Concluding Thoughts on Cuba

We have a post about our last few days in Cuba below this one (“So our time in Cuba is coming to an end…”). It has a lot of pictures!

Here, I thought I’d share my final thoughts on Cuba.

On our last day in Cuba, we woke up to a power outage, and no running water- all too common shortages on this island. “It’s because of El Bloqueo” (the US embargo), our Casa owner jokes. But it’s a tired excuse for all that runs awry in Cuban life. The question is, will El Estado (the State) ever take responsibility for this country’s future, or will they continue on their current path even after the Castro Regime comes to an end? The country should soon find out.

On the way to the airport, the taxi-driver offered one last opportunity for a political debate Cubanos are all too ready to have. Except this time, it was less a debate, but more an agreement on a path forward. He attributes his ‘open mind’ to the multitude of conversations he’s had with tourists, as opposed to the singular perspective most Cubanos are exposed to. He’s forty years old now, and says he’s been waiting his entire life. First for Fidel to pass, and now Raul. But he tells me he’s growing weary and losing hope. “Raul has kids” he moans. He says he dreams of the day he can elect his leaders, but says as long as a Castro is in power, there is no light.

It seems El Estado has decided the embargo does more good as a scapegoat, than free trade would be do for the Cuban people. So El Estado continues to exploit El Bloqueo to hide a failed economic policy, and to appease a restless people. And it asks Cubanos to make sacrifices, as it “fights” American Imperialism. In this way a revolution that many thought ended fifty years ago, goes on, with a common roadside sign of Revolucion Siempre (Always Revolution), a reminder of their lasting struggle. With a perpetual revolution comes endless sacrifice.

But with the recent up-tick in tourism, these deficiencies are becoming all too apparent to hide. Tourists know better, and when they have access to plentiful, AC’ed, modern busses, Cubans may begin to ask “Why do I have to wait for an overcrowded, truck-bed-for-a-bus, that will only maybe come?” They’ve become second-class citizens in their own country, and the tension is palpable. As the realization of repression beings to set in, then maybe the question will be asked: Who is the real enemy?

Who buys 90% of our crop for a fraction of the market value? Who distributes substandard public transportation, electricity blackouts, and water shortages? Who limits access to knowledge (ie counter-revolutionary thought) and the freedom to travel?

But Cubans are loyal. And just as they were loyal too long to the Spanish crown, they have been ever-so patient to allow El Estado time to succeed. It’s been over 50 years in Defenso de Socialismo, and change is long overdue. The dream of a utopian socialistic state burst in the 80’s, when the reality of Cuba’s inefficiency meant it could no longer compete in an increasingly global economy. The nail in the coffin was set in 1991 with the dissolution of the USSR, and the disappearance of Russian subsidy.

And since then, moderate reforms have taken place. They had to. But only enough to give the impression of change. With the new freedom to own their own businesses, many Cubanos flocked to the booming tourism industry, where you can easily earn a state-jobs monthly salary with just a few sales. But the resulting disparity in income of those catering to tourists and those catering to Cubanos only exacerbated an already agitated lower class.

The need for change is ripe in Cuba, whether El Estado is ready for it or not. Hopefully, the taxi driver in Havana won’t have to wait too much longer.

Posted by Hans