Bush plan calls for overthrow of socialism in Cuba

The Bush administration recently endorsed the latest set of recommendations from the “Commission for Assistance to a Free Cuba.” This is the commission that was created in 2003 to devise U.S. policies geared toward overthrowing socialism in Cuba and returning it to its former status as a U.S. colony.

Condoleezza Rice and Secretary of Commerce Carlos Gutiérrez, who is the son of a right-wing Cuban family that held

much wealth in Cuba prior to the revolution, chair the commission.

This latest report is a 93-page document that builds on the original 458-page report released by the commission over two years ago. The 2004 report calls for the return of all socially owned Cuban property to its former private owners, particularly to U.S. corporations. That would amount to a complete takeover of the wealth of the country—from factories to farms to homes. All of that, of course, would come with an end to public health care, education and other social benefits guaranteed by Cuba’s socialist system. The entire economy would be turned on its head to serve the interests of the U.S. capitalist class at the expense of the Cuban people.

The premise of the latest report is that the United States must ensure that there is no succession government after Fidel Castro but rather a “transition” government that would roll back all the gains of the revolution.

The report uses very ominous wording, saying that Fidel and “his inner circle are implementing a succession strategy designed to ensure the survival of the regime beyond his own incapacitation, death, or ouster.” It claims that Fidel has plans to have his brother, Raúl Castro, take control of Cuba once he’s no longer in power.

The way it’s presented by the U.S. imperialists, it sounds like there’s a sinister plot being cooked up by Fidel. But what they’re describing, cloaked in heated rhetoric, is simply the procedure stated in the Cuban constitution; namely, that the first vice president of the Council of State, Raúl Castro, would assume the presidency should Fidel no longer be able to govern.

The U.S. government claims, “The Commission’s fundamental premise is that the Cubans themselves will define their own destiny.” This is false. The transition plan would be overseen by the U.S.-appointed “Coordinator for the Transition and Reconstruction of Cuba”—Caleb McCarry. Just like Paul Bremer and his successors in Iraq, McCarry—not the Cuban people—would be the person calling the shots. 

As a matter of fact, this report, which dictates what the future Cuba should look like, is the work of over 100 participants from 17 federal departments and agencies. One of the hollow complaints of the authors is that Fidel is working to insulate Cuba from external pressure, which shows how committed this commission is to Cuban self-determination. The very existence of this interventionist body, which serves the interests of the United States and couldn’t care less about the Cuban people, is an attack on Cuban sovereignty.

Seeking to restore capitalist relations 

The tasks of the U.S.-imposed transition government would include restoring capitalist relations and the exploitation of Cubans by implementing a market-based economy. They would do away with workers’ democracy and bring back the bourgeois model of democracy with various political parties representing the interests of the wealthy, all fully under the thumb of U.S. imperialism.

One of the most outrageous recommendations made by the commission is the creation of an $80 million fund to be spent over the next two years in activities related to the overthrow of the Cuban government and the creation of this transition government.

Among other things, they are setting aside $31 million to support counterrevolutionaries in Cuba, $24 million for U.S.-made propaganda, including funds to expand the existing TV and radio broadcasts into Cuba produced by the United States, and $15 million for “transition planning” and strengthening of civil society—in other words, for plotting the overthrow of the government and lining the pockets of those who don’t support the revolution.

We can be sure that plenty of money will end up in the hands of the right-wing Cuban terrorist organizations that have

been operating out of Miami for decades trying to undermine the socialist government of Cuba.

The commission recommends that government leaders and officials in Cuba who have participated in the suppression of counterrevolutionary activities, including the prosecution and trial of counterrevolutionaries, be included on a database that tracks human rights violations.

The report states very clearly that the goal is to “accelerate the process of stripping away layers of support within the regime by creating additional uncertainty regarding the political and legal future of those in leadership positions.” The U.S. government is threatening Cuban officials by saying, if you’re working to defend the revolution, and against the interests of American imperialism, there are going to be consequences and we’ll come after you once we own the island.

