Listen to Cuba’s dissidents

Posted on Saturday, 11.23.13

Listen to Cuba's dissidents
BY MIAMI HERALD EDITORIAL
HERALDED@MIAMIHERALD.COM

The Obama administration is dropping broad hints of possible changes in
U.S. policy toward Cuba. Any change should come with a cautionary note:
Watch what Cuba's leaders do to dissidents and the average citizen
alike, not what they say about "modernizing" Cuba.

It's encouraging to hear that the administration is thinking about how
to move the needle on Cuba, as President Obama told an audience in Miami
recently. Too often Cuban issues are deemed politically risky and shoved
aside.

But policy toward Cuba should not be forged in a vacuum. Raúl Castro and
his octogenarian colleagues show that they're determined to hang onto
power. They're not interested in genuine democracy and they're not about
to tolerate any changes that could threaten their survival. The regime's
actions speak volumes about its true intentions:

• November began with a delay in the trial of three democracy activists
arrested last year during the visit of Pope Benedict XVI. The church has
a new pope, but these dissidents are still in jail.

• The following weekend, Cuban security officials detained 30 members of
the Ladies in White in yet another crackdown on freedom advocates, and a
government mob pummeled a prominent dissident, Guillermo Fariñas, when
he dared complain to the police.

• On Oct. 14, police and a pro-government mob arrested 22 members of the
Ladies in White who were marking the anniversary of the death of their
founder.

• In September, more than 700 short-term detentions of dissidents were
reported by Cuban human rights groups, one of the highest totals in years.

This goes to the heart of what Cuba's dictatorship is all about — power.
It's important to put events in this context and not the false reality
portrayed by the regime.

President Obama sparked speculation about upcoming changes in U.S.
policy toward Cuba when he told a private Democratic Party fund-raiser
here that "we have to continue to update our policies" toward that
beleaguered nation. Last week, Secretary of State John Kerry repeated
those same words in a major speech on Latin America.

The president said his administration would have to be "creative" and
"thoughtful" in updating U.S. policy, words that Mr. Kerry echoed while
noting that the two governments "are finding some cooperation on common
interests."

Mr. Kerry properly noted changes in Cuba that make life a bit easier for
people by allowing more Cubans to travel freely and work for themselves.
But such changes and selective actions don't portend a change in the
nature of the regime. The secretary of State noted that this "should
absolutely not blind us to the authoritarian reality of life for
ordinary Cubans."

Exactly. Fortunately, that same message was delivered to Mr. Obama by
two prominent dissidents when the president was in Miami.

Mr. Fariñas and Berta Soler, leader of the Ladies in White, met with
President Obama at a Democratic fund-raiser hosted by Jorge Mas Santos,
chairman of the Cuban American National Foundation. Mr. Mas Santos
deserves credit for providing a useful venue for the president to hear
directly from two brave dissidents.

Listen to opposition leaders who live in Cuba, they told Mr. Obama. Keep
"tough sanctions" in place, disregarding "cosmetic changes" until the
regime moves toward real democracy. Ensure that dissidents and civil
society have a place at the table in any negotiations on Cuba.

That advice should be heeded as the administration ponders new moves
toward a nation held captive for almost 55 years.

Source: "Listen to Cuba's dissidents - Editorials - MiamiHerald.com" -
http://www.miamiherald.com/2013/11/23/3772426/listen-to-cubas-dissidents.html#storylink=misearch