A Problem of Sizes / Fernando Dámaso

Socialism is so rigid it is practically impossible to reform it. It is like a straitjacket imposed on society the minute it begins, and afterward we are forced to live with it, ignoring any development of change in sizes.

  1. A conception less orthodox and dogmatic would understand changes, and at least go from a Small to a Medium and then to a Large and Extra Large, avoiding the annoyance and in the end the tearing.
  2. But this is like asking for the impossible. And Marti, with his foresight, warned against the dangers of socialism. It’s just that, as in many other things, we forget his warnings and fall, and continue to fall, into mistakes he warned us against.
  3. There is no doubt that the ideas of Marx and Engels, as a theory, attracted and do attract as many intelligent beings as fools. Developed in their private offices and German breweries and London pubs, which is not meant as a criticism, fortunately they never applied them in life, assuming them to be Utopian.
  4. Our great disgrace has been the continual enforcement of these social models. Each one in its way, to a greater or lesser extent, in different eras, has demonstrated its failure in the real world.

September 11, 2010

Marambio Has Nothing to Fear / Laritza Diversent

In the Cuban legal system there is no procedure that allows president Salvador Allende’s ex-bodyguard to testify as an accused before the Chilean prosecutor.

He will be judged according to Cuban law and within the national territory, in person or in absentia. If he returns to the island to respond to the accusations, he can count on serving his sentence in his own country, if there are treaties to that respect between the two nations.

Not withstanding the foregoing, the official summons issued by the Ministry of the Interior (MININT) and published in the Official Gazette, the organ of dissemination of government laws and acts, does not meet the formal requirements of Cuban procedural law. Normally the Cuban authorities, in their procedures, act on their own irrespective of the legality.

In the summons to Marambio from the prosecutor, are: his name, surnames, address of the one summoned; the reason for the summons; the day he is required to appear and the consequences of failing to do so.

However, the summons did not state the place nor the time the leftist businessman must appear, requirements of the law. Nor was it authorized by a judicial authority. The provision requires that the “the summons is issued by way of a certificate sent by the secretary” of the court in the matter.

In the case of a judicial proceeding undertaken without observing the provisions of the Law of Criminal Procedure, it is established as invalid, under Article 86. MININT’s own note refers to this provision. This, at the same time clarifies that if the person summoned appears, the summons becomes legal.

Finally, it is clear that the arrest order has international repercussions.

The publication in the Official Gazette of the Republic of Cuba of both notes as required, is a prerequisite for the declaration of non-compliance and the trial an absentia, in the case of an accused who is outside the country.

The Cuban judicial system provides for the continuation of the proceedings against the accused declared in non-compliance until its final resolution, in the case of crimes against the fundamental, political or economic interests of the nation.

Marambio has no reason for fear. The revolutionary government has no intention of pursuing the international businessman who, thanks to his business dealings on the island, managed a group of companies moving more than 100 million dollars annually. It’s true, he knows he cannot return and lose everything he had and enjoyed here.

September 8, 2010

Are There Guarantees in Cuba for Marambio? / Laritza Diversent

Another issue is to certify that the proprietor of the International Network Group(ING) will have his guarantees respected. One of the managers of “Alimentos Rio Zaza,” the private company formed between the Cuban Government and Marambio was the 59-year-old Chilean Roberto Baudrand. He was under house arrest in Cuba and endured strenuous interrogation sessions. In April, he was found dead at his apartment.

The Cuban autopsy, accepted by the family of the deceased, certified that the cause of death was due to respiratory failure combined with the consumption of drugs and alcohol. There is still doubt if the death was due to accidental death or to suicide.

With respect to whether the criminal process against Marambio will take place in part in Chile, I have my doubts. The questionnaire with 21 questions presented to the businessman by the Cuban authorities, is a different process. In this case, his answers are that of a witness.

