Editorial. Published Sunday, May 20, 2001 in the
Miami Herald
Ease Cuba remittance and travel rules, too.
While today marks 99 years since Cuba's independence from Spain, there's
little to celebrate in its last 42 years enslaved by a totalitarian
dictatorship. Cuba's communist regime ruthlessly persecutes dissidents, who
merit all the help they can get.
A Senate bill promises to boost such help for Cuban pro-democracy and
human-rights activists. Introduced last week by Sens. Jesse Helms, R-N.C., and
Joseph Lieberman, D-Conn. -- and endorsed strongly by President Bush on Friday
-- the Cuban Solidarity Act has good intentions and ideas. But Congress should
broaden its approach in ways that could reduce the pressure on dissidents while
encouraging more Americans to support individuals and independent groups in
Cuba.
DISSIDENTS CAN DECIDE
The legislation's major provisions authorize the government to spend up to
$100 million, across four years, to aid Cuban opposition groups and individuals
in their quests for democracy. The bill has critics. Sen. Christopher Dodd, D-
Conn., a foe of the U.S. embargo, suggested that the aid measure would waste
money "that Fidel Castro will make sure never gets into the hands of
average Cubans.'' Yet Sen. Dodd's approach -- to lift the embargo -- would
funnel more money directly to Castro, money that would strengthen the police
state's stranglehold on those average Cubans.
We share the concerns of some that by providing U.S. aid directly to
dissidents, they become targets of further repression. These dissidents,
however, know the danger. Since 1999, they've increasingly suffered state
attacks. They are capable of deciding for themselves whether the risk of taking
support from Washington outweighs their desire to carry on their work.
The U.S. Agency for International Development has been promoting democracy
in Cuba since 1995. Some $5 million this year will support Cuba's human-rights
and labor activists, independent civic groups and journalists. One excellent
program, CubaNet (www.cubanet.org) gives
voice to Cuba's dissident press while carrying news from the official press, as
well.
GROUP-TO-GROUP HELP
The bill could multiply that many times. It could do even more, however, if
U.S. policy encouraged civic groups to partner with Cuban counterparts. A local
Bar association, say, could pair with independent lawyers in Cuba to provide
moral and material support; they could invite members to visit, both here and in
Cuba. The same goes for union locals, religious, athletic, artistic and trade
groups.
Two other measures also would improve the bill: Allow Americans easily to
send money to independent groups and individuals, not just to relatives, and to
travel freely to Cuba without restrictions.
Encouraging group-to-group exchanges and people-to-people assistance makes
helping the Cuban people less of a U.S. government plot, and harder for Cuba's
repressive government to justify abusing its dissidents. | 