and bread and butter issues like salaries.

Cartoons and Open Criticism

As the journalists entered the hall, they received a copy of the Granma daily newspaper, which devoted an entire page to political cartoons lampooning the issues to be discussed.

One cartoon showed a journalist working on the computer while a woman in a window behind him comments: “Well, He’s hooked up to the Internet but he’s still disconnected from reality.”

In another caricature, an official sitting on a throne-like chair says: “Reporter, just to show that I cooperate with the press, I’m going to give you a list with the questions you have to ask me.”

The cartoons reflected what the public and many reporters have been saying for a long time.

A report, issued as part of the conference, said the same thing in more formal language:
“Insufficient information on daily Cuban life is still hurting the credibility of the Cuban media, forcing the population to fill in the information gaps by other means.”

Several of Cuba’s top leaders attended the conference: First Vice President Jose Ramon Machado Ventura, Vice Presidents Esteban Lazo and Carlos Lage, the ministers of Culture and Telecommunications, Abel Prieto and Ramiro Valdez, and the Communist Party’s top international relations officer, Fernando Remirez de Estenoz, were present throughout. Several deputy ministers and other officials were also present for portions, including President Raul Castro and Parliament Chair Ricardo Alarcon, and the ministers of Education and Economy.

What was most refreshing about the presence of so many authorities was that they spent their time listening attentively to the concerns of the country’s media professionals. I would estimate that less than 10 percent of all the comments made at the congress came from the top officials present. It was a rare pleasure to be among politicians who recognize that they don’t have all the answers.

Honest Controversy over False Consensus

Ariel Terrero, a TV commentator and print media journalist, stressed the importance of credibility, acknowledged to be lacking in the Cuban media. He said that reversing the situation would entail profound analysis and a critical approach. He noted the lack of information from ministries and called for more transparency at that government level. However, he also emphasized the journalists’ responsibility to work with honesty and tenacity.

Several reporters criticized the role played by self-censorship in limiting their work. The reality is that Cuba has been forced to defend itself against 50 years of hostility from the United States and extreme caution has definitely played a role in the island’s journalism.

Santa Clara TV journalist Luis Evidio Martinez also commented on the challenge of audience/reader credibility. He felt it was a mistake to give in to the temptation of “de-problemizing” the country. He further noted that silence is what arms Cuba’s detractors. Martinez also said Cuban commentators should have the right to err, saying he prefers “honest controversy to false consensus.”

Rolando Perez Betancourt, well-known columnist and movie critic, chimed in on the same topic: “Perhaps by holding back our fire on our own deficiencies we have actually done an important favor to the enemy.”

The critic added: “The public gave us our just due,” —at the meetings last year following a call by President Raul Castro to discuss the nation’s problems— “for not reporting on what we should.” He questioned the benefit of silence, “opting not to shoot at the target as the best way to avoid missing the mark.” He also stressed that you can’t expect reporters “to coincide 100 percent with the established opinion about something.”

Exemplifying the hurdles Cuban journalists face to do their job effectively, Maria Julia Mayoral, a reporter for Granma, spoke of her efforts to cover the National Assembly (parliament) beat. “It’s alarming that we can’t write about what’s discussed in committee debates.” She said the reporters that cover the National Assembly have a great deal of information but are told not to use it, adding, “and there isn’t any follow up.”

Frank Gonzalez, director of the Prensa Latina news agency, said all information that does not jeopardize security should be available to the public.

In a criticism of how the Cuban media makes use of op-ed pieces, Edda Diz Garces, from Trabajadores weekly, called for “less rhetoric and better arguments” in defending positions in a credible way “with irrefutable facts and figures.” She also noted that too often many Cuban websites resemble each other with virtually the same articles.

Young Voices

Several young people spoke out at the journalism congress.

Leslie Salgado of Canal Havana TV noted that many of the problems of reporting in Cuba are old hat. She insisted: “The information policy has to change, and that change is in us and the decision-making bodies. The situation of closed doors and officials refusing to provide information has got to end, because the people are demanding that we report with veracity, and a critical and reflective eye.”

Salgado went on to say what many her age were thinking. “I don’t want to be here at the age of 30, repeating the same thing about our disappointments with the practice of our profession.” She noted that students begin to get discouraged by the third year of journalism study. Their frustration continues when they begin working and facing limitations in doing their job.

A young reporter from Matanzas Province emphasized the treatment of indifference that new journalists receive at some news organizations, and the resulting lack of encouragement. Likewise, he said there’s little opportunity to carry out work in the provinces —where there is far less material and logistical resources— leading to more migration to the capital.

Desertion from the field of journalism to more economically beneficial jobs in tourism was mentioned as a serious dilemma by several of the young journalists and some seasoned delegates. Likewise, emigration abroad was cited as a big concern.

The younger generation especially is often tempted to view leaving the country as their best option for economic betterment. This deprives the country of valuable human resources and feeds into Cuba’s growing problem of an aging population.

Phantoms and Salaries

The tremendous cutback in print runs and frequency of publications during the hard post-Soviet years of the 1990s turned many publications into virtual phantoms, said two delegates.

There was agreement that the newly expanded special Friday edition of Granma, with double the number of pages, is providing much needed opportunities for writers. Gladis Egues, from the Editorial de la Mujer (Women’s Publishing House), echoed this move asserting that the print run and distribution of publications like Mujeres (Women) and Muchachas (Girls) also needs to be increased from the current very low levels.

Charly Morales, a young reporter from Prensa Latina, pointedly used humor to address a topic that was on a lot of people’s minds… the salary situation. In describing the acrobatics his colleagues must undertake to exercise their profession and earn a living that meets their basic needs, he brought the entire hall into roaring laughter and asked the Party leadership for some direction on the matter.

The question merited responses from vice presidents Esteban Lazo, Machado Ventura and Carlos Lage.

Lazo noted that while there was expectation of the announcement of a pay hike at the congress, such a raise for journalists, as other sectors, must be postponed to later in 2008 or 2009, as recent sharp price increases on the country’s imports have caused economic difficulties.

A salary increase might not be so difficult to offer to a small sector like the journalists, said Carlos Lage, the operations chief of the Cuban economy. However, he made it clear that pay hikes must be related to product availability. “We must be responsible and increases must be part of an integral policy so we don’t return to that period in the early 1990s when people had money but nothing to buy,” said Lage.

Machado Ventura summed up the government’s position on the matter by saying that the nation’s means (budget) “can’t be stretched artificially.”

The Course for Media Change Is Set

President Raul Castro was present at the final session. He too used humor to address the audience, mentioning that some of the problems posed by the journalists were as old as the ancient Gutenberg printing press.

Vice President Lazo then gave the closing address. He urged the Cuban media to “leave behind styles and bad habits that diminish their effectiveness.” He emphasized the importance of implementing the Communist Party’s recommendations (outlined in 2007) that the media reflect Cuban reality and contribute to confronting its problems.

That statement reinforced the notion that the guidelines are in place and that now it’s up to each individual media to break from passivity and put a more dynamic journalism into practice.

How’s Raul Castro’s Brother?

2008-07-29T17:49:00.000-07:00

By Circles Robinson

When a Cuban or a foreigner living in Cuba travels abroad nowadays they are usually confronted with questions on how things are going in Cuba under Raul Castro.

It is now common knowledge that Raul Castro is the new president of Cuba and that changes are occurring in the country. However, people around the world have been left wondering what exactly is changing and how this is impacting ordinary Cubans.

For those who have an overall positive impression of the Cuban revolution, there is concern that the changes being talked about in the foreign media could mean a penetration of consumerism, capitalism or inequalities, which they hope not to see.

Others ask the question based on an image of a repressed, downtrodden people, without the creature comforts that most people in the industrialized world possess, and that most populations aspire to have.

On a recent trip that took me through Mexico City, I was surprised by the question from an immigration officer as he checked my passport with the Cuban stamps: “How’s Raul Castro’s brother?”

I explained that Fidel has not appeared in public since he had abdominal surgery two years ago, but remains active with the pen, writing commentaries for the local media and continuing to serve as the country’s top political advisor.

I am usually guarded about political discussions when I need the OK to enter a country, so I was pleasantly surprised when the immigration officer volunteered his own comment.

He noted the recent announcement that the Mexican government is considering a joint vaccine production program with Cuba, and praised the island’s advances in the field.

After my passport was stamped, I mentioned that the cooling of long-standing good relations that occurred under the administration of former President Vicente Fox now appears to be a thing of the past.

The officer smiled and nodded his head in agreement.

I’ve always admired how Mexico, despite its own internal contradictions and conflicts, was able to dodge the US pressure on Cuba when much of the hemisphere buckled and broke off relations in the early 1960s.

Today, of course, Cuba now has good relations including cooperation and/or commerce with most countries of Latin America and the Caribbean. Judging by the immigration officer’s friendly comments, Mexico is no exception.

Strange July 4th in Cuba

2008-07-07T09:09:00.000-07:00

By Circles Robinson

Havana and Washington politicians don’t have much good to say about each other, but something strange occurs each July 4th when US Independence Day is celebrated twice in the Cuban capital, at two very different venues.

Personally, having lived outside of the US for many years, I hadn’t celebrated the date for a long time, until moving to Cuba, a country that ten consecutive US administrations have considered their enemy.

But since living on the island I have partaken in several July 4th commemorations put on by Cuban cultural institutions in Havana and last Friday was no exception. I go for the excellent music and appreciate the accenting of what I consider one of the United States’ greatest contributions to the world.

The National Concert Band, Vocal Luna and Entrevoces Choirs, soloists Maria Eugenia Barrios, Maylu Hernandez and Bismar Estupiñan, trumpeter Yasek Manzano and his group, and others performed for two hours without interruption.

This year’s tribute included classics including Moon River, Summertime, The Battle of Jericho, As Time Goes by, Swing Low Sweet Chariot and Lush Life. There was also a potpourri of Cuban Music.

“We are here for the gala to pay tribute to the people of the United States on the date that the thirteen English colonies declared their independence in 1776,” said Jesus Gomez Cairo, of the Cuban Music Institute at Havana’s Amadeo Roldan Theater.

Gomez told the audience: “A select representation of distinguished Cuban artists will show their art tonight in expressions and songs that in one way or another reflect the historic and cultural ties between the US and Cuban people.”

“The intellectuals and artists of Cuba want to highlight the deep-rooted and very current ties between our cultures, where music has played an important role,” he added.

THE OTHER CELEBRATION

Another celebration also took place Friday sponsored by the US Interests Section (USIS) in Havana and held at the residence of Washington’s top diplomat in Cuba, Michael Parmly.

Parmly is on his way out, so the Independence Day gathering was also a sort of going away party for the diplomat. While it was thought the occasion might be used to provoke another incident of tension with Cuba, AFP reported that “the July 4th party went ahead without incident.”

Parmly’s image had been sharply tainted in late May when the Cuban government disclosed exhaustive documentation showing the US diplomat’s direct relationship in the financing of a group of internal “dissidents” on Washington’s payroll.

While few people here were surprised to learn that the USIS was a contact point for organizing anti-government activities, the direct, hands-on involvement of Parmly in the payments was scandalous for its clear violation of diplomatic privilege.

On July 2nd the Cuban Foreign Ministry issued a statement making it clear that a continuation of the “provocative actions organized and financed by the US Interests Section” in recent weeks is not going to be tolerated.

“The conveyance of direct instructions from USIS diplomatic personnel to paid agents to step up subversive actions on public streets or symbolic places,” can expect a firm reply, reads the statement from the Cuban government.

For now, July 4th has come and gone. Each year it is a reminder to me that, despite all the hostility shown by the US government towards Cuba and Cuba’s defensive position in an effort to survive, on a people-to-people and culture-to-culture level the animosity is just not there.

Cuba Blogger Concerned over Iran

2008-06-29T10:29:00.000-07:00

By Circles Robinson

Corporations like Halliburton, Bechtel, General Dynamics, ExxonMobil, CACI International and Titan Corp. have no loyalties, just markets and bottom lines. History tells us that for them wars mean unrestrained growth and growth means bigger profits.

The same state of affairs has repeated itself many times. The US State Department lays the groundwork for future conflicts, the Pentagon plans war scenarios, the well-placed corporations begin to lobby for juicy contracts and the media is prompted to manipulate public opinion.

The President uses selective intelligence reports to influence Congress. The legislators, fearful of being called “soft on national security” allot special powers to the Chief Executive. The green light is given. The general population will bear the burden. The victims will rarely be spoken of.

On the uneven playing field, the alternative press and the anti-war movement put out the warning signals. By the time their message is heeded, it is already too late.

Sound familiar?

Despite all the successful efforts to uncover the lies used by the Bush administration to justify the Iraq war; despite the internal audits by the Inspector General’s Office showing that dozens of billions of dollars have been squandered on inflated, no-bid, no-accounting contracts; and despite all the belated speeches on Capitol Hill, very little has changed since the Iraq invasion began on March 19, 2003.

On Thursday June 26, the US Senate gave final approval to a bill allocating $161.8 billion to finance the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan into the next year. The bill passed on a 92-6 vote with not one Democrat voting “nay”, including Obama and Clinton. President Bush triumphed once again, as there was no timetable or mention of withdrawal in the bill.

According to Congressional officials cited by AP, the new funding brings the official total spent on these wars to over $850 billion: $650 billion on the Iraq invasion-occupation and another $200 billion on the war against Afghanistan. The staggering amount is equal to the entire national budgets of dozens of countries during the same period. In the case of Cuba, the figure equals more than 50 annual budgets.

NEW CONFLICT COULD HELP MCCAIN

However, when a war drags on too long, affecting the overall economy and costing too many US casualties, the population can turn against the politicians. This has been true of the current wars, and John McCain is well aware of the President’s low popularity rating.

Billing himself as more experienced than Obama on foreign affairs and the tougher candidate on terrorism, McCain badly needs something to get voters’ minds off the declining economy and Iraq, if only for a few months.

Thus, in a recent interview with Fortune magazine made public on June 23rd, McCain’s senior advisor, Charlie Black, uttered the amazingly candid Machiavellian statement that another terrorist attack on US soil “certainly would be a big advantage to him [Mc Cain].”

McCain quickly apologized, telling the press: “I cannot imagine why he would say it. It’s not true.”

While the risk and cost of such a plan might be too high, I believe there’s another possibility being considered to aid McCain in his uphill battle: attacking Iran.

MORE SANCTIONS AND TOUGH TALK

In demonizing Iran, most of the State Department legwork has already been done. Iran has been portrayed in a negative light since the Shah was overthrown in 1979. For decades the US media has presented the country as being run by religious fanatics that hate the US and Israel. As a result, few people in the US have a favorable opinion of Iran or its people.

For several years now Washington has threatened military action if Iran continues developing its capacity to harness nuclear energy for generating electricity, as in Europe, Russia, Japan and the US itself.

The situation has continued to inch towards a crescendo. Iran refuses to buckle to pressure and the US and its side-kick at 10 Downing St. have continued to up the ante. The EU has also followed suit.

On June 16, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown announced the freezing of the assets of Iran’s largest bank. The PM stated: “Action will start today in a new phase of sanctions... We will take any necessary action so that Iran is aware of the choice to intensify sanctions.”

The European Union followed on June 23rd and imposed new sanctions against Iran, also freezing assets of its Bank Melli.

On June 27, the G-8 group of world economic powers urged Iran to heed their most recent “initiatives” to get it to forgo its nuclear energy program.

Each new sanction offers Washington new justification for a military strike if the sanctions don’t provide the desired results.

Israel, a major nuclear power, has also made it clear that it is more than willing to carry out the assault if the US prefers a proxy. To demonstrate its readiness, it conducted a large-scale aerial military exercise over the Mediterranean Sea in early June.

CNN quoted Deputy Prime Minister Shaul Mofaz telling Yediot Ahronot newspaper on June 6: “The window of opportunity has closed. The sanctions are not effective. There will be no alternative but to attack Iran in order to stop the Iranian nuclear program.”
A couple of days earlier, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said in the United States: “The Iranian threat must be stopped by all possible means.”

MAKING THE PUBLIC BELIEVE

If President Bush can make the people believe that he’s saving the US or its allies from a potential nuclear attack, he could decide to launch strikes against Iran. Historically, few members of Congress have ever had the guts to stand up and ask tough questions when the White House announces an imminent threat to national security.

The vote on Thursday, more than five years into the now unpopular Iraq war, shows the power of persuasion that goes along with the Presidency.

If intended to bolster Republican popularity, the timing for such an attack would be very important. The reasons for it would most likely have to be fabricated, like those used in Vietnam, Afghanistan and Iraq. Then there would have to be an effective cover-up, keeping the cat in the bag until the November 4 elections; afterwards it wouldn’t matter.

Attacking Iran and taking control of its oil reserves would be another godsend to the favored US oil, security and construction corporations. It would be one more case, like in Iraq and Afghanistan, of privatizing the huge profits and letting the young soldiers and US taxpayers pay the short and long term bills.

Whether the Republicans will actually try such a ploy remains to be seen. Regardless, you can be sure that Iran is not taking the situation lightly.

“We advise U.S. officials to be careful not to face another tragedy,” cautioned Mohammed Hejazi, an Iranian military official quoted in the L.A. Times on Wednesday June 25. “If you want to move toward Iran, make sure you bring walking sticks and artificial legs, because if you come, you will not have any legs to return on,” he concluded.

WATCHING FROM CUBA

Living in Cuba, one is acutely aware of what it means to be on the list of perceived US enemies. The country has spent 50 years updating its defense strategy and capabilities just in case.

Cuba is the current chair of the 118-nation Non-Aligned Movement. The grouping is the largest international body that has repeatedly gone on record supporting Iran’s right to nuclear technology for peaceful ends.

Being in a small country doesn’t mean you aren’t watching the bigger picture. To the contrary, it can make you keep a watchful eye on the moves of the superpower that considers it a God-given right to intervene at will in weaker nations’ affairs.

Some readers might think I’m exaggerating the threat of another war. While I’d much prefer to be proven wrong, I don’t think the concern is unjustified.

Cuba Summer and US Elections

2008-06-20T08:01:00.000-07:00

By Circles Robinson

Summer is a time when a lot of Cubans are thinking about vacations and leisure. Parties, outdoor music, beaches and bathing suits, carnivals, movies, reading, food, beer, rum and ice cream are the order of the day.

In August, the majority of the nation will also be glued to TV sets for 15 days, watching the Beijing Olympics and rooting for their athletes.

I’ll be keeping a close watch on the weather from the window of my office, alert for any signs of lightning that could fry my computer or modem during the summer storms. Hopefully we’ll have a light hurricane season. Cuba needs a chance to get its agriculture moving forward, the current national priority.

One other issue that will be on people’s minds this summer and into the fall is the US presidential elections and what the results could mean for Cuba.

As a foreigner living in Havana, I am often approached by Cuban friends and colleagues with their opinions on the November vote.

Many are astounded that a black candidate could have a chance of becoming president of the United States. More than a few openly speculate that if he actually won, he could meet the same fate as John Kennedy, especially if he upsets the Cuban-American terrorist groups operating out of Miami with the consent of the CIA and FBI.

The Cuban media gave considerable coverage to the state primaries and the advance of the delegate count in the battle between Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton for the Democratic nod.
Many people following the elections thought the long drawn out battle between the two candidates —compared to the clear sailing for McCain—, hurt the Democrat Party’s chances in November.

Even though Hillary promised no change in US-Cuba policy, it was commonly felt here that either of the two Democratic candidates offered at least the possibility of change in the status quo as it has existed under Bush.

Now that he’s the Democratic Party candidate, virtually every Cuban I know sees Obama with at least a small hope for slightly improved relations. His proposal to ease restrictions on family visits is very popular in Cuba even among people who dislike the country’s political-economic system. Like most Latin Americans, family is very important to Cubans.

On the other hand, they see McCain as offering nothing more than a continuation of the Bush “regime change” strategy.

