Cubans are complaining – loudly
Posted: Friday, February 29, 2008 11:35 AM
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Havana, Cuba
By Mark Potter, NBC News Correspondent
HAVANA – During many visits to Cuba over the last two decades, I have never heard so many everyday Cubans openly criticizing life on the island as I did during this last trip to cover Raul Castro officially taking over the presidency from his ailing brother, Fidel.
There have long been Cuban dissidents and independent journalists challenging the socialist government and suffering for their beliefs. The difference now is that common citizens are starting to raise their voices a bit, at least on economic issues.
In past years, such public complaining would have been punished and was rarely heard. People have always griped here, as they do everywhere else in the world, but in Cuba it used to be done much more discreetly, usually after looking both ways to make sure no one from the government was listening.
Millions speak up
What changed is that a little more than a year ago, after becoming interim president, Raul Castro actually urged Cubans to openly air their grievances. He even listed some of his own complaints about waste and inefficiencies in the government-controlled economy.
With that as a cue that they were now allowed to speak out, millions of Cubans let loose and registered a long list of criticisms.
They are fed up, they said, with low wages that can't even cover basics necessities, overcrowded buses, meager supplies in government-run stores and long waits and too few workers in Cuba's vaunted health care system.
Younger Cubans – in particular, those born long after the 1950's revolution – expressed anger at not being able to enter Cuba's luxury hotels, where only foreign tourists are allowed, unless they happened to be working there. They said they wanted an end to Cuba's exit-visa requirement, where a person can't legally travel outside the country without prior government approval.
In this fast-moving global world, they also want more access to the Internet and satellite television, which is tightly controlled. And they want the right to buy and sell a home or a car, which is currently prohibited.
A Cuban rock bank called Moneda Dura (Hard Currency) even has a music video that makes fun of Cuba's daily grind, touching on censorship and the government's heavy hand
Private Cuban Internet sites openly criticize the government as writers, artists and filmmakers join housewives and cab drivers in telling anyone who'll listen what's wrong here.
Rising expectations
With all the complaining, there is a widespread expectation that it will lead to at least some improvements in the country, some lessening of restrictions.
One Cuban analyst said, "The leadership now has a mandate and that mandate is very distinct and clear: It is necessary to make changes." When asked to further explain, he said there is a need "to make socialism more social ... less hyper-centralized, more participatory, more democratic."
A government official quietly offered the thought that Raul Castro now has to face a public demand of his own making: the "genie" is out of the bottle.
Dashed hopes?
On the day of the National Assembly meeting, however, when Raul Castro formally became president, a lot of people who had high-hopes for substantial improvements got a big shock and a rude awakening.
No one was surprised by Raul Castro's nomination; that was widely expected. So all eyes that day were on the second-in-command position, that of first vice-president. When the person named was not a younger reformer type, as a lot of people had hoped, but instead a hardliner – a 77-year-old Communist Party ideologue named Jose Ramon Machado Ventura – many people in Cuba were disappointed and even felt betrayed.
One young Cuban said she was going to sit down and cry. Others argued into the night about what a mistake they thought this was, predicting more and more young people would vote with boats and airline tickets and leave the country for good.
Meanwhile, Raul Castro pledged in his acceptance speech to continue consulting with Fidel on matters of importance, further signaling a continuation of the old order. But, he also indicated some restrictions might be lifted to make life a little more bearable here, although he warned not to expect too much, too fast.
So, the public expectations are dialed back a bit, but the complaining continues. Cuban leaders seem aware of the disaffection, but have not yet addressed the concerns with any concrete actions. The question many ask now is just how much is the government willing or even able to do as it focuses on surviving past the time of Fidel and Raul Castro?
It's a fascinating time in a unique place where new voices are joining the mix.
