Only death will diminish Castro's influence in Cuba

Only death will diminish Castro's influence in Cuba
02/23/2008

Dictators tend not to retire and Fidel Castro remains true to that
standard. The 81-year-old Cuban strongman this week announced his
retirement as president of Cuba, and that he would turn over the office
to his younger brother, Raoul, who is 76.

But Fidel Castro did not relinquish his chairmanship of the Cuban
Communist Party. It's pretty clear that only death will diminish his
influence. If he can avoid that in the immediate future, he will be
around to observe the inauguration of the 10th American president to
hold office during the tenure of his own grip on Cuba.

America's vision of Castro's Cuba largely is that of a place stuck in
time, perhaps best illustrated by photos of pre-revolution, 1950s-era
American automobiles that Cubans keep on the road.

Unfortunately, the United States is stuck with its own relic of the
1950s regarding Cuba, the trade embargo that long ago outlived its
usefulness.

It was imposed at the height of the Cold War, the late 1950s. Cuba was
an isolated Soviet outpost in that war; most of South America was mired
in government corruption and poverty, and global trade largely could be
defined by what countries around the world purchased from the United States.

Things have changed, even though the embargo hasn't. Several South
American countries with expanding economies, notably Brazil and
Venezuela, have established robust trade relationships with Cuba
covering raw materials, manufactured goods, international banking and
other financial services. Cuba also has formal diplomatic relationships
with many countries around the world.

Meanwhile, the United States has established vigorous trade
relationships with countries, including Saudi Arabia and China, with
human rights records at least as bad as that built by Castro.

Given that a presidential election is on and that Florida is a crucial
state in the electoral process, there is little chance that any U.S.
politicians will antagonize the influential expatriate Cuban population
there by advocating an end to the useless embargo and better ties with Cuba.

That's a shame. The Castros have to die someday. The United States
should prepare now to be in a strong position, beyond that ensured by
geography, to foster self-determination, peace and prosperity in Cuba.

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