Hopes for any more profound change are tempered by the fact that the US blockade has been maintained by 10 different Democratic and Republican presidents over fifty years.

One aspect of the US electoral process that boggles Cubans is the incredible campaign spending. People speculate about how much good those hundreds of millions of dollars could do if put to more noble uses.

The European Union’s decision Thursday to lift all sanctions imposed against Cuba in 2003 opens the door to a normalization of EU-Cuba relations and expanded cooperation and exchange.

This decision, a slap in the face to the Bush camp’s diplomacy, may not inspire the White House to follow suit. However, the new US president and Congress that take office in January 2009 will have abundant reason to question their maintenance of the fifty-year-old policy.

Should they decide to preserve the current stance, it will be the United States, not Cuba that will be ever more isolated.

Cuban Media Contemplates Changes

2008-06-06T09:35:00.000-07:00

By Circles Robinson

Cuba’s journalists are gearing up for a major congress on July 3-5 that could reshape what Cubans see on TV screens, in newspapers and on the radio, as well as the way the island reaches out to the world.

For the last several years, an intense debate sponsored by the Cuban Journalists Association (UPEC) has raged among reporters, editors and the Communist Party as to what steps would improve the quality of Cuban print and broadcast journalism.

Then, at the insistence of acting President Raul Castro in July 2006, the general population jumped into the fray with its own opinions on the media as part of a national debate on the problems facing the country.

The trend in the US and Latin America is toward ever greater corporate domination of the media. Consolidation has put power in the hands of an elite group that today includes AOL/Time Warner, General Electric, Murdoch’s News Corporation, Viacom, Walt Disney Co., Yahoo, Microsoft, Google, Univision Communications, the O’Globo Communications Group and Televisa. With globalization, the profit-oriented interests of these conglomerates take precedence over the needs and interests of peoples, communities and nations.

Cuba has no intention of going that route. Its entire media is publicly-owned and non-profit, and the directives come from the Communist Party, the center of the island’s political life. However, there are some significant winds of change in the air.

Defending the Revolution, but with Better Reporting

Most Cuban journalists are united by a passionate commitment to the Cuban revolution. Such a commitment was overwhelmingly apparent at meetings held in the different provinces throughout May as a lead up to the UPEC Congress.

Nonetheless, the best way for the media to defend the revolution has been a matter of hot contention.

The Cuban press has always prided itself on avoiding sensationalism, focusing on serious issues and telling the truth. The Cuban population, however, have made it clear that they would like some changes.

The media was one of the many concerns discussed nationwide at meetings held in workplaces, urban neighborhoods and rural communities. Opinions aired, though often scathing, were accepted as valuable feedback by the Communist Party and UPEC.

The public urged the press to reflect more accurately the grassroots realities of Cuban society, with less reticence about discussing and reporting the real problems that exist. News programs on radio and TV and the print media were sharply criticized as presenting a much too rosy picture.

Another popular request was for a greater diversity of topics and opinions and a move away from the similarity between one media and another. The population also said it wants investigative reporting that gets to the bottom of a given issue.

A large segment criticized the media for omissions, a lack of details, and poor timeliness. At present, stories often circulate in the foreign press and hit the streets of Cuba on the “Radio Bemba” rumor mill long before they appear in the local media.

An effort in that direction has already begun, notes Tom Gjelten of US National Public Radio in his recent report titled “Cuban Newspaper Pushes Beyond the Party Line.”

Gjelten opens his article by stating “In an unprecedented move, reporters at Cuba’s Juventud Rebelde (Rebel Youth) [newspaper] are being encouraged to investigate what’s not working in their country.”

What the report doesn’t mention is that this shift in media policy represents an initiative of the Communist Party in response to the popular demand for change.

The NPR article then goes on to make it seem that the editors are in contradiction with the Communist Party leadership, while setting the measuring stick of good journalism as that of a “democratic society” like the United States.

In an article published on the Cuban Journalists Association website in the lead up to their Congress, Ernesto Vera sums up Cuban journalists’ general opinion of the privately owned media championed by the US: “Journalism is too important to reduce it to a business… exempt from any social responsibility.”

The upcoming journalists’ congress promises to be a time of serious evaluation. The last Congress in 1999, attended by Fidel Castro, brought a major push towards greater availability of computers, the internet and other resources to the media. Like that gathering, it’s expected that this Congress will yield important direction for the years to come.

Two Different Media Approaches

A siege mentality has permeated much of Cuban life during 50 years of hostility from the United States under ten different administrations. Understanding this is vital in comprehending the cautious approach of the Communist Party in policies involving the island’s media.

On the other hand I also recall what it’s like living under corporate, profit-first, media in the US, Spain and other Latin American countries.

I remember a dear friend William Eastlake (1917-1997), novelist and short story writer, journalist and war correspondent, and the stories he told me over a couple glasses of wine at his southeastern Arizona home about his stint in Vietnam working for The Nation magazine in the late 1960s.

He recounted how reporters often saw no reason to leave their Saigon hotels, instead waiting for some Pentagon general to give the day’s success story at the afternoon press conference.

According to Eastlake, the reporters there faced the choice of writing what the Army wanted them to or going out on their own and not being trusted by anyone. In addition, after taking the risks involved, it was very difficult to get articles published if their point of view ran counter to what the media owners wanted.

The author recalled that many chose the safer and easier route of the martinis and press conference, providing just what their publications or broadcast media wanted to play Washington’s game.

Many moons after Eastlake’s reflections on reporting from Vietnam, we face a far worse situation with the coverage in today’s Iraq. Five years into the war, the US media remains tightly controlled. Many publications don’t even bother to station reporters, finding it more cost-effective and less conflictive to merely replicate the wire service reports.

Back to Cuba, I am one of those who believe the island’s media has a lot of room for improvement. However, that doesn’t mean it should mimic the western media model where the pens dance to the dollars.

Maintaining its public service focus and being totally advertising free sets the Cuban media apart from today’s trends. The challenge posed is how to meet the population’s needs on domestic news and debate and more effectively communicate Cuban views abroad on national and international issues.

Cuba’s Internet Options Include US

2008-05-18T09:19:00.000-07:00

By Circles Robinson

The United States has a golden opportunity to help Cuban citizens obtain greater and faster Internet connectivity and the key, a fiber optic cable, is sitting in international waters off the coast of the island.

US presidential candidates Barack Obama and John McCain will both be heading for Florida this week to woo votes in the important swing state. Among their prime goals is to clarify their political stance regarding Cuba policy.

The candidates will have a chance to break with the current policy of excluding Cuba from new technology, which under the US blockade also extends to vital equipment in fields such as medicine, energy and the steel industry.

Allowing Cuba to hook up to the fiber optic cable would end the bantering over whose fault it is that more Cubans don’t have Internet.

If the Cuban government decided not to provide greater access, once it had the capacity, then US politicians and Cuban “dissidents” could argue that it was control of information, not a lack of access that blocked islanders from having Internet.

To date, the Bush administration has considered it more politically expedient to blame the Cuban government for the low percentage of citizens with Internet than help them gain access.

Internet in Today’s Cuba

While it cannot hook up to the oceanic fiber optic cable or contract the service of US Internet providers, Cuba has advanced in the development of a domestic fiber optic system. There has also been considerable progress in recent years with digitalizing around 90 percent of its telephone communications.

Nonetheless, telephone service is still limited to 10 phones for every 100 inhabitants, below the average of 18 percent teledensity in Latin America and the Caribbean and nearly 60 percent in the US.

A home grown system, called the Intra-net, allows Cubans to receive e-mail and scroll domestic Web sites. A national network of computer clubs, post offices, and some workplaces and education facilities are the common places where people access. Some professionals with computers provided from their jobs also use the service from their homes. Demand still far exceeds supply.

Cuba’s Telecommunications Ministry maintains that comprehensive Internet —connecting people to Web sites from around the world—, is severely limited due to the slow and expensive satellite service currently available to the island. Thus, Internet is only available at home to researchers, journalists and some academics and executives, the prioritized groups. Hotels and cyber cafes offer the service to tourists.

For those that have Internet at home the low-bandwidth dial-up connection (between 16 and 50 kb/sec transmit speed) works OK for most sites but is inadequate for many audio and video links.

Computers are First

Over the last six years I have witnessed a great expansion of computers on the island, an indispensable step towards both Intra-net and Internet access. The on-going nationwide strategy has targeted workplaces, businesses and schools as the top priority. Cuba assembles its own computers with components purchased abroad, largely from China.

The next step includes expanding access to individual PCs. “It’s a great aspiration for all of us to have a computer,” Deputy Communications Minister Roman Linares was quoted last week as saying. “But we have to be realistic, going step by step and attending the needs of the economy, the society and also the individuals,” he added.

While the US could speed up the process for greater Internet access by allowing Cuba to hook up to the fiber optic cable, Linares noted that it is not the only option. He said a much more costly 1,500 kilometer cable project to connect Cuba and Venezuela and its broad-band capabilities could resolve the matter by 2010.

With the end of the Bush presidency in January 2009, McCain, Obama or Clinton will soon have to make their decision of whether to continue trying to block Cuba’s telecommunications development or change to a good neighbor approach.

Cuba Draws Labor Leaders Despite Bad Press

2008-05-08T08:49:00.000-07:00

By Circles Robinson

The mainstream international media paints Cuba as a hell-hole where a down-trodden people have few rights, and even fewer cars or cell phones. An AP article widely circulated on Tuesday, quoted a Freedom House study, calling Cuba one of the “most repressive” countries on Earth.

If that were the case, then what would bring labor leaders from around the world to meet in Havana for the International Workers Day festivities on May 1, instead of vibrant cities like New York, London, Mexico City, Toronto, Paris, Buenos Aires or Madrid?

After watching the huge Cuban parade on May Day and seeing the faces of the some of the guests on TV, I decided to go to the annual solidarity event that the Cuban Workers Federation (CTC) throws each May 2 in Havana and try to get some answers.

When I arrived at the Havana Convention Center I couldn’t help but notice the dozens of new powder-blue Chinese “Yutong” buses. The sight of all those vehicles suddenly made real the news figure of more than 1,400 foreign participants from 61 countries.

The spacious facility built in 1979 with its restaurants and comfortable meeting rooms of all sizes, is also the site of the Cuban parliamentary sessions, as well as numerous congresses and other international events each year. The main hall where the event took place was decorated colorfully with the flags that many of the labor and solidarity organizations had brought with them.

The first labor leader I spoke with was Alan Richie, general secretary of the Union of Construction, Allied Trades and Technicians (UCATT) from the UK and Ireland. A carpenter whose own body looked as solid as a hardwood door frame, Richie said he was in Cuba for the first time.

When asked why he had chosen to come to Cuba, he said that his union has maintained a policy of support for Cuba for many years. Fond of Cuba from a distance, he said he has always been concerned about the island “recalling what happened to Allende” referring to the US backed coup that toppled the labor friendly president of Chile in 1973.

After noting that UCATT has issued resolutions supporting Cuba he said: “Cuba should be left alone to develop its economy and strategies.” Richie said that his union will offer the Cuban Workers Federation (CTC) “our experience in costs, quality of materials and production.”

Accompanying Richie and the construction workers delegation was Spencer Wood, an attorney whose firm represents UCATT. This was Wood’s fifth visit to Cuba. When asked to compare what he was seeing this time with past visits, he said: “My friends here are optimistic that things are getting better.” The lawyer saw the US blockade as clearly the biggest problem facing Cuban labor, noting that it also “affects access to some building materials.”

Wood said he had met with Cuban lawyers who represent worker interests when there are complaints filed. He noted that the system is very different in Cuba because “the union is not an adversary, but instead plays a part in government decision-making.”

Asked about UCATT’s own domestic struggles, Wood’s colleague chimed in that there are two big issues facing construction workers in the UK. One is the failure of the government to meet its obligations to workers suffering from illnesses caused by handling asbestos materials before they were banned. The other is the current trend towards “self-employment.” He said such contract labor provides no worker benefits and is geared to weaken the unions.

Canadians Rick Murray and Cheek Totten, members of the Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW), were in Cuba as part of a worker-to-worker tour. This was their second and third trip respectively to the island. Murray emphasized the need to reach the grassroots population back home with information on Cuba. He felt that the solidarity meeting was important “to get people on Cuba’s side.”

Murray noted that in the Canadian press everything reported about Cuba is negative: “Our media is like the media in the States.” Totten mentioned that the CUPW just had a convention of some 700 members who expressed their support for Cuba. “That’s a start,” said Murray.

Asked about their own domestic agenda, they said that the Canadian postal workers were facing tough challenges to fight privatization and deregulation. “Technical change is a big threat to the workers,” said Totten. Murray added that the frightful example of Minneapolis, where hundreds of workers lost their jobs to “modernization, is an ever-present threat to their union.”

Murray concluded by saying that on this trip he had noticed that infrastructure is being repaired, something he thought was a good sign for Cuba.

Porfirio Barrera Jimenez is from the Center for Political Studies in Guerrero, Mexico. He was attending the May Day related activities in Cuba with a group of educators. After a week on the island Barrera felt that the biggest challenge facing the country is “the younger generations.” He emphasized the importance of strengthening the civic and revolutionary consciousness of the youth.

In the economic arena, he pointed to the need to strengthen agriculture and small industry as well as the ability of Cuba to create its own technologies. Barrera expressed particular concern about “US financed cells of counterrevolutionary religious groups that go house to house, trying to make political inroads.”

Bolivia and Cuban Five Top International Agenda

The plenary session of the solidarity gathering was presided over by Salvador Valdes Mesa, general secretary of the Cuban Workers’ Federation (CTC) and Ricardo Alarcon de Quesada, president of the Cuban parliament.

Valdes Mesa opened the meeting by outlining the international agenda of the CTC. This includes defending the cause of the Cuban Five, denouncing the activities of terrorist Luis Posada Carriles in Miami, and demanding measures to deal with the global crisis caused by the rise in food and oil prices, and climate change.

He then made special mention of Fidel Castro’s recent alert about the situation in Bolivia, where the oligarchies of the resource-rich departments are spearheading a movement to divide up the nation.

The labor leader proudly noted the generous contributions of Cuban workers in providing assistance in the fields of medicine, education, science and sports in dozens of developing countries. He concluded by saying that Cuban workers will continue defending the right to work for a better world.

Ricardo Alarcon centered on the Cuban Five case which has taken up a considerable amount of his time over the last 10 years. Arrested in 1998 for gathering information on the plans of terrorist groups based in Miami, the Cuban Five were given harsh sentences after what numerous human rights and attorney groups term a biased and irregularity-plagued trial.

Alarcon also called attention to a meeting that same night (May 2) in Miami to eulogize notorious international terrorist Luis Posada Carriles. The meeting had been organized by several groups including the Cuban Liberty Council and the Cuban-American National Foundation. “It’s incredible that such a meeting could be possible,” said Alarcon. Posada Carriles is credited with blowing up a Cuban airliner that killed 73 persons and with other deadly terrorist crimes including Havana hotel bombings.

Following Alarcon’s speech, the meeting opened to the floor. Dozens of speakers issued statements on two central issues: Bolivia and the Cuban Five. A resolution was approved to condemn any attempts to dismember the South American nation and the US participation in promoting separatism as a way to combat the advances towards social and economic justice promoted by the Morales government.

Tony Woodley, general secretary of the large British-Irish trade union Unite, expressed his union’s admiration of Cuba for exporting doctors and teachers while others export weapons. He promised that “the British trade union movement will continue to demand that the British government support a policy of engagement with Cuba.”

Referring to the Cuban Five case, Nelia Pintora, of the Association of Ex-Political Prisoners of Uruguay, said that the people in her organization know what it’s like to be in the hands of terrorists. “We feel very much identified with them and know what their families feel,” she said.

Guillermo Macias Mendez of a Michoacan, Mexico teachers’ association spoke of the importance of keeping humanitarian legislators and NGOs constantly informed on the Cuban Five case. He also recommended making greater use of the Internet to inform students and professors in the United States.

Alicia Jrapko, national coordinator of the International Committee to Free the Cuban Five, explained how the committee was working to keep the case in the public eye. “Due to the news blackout in the mainstream US media on the case, we’ve had to purchase newspaper ads to try and inform people, she stated, adding: “We have to reach the hearts of US citizens and we must be creative to be able to reach other sectors of society.”

Notes on Cuba’s Atypical Economy

2008-04-30T10:05:00.000-07:00

By Circles Robinson

Cuba’s economy is not easy to understand, especially for those that have never lived under a similar system where government plays a lead role. To begin with, it doesn’t go by the usual market codes of supply and demand and corporate profit isn’t its driving force.

Coming from North America or Europe to a typical Cuban urban neighborhood, the visitor’s first impression might be one of poverty: crumbling or poorly maintained buildings, pot-holed streets, ancient cars, homes where there are few “extras” etc.

On the other hand, if you arrive from Latin America or another developing country, other aspects of Cuban life might get your attention: no street kids, no malnourished faces, no beggars and people walking the streets at night with almost no fear.

In fact, in the more than six years living in Havana, I have yet to see ONE working child, an astounding contrast to other Latin American countries where I witnessed the daily parade of hungry kids scrambling to shine shoes or hawk a host of products at markets and traffic lights, in parks and door-to-door. Many are glue snuffers before they become teenagers.

Simply speaking, that doesn’t happen in Cuba, and that difference alone should make anyone think twice before buying into the corporate media’s image of Cuba as a country of acutely deprived people.

Yet, technically speaking, the foreign news stories are correct when they talk about salaries in that are the equivalent of US $10-30 a month.

Rich in some ways, poor in others, Cuba has insisted in running its economy on a different model.

AN ECONOMY THAT DARED TO BE DIFFERENT

The biggest distinguishing factor of the Cuban economy over the last half century has been an unswerving commitment to feed, educate and protect its citizens.

This is no small feat for an under-developed country. Even more so when you consider that Washington’s relentless blockade keeps it from exporting to the US market where the neighboring Dominican Republic sends 75 percent of its exports.

It involves very careful central planning to provide a supply of foodstuffs, highly subsidized public transportation and utilities, universally free education at all levels and even a complicated surgery at no charge.

The government has continued to do this through good times and bad, and with obvious ups and downs, especially in the 90s with the collapse of support from the Soviet Union.

Today, the national budget receives revenue from diverse sources: profits from tourism, from the nickel mines, from agricultural exports such as sugar, tobacco, fish, citrus, and coffee. Another source is hard currency sales of products imported and sold by the State that absorb a good share of the family remittances from abroad that are also a factor in the Cuban economy.

The revenue is not indirect through taxation, but comes directly through public ownership. The earnings go into the national budget to finance productive investments and subsidize products, services and social security to the population.

Cuba has shown a knack for survival, in spite of a cumbersome bureaucracy that sometimes seems to run counter to the government’s objectives.

Nonetheless, in the post-Soviet years the purchasing power of salaries drastically decreased. While improving slightly, there are still severe limitations, creating many difficulties for Cuban families.

SOME THINGS CHEAP, OTHERS OUT OF REACH

In Cuba an average family of two working adults and one child, has a combined income of US $20 to $60.

Many special benefits help stretch this amount far more than it would ever go in another country. The parents get a hot lunch at work, paying $1 or less for the entire month. The child’s lunch at school costs $0.30 a month. Transportation costs are minor: 100 bus rides for the family (kids under 12 don’t pay) costs $1.65, and some workplaces have their own free transportation.

Cooking gas costs pennies, and the average family pays under $2 a month for electricity and under $1 for local telephone service. Most people live in apartments or homes that they or their relatives or spouses own. The small percentage paying rent by law pay no more than 10 percent of their salary.

While not enough to meet all needs, a supply of staple foods and a few other basic products is available to every Cuban citizen for around $1 a month. Available medicines are priced at pennies and all educational and health care services are free. .