In the investigation other directors of his companies in Cuba are implicated, accused of paying bribes, embezzling funds and diverting resources outside the country. Marambio was linked to the corruption scandal that involved the director of Institute of Civil Aeronautics of Cuba (IACC) and Major General Rogelio Acevedo. Lucy Leal, director of ING, was arrested and is being investigated.

Cuban procedural law provides that when the witness resides outside the national territory treaties between the two countries, if any, will be observed. If there are no treaties, formal letters through diplomatic channels will be sent, according to international practices.

The proceedings, the summons and the indictment, officially published by the Cuban authorities, are formal procedures, not administrative ones as believed by the lawyers for the Chilean businessman.

September 7, 2010

Marambio: Accused or Witness / Laritza Diversent

The subpoena and indictment prepared by the Ministry of the Interior (MININT) against the 63-year-old Chilean businessman, Max Marambio, has raised innumerable questions. The first of these is what would happen if the close friend of the eldest of the Castros decided to return to the island.

The chances that the authorities would put him in jail, as a preventive measure, are high. The criminal proceeding against him is in its preparatory phase, when the investigation occurs, the legal facts are described, and so on.

They also want to assure that the defendants show up for the day of the trail. Given that “The Fat Man,” as Marambio is known in Cuba, lives outside the country, provisional detention would be the most effective assurance.

Another question is whether Marambio’s attorneys can travel to Cuba and represent him in the investigation being carried out against him. In order to be named as a defense attorney, under the Cuban system, the individual must be part of the process.

This would start when the person is the object of a preventive measure (pre-trial detention, bail, etc.). It means that you must first appear before the instructor (similar to a district attorney) as required and testify regarding the facts alleged against you. After this your attorney is appointed.

The Chilean courts returned the warrant to Cuba, citing errors that prevented their compliance with it. For example, the lack of clarity regarding Marambio’s situation, and whether he is a witness or a defendant.

The note published by MININT in the Official Gazette of the Republic of Cuba, however, expressly lists Max Marambio as the “accused” for the crimes of Bribery, Acts Detrimental to Economic Activity, or of Procurement, Embezzlement, and Falsification of Bank and Trade Documents, and Fraud.

There is no doubt, the businessman is called as a defendant. It’s worth mentioning that Cuban law does not provide for the presence of a lawyer during questioning, nor in the obligation to instruct him in his rights. For example, there is no duty to declare the charges against him, which can be done at any time or as many times as desired.

September 6, 2010

Justice Minister Names Legal Representatives / Laritza Diversent

The Justice Minister Maria Esther Reus González, issued Aug. 6, Resolution No. 215, which names two counselors at the Ministry of Justice (MINJUS), Dr. Diego Fernández Cañizares Abeledo and Attorney Nelia Caridad Aguado López, experts from the ministry, to act without prejudice to its final completion, in the administrative proceeding brought against her, before Second Civil and Administrative Board of the Provincial Peoples Court of the City of Havana by independent jurists.

Attorney Wilfredo Vallín Almeida, president of the Cuban Law Association, a union of dissident lawyers, asked the MINJUS Register of Associations on April 7, 2009, on behalf of his organization, for a certification which the state agency never issued. Reus Gonzales, designated by the Council of State in March 2007, is empowered to direct the operation of the National Registry of Associations, and to guide and monitor government policy on partnerships and foundations.

Counsel Almeida Vallín filed a complaint with the People’s Provincial Tribunal of the City of Havana, regarding its administrative silence before the Appeal submitted to the Minister, which still has not been responded to in accordance with the provision of Law No.54 “The Associations Act.” Last 28 July, the head of MINJUS received a summons from the tribunal requiring her to name legal representatives.

September 9, 2010

The Times of the Cuban Model / Claudia Cadelo

“The Cuban model doesn’t even work for us anymore.”

