The difference between a queen and a dictator

Posted on Tuesday, 06.05.12

CUBA/UNITED KINGDOM

The difference between a queen and a dictator
BY PAUL HARE
paulhare@bu.edu

Two countries marked big events this week. In Cuba it was Raúl Castro's
81st birthday, and Britain celebrated Queen Elizabeth's 60 years on the
throne. The Castro brothers launched their attack on the Moncada
barracks in 1953, shortly after the coronation of the queen in June that
year.

When I was British ambassador in Cuba in 2002, we staged a 50-year
golden jubilee concert for the queen. The excellent Cuban National
Symphony Orchestra played British music, including the famous Elgar
march, which is sung to Land of Hope and Glory. We were also celebrating
100 years of diplomatic relations between the United Kingdom and Cuba —
a reminder that links long predate the revolution.

What is the significance of these two events in the history of the
United Kingdom and Cuba? During her reign, the queen has been head of
state to 12 different prime ministers elected in 15 general elections.
Raúl Castro and his brother have been presidents of Cuba for 53 years.
The Cuban Communist Party, which they created in 1965, is the only legal
party.

The queen does not engage in politics and does not speak her mind on
issues. She has offered discreet counsel to elected officials and
less-experienced leaders, visited 116 countries (though not Cuba) and
has met millions of people face to face. The British freely express
their views on her. Recent polls show her popularity at 78 percent with
69 percent approving of the monarchy as an institution.

There is one key difference between the leaders. While it matters little
what personal views the queen holds it matters greatly what Raúl Castro
believes and decides. Cuba today is the responsibility of the Castro
brothers.

Yet Cubans wonder who is the real Raúl Castro. A man who dislikes
socializing and making revolutionary speeches, he is also a ruthless
eliminator of opposition and rivals and an experienced military
organizer. He was a high school drop-out and a communist from his
adolescence. He is now an admirer of Chinese wealth creation, but a
continuing believer in state control of the economy. Ordinary Cubans
know nothing of his pastimes or where he and his brother live.

Raúl has now admitted his past policies are wrong. Cubans must recognize
that 2+2=4 and give up freebies and subsidies. The Communist Party must
stop meddling in the economy, eliminate its pointless activities and
shake up its sycophantic media and false unanimity. But Raúl voiced no
criticism when the party and the 600-strong national assembly approved
his 300 policy guidelines without a single dissenting vote. And Cubans
question why fertile Cuba is covered in weeds and imports 80 percent of
its food.

What of the future of both countries? The United Kingdom has many
problems, but the line of royal succession is assured. And British
parties and NGOs continue to debate alternative solutions vigorously.
The United Kingdom plays an active role in the world. In Cuba Raúl has
suggested term limits, fired senior servants of the regime and jailed
foreign investors. But, should he die, he has no young
leaders-in-waiting willing to commit to a system that doesn't work. And
in foreign policy Cuba is as heavily dependent on Hugo Chávez's
Venezuela today as it was on the Soviet Union.

There are lessons here. the queen has adapted to modern times — she uses
Facebook, Twitter and YouTube — and maintains dignity with
non-interference. Glory is downplayed, but hope is still alive.

In Cuba the glory of the revolution is over. Cubans have free education
and heathcare (as do the British) but they can see that relying on two
brothers' ideas for 53 years has been a folly. Cubans are showing they
want to make their own decisions through small businesses, connecting
with their exile families and using cell phones and social media. They
will increasingly rely on each other more than on the government. And
that indeed is a sign of hope.

Paul Hare is a former British ambassador to Cuba and now teaches
international relations at Boston University.

http://www.miamiherald.com/2012/06/05/2834373/the-difference-between-a-queen.html