Books, which are out of reach for the poor in developing countries are considered a basic need in Cuba and are heavily subsidized. A book that would cost US $10 to $25 in most countries costs between $0.30 and $0.80 in Cuba.

On the entertainment side, for the equivalent of $0.75 two people can go to the movies complete with popcorn, have an ice cream cone afterwards and pay their round trip bus fare.

Sounds great so far, but not all is roses.

The regular Cuban peso, in which people receive their salaries, exchanges at 20 to one US dollar and has little value outside the subsidized economy. The other money that circulates is called the Cuban Convertible Peso or CUC, (the country’s hard currency equal to about US $1.20) needed to buy imported products like cooking oil, powdered milk or higher grade detergents, soaps and shampoos.

Cubans without family remittances, bonuses, tourism-related employment, or some illegal scheme find themselves with a very limited purchasing power. Most have a tough time making ends meet with clothes and shoes. Even local food and produce sold in regular Cuban pesos can be too expensive if you don’t possess the CUCs to exchange.

THE CANCER OF WORKPLACE THEFT

Given this situation, it’s not surprising that many Cubans resort to illegal “scams” of one kind or another to get by. Many of these involve stealing from the workplace. Relatively unknown during the more prosperous 80s, the practice mushroomed in the 90s when the government could no longer provide workers with the variety or quantity of consumer goods they were used to. A sort of pragmatism about workplace stealing wormed its way into the national conscious. Doing what you have to get by even merited its own verb: “resolver.”

State-owned industries, business inventories, office supplies, restaurants and worker kitchens, construction sites etc., became fair game. A huge percentage of the population has been drawn into the practice —either by taking regularly from their own workplace or by purchasing things in both currencies they know are stolen or illegally sold. Some of the theft is extremely small scale and individual, while some is well organized and involves larger sums and a chain of people.

An astounding but highly representative example came in a widely watched speech by Fidel Castro back in 2005. He stunned his national audience by openly stating that an investigation had shown that around half of the country’s gasoline and diesel, all imported and sold by the State, was being detoured to the black market.

The big loser is the State, which means nobody or everybody depending on how you look at it.

Is it possible to educate a general population to favor the common good over the individual or family interest, especially in hard times?

With new openness, Cuba’s leaders have encouraged the local media to explore such topics, not long ago taboo. A letter to the editor in Granma daily newspaper on Friday, April 25 from a Havana resident described how the younger members of the family went to the new Isla de los Cocos amusement park and came home saying they had bought discounted tickets to go on the rides.

“It turns out that the tickets the "vendor" collects [for the rides] are not properly torn and he then resells them… at a good savings to the young students, who want to go on more and more of the rides,” noted L. E. Rodriguez Reyes, concluding: “How sad that our young people play the game of the dishonest without analyzing it!”

For parents like L. E. Rodriguez, who gave their best for a brighter future for all, such practices are painful and highly undesirable. But for the younger generations, workplace theft of one kind or another is a fact of life.

Widespread complicity has led to a general tolerance. Few citizens are willing to denounce such activity and risk being called a snitch over something “normal.”

The situation has produced a mutated economy and impacted the values of the Cuban population.

If five Cubans sat around a table to talk about the subject, the discussion could go on all night.

Some believe the problem is too big to tackle as long as salaries don’t meet basic needs. Others think that it’s never too late to begin to address the corrosive ill, as long as the right strategies and tactics are used.

SOCIALIST INCENTIVES AND THE FUTURE

Cubans are discussing their problems more openly than at any time since I have lived here. Listening to them, I find that most people want to maintain the benefits of their subsidized products and services, but also want to be able to purchase things their salary won’t permit.

The strategy of President Raul Castro to gradually increase salaries and make the peso go further promises greater pay for increased farm and industrial production; maintaining the concerted effort to conserve energy and other key resources, and a streamlining of the government bureaucracy.

Thus, the direction of the Cuban economy points to a system that provides equal opportunities but with greater incentives, asking for the contribution of “each according to their ability,” and rewarding “each according to their work.”

While the government and labor note that hard work is crucial to a rise in the living standard, the battle to return to the “poor, but honest” maxim is also seen as vital for the future of a revolution that takes pride in, and is admired around the world for its fairness, solidarity and ethics.

Cuba’s “New Freedoms”

2008-04-16T04:26:00.000-07:00

By Circles Robinson

The arrival of some previously unavailable electronic items on Cuba’s store shelves, together with the new access to cell phones and tourist hotels is hot news these days in the foreign press. In a constant barrage of news articles most reporters sadly bemoan the fact that Cubans lack the money to take advantage of their new “freedoms.”

Cubans make around US $20 a month, but consider free health care for all a right. Most can’t afford DVD players or PCs but with free education at all levels their sons or daughters can become doctors, scientists or engineers if they have the vocation.

“Cubans can now book a room in 5-star tourist hotels but who can afford it?” chorus the foreign press in articles with titles such as: “Some Cubans can’t afford new reforms” and “Changes in Cuba spark frustration and hope.”

One article focuses on a man named Ernesto who “makes just over $12 dollars a month” but owns a car and his home. He laments that he would have to save up a year’s salary to stay a night in a fancy hotel or purchase a cell phone and line.

Cuba is recognized internationally for having exemplary social programs for a developing country but across the board low salaries keep most people’s purchases to the basics.

CHOICES TO BE MADE

Cuba is not a wealthy, developed nation, and the choices the government (which controls imports) must make are dictated by a strict set of parameters regarding what is a luxury and what is a necessity. Finding a way to meet the basic needs of its 11.2 million inhabitants and have an educated, healthy population are the top priorities. Assisting other underdeveloped nations is a close second.

Those choices will never be very attractive to the mainstream foreign media because corporations and the market aren’t the main actors determining where investment should be made.

The reporter didn’t ask Ernesto if he would prefer a night at a hotel to the low-priced public utilities that he and his family receive year round. If he had been asked, he probably would have said he deserves both. Such an attitude has an explanation.

Cuba was never a consumer society with an abundance of products. However, journalist Orlando Oramas reminds us that with their salaries “in the 1980s Cubans could occasionally check in for a weekend at the posh Havana Libre Hotel or take a tour of the island with their families.”

Times were different back then, as Oramas notes. During the 1960s, 70s and 80s Cuba exchanged its sugar at highly favorable rates for oil, manufactured goods, machinery and industrial raw materials from the Soviet Union and Socialist Bloc.

That trade system collapsed with the fall of the Soviet Union, and Cuba’s economy hit rock bottom in the early 1990s. While today it is on the upturn with expanded trade with Venezuela and several other Latin American countries and China, it is clearly still in the recovery stage. President Raul Castro has announced a concerted effort to gradually restore the buying power of devalued salaries as well as providing greater incentives for increased production.

While some professionals, workers and farmers earn bonuses they could use for luxury items, most prefer to spend their money first on additional basic food and hygiene products that the state is unable to provide at the heavily subsidized neighborhood stores. Their second choice would probably be clothing or shoes. Many who receive small amounts of family remittances or tips in the tourist industry do the same.

Nonetheless, it is each person’s choice whether they wish to tighten the belt in order to save up for more expense items. For now, the new opportunities will be most accessible to those families who receive sizeable amounts from relatives abroad, people working for international firms located in Cuba, as well as doctors and a smaller number of other professionals working in government-sponsored missions in other countries.

MORE SIGNIFICANT CHANGES

As the foreign reporters concentrate on Cubans’ new “freedom to consume” they miss the story on more important events gradually taking place in the lives of normal Cubans. There’s no magic wand, but major government investments appear to be paying off.

Less than three years ago the country’s electric generating system had virtually collapsed. Daily blackouts were commonplace, affecting normal family living and wreaking havoc at workplaces, offices and industries.

The blackouts coincided with the near collapse of the country’s public transportation network. The inconvenience was the butt of constant criticism and jokes, endless frustration and discontent, as well as damaging to the economy.

Then the government announced a nationwide energy revolution. In short, the effort meant obtaining savings at homes and workplaces with more efficient lighting and appliances, combined with massive investment in a more decentralized and fuel-efficient generating strategy. Upgrading of the distribution system was another component of the plan.

The effect so far has been a giant success. So much so that in this era of US $100 a barrel oil, other countries of the region have sought Cuba’s help to try and do the same.

For several years my family and I were constantly recharging a pair of battery-powered florescent lamps and buying replacement bulbs. Now, with the blackouts a thing of the past, the lamps are around only in case of hurricane winds, when the power is cut as a safety precaution.

HERE COME THE BUSES, MORE FOOD NEXT?

In 2006, Cuba’s leaders began a program of major investments in new buses and trains. At this time they predicted that public transport would gradually improve over the following 3 or 4 years. Many people were skeptical since the problem had existed for nearly two decades and was getting worse.

Today, Cubans are finally seeing major improvements in their public transportation. Much of the fleet of long distance buses between provinces has been renovated and urban transport is improving fast in Havana. Similar improvements are programmed for other cities as well. In the capital, bus trips that used to take 1 1/2 to 3 hours, including the wait, often now take an hour or less. Better yet, instead of being mercilessly squashed many commuters now find their buses are only moderately crowded. Sometimes I even find myself a seat!

The much greater frequency of many of the bus routes is startling. Other parts of the capital yet to benefit will receive the same improved service once their streets are repaired and enough drivers can be trained.

Another area where large-scale change has begun is food security. There is a new, high-priority focus on farm efficiency and production to reduce costly food imports. The plan involves higher prices to private farmers, more land to those who need it and greater access to farm supplies, especially geared to benefit both family farmers and coops.

The goal is a sharp increase in harvests and livestock production in the not-too-distant future, thus increasing the supply of affordable food products and adding needed variety to the population’s diet. Such an accomplishment would go way beyond electronics and hotels in improving the lives of average Cubans. We can only hope that the foreign media will stick around to report it.

Religion in Cuba: Not What You Think

2008-04-02T12:20:00.000-07:00

By Circles Robinson

My wife and I walked into the Nuestra Senora del Carmen Church located on Infanta Street in Central Havana, Cuba just as the 6:00 p.m. Mass on Easter Sunday was beginning on March 23rd.

Unlike what some people might imagine, the atmosphere was similar to that in any other Latin American Catholic Church. The doors were open, there were no police in sight and the worshippers of mixed age were relaxed and at ease. I greeted a former news agency co-worker who was in one of the back rows.

There was one important difference, though. Instead of a packed congregation in predominantly Catholic countries, the church was no more than 75 percent full.

We took a good look around the beautifully adorned baroque church inaugurated in 1927 with its main and side altars and attractive art work including the painted tiles, mosaics, ceiling and wall murals, and the spectacularly decorated hard wood pulpit.

At the beginning of the Mass, the officiating priest, whose accent seemed to be from Spain, spoke of the festive nature of the anniversary, remembering the resurrection of Christ as, “the most important day on the Catholic calendar.” He also reminded people that their contributions would go to projects “in the hands” of Cardinal Ortega, mainly to make repairs on churches in the different parishes.

Neither my wife nor I practice a religion but it was not the first time we’ve walked into a place of worship in Cuba to observe the atmosphere. We have also gone to ceremonies of the Afro-Cuban “Santeria” religions (originating out of a blend of West African religion with Roman Catholicism so as to make it appear back then to their Catholic slave owners that they were converted to their master’s religion).

The Afro-Cuban religious influence is readily visible on the streets in dress and accoutrements. People initiating into the religion wear all white from head to toe for three months or longer. Different colored necklaces and bracelets as well as scarves, hats, umbrellas etc. also have their significance. Driving percussion music that often spills out into the streets sometimes accompanies religious ceremonies along with sensual, improvisational dance.

Our neighbors and co-workers belong to a mixed bag of religions. Others are agnostics or atheists.

A look at the 2007-8 telephone book white pages for Havana shows 129 “Churches and Places of Worship” listed. These include: Catholics, Baptists, Adventists, Methodists, Episcopalians and Pentecostals. Santeria, mostly conducted out of homes, has many followers while there are small numbers of Jews and Muslims.

We also have friends and acquaintances participating in programs of ecumenical faith based civic organizations that work along with local government institutions to confront social problems such as alcoholism, drugs and domestic violence with an emphasis on raising awareness and consciousness among the population.

SEPARATING ROLES

In many Catholic countries, the separation of Church and State is still merely nominal. The Church still has its hand in every pot.

The Evangelical groups —often with a lifeline in the US—, also try to dictate how everybody should live based on fear of the devil and his associates.

Things are different in today’s Cuba.

While the church doors are open to anyone wanting to attend, the omnipresence of religion in all aspects of life is clearly not the case.

You don’t feel invaded by religious messages on loud speakers, on buses or on the radio and television which occurs in several Latin American countries and in parts of North America as well. Religions in Cuba do not have access to the media.

While some people —usually middle aged or above— habitually use the phrase “gracias a Dios” (Thank God) in relation to something positive that has occurred, the phrase, “Si Dios quiere” (if it’s God’s will) —very common in Central America and Mexico— is rarely heard in Cuba as a substitute for human action or as a sign of resignation.

Catholic holidays go virtually unnoticed by the majority of the population, especially by the more recent generations. Just before Easter week I conducted a quick poll among acquaintances, revealing that most had no idea when the holiday fell this year. Religious holidays don’t appear on calendars and rate only an occasional mention on the international TV news. Some people working in the tourism industry are aware of it only because the holiday week brings many planeloads of vacationers to Cuba.

NO INFLUENCE ON EDUCATION AND HEALTH MATTERS

The zero influence of religion on Cuba’s health care and educational systems as well as politics is clearly one of the most significant changes instituted by the Cuban revolution since its onset.

The Constitution does not permit religious education in public schools or the operation of private schools, except for some international schools for the children of diplomats.

With religion out of the way, reproductive health issues like birth control, or sexually transmitted diseases are treated as scientific and not moral problems. Sex education is heavily stressed in the grade schools and birth control is available on demand. Full information and treatment for STDs are also available to teenagers and adults on demand.

Condoms are touted on television as part of the ministry of health’s AIDS prevention campaign. In contrast, in countries where the Catholic Church or other conservative religions dominate political power, young people are denied information and told that abstinence is the answer.

The topic of abortion, one of the perennial political battlegrounds in the United States and other countries, is in no way taboo in Cuba. Abortions are available through the country’s public health system, and Cubans consider that the decision to carry out or terminate a pregnancy belongs to each woman. Those who believe abortion is wrong are free not to use the service.

The result is that most women prefer to finish their education and begin their careers before having kids. Further, most choose to limit their families to one or two children, rarely more.

Without the taboos propagated by religious conservatives, people in general are more open about sex and sexuality than in most other Latin American countries.

BACKGROUND ON RELIGION IN CUBA

While some researchers say Catholicism was never as rooted in Cuba as some other Latin American countries, official stats show pre-revolutionary Cuba as over 85 percent Catholic. Other studies put the percentage of “devout” Catholics at below 50 percent even before the revolution. Most analysts agree that the Catholic Church was strongest among the upper and middle classes because of Cuba’s Spanish colonial past.

The Church hierarchy, allied to the wealthy, lived hand in hand with the Batista dictatorship. So it was no surprise that shortly after Batista fled Cuba the majority of the Catholic priests —mostly foreigners— also left the country. Others were expelled for collaborating with the counterrevolution.

While not prohibited, during the 1970s and 80s religion was frowned upon. Those practicing were considered to have divided loyalties and thus could not be candidates for membership in the Communist Party or positions of any importance. Then in 1992, a constitutional amendment made Cuba a secular instead of an atheist state, thus opening the door for people who practice a religion to be members of the Party. One’s private religious beliefs were no longer seen as an obstacle to participation in the revolutionary process.

Since the 90s the Catholic Church has increased its visibility slightly, but not its influence. Today a limited amount of foreign priests and nuns are allowed residency. Christmas was restored as an official day off in 1998. However, the Church steers clear of politics and has no place in government policy.

Santeria —which many people believe rivals the Catholic Church in followers—has reached greater recognition in society under the revolution, treated by the government on a par with all other religions.

CUBA AND THE VATICAN COINCIDE ON SOME ISSUES

Relations between the Cuban government and the Vatican are cordial and frank. They actually coincide on several international issues including opposition to wars of aggression like the US invasion and occupation of Iraq, and the importance of fighting poverty around the globe.

Vatican Secretary of State Tarcisio Bertone recently visited Cuba and stressed the Holy See’s opposition to the US blockade on the island. When Pope John Paul II visited the island 10 years earlier he met with Cuban leader Fidel Castro.

Cardinal Bertone expressed the Catholic Church’s desire to play a greater role in education and have access to the media. To date the government has not acquiesced. The fact that it hasn’t keeps Cuba different from its Latin American neighbors.

While respecting others right to worship any or no religion, what I most appreciate about Cuba is the lack of religious fanaticism and the fact that the education and health care systems are strictly non-religious.

A Night at Havana’s Superdome

2008-03-21T07:35:00.000-07:00

By Circles Robinson

I grew up watching my father play a lot of beach volleyball. Since living in Cuba, I have also become fond of conventional volleyball, a game quite popular on the island.

Last week the Chinese and Cuban men’s teams squared off at the Havana “Sports City” indoor coliseum for two exhibition matches. Unable to make the first, I didn’t want to miss the second. Despite it being a school night, I took my 6-year-old grandson for his first visit to our “superdome”, built in 1957 with a 15,000 capacity.

Tickets are sold for one and two pesos, the equivalent of 4 and 8 cents of a US dollar, within anyone’s reach. The more expensive tickets were for wooden seats on the first two levels, and the cheaper tickets bought a space on benches higher up.

The first thing we did upon entering the stadium was to buy some popcorn. Others around us were snapping up the other food items for sale: lechon pork sandwiches and chocolate coated ice cream bars.

We arrived a half hour early to get good seats and see the players warm up. However, finding seats turned out to be not all that easy. We attempted to sit down twice, only to learn that we had chosen blocks of seats that were reserved for a large group of Chinese students who are in Cuba to study Spanish.

Finally seated on the second level, I started explaining to Axel who was who, which he had already figured out, and observing the stadium and its decorations. There were no advertisements; just a couple of small scoreboards, a large portrait of Ernesto “Che” Guevara (there was no need to tell the boy who he was), and a potpourri of red, white and blue banners tastefully hanging from the ceiling, giving a kind of birthday party atmosphere.

Down on the court, the warm-up resembled a choreography of giants jumping up and down and more than a dozen blue and yellow balls flying in the air.

After the passing drills it was time for practicing attacks. This proved quite humorous from our vantage point, as several hard spikes flew past the court helpers and into the ground floor crowd which had to be on red alert so as not to get bopped. A few did!

The practice ended, and the player announcements and national anthems of both countries were played over the loudspeakers. One amusing detail was that the announcer for the Chinese team called out the players’ numbers in English, despite the presence of several hundred Spanish students in the crowd.

Play ball began right on time at 8:30.

Axel had come with a Cuba tank top on and was set to root for the home team. However, the Cubans had decided to start off with their rookie players and the Chinese got off to a strong early lead.

Concluding that the die was cast, Axel decided that he didn’t want to back the loser and made an abrupt about-face announcement that he was really for China. Of course I stuck with Cuba.

Cuba lost the first two sets 25-20 and 25-21 and then the boy fell fast asleep on my lap, convinced he had gone to bed with the winner.

By the third set though, the islanders had brought in some of their real starters and things began to turn as Cuba won set three, 25-23. They also took the fourth, 25-19, setting the stage for the fifth tiebreaker-set which is played to 15 points.

China, with excellent defense and passers and two first-rate spikers, were not throwing in the towel and were perched to win after taking a 14-11 lead. Then the excitement gradually reached a crescendo as Cuba scored five straight points to win 16-14 (according to volleyball rules you must win by two points).

The two teams may lock horns again later in the year in the Beijing Olympics, but first Cuba has to prove its strength in May’s qualifying tournament in Dusseldorf, Germany. China automatically qualifies for the Olympics as the host team.

