Cuba unlocks the door

Cuba unlocks the door
The lifting of foreign travel restrictions is the most significant act
of liberalisation yet from Raúl Castro
By Telegraph View
8:22PM BST 16 Oct 2012

It has taken half a century but Cuba has finally bowed to the inevitable
and announced the lifting of foreign travel restrictions on its
citizens. From next January they will no longer require exit permits to
go overseas, leaving North Korea as the only communist state left that
continues to immure its own people. The move – announced on the 50th
anniversary of the Cuban missile crisis – is the most significant act of
liberalisation yet from Raúl Castro, who succeeded his brother Fidel as
Cuba's president four years ago.

His cautious programme of economic modernisation, which has already seen
modest moves towards private ownership and some market reforms, was
ratified by last year's party congress, the first for 13 years. There is
no doubting Mr Castro's reforming instincts but the speed of change is
woefully slow. Cuba remains an impoverished country – the average
monthly salary is $20 – where corruption and cronyism are rampant. But
the lifting of travel restrictions may mark a step change in the
process. Freedom of movement will inevitably sharpen Cubans' appetite
for greater economic freedoms – or even more dramatic developments.
After all, it was the fall of the Berlin Wall that triggered the
collapse of communism in Eastern Europe.

This latest move will be watched with keen interest by the United
States, which will be the destination for most Cubans who decide to use
their new-found freedom of movement. Since 1966 Washington has granted
Cubans automatic residence if they can reach the United States – as many
thousands have, usually in makeshift vessels. Raúl Castro has dropped
his brother's anti-American posturing, recently declaring that good
relations between the two countries would be "mutually advantageous". He
seems to be backing his words with actions.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/comment/telegraph-view/9349282/Cuba-unlocks-the-door.html