Luciano Corsi


The Cuban Political and Economical “reform”, a huge challenge.


2009 celebrates what is in my opinion one of the most important political facts of the twentieth century, the Cuban Revolution. Apart from all rhetoric from superficial visions on both capitalist and socialist / communist parts, for me such a revolution represents a great proof of human and political resistance against the mighty power of both military and economical potency United States of America.

One may correctly say Cuba lacks most of the technological revolution benefits the world has produced along those fifty years, as well as individual and political rights as electing the president and their representatives in the Congress. Nevertheless, Cuba, with all economic restrictions caused the Helms Burton Law Embargo set by the United States in 1962, which punishes all countries that trade with the Island, has managed to develop an educational and health systems, as well as a pharmaceutical industry that leads vaccines production worldwide. Not even the fall of the Soviet Union, that made it face up to its greatest economical crises, defeated the Cuban self-determination to maintain its social achievements.

In the last three years the world’s seen Cuban main leader Fidel Castro’s health problems increasing as well as his attitude to delegate most of the government to his brother Raul, who is implementing some concrete steps towards the reform of the island’s economical (more evident) and political systems, although one can’t still foresee elections or real freedom of expression.

Therefore, the essence of Latin American and Caribbean leaders meeting, in which Barack Obama participated, was the urge and importance of lifting such economical embargo.

On one side, most of the Latin America leaders pressured Obama to take a look on how anachronistic it was to go through with such an embargo by coming up with comparisons such as “Cold War is over”, communism is no longer a threat, etc, trying to coax Obama into lifting the whole economical embargo.

On the other side Raul Castro sustains Cuba is ready to discuss everything with Washington, as soon as the mentioned social achievements and the island’s self-determination are not at risk, Obama’s is suffering huge pressure from the most conservative members of both Republican and Democrats parties. The great challenge seems to be that what is called by Raul self determination and social achievements represents communism for such conservative sectors.

Another matter is that the decaying empire has never really wanted to see real human development southwards and has always strived to produce poverty as a dominating weapon, with its rhetoric speech of calling all progressive programs in Latin America as communism, even the capital intense industries in Brazil.

Unfortunately, the United States has created and sponsored dozens of very cruel dictatorships in South America that would make Cuba look as paradise, and such country rarely hesitated in killing progressive leaders that had the courage of questioning such imperialism which unique goal was to keep poverty to exploit. Of course the artificial and bought leaders placed by force had become, very suddenly, and as curiously, millionaires!

Once we see Cuba ready for dialogue, although reluctant to implement real political reforms, one can see an almost bankrupt ex empire trying to hold on to its ex economic colonies and with immense difficulty to wake up to a new multi polar economic and political globalized scenario, still trying to take advantage on its remaining military supremacy to keep on exploiting poverty, the main source of its power along History.


Source: The independent

Article:
1. Cuba ready to put 'everything' on table in US talks Barack Obama was urged to end the 47-year-old American embargo of Cuba by a phalanx of Latin American and Caribbean leaders at a summit in Trinidad last night.- 18/04/2009, Americas