To the delight of locals, the popular Cuban women’s volleyball team has already qualified for Beijing.

After carrying Axel for a while, I finally had to wake him up so he could sleepwalk the rest of the way to a friend’s car that would take us home. It wasn’t until the morning, when he came into my office to say goodbye before leaving for school, that I broke the news of who won the match. I stifled the impulse to rub it in. Axel had no comment, but we both agreed that the night out at the Sports City arena had been great fun!

Cuba Manages Without Advertising

2008-03-17T12:16:00.000-07:00

By Circles Robinson

There’s nothing like traveling abroad to get added perspective on things at home. A trip at the end of last year to Spain and Nicaragua got me thinking about some of the things that make Cuba different.

When you get off the plane at the modern Havana airport you are immediately struck by the absence of advertising. No “Drink Coca-Cola” signs, no shiny photos advertising hotels or airlines or credit cards. There are some large posters with palm trees, white sand beaches and attractive people invoking the island’s enchantments.

Once out on the streets of Havana, the impression of being in a different world continues. Nobody is trying to sell you a car, a home, a candidate, a vacation, toothpaste, a meal at a fast food chain or anything else.

In Cuba, there is no commercial advertising in newspapers or on television and only one radio station, Radio Taino, —directed to tourists— promotes a few Cuban products like Cristal and Bucanero beers. Billboards carry public service messages about saving water or electricity, or political messages reminding people of the economic damage caused by the US blockade or extolling the example of revolutionary heroes.

The lack of advertising even seems to go too far at times. A common complaint is a lack of public information on cultural and sporting events, despite the attempt that’s made on TV and in some publications to publicize them. Similarly, many restaurants, social clubs and offices have poorly visible signs or none at all, relying almost totally on word of mouth. This works fine for longtime locals, but may leave out many visitors or newer residents.

It’s almost impossible for some Westerners to imagine a life without ads. It’s no surprise; last year over US $450 billion went to advertising around the world. In the case of the US, many politicians consider freedom for companies to advertise on the par with freedom of speech and the right to buy hand guns.

Cuba’s system doesn’t look at it that way. Its authorities believe that a country striving for a fair and equitable distribution of all available goods has no use for the frenzied desire for “more, more, more,” that advertising stimulates.

The ad-less Cubans live without the stressful consumer Christmas season that characterizes most Western societies for the last two months of each year. And children don’t pester parents to buy sugar-coated cereals, take them to McDonald’s or purchase a never ending host of toys and electronic devices.

Without ads to tell them what they should be wanting, kids are generally content with far less, and adults as well. Cubans are big on family and friends; like to dance and drink their rum, read a lot, and are TV fanatics, loving their movies, soaps, musical and sports programs.

This doesn’t mean they are totally satisfied. Most would like a little more in the way of creature comforts - a car, sound system, a DVD, air conditioning, new furniture. But with those items out of reach of their purchasing power the chief concern is getting enough of the basics and a little variety in their food and clothing, independent of the brands.

At the same time, though, most Cubans also want the benefits offered by their social system, which provides the entire population with some basic foodstuffs and utilities at very low prices. In addition health care and education are free at all levels. A government program to replace old refrigerators, TVs and some other kitchen appliances has been underway in recent years.

When pressed, most people recognize that the country is incapable at this time of providing everyone with the basics and the extras. Armed with this recognition, the population continues —sometimes amid complaints— to use the crowded buses, turn on fans instead of air conditioners, and make do with their old furniture.

Would this attitude change if people were subjected to a daily barrage of ads for things they don’t have? Interestingly, many Cubans have no particular like or dislike for advertising since they’ve never lived with it.

Having seen both worlds, though, I feel that the dearth of advertising keeps the pressure down on the wish list and keeps people focused on the things they do have or can get.

As an ex-pat from the developed world, it’s a great relief to live without the strains of so many artificial “needs” created by ad firms. Cuba’s policy to live without commercial advertising is clearly one of the things that make it different.

Blogging from Socialist Cuba

2008-03-12T09:50:00.000-07:00

By Circles Robinson

Back when I was growing up in Los Angeles, California in the 1960s, most US media painted Cuba as hell on Earth. I remember the air raid bells ringing and getting under my school desk because a bearded “Satan” had allowed the Russians to station nuclear missiles barely 90 miles from peace-loving Florida.

Of course my third grade teacher didn’t fill the class in on any of the details, but she did let us know there was plenty to be afraid of. In fact, for nearly a half century, generations of US citizens and people around the globe have been fed the story that Cuba is a permanent threat to peace, democracy, religion and everything we hold dear.

I always wondered how an undeveloped island country with barely three percent of the US population could really pose such a threat. Having been offered a job revising Spanish to English journalistic translations I finally got the chance to see for myself in 2001. I moved to Havana with my partner, daughter and one-year-old grandson.

After living in Cuba for several years, I decided in 2005 to start this blog. My main objectives in writing are to break through the black and white portrayals of colorful and diverse Cuba, and at the same time support the island’s right to be a little different from the rest of the continent.

It’s not easy to write objectively about Cuba. Two polarized views often distort any rational discussion.

One comes from the United States government and media, obsessed with its characterization of Cuba as a “Communist menace and police state.” Trashing the island in these terms is a decades-old lucrative business, thanks to the continuing flow of dollars from Washington and Miami to journalists and politicians.

No reality, not even the end of the Cold War in 1991, has modified this distorted view of Cuba.

Equally far from reality however, is the rosy picture Cuba has painted of itself; influenced by a belief that it’s not in the besieged country’s interest to share its problems with a hostile outside world.

Those who question the horror stories and somehow manage to visit the island, usually come away feeling that they’ve been duped by the mainstream media.

On the other hand, visitors expecting to encounter a revolutionary utopia encounter a complex country with many achievements and just as many problems. Some leave disillusioned.

With a new president (Raul Castro) and a new parliament in Cuba, and with the US heading into a November election showdown, it seems to me that this might be a good time to take a broader look at Cuba.

In the coming weeks I will be interspersing my news commentaries with several posts on life in Cuba and some of its main challenges for the future.

Cuba: If you liked Fidel you’ll like Raul

2008-02-29T11:46:00.000-08:00

By Circles Robinson

There is no greater example of Washington’s failed Cuba policy than the well-executed changing of the guard that took place in Havana last Sunday.

Political analysts at home and Cuba watchers abroad are still digesting the fact that Fidel Castro —who decided not to run for reelection— and the Communist Party of Cuba have pulled off a smooth transfer of power. The event has left Washington dumbfounded and the hard-core Miami lobby dejected.

Nobody dreams of filling Fidel Castro’s shoes as a statesman, but newly chosen President Raul Castro will certainly continue on the course that Cuba’s historic leader and his close associates have carefully set out. This includes a promise of policy reforms and administrative streamlining.

In the days leading up to the National Assembly’s vote to elect a new president, the mainstream US and European media rushed to paint a picture of Cuba as a fragile house of cards ready to fall apart with the first light breeze. Most now grudgingly admit that their dire predictions were wrong.

Already adjusted to Raul’s style of government after 19 months as interim president, most Cubans are now waiting —patiently or skeptically— for the promised changes to make the country’s socialist system work better. The streets are calm and life goes on normally.

WHAT TO EXPECT

In his acceptance speech on Sunday, February 24, as in his address to the final session of the outgoing parliament on December 28, 2007, Raul referred to progressive changes in several areas of the Cuban economic and social life. Issues on the table include reforming the nightmarish bureaucracy, eliminating stifling rules and regulations, improving an economy marked by low productivity and poor administration and raising peoples’ low purchasing power.

One of the greatest achievements of the Cuban revolution was surviving the collapse of the Soviet Union and the subsequent crisis that peaked in the summer of 1994. Difficult decisions were made during this period. Once again the doomsday forecasters were proven wrong, but as Raul Castro said “many changes were undertaken with the rush imposed to quickly adapt to a radically different, very hostile and extremely dangerous scenario.”

He went on to note that in the last 14 years the panorama has changed dramatically. “Today a more compact and operational structure is required, with a lower number of institutions under the central administration of the State and a better distribution of their functions. This will enable us to reduce the enormous quantity of meetings, coordination, permissions, conciliations, provisions, rules and regulations etc.”

President Raul Castro made it clear that some issues would be addressed more quickly, like lifting certain long-standing prohibitions and authorizing greater autonomy in local decision-making. He said other more complicated economic issues, including the dual currency system, would be addressed after careful study.

THE YOUNGER GENERATION WATCHES AND WAITS

One of the most important questions for the future of the 50-year revolution is whether the promised reforms can inspire new energy among Cuba’s youth. At present, a considerable segment of the younger generation have fallen into apathy and disaffection, claiming to see no future for themselves in their underdeveloped country and longing to immigrate to where the grass appears to be greener.

When push comes to shove, many of those youth will admit that what they really want is the best of two worlds: the advantages of their country’s admired social system combined with a modestly better material living standard. Due to the US blockade, the difficulties faced by the entire region and Cuba’s own deficiencies, the latter has proven unobtainable on the island for nearly two decades.

The Cuban media and educational system puts great emphasis on the heroic deeds of Cuban students in the 1950s who fought the Batista dictatorship. While the history is an important part of the cultural and national identity, it is clearly not enough to motivate young people. Unlike survivors of the heroic revolutionary generation and the first generation after them, many of today’s youth see the glass as half empty, while the older generation sees it as half full.

Cuban analysts have meticulously studied the fall of the Soviet Union, East Germany and the rest of the Socialist Bloc. Much of the government’s seemingly slow maneuvering comes from the desire to avoid abrupt changes. Such changes, they fear, could give their enemies in Washington a wedge to break the country’s overwhelming unity on national sovereignty and self-determination.

WHO IS ON BOARD

The new first vice president, Raul’s previous post, is Jose Ramon Machado Ventura. A doctor and former minister of public health, Machado has served for several years in the key post as organizational chief of the Communist Party Central Committee.

“I met Machado more than 50 years ago in the Sierra Maestra Mountains; the two of us were in the same column as the Commander in Chief [Fidel],” said Raul. “In case of any accident, attack or whatever,” Machado as first vice president is a guarantee that the revolution will continue “without interruption.”

The new defense minister is Julio Casas Regueiro, who was vice-minister under Raul Castro at the Ministry of the Revolutionary Armed Forces. Casas is widely known for his business expertise and for being thrifty and even a bit of a “tightwad” as Raul stated in an intervention at the National Assembly before he was reelected.

Castro noted that Casas brings with him a lot of experience and that one of his greatest virtues is his reputation among all the generals as a careful spender; “to such an extreme that he was the only person I gave the authority to veto my economic decisions [at the defense ministry],” said the president.

On the new Council of State, now headed by Raul and Machado, the other five vice presidents are: Juan Almeida Bosque, Juan Estaban Lazo Hernandez, Abelardo Colome Ibarra, Carlos Lage Davila and Julio Casas Regueiro (the only new VP). Julio Miguel Miyar Barruecos remains the secretary.

Of the other 23 Council of State members, 12 are new including 7 of the 8 women elected (up from 6 in 2003). The new council now includes 11 black and mestizo members including two of which are vice-presidents, Lazo and Almeida.

US POLICY UNLIKELY TO CHANGE

The transfer of power dealt yet another blow to the 50-year-old US government obsession with overturning the Cuban revolution. Neither punishing US citizens and Cuban-Americans by strict travel restrictions, nor limiting normal business transactions, nor blocking academic, scientific, sports and culture exchanges has produced the clearly-stated goal of the Bush administration to return the island to its former status as a pseudo-colony.

Any possibility of a thawing in the icy relations between the US and Cuba now depends on Washington. Cuba’s offer still stands for unconditional talks to improve relations and work together on matters of mutual interest like drug trafficking, human smuggling and the fight against all types of terrorism.

In this final year of the Bush presidency, any cooperation appears out of the question. However, a new US leader in January 2009 will have the chance to make history and break the hostile policy of ten successive administrations towards Cuba.

Suspense Mounts in Cuba after Fidel Retires

2008-02-19T10:27:00.000-08:00

By Circles Robinson

Fidel Castro made public on Tuesday his decision not to seek reelection as Cuba’s president, opening the door to a new leadership when the parliament convenes on Sunday.

The man who has led his country since the triumph of the Cuban revolution in 1959 said he would continue to write his reflections on historic and current events —as he has done during his prolonged convalescence after intestinal surgery— offering his experience to the younger generations.

Castro’s decision paves the way for the newly elected 614-member legislature to choose a new president for a five-year term. It will also elect the 31-member Council of State, which has among its functions the authority to exercise most legislative power between sessions of the parliament.

While a major chapter in Cuban and world history comes to a close with Fidel’s announcement, it takes place on his and Cuba’s terms, to the chagrin of the Miami exile lobby and the Bush administration, who above all want to see upheaval and an end to the island’s socialist system.

Acting President Raul Castro and Vice President Carlos Lage are considered the leading candidates to replace Fidel who turns 82 in August.

In his letter published Tuesday morning, Fidel notes that the new government and legislature will have to adopt “many agreements of utmost importance to the destiny of our revolution.”

FROM EXPEDITIONARY TO PASSING THE BATON

When leaving Mexico for Cuba on the Granma yacht commanding 82 expeditionary comrades back in 1956, Fidel Castro said, “If we set out, we’ll arrive; If we arrive, we’ll enter; and If we enter we’ll triumph.”

What seemed like a fantasy back then came true and Fidel has weathered umpteen crises over the last half century to maintain his small country afloat against great adversity.

Repeated CIA assassination plots, the Bay of Pigs invasion, the October Missile Crisis, the disappearance of the Soviet Union (Cuba’s main ally through the 1980s), and the ongoing US blockade have all proved unable to turn back the clock to the pre-revolution years.

Now, one could add a fourth conditional conjunction to Fidel’s Granma prophecy back in 1956, illustrating the revolution’s success in building stable institutions allowing for a smooth passing of the baton: If we triumph we will persevere.

"Fortunately, our Revolution can still count on cadres from the old guard and others who were very young in the early stages of the process," wrote Fidel Castro Tuesday in his statement. "They have the authority and the experience to guarantee the replacement," he notes.

Buzzing February in Cuba

2008-02-08T04:30:00.000-08:00

By Circles Robinson

Politics, culture and sports take center stage in Cuba this February, beginning with a Chinese New Year celebration, a coast to coast cycling competition, international jazz festival, mammoth book fair and, yes, the election of the next Cuban president.

Almost every capital in Latin America has a Chinese immigrant community and Havana is no exception. Residents of the local Chinatown are presently holding a week of activities to celebrate the Chinese New Year (The year of the rat) including a fireworks display held Thursday night.

Attractions include a traditional clothing exhibition and lion dance. Tomorrow, the Sports City Indoor Coliseum will host the Havana-to-Beijing gala, including the participation of 800 people who practice martial arts, the youngest age three and the oldest 90.

The 33rd Vuelta a Cuba bicycle race kicked off this week starting at the eastern tip of the island. The 13-leg, 1791-kilometer road cycling competition and runs through February 17. The athletes hail from Germany, Slovenia, Venezuela, the Dominican Republic, Mexico and Cuba. US teams used to take part in the challenging event, but in recent years the Bush administration’s tightened travel restrictions have made that all but impossible.

Jazz Plaza in Havana opens on Valentine’s Day. The twenty-fourth edition of the festival features both Cubans and international performers from countries including Austria, South Africa, Spain, Costa Rica, Rumania, Argentina, Ecuador, Brazil, Mexico and Italy.

The hosts include some of Cuba’s most seasoned musicians: Jorge Reyes, Orlando Sanchez, Chucho Valdes, Bobby Carcasses, Giraldo Piloto. The younger generation of Cuban musicians will also participate, including Harold Lopez Nussa, Rolando Luna, Alfredo Rodriguez, Tamara Castaneda, Alexis Bosh, Roberto Carcasses, Roberto Fonseca and Elmer Ferrer.

Organized by pianist Chucho Valdes, nine Havana sites will host Jazz Plaza along with a sub-venue at the Varadero Beach Resort, a few hours north of the capital. The festival’s closing will feature Brazilian recording artist Tania Maria at the 5,000 seat Karl Marx Theater.

What used to be the annual Havana International Book Fair is now known as the Cuba International Book Fair. Presentations and expositions take place throughout the country over nearly a month. This year the fair spotlights Spain’s autonomous community of Galicia, from where countless people immigrated to Cuba and Latin America over several centuries. Some 200 Galician authors, artists, musicians and officials, and books from over 30 of its publishers, will be on hand when the gates at the Morro-Cabana fortress turned cultural center open on February 13.

The family event draws astoundingly large crowds throughout the country. Cuba’s publishers have printed huge runs of hundreds of titles to offer at very low prices ranging from pennies to the equivalent of a little over a $US dollar.

Book presentations, live music, children’s pavilions plus theater and other cultural activities are part of this highly popular event. Last year Mexican novelist and journalist Elena Poniatowska had these words to say about Cuba’s book fair: “On very few occasions have I had the opportunity of seeing such a wonderful landscape: so many people attracted by reading fever.”

POLITICS WILL CLOSE THE MONTH

With the bike race and the jazz festival over and the book fair about to move on from the capital, on Sunday February 24 a new 614-member National Assembly (Cuba’s one chamber Congress) will be sworn in. The legislators, who were themselves elected on January 20, will then elect a new 31-member Council of State and the nation’s president. This new president may or may not be Fidel Castro.

Fidel, 81, loves to keep the White House and his detractors in Miami guessing, and he’s done it rather successfully since the 1950s. Now, in the twilight of his long career as a revolutionary and statesman, he can sit back and enjoy all the speculation in the foreign press about his health and next move.

Despite his gradual but slow recovery from intestinal surgery in July 2006 that has physically kept him out of the public eye —except for footage of occasional meetings with visiting heads of State—, the decision to be a candidate for reelection is clearly Fidel’s.

While the question whether the next president will be Fidel or Raul Castro, or a figure such as Carlos Lage or someone else entirely, looms large in peoples’ minds, it isn’t the only question at hand. The National Assembly also has to elect six vice-presidents who take on important tasks, including a first vice president (Raul’s current position).

Women have made considerable inroads in Cuban society at the grassroots and mid-level leadership positions. The National Assembly is now 43 percent female, up from 36% in 2003. Top leadership positions, however, have remained heavily male.

Of the 31-member Council of State elected in 2003, only six (19%) were women, and there were no female vice-presidents. In the recent general elections, 40.8 percent of those elected to the fourteen provincial legislatures were women. Nonetheless, when it came to electing the presidents of those bodies last weekend, only Holguin province selected a woman. Likewise, only Las Tunas and Guantanamo have women VPs as part of their new governments.

SIGNIFICANT LEGISLATION

The nation’s leaders have also hinted at a package of legislation to come soon after the National Assembly is seated that might affect the way Cuban society operates. These follow months of consultation with the general population and of analysis at different levels regarding how to make the island’s socialist system operate more efficiently and be more citizen-friendly.

Speculation runs high on what the changes could be. Further land reform to stimulate agricultural production is one of the most consistent predictions. Other projections range from streamlined procedures for travel abroad, to measures that make it possible to supplement ones salaried income, or changes in the cumbersome regulations for exchanging properties and vehicles. Still others are hoping for the right to purchase cell phones and use Internet cafes and hotels that are currently reserved for tourists. Yet another much commented problem is the two-currency economy, where a large segment of the population only has access to one and many products are sold in the other.

Cuba Waiting Game after Legislative Elections

2008-01-24T04:29:00.000-08:00

By Circles Robinson

Cubans turned out en masse Sunday to vote for members of their nation’s parliament despite steady rainfall over the western part of the country. Preliminary returns released Monday afternoon showed a remarkable 96 percent of the 8.4 million registered voters having cast their ballots.

By law, the new 614-member legislature must convene within 45 days, but officials already announced that the date to seat the parliament will take place on February 24, well ahead of the deadline.

