Castro's Revolution

by John M. Curtis
(310) 204-8700

Copyright January 2, 2009
All Rights Reserved.                    

           Only days before President Dwight D. Eisenhower handed the baton to President John F. Kennedy, Fidel Castro, Ernesto “Che” Guevara and a band of Cuban revolutionaries celebrated victory at Santa Clara, driving Cuban dictator Fulgencia Batista into exile.  Castro’s “communist” revolution, like that of Vietnam, was more a nationalist movement rejecting colonial influence.  When the Soviet Union began annexing Eastern Europe following WW II, the official U.S. foreign policy known as “The Truman Doctrine,” after its namesake President Harry S. Truman, was to contain communism.  Ninety miles off Key West was too close for comfort, prompting a harsh reaction by Kennedy and his Secretary of State Dean Rusk   Castro made many enemies expropriating Cuban-owned private property and businesses, causing a mass exodus off the embattled island.

            Twenty years later, another wave of Cuban exiles left Castro’s regime in the Mariel Boatlift, highlighting extreme repression and economic failure.  Fearing a counter-revolution, Castro ruled with an iron fist, persecuting, torturing, incarcerating and exterminating political dissidents, sacrificing basic civil rights to citizens of his island prison.  From the day he seized power, comrade Castro lived in paranoia, surviving numerous assassination attempts by the CIA and dissident groups.  Cuban exiles granted political asylum in the U.S. seek nothing short of reparations and the return of all property seized in the revolution.  “To suggest unconditional dialogue with the Castro brothers would only signal that the conditions in Cuba are acceptable,” wrote outgoing Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez, himself a Cuban exile, unwilling to dialogue and turn a new page.

            Incoming President Barack Obama has a real opportunity to reevaluate a failed Cold War policy, punishing U.S. businesses more than captives on Castro’s communist island.  Eighty-two-year-old Fidel handed the reins Feb. 28, 2008 to his 75-year-old brother Raul, who, so far, shows no signs of change.  Fidel liked call the U.S. “Yankee Imperialists,” for their political and commercial clout in Latin American.  Like Europeans in Africa, the U.S. corporations have sought to capitalize on mineral wealth, products and affordable Latin American labor prices.  Castro’s propaganda machine cast the U.S. as only exploitive, not seeing synergy in Latin America.  Castro has tried to export revolution and socialism to other Latin American countries, including Venezuela, Ecuador and Bolivia.  Recent overtures from Russia underscore the need for a new  U.S. foreign policy. 

            Celebrating 50 years since the Cuban Revolution, U.S. policy has focused on punishing Castro rather than working toward cooperative relations.  Overtures by Russia, including recent visits by Russian warships, directly mirror deteriorated U.S. relations.  President elect Obama must balance respect for Cuban exiles against U.S. national security, requiring improved U.S.-Cuban relations.  Allowing Cuban lobbying groups to dictate U.S.-Cuban relations does little to improve U.S. national security.  Russia has capitalized on self-defeating U.S. policy designed to placate lobbying groups without looking at the bigger picture.  Guiterrez couldn’t be more out-of-touch, insisting the U.S. maintain an obsolete policy.  If the U.S. can normalize relations with Vietnam, they can do the same with Cuba.  Maintaining the travel ban and embargo hasn’t changed Fidel or his brother Raul.

            Obama should direct his Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton to open discussions about relaxing travel restrictions.  Without battering Raul, Clinton should seek common ground, including opening, like Kissinger did in China, a dialogue about expanding trade.  China was a third world country in 1968, now ranked, despite the worldwide recession, fourth behind Germany among the world’s richest economies.  Cuba offers a terrific labor market for U.S. manufacturers.  Cuba could open the doors to stunning economic growth by normalizing trade and diplomatic relations.  “Confrontation plays up Havana’s strong suit,” said Marifeli Perez-Stable of the Inter-American Dialogue, a Washington think tank.  “Engagement may show how weak [Cuba’s] hand real is.  Which one is the real hard line?” urging, at the earliest time, normalizing relations.

              Obama must end 60 years of failed U.S.-Cuba policy.  With Russia making overtures to Cuba, it’s long over due for the U.S. to change course and begin the process of opening up diplomatic relations.  Cold War hatreds have no place in today’s dangerous world, more compromised by Mideast terrorism than any threat since the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis.  Opening up a dialogue with Cuba helps neutralize Russia, busy stirring the pot around the globe.   There’s no better way of dealing with enemies than making more friends.  Backing off the Cold Ward rhetoric and opening up diplomatic relations offers the best path to improved national security.  Only when capitalism expands trade and improve the standard of living of less fortunate countries can the U.S. improve national security.  Ending travel restrictions and promoting trade will go along way in opening up diplomatic relations.

John M. Curtis writes politically neutral commentary analyzing spin in national and global news.  He's editor of OnlineColumnist.com and author of Dodging The Bullet and Operation Charisma.

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