Pope Benedict XVI's future visit to Cuba
BY ANDY GOMEZ
agomez@miami.edu
As Cubans on the island impatiently await Raúl Castro's reforms to
improve their daily lives, the Vatican has announced that Pope Benedict
XVI might travel to Cuba next year to commemorate the 400th anniversary
of Our Lady of Charity, the Catholic patron saint of Cuba.
Most Cubans on the island will get the news much later, if at all, since
many modes of communication on the island are controlled by the
government. Even though "social media" continues to increase, only a
small percentage of the population has access to the Internet or has
cell phones.
The last time a pope visited Cuba was back in 1998, when John Paul II
stepped off the plane in Havana and was greeted by a smiling Fidel
Castro wearing a suit. The Cuban people turned out to greet the pope in
large numbers waving Cuban and Vatican flags.
The pope brought words of hope and courage. This was the Polish pope
whom many credit for helping bring down the "iron curtain."
After the euphoria of John Paul's visit was over, everything went back
to normal by Fidel Castro's standards. This included the continued
violation of human rights and the denial of more personal freedoms by
the government. The hardships of living in this totalitarian state did
not change.
What can we expect from Pope Benedict XVI's visit?
First, Fidel Castro is no longer running Cuba on a day-to-day basis.
Since Raúl Castro took power, the social and economic situations have
become worse. However, the Catholic Church has become much more vocal
than it has been in a long time and appears to be filling some of the
social and economic needs the government cannot provide such as food,
medicine and shelter.
Over the past two years, Cardinal Jaime Ortega, whom many have
criticized for not taking a stronger stand against the Cuban government,
has played a key role in negotiating the release of political prisoners
and creating a direct line of communication to Raúl Castro.
Pope Benedict XVI's visit could actually be more significant than John
Paul's visit. Why? Because Fidel is no longer running Cuba, and the
Catholic Church has begun to have a pivotal role across the island.
Cubans want change, and not just the economic type. They also want
liberty and hope for a better future. The pope's words and actions will
be extremely important. He must call for an end to the violation of
human rights, the opening of the political system, and he should also
try to meet with dissidents and opposition leaders. He must make it a
point to reach out to the Afro-Cuban community, which today makes up the
majority of the population on the island.
Overall, he must take a more forceful position than Pope John Paul II did.
President Obama's administration has promoted the improvement of
dialogue between the two nations with minor success. The Catholic Church
will argue that by lifting the economic embargo it will help improve
communications between Washington and Havana. Yet the lifting of the
embargo without continued positive actions out of the Castro brothers
would not be a good diplomatic move. Instead we should continue to
encourage building stronger ties with the Cuban people.
The Roman Catholic Church could be the catalyst for "change" that
everyone has expected for so many years. This time, once the pope
leaves, we hope that he will have left a strong enough message that will
encourage people, both inside and outside of the government, to begin a
true process of reconciliation and reforms.
Andy S. Gomez is assistant provost and senior fellow for the Institute
for Cuban and Cuban-American Studies at the University of Miami.
http://www.miamiherald.com/2011/12/03/2529219/pope-benedict-xvis-future-visit.html
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