The key task for the lawmakers will be to elect a new 31-member Council of State and the nation’s president from within their ranks.

Speculation abounds on the island and abroad as to whether Fidel Castro will seek another term as president, and how his decision might affect the winds of change blowing through the country. He retained his seat in the legislature, a requirement to belong to the Council of State or hold the presidency.

Ricardo Alarcon, the current leader of the Cuban parliament and reelected as a member on Sunday, noted Fidel’s steady recovery and said he expects him to be nominated for president on February 24.

Alarcon said he wouldn’t hesitate to vote for the man who has led the Cuban revolution from its onset, but acknowledged that it is Fidel’s decision whether to accept the nomination.

After 49 years, the revolution that sparks so much controversy in Washington and inspires so many Latin Americans appears at another crossroads.

From his polling place in Havana, First Vice President Raul Castro said the next legislature will have to make major decisions, albeit in a gradual manner. It wasn’t the first time the acting president had hinted at measures to come.

In a speech to the outgoing legislature on December 28, 2007, Raul said the country’s promising economic growth figures must translate into improved economies in Cuban homes. He called for greater efficiency in investments; more savings in the use of energy; accelerating land reform with the hope of decreasing food imports, and ending needless prohibitions that he said are causing more harm than good.

Raul Castro also said the “triumphalist” attitude of political leaders and government officials should be exchanged for more systematic information to the public stated with realism, clarity and a critical framework.

Meanwhile, the old guard Miami Cuban-American community, which continues to wield considerable influence in Washington, is not at all pleased with the changes on the horizon, designed to make the island’s socialist system work better, not destroy it.

For that crowd, the only solution to Cuba’s problems is to reverse the clock to the pre-revolution years, returning confiscated properties, and allowing the US to administer the island’s affairs.

Bush’s Lies on Iraq Exaggerated by Foes

2008-01-24T04:27:00.000-08:00

By Circles Robinson

A new study quoted by CNN on Wednesday confirms what some conservative supporters of President Bush have maintained all along; that the administration did not lie a thousand times in the run-up to the Iraq war.

The investigation carried out by the Center for Public Integrity and its affiliated group the Fund for Independence in Journalism says the president and his top cabinet officials only lied 935 times in the two years after 9/11.

While the study did not say how many times the administration spoke honestly with the nation, estimates are that they may have told at least part of the truth on more than a dozen occasions. The left-wingers in the anti-war movement had failed to admit that the president peppered in a few fairly honest statements along with the pack of lies.

“In short, the Bush administration led the nation to war on the basis of erroneous information that it methodically propagated and that culminated in military action against Iraq on March 19, 2003,” said the study that was somehow seen as good news for Republicans who expected worse.

The study surprisingly named Vice President Dick Cheney as one of the officials with the lowest tally of lies: 48, bettered only by press secretary Scott McLellan with 15.

Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz lied on 85 occasions, ahead of Condoleezza Rice with 56. Former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and White House Press Secretary Ari Fleicher tied for third in the lying contest with 109 according to CNN.

The satellite TV station said Colin Powell “had the second-highest number of false statements with 244 about weapons and 10 about Iraq and al Qaeda,” for a total of 254.

Powell finished only six behind the winner, George W. Bush, who had 260 lies, “232 about Iraq and former leader Saddam Hussein’s weapons of mass destruction, and 28 false statements about Iraq’s links to al Qaeda.”

Cuba Opens Election Year 2008

2008-01-18T12:06:00.000-08:00

By Circles Robinson

The United States presidential election campaign will be top news until voting day in November, as the question of who will govern the world’s superpower concerns people around the globe. However, 2008 also brings the culmination of a less publicized but no less valid general election process in Cuba.

Neither the US nor Cuba cares much for the other’s electoral system. For many years Washington has discredited Cuban’s elections because there is no two-party system, which according to them, rules out opposition participation. They also criticize the multiple reelection of the Cuban president.

Havana counters that the US model excludes most of its population because of the massive influence of big money, corporate connections and private fundraising in the electoral process. The Cubans have also criticized the Electoral College mechanism that allowed George Bush to become president in 2000 despite receiving a half million votes less than his opponent.

HOW THE CUBAN ELECTIONS WORK

Cubans go to the polls on Sunday, January 20, to elect the members of their provincial legislatures and the national parliament to five-year terms. People can vote for individual candidates or the entire slate up for election in their voting district. To get elected a candidate must receive over 50 percent of the valid votes cast.

The new 614-member parliament then elects a 31-member Council of State and the nation’s president from within its ranks. The Council of State approves the members of the Council of Ministers (cabinet) from proposals made by the president.

Around half the candidates to the new parliament were first elected by voters in municipal elections in October. The other half were selected by labor and other mass organizations to guarantee representation from virtually all sectors of society, from farmers to scientists, to artists and community organizers, factory workers, educators and health workers.

Currently interest in Cuba and around the world centers less on the parliamentary election than on whether or not Fidel Castro will seek reelection as president, and if not, who will replace him.

Castro will almost certainly win a seat in parliament representing a constituency in eastern Santiago de Cuba. However, by the time the new parliament meets in February or March, he must make his decision on whether to seek reelection to the presidency or take on a senior statesman role.

The Cuban leader met Tuesday with visiting Brazilian President Luis Inacio Lula da Silva, his first photographed appearance since October. Shortly after their two and half hour encounter, Lula told the press that the Cuban leader seemed healthy and “incredibly lucid.”

Nonetheless, Fidel himself stated in a newspaper commentary published on Wednesday, “I am not physically fit to speak directly to the citizens of the municipality where I was nominated for our elections on Sunday.”

THE CAMPAIGNS

The lead up to the two votes is like night and day.

The US field is crowded at this point with over a dozen candidates, to be culled after the “Super Tuesday” primaries in more than twenty states on February 5. Candidates woo their audiences with campaign promises tailored to please specific segments of the population. Advertising builds the candidate’s image as a carefully packaged product and often plays on voter fears about terrorism, the economy, immigration, etc.

In Cuba, campaigning is a synonym for unethical politicking and does not take place. With no advertising on TV, radio and the newspapers, no opinion polls, no billboards or front yard signs, and no candidate debates, the Cuban elections are quite dull by comparison.

While there is a wealth of ideas on how to deal with the island’s pressing problems, they are not discussed by the candidates. Such a debate takes place behind closed doors at the parliament, city councils and at workplaces.

The candidates run on their individual merits, commitment to the revolution and experience. After the rigorous and participative selection process, the entire slate is presented by political leaders and the media as ideal to represent the population.

The current candidacies are a diverse representation of Cuban society. A little over a third or 224 candidates (36.78 percent) are incumbents seeking reelection with the other 390 first timers, 42.16 percent are women, 78.34 percent have college degrees and 20.68 percent have a high school and/or technical degrees. Over a third (219) are black or mixed race.

The concept of a paid politician is absent in Cuba. The legislators continue at their regular jobs with time off for attending their constituency and the parliament committee and plenary sessions.

Likewise, no Cuban lawmaker ends up on corporate boards after leaving office in return for having bent to special interest groups.

Encouraging people to vote for the entire slate of candidates is the closest thing to campaigning that occurs in Cuba. People are urged to combat the stepped-up US hostility with a show of unity in support of the revolution.

While not everyone agrees with the vote by slate proposal, a large majority are expected to cast their ballots in that fashion. Official returns in 2003, the last general elections, showed 91.35 percent of the valid votes cast for the full slate of candidates. Blank and spoiled ballots accounted for fewer than 4 percent.

With precincts being small to make voting easy, and elections held on Sunday, voter turnout is expected to be over 90 percent, the usual occurrence in all Cuban elections since 1976.

SEE FOR YOURSELF

For visitors to Cuba interested in seeing the island’s elections first hand, voter registration lists and candidate profiles are currently posted in convenient locations in each voting district. In addition, vote tabulation after the polls close is open to the public.

A novel feature of Cuban elections is the presence of 5th to 9th graders at polling stations. Besides getting acquainted with this important civic responsibility and guarding the ballot boxes, they also assist voters with disabilities.

On Election Day the polls will open on Sunday from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m., however anyone still in line at the scheduled time of closure is allowed to cast their ballot. The manual vote count is done in public immediately following the closing of the polls.

Deadly Enticement OK When It’s Cuba

2008-01-11T14:14:00.000-08:00

By Circles Robinson

Hundreds of thousands of people attempt to reach the US illegally each year. A shot at the American dream, a reunited family, a better paying job or merely escaping from turmoil are some of the reasons that impel people to place their lives in the hands of human smugglers and risk everything to cross the border.

Traveling overland to the US is often treacherous, involving unscrupulous traffickers, bribes of police and border officials, robbers, and climatic extremes of heat and cold. Those who are caught anywhere along the way are immediately deported.

Those who succeed will join the ranks of other illegal immigrants, facing a clandestine life, exploitation without basic rights, and the constant threat of deportation. Those who have children with them run the risk of being separated after raids of factories, farms and other workplaces.

Some go well counseled of the risks involved, while others will learn when or if they arrive. In an election year like 2008, they become a political football with amnesty at one goal post, deportation at the other and the candidates taking up their positions at the extremes or somewhere in the middle.

In the case of Mexicans, Haitians, Colombians, Filipinos or Salvadorans it would be difficult to accuse the US government of enticing them to come. While it is clear that Washington’s foreign and economic policies have greatly increased poverty and inspired a new, massive emigration, the official US policy has been one of discouragement for all illegal immigration.

A DIFFERENT BALL GAME FOR CUBANS

In the case of Cuba the rules change, but not the dangers. The 1966 Cuban Adjustment Act grants any Cuban making it to US soil immediate temporary residency, a work permit, social security assistance, and virtually automatic permanent residency within a year.

Trying to reach the US by sea is even more dangerous than the land journey. But the US Congress encourages Cubans to gamble with their lives and those of their children, offering a big reward if they hit land. Over the decades, there have been thousands who didn’t make it and were never found.

The special law to lure Cubans has led to a flourishing smuggling business involving traffickers based in Florida with associates also working out of Mexico and Central America. These smugglers charge $8,000 to $12,000 per passenger on overcrowded speedboats.

During the last few days of 2007 and beginning of 2008, several news reports captured the human tragedy of this legal enticement.

The headlines couldn’t be more descriptive: Cubans Fear Families Lost at Sea; Two Cuba Migrants Die in Boat Capsize; Migrant Smuggling Spiked in Past Month; U.S. Plays Game With Cuban Immigrants; 40 Cubans Vanish during Crossing to Florida; Boat Capsizes near Miami, 8 Cubans Die.

Havana has repeatedly denounced the Cuban Adjustment Act as a killer law and demanded its repeal. However, the petition has fallen on deaf ears as the powerful Miami based Cuban-American lobby, with good connections in both the Republican and Democratic Parties, prefers the status quo.

Cuba’s Focus Shifts for 2008

2007-12-31T09:22:00.000-08:00

By Circles Robinson

If you are already convinced that the only thing Cuba needs is for Fidel Castro to pass on and then to embrace the United States, there’s not much reason to go on reading this commentary.

However, if you believe an island nation of 11.2 million inhabitants has the right to try and improve a political system that, with all its imperfections, has prioritized human needs and development over consumerism and profits, please continue.

The year 2008 starts on a different note in Cuba. It’s not that the challenge to resist another year of US blockade and hostility has disappeared. To the contrary, the Bush administration and US Congress approved an ever increasing amount of funds and personnel to further tighten the screws.

What’s special is that the focus has turned inward to what the Cuban government and people can do to make their socialist system work better from within. The speech by acting President Raul Castro on December 28, 2007, closing the current legislature, and a written statement to that body by President Fidel Castro the night before, appears to have set the tone for what’s on the horizon.

In writing the parliament, Fidel Castro recognized the difficult tasks before the legislature “in the face of many accumulated and growing needs of our society.” He further noted: “In this difficult and at the same time promising year (…) the Communist Party, government and mass organizations are facing new problems in their relationship with an intelligent, attentive and educated population that detests bureaucratic obstacles and routine explanations.”

Fidel said he had read acting President Raul Castro’s speech in advance. “I raise my hand along with yours in supporting him,” he concluded in his message to the 609 lawmakers. Raul has been Cuba’s acting president since July 31, 2006, while Fidel recovers from surgery.

Parliamentary elections are scheduled for January 20, 2008 and a new 31-member Council of State, to be elected from within the new legislature, is expected to elect or reelect the president and vice-president by March.

EXCESSIVE PROHIBITIONS AND LEGAL RESTRICTIONS

Raul spoke to the National Assembly and an attentive nationwide TV audience reporting back on the feedback received over the last several months when thousands of meetings were held at workplaces, communities and neighborhoods throughout the island to discuss the problems facing the nation.
He said the country’s leadership had been aware of most of the problems “at least those that we consider fundamental for the well being of the population and the satisfactory performance of the country’s economy and social programs.”

Raul said that the country’s excellent macro economic figures and promising economic growth rates (7.5 percent in 2007 and averaging over 10 percent over the last three years) “must be reflected as much as possible in Cuban homes where shortages exist on a daily basis.”

He said some measures would be immediate and others on issues like the controversial two-currency system require more study before acting. While he didn’t give any specifics of how and when certain changes would occur, his words led people on the street to expect some action to come in the beginning of 2008.

The acting president also spoke out against the “triumphalist and self-indulgent tendency” that often prevails in declarations from officials and in the media. We are “working to eliminate that damaging tendency,” he insisted.

Raul’s announcement of the pending end of a series of “excessive prohibitions and legal measures that cause more harm than good,” was well received. He noted that “each incorrect prohibition leads to a number of illegalities.”

With salaries being low across the board and not satisfying many basic needs —as recognized by Raul in several speeches—, many professionals, service workers and laborers alike have found themselves forced into small scale illegal business activities to supplement their income.

This contradiction has produced an ethical problem, further complicated when trying to pass on sound values to children and young adults.

Now that this troubling reality has been recognized by the top authorities, expectations run high in many sectors of the nation; some require greater resources to be met, and others policy changes.

One of the first measures on the horizon involves land grants to cooperative and individual farmers —proven to be more efficient than state farms— and a more determined effort to produce more of what the country consumes to reduce food imports, which have soared in cost along with oil.

“The studies are well along and continuing rapidly to create a situation where the land and resources are in the hands of those capable of producing efficiently, and so that these people feel supported, socially recognized and receive the material compensation they deserve,” said Raul, raising hopes for a new more productive era in rural communities, once the pillar of the Cuban revolution.

Excessive bureaucracy is another throwback from the past that still haunts Cuban society and hampers its potential.

The cumbersome paperwork and restrictions involving home repairs or moving, car repairs and sales, traveling, and dealing with inheritances, are frequent subjects of criticism among the population.

A classic Cuban comedy from 1966, “Death of a Bureaucrat” pokes fun at a system that can make apparently simple matters into drawn out nightmares. Forty years later, many of the same obstacles still exist and are often the butt of jokes from comedians and the population alike. Generations of Cubans have grown used to needing an overdose of patience to not become overly frustrated.

After successfully keeping Washington, Miami and the CIA at bay and surviving the worst years following the disappearance of the Soviet Union, Cuba constantly receives international recognition for the country’s free education and health care systems, its development in science, sports and culture, and its altruistic foreign policy.

While trying to maintain those accomplishments, the island’s leaders now look inward to deal with pending deficiencies they believe are better to fight now than later.

My Cuba Wish List for 2008

2007-12-31T09:19:00.000-08:00

By Circles Robinson

The German author Herman Hesse once said that one should aspire for the impossible to obtain the possible. With his guiding light here is my wish list for Cuba in 2008:

— A low key hurricane season giving the eastern part of the country time to fully recover from the flood damage in 2007 and the western part a continued breather.

— For the huge order of new Chinese buses and trucks to roll off the boats and on to the streets on schedule.

— Increased industrial production including that for much needed building materials and other basic consumer items.

— A news media opening that allows for real debate on national and international issues and welcomes a diversity of opinion on all subjects.

— A rebirth of the countryside that greatly increases the food supply and strengthens rural communities and people’s desire to live in them.

— For the National Assembly to pass a bill allowing for same sex marriages and adoptions.

— For Cuba to confront its internal deficiencies publicly and head on.

— Progress in dealing with the difficult salary, prices and two-currency issues and in fighting theft and corruption at any level.

— For a successful war on bureaucracy and low productivity.

— For Cuba to finish in the top ten at the Beijing Olympics.

— For Cuba to continue making progress on saving energy, avoiding blackouts and helping other struggling countries do the same.

— For the least aggressive and warmongering of the candidates to win the US presidential elections next November.

Films on Cuba Stir Past and Present

2007-12-17T09:16:00.000-08:00

By Circles Robinson

Two films by foreign based directors with special ties to Cuba won significant awards at the 29th Havana Film Festival, which closed its curtains over the weekend after two weeks of well attended screenings.

“The Man of Two Havanas” by Vivian Lesnik Weisman (Cuban-American) and “The Sugar Curtain” by Camila Guzman (Chile) examine events in Cuba over the last 50 years with a strong personal and critical touch. They both strike an emotional cord for locals and reach out to foreigners who want to understand more about the Cuban revolution and its complexities.

Both films were heavily applauded by audiences that, in the case of The Man of Two Havanas, included Ricardo Alarcon, president of the Cuban parliament, popular TV commentator and program host Reynaldo Taladrid and other personalities.

IF YOU HAD BEEN IN MY SHOES

The Man of Two Havanas is a biographical sketch of Vivian’s father journalist Max Lesnik (http://www.radio-miami.com/). It shared the award for best film about Latin America by a non-Latin American director.

The 96-minute documentary allows you to retrace the steps of Lesnik from his university anti-Batista activism to his exile in the United States in 1961, followed by his decades long battle as a journalist bucking the violent extremism of the old guard of the Miami Cuban-American community and opposing the US blockade on the island.

Max Lesnik returns to visit Cuba in the 1990s in a rapprochement promoted by the Cuban government with exiles not connected to the violent Miami Mafia. When he is welcomed by Fidel Castro, his old friend from the years of the student protests against Batista, the Cuban leader asks him: “Max, Why did you leave?” Lesnik responds with what Castro already knew, about his differences over Cuba’s relationship with the Soviet Union. Castro then tells the journalist that if he would have been in his place he would have done the same thing in order to save the revolution.

CUBA IN THE GOLDEN YEARS

After a screening of “The Sugar Curtain,” a Cuban doctor approached 36-year-old Camila Guzman to thank her for the accurate portrayal of his student years and also for putting forth what he considers important issues and problems facing today’s Cuba.

In her soft spoken narration that won the award for best documentary, Guzman, who lived in Cuba from 1973-1991, presents the dilemma of a generation of happy, carefree children and teenagers of the 1970s and 80s, supposedly predestined to create their own future and build a more fair and just society.

Instead, they saw the rug suddenly pulled out from under them after the collapse of the Soviet Union and the beginning of what is known as The Special Period, which put survival ahead of dreams and saw inequalities and contradictions grow.

Guzman recalls Mikhail Gorbachev’s visit to Cuba and seeing the Soviet “perestroika” as a possibility for less bureaucracy and more tolerance in Cuba, a revolution within the revolution she called it. Like her friends, she had no idea what was unfolding.

The director states that the degree of Cuba’s dependence on the Soviet Union hadn’t really concerned her generation because nobody thought the 70 year revolution was going to disappear.

“The Sugar Curtain” notes the slow reaction of the Cuban media to the whirlwind of events that swept Europe at the end of the Cold War. For example, when the Berlin Wall came down in 1989, The Island’s leading newspaper reported it as a minor news item saying simply that East Germany had decided to open up its borders.

Several of Guzman’s school friends reflect on what’s left of their collective dream and how they feel about the current situation in their country. Other contemporaries look at Cuba as she, after having living for years abroad.

