Posted on 10/16/2003 2:02:28 AM PDT by kattracks
The heroes of Eastern Europe's anti-communist movement yesterday denounced Fidel Castro's "Stalinist" regime in Cuba and demanded action from the West to encourage its peaceful overthrow.Lech Walesa, the former Polish president, Vaclav Havel, the former Czechoslovak president, and Arpad Goncz, the former Hungarian president, made their call in a letter to The Daily Telegraph and other leading newspapers abroad.
The letter from men who were themselves victims of communist oppression will bring a furious response from the Cuban regime. It is acutely sensitive to attacks from countries which were once its closest allies. Over the past decade, it has responded to criticism by organising the beating and arrest of central European diplomats, journalists and MPs on the island.
Writing six months to the day after the regime sentenced 75 opposition figures to lengthy terms of imprisonment, the three men described Castro's regime as weak and desperate, but condemned current European Union and American policy as a failure.
In particular, they said Europe's "constructive engagement" with the regime was failing to change Castro's behaviour.
"Europe ought to make it unambiguously clear that Fidel Castro is a dictator, and that for democratic countries a dictatorship cannot become a partner until it commences of process of political liberalisation," they said.
Spain and Italy have invested heavily in the island's tourist industry and are now responsible for 20 per cent of Cuba's foreign trade. But relations are at a low ebb following Castro's verbal assault on the EU after it criticised his jailing of dissidents.
The Walesa-Havel-Goncz letter also attacked the United States trade embargo, which many critics say has allowed Castro to shift responsibility for the acute privations suffered by ordinary people.
Instead, the former political prisoners ask Europe and the United States to seek a common policy to pressure the Cubans.
"It is the responsibility of the democratic world to support representatives of the Cuban opposition, irrespective of how long the Cuban Stalinists manage to cling to power," they write.
The West is urged to step up its condemnation of Cuba's human rights abuses in the same way it did in Eastern Europe during the Cold War and to ram the point home with unified diplomatic steps.
The communist state is already in trouble, the authors say: "The regime is running short of breath - just like the party rulers in the Iron Curtain countries did at the end of the 1980s. . . The times are changing, the revolution is ageing with its leaders, the regime is nervous."
The Cubans have a particular dislike for Mr Havel, who has devoted considerable effort to whipping up support for Cuban dissidents. In 1990, Cubans stormed the Czechoslovak embassy and took hostage several diplomats in apparent protest at the new tone from Prague.
The letter comes at a difficult time for the Cuban authorities. The island is suffering harsh economic downturn and growing discontent.
Last year, "Project Varela" drew 11,000 signatures seeking to activate a provision in the Cuban constitution allowing a referendum on the introduction of political freedoms. It was one of the biggest popular acts of dissent since the communists took power in 1958. Despite the regime's fierce response, the anti-Castro movement continues to thrive. Earlier this week, a coalition of dissident groups unveiled a proposal seeking broad human and economic freedoms after consulting more than 35,000 Cubans across the island.
The seven-page "Letter of Fundamental Rights and Responsibilities of Cubans", sought a number of basic freedoms, including the right to leave the country without government permission, to own property, to own a business and to choose an employer.
The document will eventually be presented to Cuba's parliament and to the communist party central committee. This time, however, those taking part chose not to give their names and addresses.
But the West has failed to agree a unified policy to exploit Cuba's troubles. The Europeans have encouraged dialogue with Castro, but Washington has maintained its decades-old embargo and the Bush administration has recently considered strengthening it.
United States diplomats have been heavily engaged in encouraging the dissident movement, giving computers, radios and cash to pro-democracy figures.
Some Europeans have argued that this merely makes dissidents vulnerable to the accusation that they are United States stooges.
Contrast this with the Hollywood pukes like Steven Spielberg and Oliver Stone, and Jimeh (I consider Kim Il Jong a reasonable man) Peanut brain Carter.
I am preplexed about something here, so maybe someone can comment on this.
The Cuban dissident effort appears to have fairly broad and high number of organizations (many 'independent' groups), and quite a few leaders (75 or more leading dissidents, authors, etc.. already in jail). Plus an ever increasing grass roots support (thousands of people willing to declare their names public in support of change - Varella Project).
But, I have yet to hear of any 'call-to-action' efforts from the dissidents in Cuba, like strikes, non-violent work stoppages, or other such public non-violent dissobedient measures. Maybe not national in scope, since it may be difficult to communicate/coordinate throughout the entire county, but possibly at the regional (provincial) level.
Certainly in Cuba now there are just-causes for calls of general public displays of dissent, not just on the human rights issues, but just on the people's lack of everyday basic necessities, food, electricity, transportation, living conditions.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.