The Cuban model was not working for us even when I thought of it.
When the socialist block collapsed the model didn’t work, not even for us.
After much reflection, the Cuban model will no longer be working.
The Cuban model hasn’t worked, not even for Chavez.
Before me, the Cuban model had worked.
What I created as the Cuban model, failed.
The Cuban model will not work for us, not even when Raul makes changes.
It is possible that the Cuban model would not work, not even for us.
That the Cuban model has not worked doesn’t affect my visits to the aquarium.
If the Cuban model worked for us, I wouldn’t have created it.
If the Cuban model would have worked for us, I would have retracted just the same.
The Cuban model would never work.
The Cuban model would have worked in another dimension.
He who has published in Granma that the Cuban model doesn’t work, will be shot.
Work! Cuban model!

Image: Guama

Text from the cartoon:
– HAHAHA… It’s not working!
– Don’t misinterpret.

September 10, 2010

Personal Glasnost / Regina Coyula

I appreciate the support of the commentators. I am not going to stop writing, nor have I thought of moderating the comments, though I appeal, yes, to the good judgment of those who write for more than catharsis.

Several of my readers have asked me.

When I was sixteen I started at MININT (The Ministry of the Interior). I was proud to have been selected. My family, which was completely “integrated” — that is supporters of the Revolution — received the news with great joy. MININT was seen by the revolutionaries as the organism destined to protect the Revolution from danger. Under its rules of compartmentalization — or “need to know” — I worked from 1973 to 1983 in the department of Technical Operations, and from then until 1987 I was an official operative, where I worked in the areas of culture. And until I discharged myself in 1990, I was in “Assurances.”

That was my history there. Like great romances, it was beautiful while it lasted.

September 10, 2010

Philosophy of Hate / Fernando Dámaso

  1. A philosophy of hate has spread across the world like a pandemic which seems to cover everything, calling into question whether humans are thinking beings of superior intelligence. Love has been pushed to the side and must struggle fiercely to show itself, in public as well as private social relations. Intolerance and violent confrontation reign in modern life.
  2. The background of hate has different handholds, from the settling of scores for the discovery and colonization of the New World, to the Crusades to the Holy Land to spread Christianity. Without a doubt there were excesses and faults, but to go hundreds of years later clamoring for revenge is altogether absurd.
  3. The history of mankind and, within it, the formation of the nations, has known intense periods of violence where some ethnic groups and peoples imposed on others, fundamentally due to their greater level of development. Entire civilizations have appeared and disappeared this way, up through our times. Demands for material and moral compensation for events in the long course traveled since the Big Bang are, aside from irrational, also impossible to satisfy. It would be a never-ending story, and nobody could be left out of it, because the responsibility is shared.
  4. It is true that Spain colonized the Americas, but before that the Moors had colonized almost all of Spain. It is true that Europe colonized Asia and Africa, but before that the Ottoman Turks and the Huns, to cite just two examples, invaded Europe, the latter led by Attila even reaching the gates of Rome. It is true, getting back to America, that Spain subjugated the Aztecs and the Incas, but before that these same had subjugated all the surrounding peoples, turning them into vassals or slaves as they built their empires. We see that the culprits are those who prevail.
  5. To set out today, on the basis of these distant events, to fuel passions and hatred and call for political or religious crusades only serves to demonstrate, as Albert Einstein put it, “Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity”.

Translated by: Mark B.

Things Have A Soul / Rebeca Monzo

To my granddaughter Isabel.

This was the title of an old Cuban radio show. When I was a child, my grandmother was a fervent listener of that same show, and as I was always at her side, I gave in and also listened to it. That’s why I choose this title for today’s post.

In the year 1968 I was a diplomat in Paris, not as a career, but always in a rush, as had already been happening on my planet for some half a century. Out of the blue one day I was invited to the Elysee Palace, to the French National Festival. As is understandable, such a unique opportunity excited me, but also worried me greatly. We Cubans were, in comparison with the rest of the diplomatic corps, a little more down at the heels.

