I'm worried about Cuba. The illness of Fidel Castro, combined with the non-appearance of his brother Raul, who is temporarily in charge, has generated much speculation. Whatever the facts, it is clear that Fidel, aged 79, cannot continue too much longer. I hope that Raul Castro and others will be able to continue his legacy, but I equally fear that the opposition may seize the opportunity created by the vacuum of power to bring about "democracy".
Winston Churchill once commented that democracy is the worst form of government ever tried, apart from every other government ever tried. In the main, I agree with him; however, I thing Cuba deserves a special case.
Prior to the Communist revolution, Cuba was a great place to go, as long as you weren't actually Cuban. The mafia had effective control of much of the island, and they tended to use Havana as their playground for lawless and often inhuman "fun". More importantly, the land was owned by large, mainly US-based corporations, who effectively enslaved the native population, giving them the choice of living and working on the land for a pittance (subject, of course to the mafia doing whatever the hell they felt like) or leaving the island. In brief, it was the worst sort of colony we've known.
The revolution, therefore, was neither surprising nor unwarranted. Under Castro, people were not only able to live on their country's land without excessive demands and mafia intrusion, they also had access to free public healthcare and education. Of course, Communism was not perfectly executed; however, what Castro has achieved and which the others did not is overwhelming public support and real social democracy.
So now I'm worried. If Fidel doesn't make it through, will there be an equally wise and sensible leader to take over? Raul may inherit power, but his lack of public appearances so far do not bode well. There is a real danger that "regime change" will take place - most likely in the form of "Miami-Cubans" returning to take over the place and turn it into a big money-making venture rather than an island supporting its population. I pray for Fidel, and that social democracy will continue in Cuba.
2 comments:
Jack, nice piece. Cuba is intriguing. If there ever was a country that had a ready-made proletariat class, Cuba was it. Cuba was the perfect country to really try and place a communist government in - much more so really than anywhere in eastern Euorope or Asia. Cubans were relatively well educated and had a common sense of being repressed by the producers of capitalist wealth. Fidel is hugely popular and the standard of living for Cubans is far better than for ordinary people anywhere else in Latin America. So I'm torn about how to think of Fidel. Obviously not having the freedom to express oneself is a very bad thing indeed. As you say, I hope that Cuba can figure out a way to keep social democracy going after Fidel and avoid a reactionary regime headed up by Floridian Cubans.
My position, by the way, is VERY unpopular here in my home state!
I agree with what you say here, Andrew. There's an interesting piece here
from a pro-Castro Miami-Cuban - I didn't realise there was even such a movement until I read it.
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