Who are Cuba's Dissidents Addressing?

Who are Cuba's Dissidents Addressing?
June 5, 2013
What would happen if members of Cuba's leadership accepted an exchange
with figures of the opposition?
Haroldo Dilla Alfonso*


HAVANA TIMES — The recent international tours of several prominent Cuban
dissidents have been meticulously documented by the world's media. I
think this has been very positive, in many ways.

To begin with, it allowed these individuals to come into contact with an
entire sector of Cuban society which does not reside on the island and,
on the basis of this exchange, to begin training in the kind of
argumentation and public debate of ideas that is never demanded of them
in Cuba.

Having secured greater international exposure, something which will
doubtlessly help soften the onslaughts of State repression, is no less
significant.

It is not my intention to draw a balance of this recent process, which,
to be sure, has not yet ended. I will limit myself to writing that, at
first glance, everyone seems to have availed themselves of the
opportunities opened up to them.

To mention one example, I was surprised by the composure and coherence
shown by Yoani Sanchez, who has lengthened her political CV with
impressive experience thanks to this tour. In all cases, we saw a
decisive step forward, in a new era of international exposure for the
opposition – a time that, as with everything else in life, entails both
new opportunities and new threats.

Despite these achievements, I feel that some personalities have shown a
preference for certain sectors of Cuban émigrés that could seriously
undermine their relationship with the community that supposedly
constitutes their political audience, that is, with those Cubans
residing on the island.

Such choices raise the question of who these dissidents are addressing
as they attempt to bring together the social bases of their political
platforms. If we conceive of these dissidents as political figures and
assume they have legitimate public aspirations, then I believe that they
should articulate their positions regarding complex issues more
precisely, and that we ought to demand this of them.

This has been the case, for instance, with the issue of the U.S.
blockade/embargo. I won't go into the historical, juridical or political
background of this whole affair, which is key to any public proposal
regarding Cuba's future. Anyone who reads these pages knows that I am
absolutely opposed to the embargo, and for more than one reason.

The Ladies in White during a protest march in Havana. Photo:
alongthemalecon.com

For now, I only wish to point out one fact: it is not unreasonable to
presume that the immense majority of Cubans alive today are against the
embargo. According to polls, a little over half of all Cuban émigrés are
opposed to it, and it is safe to assume that huge numbers of people in
Cuba condemn it also.

Consequently, if a politician wishes to win over the hearts and minds of
Cuba's population, I think they would be pretty much obliged to condemn
the US blockade/embargo. Or, if they do not publicly condemn it, they
should at least show a bit more sophistication that did the leader of
the Ladies in White, on stating the United States must handle Cuba with
a "firm hand", so as to stifle the government and spark off an
apocalyptic revolt in the country.

Now, if the target of Berta Soler's political discourse are the
hardliners of Cuba's exile community and the aim is to secure their
favor and access to US financing, then, the "firm hand" is no doubt the
ideal image to reach this goal.

If I lived in Cuba, however, and had come to sympathize with the
humanitarian exploits of these courageous women, and found out that
their leader was asking for harsh measures against me and my family, and
was asking such measures from the country that strikes me as the devil
incarnate (because it has acted as such on occasion, and has been
portrayed as such in others), then I would have more than enough reasons
to feel somewhat frustrated and cheated.

If leaders of Cuba's opposition ought to learn anything from this half
century of revolutionary history, it is the fact that nationalist
sentiments are a key political capital in Cuba.

It is true that dissidents aren't exactly free to choose their
interlocutors, but are rather beset by the highly polarized
circumstances that prevail in Cuba. It is also true that the
possibilities of establishing links to society, be it through words or
actions, are always severely limited by the State's repressive
apparatus. This helps explain the obliquity of their declarations, but
does not justify it.

But, what would happen if members of Cuba's leadership accepted an
exchange with figures of the opposition?

This is the possibility that one of the most exemplary and self-denying
of Cuban dissidents, Guillermo Fariñas, is apparently suggesting.
According to Fariñas, he has, accidentally or intentionally, come into
contact on more than one occasion with high Cuban government officials,
culled from the military circles he was a part of before becoming a
declared dissident.

Guillermo Fariñas. Photo: forocomunista.com

He refers to half a dozen high-ranking officials who speak to him of
such delicate matters as a proposal to include dissidents in Cuba's
parliament, the subordination of Raul Castro to his senile brother,
their fears of having to repress an uprising calling for political
changes and of flirting with other transitional processes taking place
in the high spheres of power. He also speaks of a less than friendly and
casual meeting with Cuba's new Vice-President.

If this is the case, and I have no reason to assume Fariñas is lying,
then we would be facing a rather complex situation, in which the
renowned dissident speaks openly of his sensitive ties to those in power
and puts at risk his potential interlocutors within the Cuban
government, in order to strengthen his public image before Miami's
Cuban-American circles.

The way Fariñas portrays himself, as a privileged interlocutor who has
no qualms about sharing his private exchanges, is precisely the contrary
of what any power faction in Cuba is looking for.

None of this undermines the value that I believe these people have, nor
does it prevent me from recognizing the difficult conditions they face
on a daily basis or from continuing to admire them for their actions.

But, if we are at all concerned about the political effectiveness of
their discourses, we must recall that politics – in which they will
invariably have to become involved – is not a catwalk, but, as Weber
said, a satanic dance where the forces of evil are constantly clashing
against the armies commanded by the goddess of love.

It is a game where many decisions are completely wrong, and where none
is absolutely right. A spell-binding journey full of twists and turns,
where the mind and heart suffer surprise attacks, and the tongue is
almost always ambushed.

And these ambushes are almost always deadly.

(*) A Havana Times translation of the original published in Spanish by
Cubaencuentro.com.

http://www.havanatimes.org/?p=94104