I had then, to go and visit the most elegant shops of the ‘City of Light’ to choose a dress that would be fitting to the occasion. I chose one from Frank and Fils, one of the most elegant of the time. It’s clear I couldn’t buy it, so after choosing it I kept it in mind and with the greatest of discretion I came away from the window and sketched it out, went back to it to make out the details, until finally my sketch was complete. Then came the best bit. Setting of on a safari trip, from shop to shop, to try to track down a material that would bear the most possible resemblance to the original. Then, buy a good pattern and all hands on deck!

The dress, with the help of a Spanish friend who was very good with her hands, looked beautiful on me. I cut it and sewed it and my friend, with a few impeccably invisible stitches, put in the zipper by hand. It looked pretty but, accessories? The most important was the footwear!

I directed myself to a specialist shop, F. Pinet and I bought myself some Italian shoes by Magli Studio of golden, matte leather, that even today I keep in a perfect state. My then husband loved them when he saw them, but when I told him what they’d cost me, he hit the roof. ‘Don’t grumble,’ I defended myself, telling him ‘If I had gone as far as buying the dress in the shop — and I wouldn’t do that — it would have worked out to be twice as expensive.’

My shoes, whose soles gracefully traveled the red carpet of the Elysee, were those that kept me standing comfortably, the 14th of July 1968, when I shook the hand of General De Gaulle, President of France.

Those shoes have accompanied me in the most important social occasions, of my old life and I still keep them in a perfect state of health and believe me, I’ve never decided to get rid of them, because they’re still good for me or perhaps they’d get a friend out of a tight spot. I learned from a young age, that things have souls.

Translated by: Jessica Burton

September 4, 2010

Lives Condemed Due to Medical Malpractice / Miguel Iturría Savón

Yadima Évora Casales is a 25-year-old Cuban mother from Vista Hermosa in San Miguel del Padron, Havana. She believes she is a victim of deceit and manipulation at the hands of officials from the institutions that “respond” to the interest of the country’s citizens.

Her tragedy began five years ago when she became pregnant. Since she was healthy no one worried about difficulties in labor. The doctors who examined her did not realize that her uterus–high, narrow and backward–would prevent a natural birth and necessitate a Cesarean.

Since no Cesarean was prescribed consequences were awful for herself and the baby, who suffers from severe hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy which causes spastic quadriplegia (a form of cerebral palsy), according to documents given to Joel L. Carbonell Guilar, leader of the Organization of Human Rights of Free Cubans who recently reported the case to international organizations in the face of the apathy of officials from the Clinic of San Miguel de Padron.

In December 2006, Yadima went to the Hijas de Galicia Hospital with contractions, however, since her due date was January 19th the gynecologists sent her home. She went back on January 23rd with new contractions, she was again sent home because of a lack of beds. Upon leaving the hospital, a family friend who is also a doctor recommended that she return on the 26th, he would attend her during his shift. She returned that day to the maternity ward; five days later she was recognized and monitored by doctors but none of them realized she was past her due date. On the 30th her water broke in front of the attending doctor who recommended she sleep because she was not dilated.

Yadima did not dilate. She cried and the baby struggled to be born. The next morning another gynecologist put her on the monitor and the machines began to make noise. The baby’s heart was failing. The doctors decided to perform an emergency Cesarean. Her baby was alive and cyanotic (his skin was blue due to lack of oxygen). Three weeks later they returned home where Yadima discovered that the child could not hold up his head. “He’ll do it later” the specialists told her at her first appointment.

Four years later her baby requires special care to hold up his head, he does not walk, does not chew or have control of his sphincter and suffers from spasms in his hands and feet. He requires physical therapy and medications that are not accessible to Yadima and her family. Solutions are not available at the local clinics or the Julito Dias and Pedro Borras because the specialists and technicians are being sent on medical missions to other countries.

The tragedy of Yadima and her child, Ernesto Arias Evora, is worse because of their living conditions. They live with 11 family members in a small run down house with dirt floors and cement roof. She requested aid from government organizations such as the Administrative Council and the Housing and Health Directorate. After interviews and visits from officials and social workers who “elevated the case”, she wrote the State Council.

