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Cuba/US
People to People
Partnership
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"Frenemies - Cuba and the U.S. Embargo"
Set to the pulsating beats of Afro-Caribbean music, the feature-length documentary film Frenemies examines the fraught relationship between the island nation of Cuba and the United States. Blending 1950s archival footage with contemporary shots of Cuba's economic decay and vibrant culture, the film paints a vivid portrait of a nation fighting for survival against the world's longest-running embargo. https://www.movingimages.pictures
The 60th anniversary of the US embargo of Cuba is being marked by the first on-line nationwide screening of the 2021 documentary "Frenemies - Cuba and the U.S. Embargo", directed by award winning Brazilian American filmmaker Mirella Martinelli of Sarasota, Florida.
As a reader of our newsletter, you and friends are invited to watch this new 87 minute documentary about the embargo at no cost from now until the zoom program on February 8 by clicking here or pasting in a browser https://vimeo.com/536339438 Password: LiftEmbargo. After that, it will only be available by payment.
Martinelli will discuss her film on zoom with a panel of Cuba experts at 4 p.m. ET Tuesday, February 8. Joining her to consider the impact on Cuba and the US of the embargo and how it can be ended are
- Philip Brenner, professor emeritus, American University
- Jorge Quintana, Executive Director, Center for Democracy in the Americas
- Stephanie Burgos, Senior Strategist, Oxfam America
- Paul Johnson, Executive Director, United States Agriculture Coalition for Cuba
- Jorge Ignacio Fernandez, President, Hope for Cuba Foundation
- John McAuliff, Executive Director, Fund for Reconciliation and Development
For speaker bios and registration, click here or copy and paste https://tinyurl.com/FrenemiesZoom
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A personal perspective
Dear friends and colleagues,
Thursday was the 60th anniversary of the unilateral US embargo of Cuba. It is the cruelest and dumbest aspect of US policy.
1) An embargo is an act of economic warfare, an unambiguous instrument of regime change. It undermines the authenticity of every positive engagement.
2) In the words of its author, the goal was “hardship” and “disenchantment” and to deny “money and supplies to Cuba, to decrease monetary and real wages, [and] to bring about hunger, desperation, and the overthrow of [the] government.”
3) It succeeded in as much as it has created broad scale hardships and significantly retarded Cuba's national development.
4) It failed to defeat Cuba's revolution and collapse its society and government but has fostered more conservative and repressive tendencies and provided an excuse for domestic failures.
5) It weakened US diplomacy and international standing, producing virtually unanimous annual denunciation by the United Nations, conflicting policies with our closest allies that resent extraterritorial provisions, and public disaffection in the Americas, Africa, Asia and Europe.
6) It contradicts the moral and political basis of US criticism of Russia for it efforts to dominate Ukraine.
7) With a few exceptions (see Quotable below), it leads Cuba's domestic opposition to alienate potential supporters to satisfy US backers.
Conventional wisdom among critics of US policy on Cuba is that the embargo is almost impossible to end because it requires action by Congress to repeal several laws. Attorney Robert Muse argues here that the President actually has power to end it on his own, just as President Clinton did for Vietnam and Cambodia.
It has always puzzled me why those hostile to Cuba's system inside and outside the US government as well as in Cuba aren't leading the parade to end the embargo. Nothing would more dramatically transform the social, economic and ultimately political environment than the ability to trade freely with the US. Among other changes, American investment funds could assist the recently authorized micro, small and medium private and cooperative sector as well as partner with State enterprises, e.g. jointly owned hotels. Real tourism would become possible for hundreds of thousands of Americans who want to spend at least part of their visit on vacation legally at a beach resort.
The threadbare rejoinder from right wing Cuban Americans has been trade with Europe and Canada hasn't changed much and the all powerful Cuban government would find ways to exert control. I think that underestimates the inherently greater involvement that will come naturally from the US, not least from Cuban Americans. A hard core of ideologues will see a Trojan Horse hiding in every interaction with the US. But enough others in Cuba's national, regional and local leadership have confidence in the self-reliant identity and educational level created by six decades of revolutionary policies so that American blandishments and attempted manipulation will not significantly threaten sovereignty and economic independence.
The real obstacles are financial and bureaucratic self-interest and lack of imagination on both sides. It seemed just as impossible before we ended embargoes and opened multi-dimensional relations with China, Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia. Both the US and Cuba will need to accept that the end of the embargo and real normalization embodies risks as well as opportunities. What is certain is that neither will be the same.
--John McAuliff
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Thinking out of the box...