AN EVENT THAT CAPTIVATES HAVANA

Living on a blockaded island gives added desire to see what other filmmakers are doing from other latitudes. The Havana Film Festival, which is totally non-commercial, offers the chance. Many movie lovers try to take part of their one month yearly vacation time to catch as many flicks as possible.

Before the festival began a “passport” was sold allowing the holder to go to 15 films at all the 20 participating cinemas for 20 pesos, the equivalent of US $0.80 or just over 5 cents a movie.

A daily tabloid is published with programs and film reviews which costs 1 peso. Cuban TV runs nightly festival news real, with information on collateral events, visiting movie industry personalities and highlights some of the films.

The landmark Hotel Nacional, pre-revolution hang out of the US Mafia, is the festival headquarters where press conferences are held and film buffs and students mingle with the visiting and local film industry personalities.

The current edition just concluded and most agree it was a good harvest. The best fiction film and three other awards went to “Silent Light” by Mexican director Carlos Reygadas. Julio Chavez (Argentina) won the best actor award for his role in "El otro" (The other) and Roxana Blanco (Uruguay) best actress in “Matar a todos” (Kill them all). The audience popularity award went to “The Black Pimpernel”, a Swedish-Danish-Mexican co-production.

“Who Am I”, the story of hundreds of Argentineans discovering who their real parents were and what the US backed dictatorship did to them in the 1970s and 80s, by acclaimed US director Estela Bravo, shared the award for best film on Latin America by a non-Latin America based filmmaker with “The Sugar Curtain.”

From Cuba, “Madrigal” by Fernando Perez won a Special Jury Award and another for best Art Direction, “Personal Belongings” by Alejandro Brugues finished third in the fiction category. A Colombian-Cuban short “Pucha Vida” finished second in the documentary category, and "Siberia," by Renata Duque Lasio, received a special mention in the short film category.

Festival President Alfredo Guevara gave the closing speech at the awards ceremony. He officially opened invitations to submit films for the 30th Havana Film Festival, to take place next December, only weeks before a major celebration expected for the 50th anniversary of the Cuban revolution.

Chavez Loses One, What’s Next for Venezuela

2007-12-04T08:30:00.000-08:00

By Circles Robinson

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez’ constitutional reform proposal —billed as a fast track to socialism— lost in a close vote on Sunday. It was a battle the charismatic president may have lost over how the reforms were presented to the voters and several side conflicts.

The existing 1999 Constitution has been Chavez’ guiding light, used by the leader time and time again to strengthen Venezuelan democracy and citizen participation. He often holds up a compact copy on his weekly TV program to emphasize the legality of his actions as president to favor the poor majority.

While Chavez saw the dozens of new reforms as a well thought out integral package, the articles themselves could also be seen as a hodgepodge of controversial and non-controversial issues. Grouping them together gave Chavez’ detractors the opportunity to fixate their rejection on some of the reforms, and in doing so, throw a bucket of cold water over all of them.

For example, one would think that granting social security pensions to the self employed, free public university education, a 36-hour work week, dropping the voting age from 18 to 16, and protecting people from losing their homes to confiscation over bankruptcy or other legal proceedings were popular measures.

Meanwhile, removing term limits for a president, greater presidential control over the Central Bank and its foreign reserves, empowering the “Popular Power” councils as the driving force of Venezuelan democracy and allowing a president to declare a state of emergency without a time limit, were highly controversial political reforms.

Despite losing, Chavez said it was encouraging that 49 percent of the voters favored his “audacious” fast track path to socialism. He said he would continue on that road guided by the rules of the existing constitution.

TOO MANY BATTLES AT THE SAME TIME

To spread fear and envelope him in never-ending controversy, the media labeled Chavez as dangerous and unstable. Instead of putting out the flames, a combative Hugo may have fed the fire.

Coming up to the vote, Chavez was riding high on a 60 percent plus popularity and a surging national income from near US $100 barrel oil. However, in a very short period of time he allowed relations with Spain and Colombia, two leading trade partners, to be severely strained and upped the ante in the battle of words with the White House.

By lumping everyone opposing the reform package into the same basket, and calling them either traitors, oligarchs, lackeys of the US and/or enemies of his country’s peaceful revolution, Chavez may have turned off a percentage of the electorate who support him as Venezuela’s president.

Now the question is what’s next for Chavez and his core supporters. One way out would be to only blame the local and foreign media and the United States for the setback and not take a critical look at the campaign failures.

The more self-critical approach would be to recognize that much political work must be done to consolidate his newly formed United Socialist Party and clearly define the so-called 21st century socialism project.

Things have been moving fast in Venezuela, especially since the failed right wing US-backed coup in April 2002. Numerous big-time economic investment projects and wide-reaching social programs aimed at benefiting the country’s vast majority are underway and will continue with or without the new reforms. Chavez landslide 63 percent reelection vote in 2006, with 7.3 million votes of the 11.8 million total, indicated the general agreement with those programs.

In Sunday’s vote the National Electoral Council announced that the YES on the constitutional reforms received just over 4.3 million of the nearly 8.9 million valid votes. The turnout was reported as 55.9 percent compared to 74.7 percent in the 2006 presidential race.

One of the vote’s main lessons is that the greater ideological battle that Chavez wants to wage to transform Venezuela from being a capitalist, consumer society to a socialist nation that prioritizes the common good, is not going to be won overnight.

But no one should sell Chavez short. In his concession speech early Monday, he made it clear that he’s “in it for the long haul.”

Cuba Takes On Domestic Violence

2007-11-24T07:50:00.001-08:00

By Circles Robinson

This year the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women falls on a Sunday, but it’s not a day off for the victims or those people who fight against an evil that crosses all borders and ignores social class, race, creed or age.

In Cuba, the day is being observed by many organizations and a recently released documentary titled La Deseada Justicia (The Desired Justice) brings the issue home. Several Cuban civic groups and public institutions are stepping up their efforts to address the problem.

The film, by Cuban director Lizette Vila, artfully intertwines the testimonies of seven Cuban survivors of domestic violence and is being shown at special functions prior to its screening at the Havana New Latin American Cinema Festival set for December 4-14.

Many of those who have seen the 35-minute documentary have said they hope to see it shown on Cuban TV where it would reach an even wider public. Moving, powerful, sensitive and heart rendering are some of the adjectives used to describe it. The film is also seen as encouragement for more women to emerge from their cycle of violence.

Coordinated by the Oscar Arnulfo Romero Group for Reflection and Solidarity of Havana, the documentary was made to help break the silence and stimulate discussion on a thorny issue that in many countries still gets confused as being a private matter rather than a societal or public health concern.

“We know that in our society the violence indicators are not as dramatic as in many others, but it is present and if we can’t totally eradicate it we need to at least diminish it as much as possible,” states a publication of the Cuban organization.

A week long campaign “for a culture of peace to prevent gender violence” concludes tomorrow, but the effort to visualize the problem of domestic violence in Cuba and address it more effectively is only beginning to pick up steam and will continue year round.

“To deny that there is violence in our society means ignoring the issue instead of confronting it in its entire destructive dimension,” notes the Oscar Romero Group. “The Cuban revolution, based on deeply humanistic values, can only improve by the active and aware participation of society. Learning to live without violence is a challenge of any civilized society.”

International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women was first marked on November 25, 1981. The date recalls the brutal assassination in 1960, of the three Mirabal sisters, political activists in the Dominican Republic, on orders of Dictator Rafael Trujillo.

On December 17, 1999 the UN General Assembly, officially recognized the date by adopting Resolution 54/134 and invited governments, international organizations and NGOs to organize activities designated to raise public awareness of the problem.

US Blockade on Cuba Seems Endless

2007-11-05T03:49:00.000-08:00

By Circles Robinson

A popular proverb in Cuba states that “nothing goes on forever” but the saying is beginning to look outdated when it comes to the United States and Cuba.

Instead of rapproachement, the US blockade imposed on the island by the Kennedy administration and maintained for nearly five decades has never been more stricktly enforced than under George W. Bush.

Meanwhile, Cuba, with its first world life expectancy, now has around 2,500 residents at least 100 years old, unheard of when the blockade began.

Both the US and Cuban governments remain obstinate in their goals. The US seeks to bring down the Cuban revolution and Cuba to resist.

The United Nations General Assembly voted 184 to 4 on October 30, (US, Israel, Marshall Islands and Palau dissenting) telling the US to lift its blockade. It was the sixteenth consecutive year the US policy was admonished, each year by a growing margin.

Even governments from the European Union and elsewhere that are critical of Cuba’s socialist system vote against the blockade because its extra-territorial tentacles violate international laws and their own trade freedoms.

THE BUILD UP AND ELECTIONS

In the month leading up to the annual UN vote, Cuba’s media ran constant reports and statements from the country’s leaders and people at workplaces on how the blockade has hampered their efforts, keeping the country from reaching its full potential in science, health care, commerce, industry, etc.

Then, a week before the vote, the White House made it clear it would once again ignore the UN resolution. In fact, President Bush put forth a plan to further tighten the noose.

The US State Department had already spent millions of taxpayers’ money to draft detailed plans for administering a post-revolution Cuba, something Washington hopes to speed up.

Curiously, both countries will have general elections in 2008; Cuba in the spring and the US in the fall. Cuba may have a new president depending on the health of Fidel Castro and the US will choose a successor to George W. Bush.

In the lead up to the Cuban vote, resistance to US hostility of any kind, economic or military, will be a common denominator among all potential candidates.

In the US, while Cuba is not one of the top campaign issues, the candidates with enough money to have a chance to win will take turns at Cuba bashing, especially aimed at securing votes in Florida where the powerful Cuban exile lobby is entrenched.

Can the blockade last a century? Perhaps, Will more Cubans make it to 100 years despite it? That seems a certainty.

Cuba’s Elections Draw Big Turnout

2007-10-24T06:49:00.000-07:00

By Circles Robinson

Cubans went to the polls in droves on Sunday to elect their local authorities, a process that takes place every two and a half years.

With 95 percent of the registered voters casting their ballots, 2,971 of the 15,236 voting districts in the country’s 169 Municipalities will require a runoff vote on Sunday October 28.

Cuba’s elections were not a beauty contest and were not influenced by money, in contrast to the saturation advertising campaigns common in most countries.

Instead, the local media emphasized the fairness and justness of the process, where any citizen 16 or over can nominate or be nominated as a candidate, as well as vote.

Without a doubt, there are pros and cons to this system. However, it’s Cuba’s own model, it’s only been around since 1976, and it has room to improve.

One weakness in Cuba’s electoral process is that ideas on important local issues are not addressed. The candidates limit themselves to listing their qualifications in a short biography and expressing their willingness to be public servants for a difficult non-paying job.

Since some of them will also become candidates for the 609-member Peoples Power National Assembly (Parliament) in next spring’s general elections their views on national issues would also add interest and spark discussion.

While the high voter turnout is a good indication of how Cubans would react to any foreign intervention —in mass and without hesitation—, it doesn’t automatically mean uniformity of opinion.

In fact, Cubans have begun to put forth more outspoken opinions and suggestions on how to make the wheels of their socialist revolution turn more efficiently. There are many divergent views on the way the country’s economy is being run and of how specific laws or policies are being applied.

Important encouragement for widespread participation came in the address to the nation by acting president Raul Castro on July 26, 2007.
(See: http://www.granma.cu/ingles/2007/julio/vier27/raul26.html)

In that speech Raul Castro noted that there are all too obvious internal deficiencies in the Cuban productive and economic systems. These deficiencies, he asserted, cannot all be blamed on the costly effects of the nearly half century US blockade.

Given the new push for public involvement and the constructive issue-oriented discussions that have followed in workplaces and neighborhoods throughout the country, it would seem natural to extend this practice to the spring 2008 general election campaign. Such debate could bring more meaning to the process.

Not all agree, however. Bringing issues and ideas into the electoral process goes against the logic of those who fear politicking and others who maintain that publicly showing differing opinions on diverse issues would give the perennial enemy to the north dangerous new ammunition.

Costa Rica Remains Divided after CAFTA Vote

2007-10-09T05:02:00.000-07:00

By Circles Robinson

Costa Rican President Oscar Arias staked his entire presidency on the CAFTA-DR free trade pact with the United States predicting utter doom if the people voted it down. In the end he and his backers in the Bush administration appear to have won a narrow victory.

With 97.9 percent of the ballots tabulated, the YES on CAFTA vote was running at 51.6 percent with 48.4 percent voting NO. Voter turnout was pegged at just below 60 percent, well above the 40 percent required to make the vote valid.

CAFTA’s promoters in the corporate sector can now breathe a sigh of relief. “The people of Costa Rica have said yes to the free trade agreement, and that for me is a sacred wish.” Arias said on Costa Rican TV.

He was echoed by US Trade Representative Susan Schwab: "We believe, and history confirms, that countries that open their markets have greater success in generating economic growth and development."

Nonetheless, deep divisions remain in Costa Rican society. NO vote spokesperson Eugenio Trejos said his camp will not recognize the defeat until a full recount is concluded. Other opponents of the free trade pact note that the successful pro-CAFTA campaign was characterized by unethical fear tactics and eleventh-hour threats from Washington.

Otton Solis, a CAFTA opponent and the candidate who lost last year’s razor-thin presidential election to Arias, told the Tico Times that he was impressed with the outcome and the turnout. He too refused to concede, citing investigations of possible fraud and constitutional violations.

Pundits around the Americas were surprised to see Costa Ricans, far from being known for defying their government, campaigning tooth and nail and carrying out massive rallies that almost succeeded in voting down CAFTA.

Part of the answer lay in the broad campaign to educate Costa Ricans about the treaty and its detrimental effects on many sectors of society including the country’s many small farmers and large service sector. A near majority came to recognize that such treaties only favor the local business elite and US corporations.

However, a key factor favoring a YES vote was the calculated fear campaign carried out by the Arias administration and the White House, both preaching disaster for the economy if voters didn’t support CAFTA.

Meanwhile, opponents to free trade agreements in the Americas maintain that on a lopsided playing field there may be some winners but lots more losers.

The US Congress narrowly ratified CAFTA in 2005 and five other member countries also approved it by legislative vote: El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and the Dominican Republic. Costa Rica was the only country where the opposition was able to force a public referendum on the issue.

Costa Rica Free Trade Vote Eyed from Cuba

2007-10-07T03:28:00.000-07:00

By Circles Robinson

Costa Ricans vote Sunday in a crucial referendum on the CAFTA-DR free trade agreement with the United States; the issue is being closely followed in Cuba.

Opinion polls in the days leading up to the vote show the YES campaign on the skids. A ten point lead in mid-September suddenly evaporated and on election eve the NO camp is slightly ahead.

While the outcome is anybody’s call, President Oscar Arias highly publicized scare tactics and eleventh hour warnings from the White House could backfire for the YES campaign.

The NO camp fears union busting, layoffs, a takeover of the country’s insurance and telecommunications industries, a death blow to small farmers, and relaxed environmental regulations if CAFTA takes effect.

In violation of the moratorium against campaigning that started Friday, the Bush administration warned Saturday, “The US may not extend trade preferences now afforded to Costa Rican products and set to expire next September,” if the people vote against CAFTA.

White House press secretary Dana Perino pleaded for Costa Ricans to value the agreement’s advantages including, “expanded access to the US market” and to “attract US and other investment.”

President Arias said earlier in the week, “This is the last opportunity to approve the Free Trade Agreement with the largest economy in the world.” Arias added, “If we reject it, the doors will close and with it a universe of opportunities.”

Meanwhile, the NO campaign has brought together diverse sectors of Costa Rican society including, unions, religious leaders, students, professors and environmentalists. Opposition to CAFTA came to a climax on September 30 when an unprecedented 100,000 people turned out for a rally in San Jose.

COSTA RICA ON CENTER STAGE

The campaign for and against CAFTA mobilized Costa Rican society and divided it as never before. In the 2006 presidential elections CAFTA was the leading campaign issue and the vote ended in a virtual tie with President Oscar Arias winning by only 18,000 votes over CAFTA detractor Otton Solis.

Opposition protests continued stronger than ever after the elections forcing President Arias to call a referendum on CAFTA instead of deciding the matter in the legislature as the other countries had done to avoid public participation.

The CAFTA-DR agreement was signed in 2004 and subsequently ratified by legislatures in the United States, El Salvador, Honduras, Guatemala, Nicaragua, and the Dominican Republic in 2005 and 2006. A limit for approval was set for March 2008.

The last country expected to lead the fight against CAFTA was Costa Rica. It already had several free trade agreements and was thought to be a walk over for US corporate interests. However, the normally passive “Switzerland” of Central America takes center stage today in the tenacious struggle.

The choice pits the US government and its efforts to obtain advantageous commercial agreements for its corporations on the side of a YES vote, against the latest front of a growing continental resistance led by Venezuela, Bolivia and Cuba.

While Cuba did not take an active position in the battle over CAFTA, its news media ran numerous reports and commentaries highlighting the NO vote activism and reporting on the unethical bullying and scare tactics used by the Arias administration to try and sway the electorate.

Costa Rica’s second vice-president Kevin Casas and a government legislator recently resigned when their secret plan for a stepped up fear campaign to encourage a YES vote became public.

The polls open at 6:00 a.m. on Sunday and a high voter turnout is expected.

Will Cuba’s Fidel Castro Seek Reelection?

2007-09-23T20:16:00.000-07:00

by Circles Robinson

The process that will determine whether Fidel Castro continues as the President of Cuba gets underway with nationwide municipal elections on October 21, 2007.

It’s election time again in Cuba and whether the revolution’s detractors in Washington and Miami like it or not, the vast majority of the population is expected to go to the polls to select their city council representatives and set the wheels in motion to elect the President, VP and Legislature.

The biggest question abroad, and on many people’s minds at home, is whether the recovering Fidel Castro, who temporarily stepped down from his responsibilities nearly 14 months ago, will once again be a candidate for another 5-year term as president.

During his convalescence, Castro has become a prolific newspaper columnist, sounding like an elder statesman reflecting on current and past world affairs.

To be reelected, Fidel must first win a seat in the Cuban parliament in general elections scheduled for spring 2008.

Once the 609-member legislature is elected by popular vote, they will elect a 31-member Council of State from within their ranks. Then the Council of State chooses the country’s President and VP. This system has been in place since 1976 with reforms made in 1992.

Voting age in Cuba is sixteen and registration is automatic. Balloting is secret and the vote count is open to the public including foreign visitors. Voter turnout has consistently been over 90 percent and despite active campaigns launched from Miami encouraging Cubans to leave their ballots blank or spoil them, in the last two elections only 5.3 (2003) and 5.1 percent (2005) of ballots were invalid.

For a more detailed explanation on the Cuban electoral system see: http://www.cuba-solidarity.org.uk/faqdocs/Cuban-political-system-facts.pdf

FIDEL ON CUBAN TV

The Cuban leader reappeared in a lengthy TV interview broadcast Friday in which he warned of a pending world economic crisis. His nearly two hour meeting with Angolan President Jose Eduardo Dos Santos on Saturday reinforced the notion of his recovery.

Seeing an alert and healthier looking 81-year-old Fidel, after a three month absence from the public eye, was uplifting for many Cubans on the island and yet another pitcher of cold water over the heads of his opponents in Miami.

My 92-year-old neighbor, an avid reader, news watcher and radio soap opera fan, says Fidel is like family to her. She was all smiles after seeing him converse with Cuban journalist Randy Alonso. Abuela (grandma), as we call her, says she remembers very well what Cuba was like before the 1959 revolution.

For most Cubans, Fidel’s stature as a world leader and the successes of the revolution far outweigh any tactical errors along the way of governing the nation of 11.2 million people. His intense concern about world affairs and keeping tabs on national matters even during his prolonged convalescence reinforces that recognition.

Nonetheless, many doubt that Fidel will seek reelection, citing his age and prolonged public absence from the day to day business of government. His public role as a senior statesman, foreign affairs expert and private advisor on domestic issues has paved the road for a smooth transition —seen as an attractive alternative to many citizens.

