A week ago National Television aired repeatedly a new chapter in the serial incorrectly titled “Cuba’s Reasons,” from the eagerness of the authorities to always appropriate the voice of the nation, to monopolize it. In reality it should have been called “The Cuban Government’s Reasons.” The chapter, directed against some peaceful opponents and the Ladies in White, was full of images recorded with hidden cameras and intercepted telephone conversations, things illegal in any democratic country but common in ours.
In addition, it included declarations of two agents who in effect broke their cover, having finished their missions of infiltration. One was a fountain of derogatory epithets and even demonstrations of how he lied, discovering his true nature. The other was more parsimonious. There was no shortage of the usual sentimentality, melodrama and even patriotism, summarized in the final scene with the happy ending of them walking toward each other in slow motion. Yesterday they aired another chapter, even more boring, because it was based on images and events from twenty and thirty years ago.
Definitely more of the same. It seemed to me like seeing chapters of “It Has Had To Be In Silence,” that mythical serial. The important thing, however, is the reason for presenting this material now, and with so much coverage. Does it have something to do with the events taking place in the Arab world? It is a call to arms?
There is concern that, at a time of declared strength of the regime, with an upcoming Party Congress, which would be a healthy environment of civic tranquility, to analyze calmly the problems and seek solutions with the participation of everyone, unleashing this new campaign only demonstrates intolerance, one more time, and brings absolutely nothing to the needed national unity, under the principle of respecting a diversity of opinions, something raised in recent speeches by the president.
It is expected that, if the same mistaken path is followed, some upcoming chapter of the serial will be dedicated to discrediting the bloggers, independent voices, without owners and without salaries, that only express their opinions, misguided or not but in any case honest, on the web, as they cannot in other media, being responsible for them as Cubans who adhere to no party nor political organization, with the one objective of participating in the solution to national problems with a new perspective, taking into account what has been tried over the last fifty years has not been successful.
The ex-president, in a meeting with intellectuals at the recently ended Book Fair reasons: The most self-sufficient and incapable creatures that ever existed: Us, the politicians. Without a doubt, he’s completely right. Ours are a magnificent example.
March 8 2011