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Prisoners from Playa Giron (Bay of Pigs) released in exchange for medical aid valued now at $463 million. |
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Can negotiations free July 11 prisoners if Obama
normalization is restored + full travel and ag sales?
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...about 11J prisoners
Cuba insists that more than 700 prisoners from the July 11-12 protests are being treated fairly by its courts and receiving sentences they deserve because of violent and destructive acts. Friends and families of defendants disagree and the legality of charges is contested. Two trusted journalists have written disturbing accounts. Read Marc Frank here and Ed Augustin here. As during Black Lives Matter demonstrations, the "fog of war" blurs bad behavior and criminal guilt by protestors and police. Justice is uncertain when political righteousness on both sides interacts with institutional drives to create martyrs and to set an example.
With no illusion of success, I appealed to Presidents Biden and Diaz-Canel to negotiate a humanitarian solution in the spirit of Christmas and the New Year (text here, second item).
Cuba’s government believes the protestors were as much instruments of US aggression as the combatants who invaded Playa Giron (the Bay of Pigs) in 1961. Even if the US disputes causation, it should take advantage of that viewpoint and historical precedents to negotiate release, just as Kennedy did for POWs, Spain and the Catholic Church did in 2011 for the 75 victims of the Black Spring and the US did for Allan Gross.
For how many years will the prisoners' freedom be meaningless White House and Congressional talking points, addressed only by press statements and symbolic sanctions? When will Cuba decide it has made its point about the limits of public protest?
(Circles Robinson, the editor of Havana Times, and John McAuliff debated this approach posted here.)
...and about Ukraine/Cuba parallels
Secretary of State Antony Blinken on CNN 1/23/22
"what's at stake here, Dana, are some very basic principles of international relations that have been established since two World Wars and the Cold War that have kept peace and security. Principles like one nation can't go in by force and change the borders of another, principles like one nation can't dictate to another its policies, its choices, including with whom it will associate, a principle like the fact that you cannot now, in the 21st century, purport to exert a sphere of influence to try to subjugate your neighbors to your will."
How do these principles not invalidate US behavior toward Cuba, including the embargo and the Trump/Biden anti-Obama sanctions? Is this a new interpretation of American exceptionalism, principles apply to everyone except us? I noted the contradiction between words and actions in a message to the State Department, copied here (first item). I also speculated whether both big countries' respect for the independence of their small neighbors offered a possible off ramp from a dangerous US-Russia confrontation. --J McA
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Disproportionate sentences are given to July protestors because of
alleged destruction of property, looting and violence.
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Indispensable tax deductible donations can be made on line by using the green button above or
by check to Fund for Reconciliation and Development, 64 Jean Court, Riverhead, NY 11901
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Vote with your feet, help old and new friends this winter or spring, by going to Cuba.
Send a message to the White House, Congress and your own community. Bring desperately needed over the counter medical supplies, household goods, shoes, clothing, baby food, etc. Inject hard currency into the national economy. Make your own judgement about what has changed and what hasn’t as a result of the July 11 protests and new government policies favoring private and cooperative micro, small and medium enterprises. (So far conservative officials have bizarrely excluded architects and travel agents.)
Some specialized tour operators are already organizing trips . Alternatively you can create an itinerary on your own or with the help of an independent local guide (see below). However, if you are inclined to follow rules, no matter how silly they are, don’t plan on staying in a hotel. Trump forbad that and Biden hasn’t relented. The hotels don't mind if you are an American, but you can't use a US credit card unless done on-line with a foreign travel agency or management company.
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How to do it
Flights: Not quite back to normal but moving in that direction. Prices are also coming down by American, Delta, Jet Blue, Southwest and United. Check alternatives via Canada, Mexico, Cayman Islands, Jamaica, Dominican Republic and Panama. Icelandic has received authorization of new discount charter flights from Florida to Havana.
Covid: Based on its own vaccines, Cuba has the second highest vaccination rate worldwide (uniquely from age 2, as reported here) and the highest in the Western Hemisphere. Current requirements for entry are proof of vaccination and a PCR test. To reenter the US a quick test is necessary, available in Havana and at the airport. Tests can be brought to groups in hotels. (Health protocols are constantly changing so check for the latest updates.)
Licenses: For most Americans without family in Cuba, the only legal route is Support for the Cuban People (instructions here). Use of private housing is preferred. In any case, all hotels are now off-limits by Trump/Biden policy. Cruises are returning if they don't depart from the US.
