Democracy For Cuba by Roig San Martin
In the past two years, the United States government has been taking a more aggressive policy stance against Cuba, strengthening the travel ban and tightening the embargo. Due to this aggression, some feel that if it weren’t for the quagmire in Iraq, the U.S. military might already be on its way to Havana.
Ostensibly, American policy vis-a-vis Cuba has been tough in order to free Cubans from the tyranny of the Castro dictatorship. This argument seems disingenuous when considering the anti-democratic role of the U.S. military and the CIA in Latin America from the 1950s in Guatemala to the present day in Haiti. While the U.S. government has also cited Cuba´s human rights record to justify its aggression, the only documented cases of torture on the island of Cuba in this millenium took place in Guantanamo Bay under American orders, 
according to Red Cross Documents leaked in 2004.
Neither has American policy been very useful in bringing freedom to Cuba. On the contrary, it serves to punish ordinary Cubans for the economic structure of their government. Indeed, many Cubans I have talked to think that the embargo actually serves to strengthen Fidel Castro more than weaken his ability to rule.
Since the embargo causes shortages of all types of equipment, technology, medicine, food, and books, it constitutes a war of attrition. This makes Castro a “war president.” Since American policy is much more destructive to the island than Cuban government policy, this war of attirition also provides a perfect cover for criticisms of corruption, unaccountability and economic failures of Castro's government.
Another problem is that American policy is now wed to the collapse of Cuban society. In order to finally vindicate its own sordid history of misguided foreign policy in Latin America, many right wing leaders want to destroy Cuba in order to demonstrate that the only alternative to U.S. politics in America is self-destruction. After 46 years of such policies Cubans can still expect a life expectancy and standard of living among the highest in the hemisphere, but the infrastructure of the country has been left devastated.
Cubans of course do not want the destruction of their country as a path to regime change. Most Cubans want more freedom of speech, more access to information and more independence from the control of the Communist Party. However, none i know want to loose free health care and education in the process. Perhaps taking a lessen from the transitions of the former Soviet Union, they do not want radical shock therapy to bring their economy into line with the latest fashion in economics. One alternative that many advocate involves step-by-step changes in economic law to offer more freedom for people to run their own small businesses. I saw a history presentation at the University of Havana in which a student put it this way “world war III was almost fought between the victors of the last world war because they had competing economic systems. This is crazy. There are good things about each system. Why has the world been forced into polar positions when a better world could be made by choosing the best ideals and structures of each system.”
Of course, the great question Americans have about Cuba is “what is going to happen to Cuba when Castro dies.” While there is still hope that Castro’s government will offer a clear plan of transition, this has not yet happened. Most Cubans seem to think that a military regime will then be headed by Fidel’s brother Raul Castro, currently the Minister of the Interior. This position is in some ways equivalent to the U.S. position of Director of Intelligence that is held by John Negroponte as it oversees the Cuban equivalents of the CIA and FBI. Raul does not command respect or admiration as Fidel does, and I got the sense that Cubans saw him much as they see George W. Bush (a slow, inarticulate individual with a “alcoholic personality” from a politically connected family).
At the same time the United States will step up the intensity of its war of attrition against Cuba has happened from 1992-1996 after the fall of the Soviet Union. During this “special period” Cubans came close to dying in the streets of hunger for the first time since 1960 and, as life became more desperate and uncertain, the levels of violence and crime escalated across the island.
I hope that the destruction of Iraqi society has made clear that true democracy cannot be brought by warfare. We can only free others from injustice if we support them in their own struggles, learning from their lead.
If anyone really wants to bring democracy to Cuba, I encourage him/her to go to the island, learn Spanish, make friends, ask critical questions, and offer concrete support (in private Cubans will often go on talking about such things as much as you let them). Furthermore, it is important for Americans to realize that Cuban democracy will not be a product of Washington or Miami politics. It must spring from the will and direction of the Cuban people. In any case, while the U.S. government attempts to scare Americans away, there are still legal opportunities to travel to the island that can be found in a search of the internet. Others decide to go without permission, which can still be done safely if done carefully. Lawyers from the National Lawyers Guild have long been searching for a case of the government against an American for travelling to Cuba because of their belief that the travel ban would be ruled unconstitutional if it was considered by a court. Because of this possibility, no one who has ever appealed a Treasury Department fine has yet been prosecuted by the American govnerment.
Instead of sending smart bombs, we can send smart students to listen to Cuban people and help build a better future than the perpetual warfare now being offered.
Feedback welcome here
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