Cuba Libre!
This island-nation in
the tropics, bounded by the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico, may be
small but it is known to the world as the country that ousted two colonial
powers - Spain and the U.S. - and established not only an independent and
sovereign nation but, as Cuba’s constitution proudly proclaims, “a
socialist state of workers and peasants.”
BY RUTH G. CERVANTES
Posted by Bulatlat
Despite Spanish and
American colonization, Cuba, an archipelago of some 110,000 sq. kms. and
home to 11.3 million people. (UN, 2003), has retained its indigenous
name.
The Cuban revolution
toppled the U.S.-backed dictatorship of Fulgencio Batista on Jan. 1,
1959. Since then, Cubans, led by revolutionary leader Fidel Castro,
persevered to build a country far from that which was plundered and
aggrieved by almost four centuries of Spanish colonial rule (1510-1898)
and more than six decades of American occupation (1898-1959).
|
Pres. Fidel Castro |
After the revolution,
there was an “exodus” of Cubans to Miami, Florida, USA. Those who fled
Cuba, according to Mexican author-illustrator Eduardo “Rius” del Rio, were
Batista’s cohorts, killers, political hacks, bandits in government and
brothel owners. He, however, acknowledged that not all who fled the island
were undesirables. Many fled because of the “terror of the atheistic
communism,” people who thought that “communists eat people raw.”
Dr. Lisandro Perez,
professor of sociology and anthropology and Director of the Cuban research
institute at the Florida International University explains that an “exile
ideology” eventually pervaded the Cuban community in Miami, one that
favors U.S. military intervention to topple Cuba’s government and supports
armed invasion by exiles.
In the midst of all
these, Cuba rebuilt itself as a nation. It became independent of U.S.
capital, goods and technology. Cuban leaders earned the ire of the U.S.
because they nationalized “American-owned” properties and businesses.
Despite a most brutal
and unjust trade embargo by the U.S., Cuba was able to establish a
reputable health and education system. The World Health Organization
(WHO) places Cuba in the first place in vaccination among 214 countries
worldwide.
In a recent CNN
report, U.S. Undersecretary of State John Bolton confirmed that Cuba has a
well-developed and sophisticated biomedical industry for 40 years and that
the industry is one of the most advanced in Latin America and leads in the
production of pharmaceuticals and vaccines.
Cuba’s literacy rate
is 99 percent In the academic year 2001- 2002, more than 2.4 million
students attended
school. Cuban
officials say that the advances in the field of education led the island
to “head education in the primary level in Latin America, the 89.9 percent
of Cuban children under 0-5 years old receive education and childcare, a
record statistic in Latin America.”
Of course, Cuba is no
paradise, but it has begun its pursuit of the right to live in a social
order that is defined by its people.
Cuba today is a
dignified country that has withstood 45 years of U.S.-led economic
blockade, black propaganda and terrorist attacks intended to topple the
government of Fidel Castro and to regain control of the former U.S.
colony.
Disrupting Cuba
With the help of its
Cuban-American allies in Miami, Florida, the U.S. government continues to
bully Cuba.
The U.S. adopted the
Torricelli Act of 1992 and the Helms-Burton Act of 1996. The former
curtailed trade in medicine and food that Cuba had with subsidiaries of
American companies based outside U.S. territory. The same act sets forth
severe prohibitions against maritime navigation from and to Cuba. The
latter prevents foreign investments from entering Cuba.
Meanwhile, a BBC
report cited that Cuban President Fidel Castro is said to have survived
more than 600 CIA-sponsored attempts on his life.
On Feb. 24, 1996, an
overflight of two planes belonging to the Miami-based organization calling
itself “Brothers to the Rescue” was led by Miami-based Bay of Pigs
veteran, José Basulto and was being funded by a suspected CIA-supported
organization, the Cuban-American National Foundation. The unauthorized
flight persisted over Cuban airspace and was downed by the Cuban Armed
Forces as a consequence.
In 2004, Washington
approved the use of U.S. military aircraft to transmit “pro-democracy”
broadcasts from the Washington-backed Radio-TV Marti in Miami, which
claims to provide “balanced, uncensored” news for Cubans.
Renewed threats
Cuba may be on the
road to progress but a Damocles’ sword hangs over it. It is facing yet
another threat from the U.S. as it was placed among seven countries on the
State Department’s list of terrorist sponsors.
The Bush
administration has publicly accused Cuba of developing biological
weapons. In 2002, in a speech entitled “Beyond the Axis of Evil,”
Undersecretary Bolton announced that suspicious activities are conducted
in Cuban biomedical facilities.
U.S. President George
W. Bush has time and again declared that he will support “efforts to free
Cuba from Fidel Castro’s dictatorship.” The National Assembly elected the
Cuban president and vice president for a term of five years; elections
were last held on March 6, 2003 with a 100 percent legislative vote.
(CIA-The World Factbook, 11 May 2004)
In a bid to toughen
his noose against Castro, Bush outlined the U.S.’ policy toward Havana on
May 6, 2004. This included the further tightening of travel restrictions
to Cuba; increasing aid to help bolster Cuban dissidents and making sure
that U.S. government propaganda gets to the Cubans. A reported US$59
million will be allocated by the U.S. government to finance what they call
“democracy-building efforts by youth, women and Afro-Cubans.”
Bio-weapons and
regime-change – tag lines used by the U.S. government as pretext to invade
Iraq – are the same lines now being used in a bid to regain control of
Cuba and to exhibit U.S. supremacy worldwide.
Cuban resistance
A million Cubans
gathered in Havana last May 7 to denounce what they described as brutal,
ruthless and cruel measures against Cuba by the Bush government.
Cubans believe that
the U.S. is attempting to destroy the Cuban Revolution and its example.
They also believe that the danger of a direct military invasion is now
surfacing once more under the Bush Administration.
They are however,
prepared for whatever sacrifices the new U.S. aggression may entail for
Cuba. The Cuban people and their government vowed to defend their
independence and right to self-determination. In a joint statement, the
Cuban Revolutionary Government and Communist Party of Cuba said, “Cuba
will never return to the horrible, wretched, inhuman condition of a U.S.
colony.”
Fidel Castro
declared, “I shall be in the frontline to die fighting in defense of my
homeland.” Bulatlat
Note: This article was
first published in the September issue of
FHR
(For Human Rights) a
publication of the KARAPATAN Alliance for the Advancement of People’s
Rights
References:
1. History of Cuba,
the Challenge of the Yoke and the Star, Prof. Jose Canton Navarro
2. Cuba for
Beginners, Eduardo del Rio, 1970, New York USA
3. Joint Statement of
the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Cuba and the Cuban
Revolutionary Government, 7 May 2004
4. Country profile:
Cuba http://news.bbc.co.uk 7.02.2004
5. U.S. expands ‘axis
of evil’ BBC News, Monday, 6 May, 2002
6. CIA World Factbook
http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/index.html
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