The foreign media speculates at length over possible presidential choices if Fidel Castro were to decline reelection. These include Raul Castro, the nation’s First VP and current acting president; Council of State VP Carlos Lage Davila; Foreign Minister Felipe Perez Roque; and Parliament Chairman Ricardo Alarcon. The subject is not broached in the local press.

Without seeking a high-profile role during Fidel’s convalescence, Raul Castro has given the nation a glimpse of his leadership style and people are getting used to it. Most are content with his call for increased debate and a focus on domestic issues.

If Fidel’s doctors give him a clean bill of health in the coming months, allowing him to resume all or a good portion of his responsibilities, it would then be the president’s call on what he thinks is best for the country, the driving force of his entire political career.

Larry Craig Should Resign over Iraq not Sex

2007-09-03T17:53:00.000-07:00

By Circles Robinson

The vast majority of Democratic and Republican Party US Senators have voted hundreds of billions of dollars to murder hundreds of thousands of Iraqis. None resigned from office when the weapons of mass destruction pretext for the carnage proved a bold-faced lie.

Now, one of those senators, Larry Craig (R-ID), has just resigned over being caught allegedly soliciting oral sex in the Minneapolis airport.

Killing so many men, women and children and creating over a million refugees hadn’t posed any moral problems to the Senator, who boasted a 100-percent voting reliability rating from the powerful Christian Coalition.

However, accusations that the deeply religious gay hater was actually gay took the big smile off Sen. Craig’s face and he threw in the towel.

David Brooks wrote in Mexico’s La Jornada newspaper, “The issue isn’t whether Craig is gay or likes sex, the problem is that he is one of his parties leading anti-gay and anti-sex senators, claiming to be a bulwark of the family and conservative values.”

“I apologize for what I have caused. I am deeply sorry,” said Craig in a Boise press conference.

“These are serious times of war and of conflict. The people of Idaho deserve a senator who can devote 100 percent of his time and effort to the critical issues of our state and of our nation," said the Senator.

Craig announced he will step down effective September 30. Governor C.L. Otter, also a Republican, will announce a replacement for the last 16 months of Craig’s term.

It’s too bad the senator doesn’t feel any remorse for his and fellow US Senators real crimes.

War on Newcomer Aliens in the USA

2007-08-30T19:32:00.000-07:00

By Circles Robinson

Federal immigration agents, a sheriff’s posse and local cops were very proud this week for having teamed up to arrest 160 aliens at Koch Foods in Fairfield, Ohio. To their credit, no reports were made of the aliens being declared enemy combatants for having butchered US fryers.

With a smile a block wide, Butler County Sheriff Richard K. Jones —no doubt of alien blood himself— said, “This is what can happen when we all work together.”

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) authorities said they had been watching Koch Foods for two years and suspected it of hiring aliens at their poultry processing plant.

Sherriff Jones also bragged of doubling as a business consultant advising firms in newspaper ads to hire established aliens instead of newcomers.

However, anybody with a grammar school education knows that besides the Native Americans who were already present before the British, French and Spanish colonization, the entire US nation was built on aliens. In fact, the non-aliens weren’t given any rights under the US Constitution that took effect in 1789. Many other aliens, called slaves, were also left out of the newly founded alien nation.

Tens of millions of aliens from around the world arrived in the US as recently as the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. Many began as “illegal” aliens and later became “legal” aliens.

Whether the aliens working in Ohio will receive their wages or not was not mentioned much less the situation of their alien relatives with them in the US. Their children may end up being candidates for adoption by wealthier aliens or descendents.

KOCH FOODS EXPECTS FRIENDLY TREATMENT

Koch Foods played dumb. The company said it is “committed to complying with all immigration laws and looks forward to resolving the matter quickly.” Koch told the ICE authorities that it doesn’t distinguish between its aliens. The company says all its workers had presented their papers.

If their lawyers do a good job and the court is “friendly” it will take into account that Koch is a major employer and the fine involved could even be less than the back pay and benefits that should be paid to the 160 arrested aliens.

Despite the round-up, Koch said it will continue to produce its chicken products with the other 340 aliens and alien descendents.

THE BOTTOM LINE

Everyone involved in this story is an alien. The difference is that established aliens get one salary with certain benefits and newer aliens get another lower one, often without benefits they can make use of.

The presence of newer aliens can also bring down the pay of established aliens, something the corporations aren’t complaining about.

Instead of allowing businesses to cut costs by cutting wages using newcomer aliens, why not pass a law that makes all aliens equal and make sure they all get the same pay and benefits for the same work, documentation aside?

Meanwhile, if Sherriff Jones, legislators and the White House would like to see less newcomer aliens in their country of aliens, they might make an about face on a two-century-old foreign policy that has led to a stampede into the USA.

Obama Straight Talk on Cuba

2007-08-21T16:52:00.000-07:00

By BARACK OBAMA*, re-imagined by Circles Robinson**

When my father was a young man living in impoverished Kenya, the freedom and opportunity of the United States exerted such a powerful draw that he moved halfway around the world to pursue his dreams here. My father's story is not unique. The same has been true for tens of millions of people, from every continent -- including the many Cubans who we encourage to risk their lives and come to the USA and take advantage of the Cuban Adjustment Act in place for over 40 years and which grants them automatic residency.

It is a tragedy that, just 90 miles from our shores, there exists a society where such freedom and opportunity are kept out of reach by a government that clings to an ideology that favors the collective good over the small chance of achieving individual wealth. A democratic opening in Cuba is, and should be, the foremost objective of our policy. We need a clear strategy to achieve it --one that takes some limited steps now to spread the message of the American dream on the island, but preserves our ability to bargain on behalf of our interests with a post-Fidel government.

The primary means we have of encouraging positive change in Cuba today is to help the Cuban people become more dependent on the United States in fundamental ways. U.S. policy must be built around empowering the Cuban people to see that under US stewardship is the best destiny for Cuba. The United States has a critical interest in seeing Cuba join the roster of stable and economically vibrant democracies in the Western Hemisphere that give a free reign to our corporations. Such a development would bring us important security and economic benefits, and it would allow for new cooperation on migration, counter-narcotics and other issues.

ADVANCE POLITICAL REFORM

These interests, and our support for the aspirations of the Cuban people, are ill served by the further entrenchment of the Castro regime, which is why we need to advance peaceful political and economic reform on the island by any means possible. Castro's ill health and the potential CIA-inspired turmoil looming ahead make the matter all the more urgent.

Unfortunately, the Bush administration has made grand gestures to that end while strategically blundering when it comes to actually advancing the cause of freedom and democracy in Cuba. This is particularly true of the administration's decision to restrict the ability of Cuban Americans to visit and send money to their relatives in Cuba. This is both a humanitarian and a strategic issue. That decision has not only had a profoundly negative impact on the welfare of the Cuban people. It has also made them more independent of the US and isolated them from the consumer paradise message carried there by some Cuban Americans.

In the ''Cuban spring'' of the late 1990s and early years of this decade, dissidents and human-rights activists had more political space than at any time since the beginning of Castro's rule, as the US took advantage of the Cuba’s economic woes to try and speed up a transition to US stewardship —the equivalent of freedom for the Cuban people.

U.S. policies -- especially the fact that Cuban Americans were allowed to maintain and deepen ties with family on the island – were a key cause of that ''Cuban spring.'' Although cut off by the Bush administration after Castro regime's deplorable March 2003 jailing of dozens of agent- “dissidents” working for the US government, the opening underscored what is possible with a sensible strategic approach. Too bad the Cuban State Security was on to our plan.

We in the United States should do what we can to bring about another such opening, taking certain steps now and pledging to take additional steps as temporary openings are solidified into lasting change.

Cuban-American connections to family in Cuba are not only a basic right in humanitarian terms, but also our best tool for helping to foster the beginnings of grass-roots democracy on the island. Accordingly, I will grant Cuban Americans unrestricted rights to visit family and send remittances to the island.

But as we reach out in some ways now, it makes strategic sense to resort to the old carrot-and-stick approach and hold on to important inducements we can use in dealing with a post-Fidel government, for it is an unfortunate fact that his eventual departure by no means guarantees the arrival of US-style freedom on the island.

BILATERAL TALKS

Accordingly, if elected, I will use aggressive and principled diplomacy to send an important message: If a post-Fidel government begins opening Cuba to US interests, the United States (the president working with Congress) is prepared to take steps to normalize relations and ease the embargo that has unilaterally governed relations between our countries for almost five decades. That message coming from my administration in bilateral talks would be the best means of promoting Cuban freedom. To refuse to do so would substitute posturing for serious policy -- and we have seen too much of that in other areas over the past six years.

We must not lose sight of our fundamental goal: freedom a-la-Miami in Cuba. At the same time, we should be pragmatic in our approach and clear-sighted about the effects of our policies. We all know the power and results of the freedom and opportunity that America has both embodied and advanced in Latin America. If deployed wisely through tough immigration laws, those ideals will have as transformative effect on Cubans today, attracting their most skilled workers, professionals and athletes to make the US even greater.

Cuba Boxing Duo and a Murky Story

2007-08-14T14:04:00.000-07:00

By Circles Robinson

Amateur boxing champs Guillermo Rigondeaux and Erislandy Lara had the rags to riches American dream in their hands. Yet after nearly two weeks of booze, prostitutes and big buck offers they opted out and asked to be repatriated to Cuba.

The case, which has made waves in Cuba and in the foreign press, raises interesting questions about the unscrupulous role of agents operating in the world of professional sports.

Rigondeaux, 25, a Sydney and Athens Olympic gold medalist, and Lara, 24, a world championship title holder, abandoned Cuba’s boxing team in the middle of the Rio de Janeiro Pan American Games on July 21.

By August 2, they had repented, asking to go home and accept sanctions instead of heading to Germany as the property of Arena Box Promotions for a professional career. They were back in Havana on August 5.

President Fidel Castro has written three articles on the subject (July 27, Aug. 4, 7,) and the boxers were interviewed at length and their statements published in Cuba’s leading newspaper on August 9. Castro questioned the ethics of Arena Box Promotions and its owner Ahmet Öner who appears to have an axe to grind with Cuba.

Öner, a 35-year-old Turkish-born ex-boxer, claims he invested nearly a half million dollars to capture Lara and Rigondeaux, and then signed them to a US $680,000 contract to fight professionally in Germany. The boxers deny having signed any contract.

With Öner’s agents telling them how Arena Box had made rich men of three Cuban Olympic champs they had bought earlier in the year, (Yan Barthelemy, Yuriorkis Gamboa and Odlander Solis), many following the case ask why would Lara and Rigondeaux chose to return home where they make less that $30 a month?

The timing of the desertion provoked an unusual situation. Cuban athletes that swallow the bait of foreign agents are never mentioned again in the Cuban media. In the case of baseball players their career stats are eliminated from the following years’ Cuban Baseball Almanac. Boxers drop off the map as well.

Rigondeaux and Lara’s no-show and disqualification by forfeit on July 22 prompted comments from Fidel Castro that mentioned them with first and last names, something completely out of the ordinary.

DPA news service reported on July 23 that the Brazilian Federal Police were trying to locate the boxing stars.

DOES EVERYONE HAVE A PRICE?

Most of the capitalist world found Rigondeaux and Lara’s decision to go home incomprehensible. On most occasions, the talent buyers know it’s just a matter of price to convince a Third World sports hero or prospect to abandon his or her country to play in a foreign league or step up in the ring.

Scores of Cuban baseball players, boxers and other athletes are continuously hounded with offers of sizable amounts of money, in the millions for the best, to go professional mostly in the US or Europe. A small minority accept the bait and some become rich overnight. But the vast majority says no-thanks preferring their life in Cuba over the American dream.

Top athletes live mildly privileged lives in Cuba (a car, better diet, often improved modest housing) as compensation for their efforts representing their country. However, the privileges they have do not set them far apart from the rest of society and would be considered insignificant in a capitalist consumer society.

Cuba invests heavily in the preparation of their top athletes from a young age. Three-time Olympic Heavyweight Boxing Champion Teofilo Stevenson was one. The man who was offered a fortune by Don King and other promoters to fight Mohammad Ali and other top professional boxers was one of many Cuban sports glories accompanying the 500 or so Cuban athletes competing in Rio de Janeiro.

Stevenson, who won gold medals in Munich (1972), Montreal (1976) and Moscow (1980), told El Pais newspaper on August 9, “It must be very painful for their families, for a people that have cheered them [Lara and Rigondeaux], and because of the opportunities they’ve had.”

Stevenson further told El Pais: “When I think today about the million dollar offers they are insignificant. What is much more important to me is the affection I receive in Cuba and the millions of revolutionaries around the globe that are working to make this a better world.”

On its website, Arena Box Promotions owner-CE0 Ahmet Öner says: “You can only be the best stable if you have the best horses.” He knows that like horses, once professional boxers have their blinkers put on and get trapped in the highlife they have them for as long as they like.

Then they are spit out on the street where in most cases they are broke within a few years no matter how many millions they made in the ring. Joe Luis, Mike Tyson, Hasim Rahman, Chris Eubank, Scott Harrison and Riddick Bowe are just a small number of bankrupt examples.

Öner was a boxer himself with a short-lived professional career in Germany between 1997 and 2002. Somehow he then obtained the backing to start Arena Box a year ago and shortly after had millions of dollars to purchase Cuban boxers.

BRAIN DRAIN AND TALENT THEFT

While some Cubans believe the case of Rigondeaux and Lara is nothing more than two foolish boxers who made a mistake and repented, there are many aspects that make the situation appear out of the ordinary.

Just five days before the two boxers abandoned their team in Rio, Fidel Castro published a commentary on July 17 on the effects of brain drain. It dealt with the issue of the top Latin American professionals being lured by North American and European corporations and institutions after receiving an education in their home countries needy of their services.

Castro quoted a World Bank report: “Brain drain deals a double blow to weak economies, which not only lose their best human resources and the money spent training them, but then have to pay an estimated $5.6 billion US a year to employ expatriates.”

On July 26, the Turkish-German owner of Arena Box said that his agents had signed Rigondeaux and Lara for a half million Euro (US $680,000). The news traveled the world in the mainstream media as another victory over Cuba’s socialist system. The media joyfully recalled that Öner had already purchased three Cuban gold medalists earlier in the year.

On July 27, Fidel expanded the brain drain issue to include talent theft. “What has been the worst problem for poor countries from a technological and economic point of view? Brain drain. And from the patriotic and educational point of view: Talent theft.”

“Cuba has undeniable results and efforts in amateur sports, but suffers more from the bite of the piranhas than any other country,” said Castro.

Four days later, Brazilian president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, host of the Pan American Games (July 14-29), chimed in to Fidel’s concern lamenting the exodus of young soccer players to European and Asian sports markets.

THE PARTY ENDS

On August 3 it was reported that Lara and Rigondeaux had been detained the previous day by police “at the popular Praia Seca beach, in the small city of Araruama in the state of Rio de Janeiro.

One story from Reuters made it seem like the authorities had been tipped off to their presence: “According to the police, the boxers consumption habits and Erislandy’s gold teeth led to distrust among the locals.”

In an article dated August 4 titled “Politics and Sports”, Fidel Castro confirmed that the Brazilian Police had the boxers in their custody. “The boxers told the police that they had made a mistake and regretted it. They refused to see a German citizen who very promptly took interest in them, following instructions from a mafia company [Arena Box Promotions].”

“The news [from Ahmet Öner] stating that the boxers were in Turkey while immigration matters were being looked after had obviously been released by the mafia as a smoke screen,” noted Fidel Castro.

Refuting any claims from Öner to the contrary, Fidel added that upon returning home Rigondeaux and Lara “would not be submitted to any sort of arrest […] They will be temporarily transferred to a guest house and allowed family visits. The press will also be able to contact them if they so wish. They will be offered decent jobs for the benefit of sports, given their knowledge and experience.”

In an interview with Cuban TV reporter Julia Osendi on the evening of their return to Cuba on August 5, Lara said he and Rigondeaux took advantage of a moment when the two Brazilians assigned to watch over them were having lunch and told a couple fishermen to call the Federal Police, whom they said arrived some 20 minutes later.

“When the police arrived they asked us if we wanted to return to Cuba. We said yes. Then they asked, ‘Do you know what’s awaiting you in Cuba?’ and we replied we are willing, we committed a serious indiscipline and now we have to pay for the indiscipline we committed.” Rigondeaux said a number of prosecutors were brought in “and they all told us, “Don’t go to Cuba, in Cuba heavy punishment is awaiting you.” “But we said we want to return to Cuba.”

Two days after the boxers were home, Fidel Castro responded to the events with his August 7 article titled “A written record.” After quoting the press reports on the events leading up to Rigondeaux and Lara’s detention and subsequent return to Cuba, Fidel wrote that he thought it was fair to give the boxers a chance to tell their side of what happened to the public.

“Julia Osendi, a television reporter who was well informed about the Pan American Games held in Rio, arranged a meeting with them and made efforts to persuade them to speak with absolute frankness.”

Fidel then warned in the same article that Cuba may not attend an upcoming Olympic qualifying boxing tournament in Chicago. “Just picture the mafia sharks lurking about in search of fresh talent,” he said.

On August 9 Granma newspaper published the text of Osendi’s interview with the two boxers. Although it was not stated, the format led many readers to the conclusion that the boxers were interviewed separately and did not fully tell what happened.

Lara claimed that a Cuban named Alexis and an unnamed German, both with press credentials, had by chance intercepted them outside the villa when they left to go shopping on the evening of July 21, and swept them away to bars and cabarets. There they claim they were softened up with booze, food and women and were taken to a beach on an island where the agents offered them a contract, which they say they didn’t sign.

The boxers told Osendi that once they had eaten they went beyond the point of no return and would never make the following day’s weigh in. Knowing they would be sanctioned they say they feared returning to the Pan Am Games village. So instead, they decided to continue the party which they did for nearly two weeks.

The boxers said they were taken from hotel to hotel accompanied by prostitutes and that the German and Cuban got tired of their refusing to sign a contract and left them in the hands of two Brazilians.

PENDING QUESTIONS

Now, over three weeks since the boxers began their odyssey, there are still many unanswered questions about what really happened:

Did Rigondeaux and Lara have previous contact with Öner’s agents before the night of their disappearing act?

Considering the tight security, how did the boxers leave the Pan American Athletes Village?

Could Rigondeaux and Lara have been so naive about the boxing mafia business practices to put themselves in the hands of two people they didn’t know? Hadn’t they traveled abroad on numerous occasions and were always counseled on the scenarios that occur to Cuban athletes competing in other countries?

Why does Arena Box Promotions appear to have a vendetta against the Cuban revolution and Fidel Castro? Did Arena Box Promotions really lose a half million dollars in failing to capture their prey? Do they receive secret funds for their talent theft against Cuba?

Who actually called the Police, the fishermen at the request of the boxers, the hotel personnel or suspicious locals?

Why were some Brazilian authorities supposedly searching for the Cubans and then when they were taken into custody others tried hard to convince them not to return to Cuba?

Cuba and a Visit from Abroad

2007-08-07T18:14:00.000-07:00

by Circles Robinson*

During July, my father-in-law, Pablo Hernandez, visited our family in Havana. Pablo is a small farmer. It was his first real vacation, first trip to Cuba, first extended time in a big city, first time seeing the ocean.

Pablo, 66, has seen a lot in his life having brought up ten children in the war-torn Nicaraguan countryside of the 1970s and 1980s; living first under the brutal Somoza dictatorship and later participating in programs of the Sandinista revolution. He and his wife now manage a small coffee farm in the mountains.

Like many other visitors to Cuba who sympathize with the Revolution, he came with a predisposed positive image. He had followed the events leading up to Cuba’s 1959 revolutionary victory as best he could from the Nicaraguan highlands, and he has listened to Radio Havana Cuba and Radio Reloj since the 1960s.