Yadima Evora Casales cannot work and waits for aide. She and her child were victims of medical negligence and are being bounced around by officials that have led her to believe they have solved her problem with a check for 158 pesos a month–the equivalent of 6 cuc, not enough for food and medicine.

This mother asks the government agencies for a wheelchair with head support, a blender to make meals for the child, diapers, a bed and medicine. She dreams of a room with ventilation, a bathroom and a kitchen to ease the plight of her child. She is still waiting.

She was told by Joel L. Carbonell that she must combine her plea with the demand, since article 26 of the Cuban Constitution allows for “reparation and compensation” for damages caused by State agents and officials. She also learned about the rules for the protection of children and youth and the obligations assumed by the island’s government when they agreed to the terms of the Instruments for Human Rights and the Conventions of Children’s’ rights.

Translated by: Lita Q.

September 8, 2010

Broken Promise / Yoani Sánchez

The Revolution Is Working Well. Fight, Work, Advance. Continue Onward! Fidel

I swore never again to speak of that gentleman with the well-trimmed beard and the olive-green uniform who castrated* filled every day of my childhood with his constant presence. I underpin my decision not to refer to Fidel Castro with more than one argument: he represents the past; we need to look forward, to that Cuba where he no longer exists; and in the midst of the challenges of the present, to allude to him seems an unpardonable distraction. But today he once more gatecrashed my life with one of his characteristic outbursts. I feel obliged to focus on him again after his declaration to the journalist Jeffry Goldberg that, “the Cuban model doesn’t even work for us anymore.”

If my memory doesn’t fail me, they expelled many Communist Party members for lesser or similar phrases, and purged innumerable Cubans who served long sentences. The Maximum Leader systematically pointed his finger at those who tried to explain that the country wasn’t working. And not only were the nonconformists punished, but we were all forced to don the mask of subterfuge to survive on an island he tried to remake in his own image. Pretense, whispers, deceit, all to hide the same opinion that the “resuscitated” commander now flippantly tosses out to foreign journalist.

Perhaps it is a fit of honesty, as assaults the elderly when it comes time to assess their lives. It could even be another desperate try for attention, like his prediction of an imminent nuclear debacle or his late mea culpa for the repression of homosexuals which he came out with a few weeks ago. To see him acknowledge the failure of “his” political model, makes me feel like I’m watching a scene where an actor gesticulates and raises his voice so that the public won’t look away. But as long as Fidel Castro doesn’t take the microphone and announce to us that his obsolete creature will be dismantled, nothing has happened. If he doesn’t repeat the phrase here in Cuba, and, in addition, agree not to interfere in the necessary changes, we’re back to square one.

Note:
Yesterday, on hearing the news, I wrote a brief tweet: “Fidel Castro joins the opposition, telling the journalist Jeffrey Goldberg that the Cuban model doesn’t even work for us anymore.” Shortly after a dissident friend to whom I’d sent the same message by text called me. His words were ironic, but true: “If He has joined the opposition, I’m moving over now to the official side.”

*Translator’s note: The original text was dictated over the phone and there was an error in the transcription, hence this correction.

September 9, 2010

A New Feature: Photos From Boring Home Utopics / Orlando Luis Pardo Lazo

Note from the site manager:

The link at the top of the sidebar that says “Cuba in Photos” takes you to the blog “Boring Home Utopics” where Orlando Luis Pardo Lazo — to my mind probably the best photographer working in Cuba today — posts his daily creations.  Another element of the BHU blog is a standing offer to Cubans in exile to take photos of the places that figure strongly in their memories of home, and post them, which has led to some very moving entries. Starting today, in a completely random fashion based on my own taste, suggestions from Orlando, and available time to post them, I intend to start posting periodic samples of BHU’s daily photos.  To see the rest, all you have to do is click on the link.



Photos: Orlando Luis Pardo Lazo
Posted: September 9, 2010