Money: All normal payments are in Cuban pesos (CUP). Currently US dollars cannot be exchanged or used legally. Euros are required for purchases of rum and cigars and other goods in hard currency stores, often with long lines. The unofficial CUP/dollar exchange is four times the 24:1 legal rate.
WARNING: No one can legally carry out of Cuba more than 2,000 CUP. Aduanas (customs) will seize excess, guarantee to return if claimed within thirty days, but not deliver as promised.
Group trips: Specialized tour operators are organizing and travel advisors are assisting Support for the Cuban People itineraries. We invite them to be listed here so you can find their services.
Independent travel: With a guide book like Christopher Baker's (now published by National Geographic), visitors can create their own itinerary. Deepen and facilitate the experience with a personal local guide, some of whom are listed here. (Guides are also prepared to partner with travel advisors.)
Trump/Biden Restrictions on travel are here
Special opportunity in Santiago April 12-16 Annual conference on African and African American Culture, details here
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Videos of Opera de la Calle
Their original high energy mix of Cuban popular and classical culture can be seen by clicking here
Their Havana premier in 2017 of the opera Hatuey based on a Yiddish epic poem is now on youtube.
Interviews with Ulises Aquino and friends of the company celebrating its 15th anniversary are here
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Resources
For posts about July 11, November 15 and thereafter and other useful background, scan our blog here; our previous newsletter is here
"Cuba: The U.S. Embargo After Sixty Years" webinar organized by the Washington Office on Latin America and the National Security Archive, speakers' bios and link to watch it here
"Today marks 60 years of the Cuban embargo. What exactly is it?" by William LeoGrande February 3,2022 Responsible Statecraft
"The US should use agricultural trade to help Cuba and build lasting economic bridges" by Paul Johnson January 10, 2022 Chicago Tribune
"How Can We Reduce Prices and Stop Inflation in Cuba?" by Omar Everleny Perez Villanueva January 29, 2022 Havana Times
"Why Cuba’s extraordinary Covid vaccine success could provide the best hope for low-income countries" by Sam Meredith January 13, 2022 CNBC
"Most ‘Havana Syndrome’ Cases Unlikely Caused by Foreign Power, C.I.A. Says" by
"Directed-energy could explain unsolved ‘Havana Syndrome’ cases, U.S. intelligence panel finds" by ANDREW DESIDERIO and ALEXANDER WARD Politico.com
"When Will the U.S. Stop Lying to Itself About Global Politics?" by Peter Beinart January 13, 2022 New York Times
"Guantanamo at Twenty: What is the Future of the Prison Camp?" webinar organized by the New America Foundation
"Saving the Bay of Pigs Prisoners: Did JFK Send a Secret Warning to Fidel Castro – through Brazil?" by James G. Hershberg National Security Archive
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Quotable
Archipielago Leader Opposes the Embargo
"I told him that the topic of our conversation had been the embargo, because all of us who attended the meeting are against it and we explained to Mr. Timothy Zúñiga-Brown [head of the US Embassy] what we believe about the sanctions, which affect the Cuban family, the entrepreneurs and the people in general....The conversation revolved around the problems caused by the embargo. When they asked me if I had any particular request, I said that it would be interesting to be able to go to the United States Congress to talk about those sanctions that directly affect the Cuban family.
---From an interview of Yunior Garcia of Archipíelago by La Joven Cuba
"[Yunior] García Aguilera has also rejected the US embargo, which he believes acts as an ally of the regime by providing it excuses, and has vindicated the use of dialogue with all political forces if the time comes." 14ymedio
John Kavulich, A Cuba-skeptic Targets the US
"Where is the Biden-Harris Administration and its Cuba Policy Review? 365 days and yet the collective interaction, inter-agency review process of The White House (National Security Council- NSC), United States Department of State, United States Department of the Treasury, United States Department of Commerce, United States Department of Defense, and United States Department of Justice remains a ghost. They are focused upon questions rather than crafting answers. Not only are they risk-adverse, but they are also risk-centric which only serves to reinforce doing nothing. Doing nothing re-confirms weakness. Doing nothing is not an indicator of muscularity." Economic Eye on Cuba January 27, 2022
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Available for a contribution of at least $100 for the Cuba work of the Fund for Reconciliation and Development. Donate on line here or by mail using the address below.
Obama's visit to Havana must be honored and renewed. It was welcomed by most Cubans and Americans but disconcerted hard-liners in both countries.
Less noted, but also important was Dr. Jill Biden's precedent setting cultural exchange follow-up to Camaguey and Havana, seen on this official White House video. |
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