When receiving guests I always try to showcase the accomplishments of the Cuban Revolution by exposing them to the everyday life of Cuba’s committed and hard working people.

At the same time, I feel the need to break romantic visions of utopia perpetrated at times by the Cuban media and the solidarity movement as a reaction to the relentless US hostility. Gentle exposure to the country’s problems, as seen by everyday Cubans, aids in understanding this remarkable and beleaguered island nation.

By the third day of his visit, after walking miles around the city and touring the extensive restorations that make up Old Havana, Pablo remarked on the great investment the Spanish colonists had made in building infrastructure. It was clear, he stated, that Spain didn’t want to let go of Cuba, noting that Cuba didn’t win its independence until more than 75 years after the Central American countries. In Cuba, he said, the Spanish “had obviously come to stay forever.” On their heels, the US planned the same, he noted.

Pablo was amazed by how relatively calm things were and “how people walk the streets at all hours of the night without the fear that comes on just after darkness” in cities and even larger towns in Nicaragua. “It seems strange not having to be looking over my shoulder,” he commented.

A FARMERS PERSPECTIVE AND CUBA’S FOOD SECURITY

Farmers are known for having a lot of common sense. Driving through a portion of western Pinar del Rio province, Pablo was surprised to see so much green, unused pastureland with very few cows. He asked me why. The observation was obvious, but after 48-plus years of revolution the reason was not.

I mentioned the fact that Cuba is reliant on a sizeable amount of milk powder imports to satisfy the needs of the island’s children. “You shouldn’t buy what you can produce,” he noted.

A couple of days later on July 26, Cuba’s most important national holiday, commemorating the 1953 attack on the Batista dictatorship, we listened to Raul Castro’s keynote speech from Camaguey. Interestingly, he seemed to echo Pablo’s commentary.

A century of dependence on imports, first from the US and then from the Soviet Union and Socialist Bloc, left Cuba weakened when the latter vanished in 1991. Now that a recovery is underway, the lessons of the past are having an effect on the present.

Raul highlighted the stability in the country during the trying year since his brother Fidel temporarily stepped down, “a diametrically different impact from that expected by our enemies, who were wishing for chaos.” However, he made it clear that there is much room for improvement.

It’s no secret that food security, along with further energy savings, represent two greatly needed boosts to the Cuban economy. At present, the country is heavily burdened with the high cost of both imported food products and fuel.

Raul said there is no valid excuse for Cuba’s need to earmark a billion dollars annually for importing milk and other foodstuffs. Setting the tone for changes in the country’s internal agriculture policies, he stated:

“Currently, the price of powdered milk is over 5,200 dollars per ton. Therefore, should domestic production not continue to increase, to meet consumption needs in 2008, we would have to spend 340 million dollars in milk alone, more than three times what was spent in 2004. That is, if prices do not continue to rise.

“In the case of milled rice, it was priced at 390 dollars a ton in 2006 and is sold today at 435 a ton. Some years ago, we were buying frozen chicken at 500 dollars a ton. We made plans on the assumption its price would go up to 800; in fact, it went up to its current price of 1,186 dollars.

“This is the case with practically all products the country imports to meet the essential needs of the population; the people then purchase these products at [subsidised] prices which have remained practically unchanged despite these circumstances.

“And I am talking of products that I think can be grown here --it seems to me that there is plenty of land-- and we have had good rains last year.”

“No one, no individual or country, can afford to spend more than what they have. It seems elementary, but we do not always think and act in accordance with this inescapable reality.

“We face the imperative of making our land produce more; and the land is there to be tilled either with tractors or with oxen, as it was done before the tractor existed. We need to expeditiously apply the experiences of producers whose work is outstanding, be they in the state or farm sector, on a mass scale, but without improvising, and to offer these producers adequate incentives for the work they carry out in Cuba's suffocating heat.

“To reach these goals, the needed structural and conceptual changes will have to be introduced,” said Raul Castro.

Pablo Hernandez was encouraged by what he saw and heard. With his farmer’s optimism he expressed his confidence that “Cuba must and can produce what it needs.”

Cuba Tackles Transportation Challenges

2007-06-26T13:52:00.000-07:00

By Circles Robinson

As the Cuban Parliament meets this week, Transportation Minister Jorge Luis Sierra is scheduled to present a report on one of the hottest issues on the agenda: public transportation. Cubans, especially those in the larger cities, await relief from one of their most pressing daily challenges.

Transportation problems reached a crisis point in the early nineties when Cuba lost its main fuel source, the Soviet Union, and the island came to virtual standstill. There was a partial recovery over the last decade but the public transportation situation is still critical.

To make matters worse, Washington’s nearly half-century blockade —further tightened under the Bush administration— prohibits US companies from doing business in Cuba, while sanctions are imposed on foreign firms that operate in the United States if they dare to trade with the island. This makes it especially difficult and expensive for Cuba to purchase buses, trucks, cars and spare parts.

Added to the scarcity of vehicles is the high price of fuel imports and the island’s ambitious national energy-saving program.

Cuba currently has a favorable trade pact with Venezuela, which provides a considerable amount of oil in exchange for the collaboration of thousands of Cuban doctors and teachers. However, the amount of oil is nowhere near the level provided by the Soviet Union until its dissolution in 1991, or that required by a dynamic population of 11.2 million.

GETTING AROUND HAVANA: EVERYONE’S SECOND JOB

Havana, the capital of Cuba has been the hardest hit. With a population of around 2.5 million spread out over an area of over 280 sq. miles, getting around the city requires a major effort.

People here say they have two jobs: one getting to and from work and the other at the actual workplace. The frustrations of the first have their repercussions on the second, affecting job motivation and productivity. The daily commute for an average worker in Havana can be as much as three to four hours. Going to a medical appointment at a hospital can be an all-day affair.

Like people all over Latin America, Cubans rely first and foremost on public buses. Yet according to an article published earlier this year in Bohemia magazine, only 13 percent of the 2,700 public buses in service in 1988 are currently operating in the city of Havana. That means ever more people on ever fewer buses.

Urban buses, all publicly owned in Cuba, are very cheap —one to two cents US a ride— but there just aren’t enough of them. This presents a crisis not felt in countries without a blockade, where profitability and fares are usually the main issue instead of an availability of buses.

Many workplaces in Havana, especially the larger ones, have their own buses. Nonetheless, the size of the capital city makes it necessary for many to catch their bus at 6:30 or 7:00 in order to arrive by 8:30 [the clock-in time for many jobs]. For households with small children the matter is further complicated by the fact that schools don’t open until 7:00 a.m.

Cubans have used their creativity and organizational savvy to confront their transportation dilemmas. Those who rely on the scarce buses have long since abandoned standing in lines. Each newcomer simply asks, “Who’s last?” and remembers their place. Bus stops may resemble an unorganized sea of people, but when the bus finally arrives people quickly line up to get on in order. Cubans are used to such waiting. It has been a part of their blockaded revolution where everyone is entitled but the supply is often limited, especially in the post-1990 period.

In Cuba’s provincial capitals the absence of buses is all the more apparent. The only advantage is that these are smaller and walking is more of an option. Horse-drawn carts move a lot people in places like Santa Clara, Las Tunas, Guantanamo, etc.

OLD CARS, COLLECTIVE TAXIS, HITCHHIKING

For those who have a little more money, or a little more daring, there are a number of other transportation options. The 1950s US cars still visible on streets and highways and have become a symbol of the capital city for many foreigners. Many of these are now collective taxis that squeeze in six or more people.

Having the ability to use the collective taxis is a big privilege in the capital and greatly increases one’s mobility. At 45 to 85 cents US a ride, those that can afford them on a regular basis either receive family remittances from abroad or have some income source other than their salary.

Pidiendo botella (hitchhiking) is another alternative for getting around the capital, mostly, but not exclusively, used by women. Students and office workers can be seen at most major intersections asking drivers for a ride. While women sometimes have to put up with propositions from the male drivers, assaults or sexual violence against hitchhikers are extremely rare.

There is also a government-sponsored type of hitchhiking, both within the capital and between provinces and municipalities. Officials with clipboards are posted on busy urban avenues and at the exits from cities and towns. They keep track of people’s destinations and flag down buses assigned to workplaces, or cars and trucks with state license plates. The drivers of these vehicles are obliged to give people a ride on the route they are traveling. If a driver fails to stop, the official jots down their license plate and reports it to the authorities. This method of transport is widely used by men and women of all ages.

Many private car owners also double as unlicensed taxis. Diesel fuel or gasoline is extremely expensive for a salaried worker in any trade or profession. Therefore, some car owners —many of whom received their Ladas and other Eastern European models via their workplaces before the 1990 crash— moonlight as taxis. They charge the same as the licensed collective taxis, or work out a fixed rate for a specific destination or address.

NOT ONLY WORK IS AFFECTED

The packed buses and long waits have greatly reduced demand for the many recreational and cultural activities in the capital city.

Traveling in jam-packed buses where you have to squeeze your way to the back door to get out represents a health and safety risk, especially for the elderly, small children, and pregnant women.

Cubans love to go out to the cinema, theater, concerts, dance performances, museums, sporting events, parks and beaches. If transport were better in the capital, many more would do so. Efforts to improve public transportation must take into consideration the fact that improved transportation will also bring new demands on the system.

Dalia Acosta wrote about the issue in an IPS news service article titled: “Camels Fade into the Sunset.” She quotes City of Havana sources as saying the plan was to “ensure transport for 660,000 passengers a day in the first half of 2007 and to create conditions for modernizing the entire national transport system.”

“This will surpass the 400,000 passengers a day that were transported during 2006, but is still a long way from the nearly four million trips a day prior to the economic crisis. Formerly, most of the city’s residents took urban buses at least twice a day, but now they take them only as a last resort,” states Acosta.

PUTTING THE CART BEFORE THE HORSE

Cuba’s institutions and state-owned businesses are currently on a crusade to improve on low work productivity in virtually all sectors of the economy. A measure that recently took effect establishes sanctions against workers who repeatedly fail to clock in on time.

Although seen as a worthy goal, the measure has been criticized at workplaces. Many workers feel that such a measure should not be implemented until the long-awaited supply of new buses are operating.

Progress in implementing the punctuality measure is one of the issues to be addressed at parliamentary hearings this week at the Havana Convention Center.

The transportation minister previously said a marked difference in urban transportation will not occur until sometime in 2008. In the meantime, he said his institution is making an effort to improve the use of buses still on the road, including those belonging to workplaces. He has said large quantities of new buses —representing a massive government investment— would be incorporated over the next three years, mainly from China.

ENVIRONMENTAL REASONS

Since 2005, Cuba has been in what President Fidel Castro dubbed an “Energy Revolution” that involves a massive campaign to increase awareness of the need to conserve fuel and electricity.

The Cuban leader sees the issue as crucial not only for Cuba but for humanity as a whole. He has sharply criticized waste in consumer societies, focusing particularly on the idea of the US government to turn food crops into ethanol to feed its cars, even if higher grain prices and increased hunger result.

Experts worldwide recognize the advantages of good public transport over private cars citing the improved air quality, a sharp reduction in per capita energy consumption and far greater safety.

If Cuba’s transport ministry is able to turn things around in the coming years, it will have resolved one of the essential problems facing the island and serve as an example to other nations.

Sen. Lieberman Puts out Feelers on Iran

2007-06-15T08:44:00.000-07:00

By Circles Robinson

In Cuba, there is a familiar political joke that asks what is the closest thing to a Republican. The answer is a Democrat.

US Senator Joe Lieberman is a former Democrat —now an “Independent”— who embodies that invisible difference from the majority of Republican and Democratic Congress members on most foreign policy issues.

On June 10, Lieberman put out feelers on the idea of shelling Iran, something many analysts believe the Bush administration has been plotting for a long time.

“I think we’ve got to be prepared to take aggressive military action against the Iranians to stop them from killing Americans in Iraq,” said Lieberman, Al Gore’s 2000 running mate.

The senator tried to soften the prospects of another prolonged war by saying: “I want to make clear I’m not talking about a massive ground invasion of Iran.” He then hedged by saying he would leave strategies up to the generals.

READING BETWEEN THE LINES

The most significant aspect of Lieberman’s warmongering was not the call for attack in itself but instead the silence that followed from the White House.

The reaction would not have been the same if perhaps Lieberman had suggested attacking Saudi Arabia over its undemocratic monarchy or Israel, for stockpiling nuclear weapons and not allowing international inspections.

No, this is Iran, a blacklisted country since 1979, when it erupted from 38 years of a US backed dictatorship and said ‘Yankee Go Home.’

In the US media, the 444-day (1979-1981) hostage crisis at the US embassy in Tehran was daily heartbreak news, but the fact that the US had backed a corrupt and ruthless ruler was not.

In similar fashion, the US media harps today on the tragedy of 3,500 plus US soldiers killed in Iraq but says virtually nothing about the hundreds of thousands of Iraqi civilians killed by the US-led troops.

Like the half-century process to demonize Cuban President Fidel Castro, the US corporate press has worked hard over decades to implant a negative image of Iran and its leaders.

This constant image-bashing has laid the groundwork for a final media assault to get the flags on cars and in front yards in the days following an Iraq style bombardment of Iran.

President Bush has repeatedly said that “All options are on the table.” Translated into Pentagon terms that clearly means keep the plans for attack updated until I pick up the phone.

Meanwhile, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has vowed to continue forward with his country’s peaceful nuclear energy program. The 118-member Non Aligned Movement, currently chaired by Cuba, defends Iran’s right to do so.

Ahmadinejad accuses the US and Europe —which both rely heavily on nuclear energy to generate electric power— of trying to prevent Iran from developing.

“The aim of the enemies in thwarting Iran’s exploitation of peaceful nuclear technology is not based on any technical reasons. They want to hit at the source of the country’s progress,” Ahmadinejad has told the press.

SELLING THE WAR

I believe that the need to attack Iran could easily be sold in a country where most citizens, too busy with their hectic individual lives and paying the bills, are willing to let the corporate media and politicians determine what is good and evil for them.

Within months a “well informed” US public could easily be led to believe that attacking Iran today will keep America and their families safer in the future.

It’s no secret that equating patriotism with supporting the government and the troops is powerful stuff in the USA, where dumping a president or electing a dove at a time of war is extremely unlikely.

Other interests are also at play, like the boon a new war would bring the weapons, oil, construction, vehicle and military servicing industries.

Bush Takes Time Out for Cuba

2007-05-22T16:05:00.000-07:00

By Circles Robinson

President Bush took time out on May 20 to extend greetings to the people of Cuba. On this date in 1902, the United States officially granted the island limited autonomy after taking control from Spain four years earlier.

“The United States remains committed to extending the full blessings of liberty around the world,” said Bush in a barely veiled reference to his administration’s efforts in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The President chooses to ignore the fact that most Cubans on the island consider 1959 the date of their true independence. Instead, Bush prefers the relationship that preceded the Cuban revolution and provided for US military occupations and treaties favorable to US interests.

During this period, Washington took possession of Guantanamo Bay and 117 sq. kilometers of prize coastline, building its oldest standing overseas naval base that now doubles as a prison camp.

While the subservient pre-revolution governments didn’t seem to mind the US occupation, ever since 1959 Cuba has demanded that Washington leave its territory.

HELPING CUBA RETURN TO “FREEDOM”

“We stand united with freedom-loving people of all nations in the conviction that Cuba’s future must be one of dignity, liberty and opportunity,” said President Bush in his annual message Sunday to Cuban American organizations based in Miami that have been big donors to him and his party.

To further that aim, the State Department has published a nearly 500-page “Plan for Assistance to a Free Cuba”, to topple the government of Fidel Castro and bring the island back into the US fold.

Washington also maintains a travel ban on US citizens wanting to visit the island as part of a nearly half-century blockade that stifles trade and people-to-people exchange.

The latest victim of the travel ban was filmmaker Michael Moore, under threat of a six-figure fine and a stiff jail sentence for having come to Havana to get some footage for his film “Sicko”, about health care in the United States.

“Laura and I send our best wishes. May God bless the people of Cuba,” concluded Bush.

US-Iraq Pullout Bad for Business

2007-05-21T09:26:00.000-07:00

By Circles Robinson

A US pullout from Iraq would jeopardize the windfall profits for a host of well-placed corporations specializing in oil, weapons, construction, security, and other war services.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average is at a record high, so it’s no surprise that Exxon, Chevron, Halliburton, Bechtel, Lockheed Martin, Boeing, Parsons, BP, Shell, etc., are firmly behind President Bush in his efforts to maintain and extend the Iraq occupation as long as possible.

With the corporations’ security expenses and investment risks being picked up by the US taxpayers, what incentive is there to hurry up any eventual withdrawal?

To keep the profits flowing, Bush has just named Lt. General Douglas E. Lute as the new “war czar” for Iraq and Afghanistan. In appointing Lute —who must be confirmed by the Senate— Bush said he is “a tremendously accomplished military leader who understands war and government and knows how to get things done.”

Gen David H. Petraeus, commander of the multinational force in Iraq said Lute would be “a great addition to the team that is striving for success in Iraq.”

What “success” means at this point in the war has never been fully explained to the people of the United States.

OIL FOREVER

Washington’s current top agenda item in Iraq is getting the puppet Iraqi government and legislature to approve a bill that would assure that private foreign corporations control the Iraqi oil industry and hundreds of billions in profits for decades to come.

Author and oil analyst Antonia Juhasz says the law being pushed by the Bush administration for Iraq, “opens up at a minimum, two thirds of Iraq’s oil to private, foreign corporate investment on terms that are literally the most generous available, just about anywhere in the world. Generous to the oil companies that is.”

The law is so slanted to favor the transnational corporations that it has little support even among the Iraqis that have collaborated with the occupation forces. The Iraqi Federation of Oil Unions (IFOU),—not the resistance— are threatening to strike if it proceeds.

BUSH IS NO PUSHOVER FOR CONGRESS

The charade over why Iraq had to be attacked ended shortly after the 2003 occupation began. The pretexts of weapons of mass destruction and Saddam Hussein being on a first name basis with Osama Bin Laden collapsed like a house of cards.

Congress overwhelmingly supported the first hundreds of billions of dollars for the war. Now, the President is betting that when push comes to shove many critics on Capitol Hill will buckle to the fear of being accused of deserting the troops.

The 67-29 Senate vote last week against stopping funding for major combat operations within a year has bolstered the President’s hand, at least temporarily.

There is still grumbling in the House of Representatives and among Democratic Party presidential candidates in the Senate but a prolonging of the war and related profits is almost guaranteed.

ROSY PICTURE, CLOUDY REALITY

For years now, the US news media has published one Pentagon report after another boasting of scores of “insurgents” killed in Iraq and rejoicing at the death of supposed “top ranking” Al Qaeda leaders. The hanging of Saddam Hussein and other former Iraqi officials was also supposed to mark a turning point.

If killing Iraqis was the solution, the war would have been over a long time ago. Instead, for every “militant” or “leader” killed, many more Iraqis are willing to take their place. Kill five today and fight fifty tomorrow.

To counter the would-be quitters, the State Department and its supporters on Capitol Hill warn of a civil war and possible large-scale bloodbath if the US forces leave Iraq. I wonder what they call the 50 to a 100 dead and hundreds more wounded every day; month after month, year after year?

As was the case in the early years of the Vietnam War, the vast majority of major US newspapers rushed to support the war on Iraq. Three hundred fifty billion dollars later with $90 billion more on the horizon, and public opinion turning against the war, several major newspapers are now calling for some sort of pullout.

The L.A. Times made its about face in a recent editorial stating: “The longer we delay planning the inevitable, the worse the outcome is likely to be. The time has come to leave.”

But the California daily misses the point: Worse for whom?

If the real reason for being in Iraq is to help US corporations make a buck than every day the troops remain in place is another day that the dollars flow. Isn’t the motto: What’s good for business is good for the nation?