|
Fidel
Castro plays with the truth
Adolfo Fernandez Sainz,
correspondent of PRIMA agency, Holguin prison,
Cuba. Prima
News, October 20, 2003.
Any impartial observer would be surprised
at what the Europeans have accomplished
in matters of standards of living and respect
for human rights. The European Union is
today a paradigm of prosperity, liberty
and democratic co-existence for any group
of nations.
Much to the contrary, the millions of
tourists that visit Cuba each year encounter
young people who are in many cases ready
for anything, no matter how reviling, to
escape the country forever if necessary.
But reality from the platform from where
Fidel Castro speaks is much different: According
to him "Cuba will reach what Europe
will never attain" (Speech on the anniversary
of the assault on the Moncada Barracks,
26 of July, 2003). It only needs any statistical
datum to justify such an affirmation.
He dares criticize Europe for neglecting
its workers; but ignores that the Europeans
receive a pension sufficient to go on vacation
to the Caribbean, while the pension of a
Cuban who has worked 35 or 40 years at the
Estate's service is not enough to even invite
his children to lunch on Sunday (this is
rigorously true). To speak of full employment
in Cuba is a joke in bad taste: here working
means nothing.
But we are more than used to such juggling.
In these 40 long years the Cuban people
have heard no other speech but this. From
the time of the fascination of the world
with Fidel Castro, this character has been
none other than the one who now throws insults
at the EU.
He continues blaming the Europeans for
the backwardness of the old colonies, which
is unfortunately untrue (were it true, everything
would be easier). He criticizes the EU for
allowing the Americans to "aspire to
conquer the planet". He blames the
EU for supporting apartheid in South Africa,
he who has divided the Cuban nation into
those who claim to support the government
and those that oppose it. He who never has
condemned the crimes of ETA does not miss
an opportunity to denounce GAL. He stigmatizes
European aid to Cuba as miserly and unacceptable
(but until now has received it).
If for decades Fidel Castro has been seen
with romantic eyes, this injustice merits
repair. He is the same that during more
than 30 years did all he could so that Communism
would dominate the world. And, if he abandoned
this idea, it was only because the system
failed and the Soviet Union no longer exists.
He who never had a word of condemnation
for the crimes of Lenin, Stalin and Mao,
who supported the invasion of Czechoslovakia
by the Warsaw Pact and kept silent during
the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, never
should have been seen as the paladin of
liberty and sovereignty of small countries
and the Third World.
This David who threw a stone to Goliath
and ran to seek refuge with another giant,
should never have been considered as a model
for the happier world to which countries
aspire.
A moral condemnation is imposed of catroism:
Democratic governments, non-governmental
organizations, personalities that in other
times supported him, all people who love
freedom and democracy should, first, condemn
castroism in all forums for imprisoning
news reporters, oppositors and peaceful
defenders of human rights and then give
their support to the forces that seek a
pacific transit to democracy in Cuba.
If these lines see the public light, it
will have been because the author eluded
the vigilance of the prison guards and someone
else dared break Cuban laws to get them
published abroad.
|