Tightening the blockade

As we’d expect, tightening the blockade is a key component of the U.S. strategy.

Despite continued U.S. efforts to cripple its economy, Cuba has experienced substantial economic growth in recent years. The government has made significant investments in education, health-care, and cultural projects, and also engaged in a struggle against corruption and the theft of social property.

The Cuban youth have played a key role in keeping revolutionary consciousness alive. In October 2005, over 10,000 young social workers were dispatched to gas stations in Havana to pump gas and monitor the facilities. Their work helped fight gasoline theft at gas stations. Within two months, revenues from gas sales more than doubled.

An important survey administered by youth brigades also indicated a need for greater assistance to seniors. The government responded with pension increases and the creation of new social programs.

After the limited capitalist reforms of the 1990s that kept the economy from collapsing following the overthrow of the socialist camp, Cuba is now matching its economic recovery with a strengthening of the socialist methods. This shows that the class character of the revolution and the commitment of the leadership to socialism continue to be as strong as ever.

The main obstacle to further economic development continues to be the U.S. attempts to stunt economic growth through the blockade. The commission’s report accuses Fidel and the Cuban government of being at fault for Cuba’s economic difficulties, but the report immediately reveals the U.S. government’s lies. It calls for the further economic strangulation of Cuba by the United States, including greater enforcement of restrictions on tourism and remittances to Cuba.

The report also calls for the creation of a “Cuban Nickel Task Force” to target Cuba’s nickel exports, which are already closely followed by the United States. This could cause foreign steel manufacturers that use Cuban nickel to rethink their business with the island if it means losing access to the U.S. market. Nickel accounts for nearly half of Cuba’s foreign income. Curtailing this export could be very harmful to the Cuban economy.

Part of the plan is to tighten restrictions on the export of humanitarian items. In particular, it recommends denying all exports of medical-related equipment that could be used in large-scale medical programs for foreign patients or in institutions of foreign assistance. As pointed out by Ricardo Alarcón, president of the National Assembly of People’s Power, this proposed measure is an implicit recognition of Cuba’s internationalism and human solidarity that has provided medical care to people around the world.

Venezuela also targeted

Another country attacked in the report is Venezuela. Venezuela is undergoing its own revolutionary process, the Bolivarian revolution, which has taken a substantial portion of the country’s oil wealth from the pockets of the country’s bourgeoisie and foreign corporations and redirected it toward the most pressing needs of the population.

Venezuela has also been providing medical care, literacy training, and other educational programs to people who had access to none of those things before. And the most oppressed sectors of the population are being engaged in the political process. Time after time, the Venezuelan people have stood up to U.S. intervention to reassert their support for the Bolivarian revolution. 

Given its anti-imperialist stance and its orientation toward the needs of the working class, the Chávez government

Hugo Chávez, Fidel Castro and Evo Morales in Havana, Cuba.

found a natural partner in Cuba. The two countries have nurtured a strong alliance that has been mutually beneficial. Venezuela has provided Cuba with valuable energy resources at preferential prices. In exchange, Cuba has provided Venezuela with tens of thousands of doctors and other social workers who provide services to poor Venezuelans.

The commission attacks Venezuela for providing Cuba with resources and support that the United States government has worked very hard to make sure Cubans wouldn’t get.

The U.S. government is also greatly concerned with the role that Cuba is playing in Venezuela and the rest of Latin America.

The partnership between Cuba and Venezuela is the center of resistance to imperialism in Latin America. The Bolivarian Alternative to the Americas (ALBA)—a treaty of mutual cooperation not only in terms of trade but also for social needs—now presents a regional challenge to the U.S.-sponsored free trade model.

The assistance that Cuba has given to Venezuela’s social programs goes well beyond the immediate benefits to the people; it also shows the way forward for the Bolivarian revolution. Cuba’s gestures of solidarity, and the close friendship between Fidel and Chávez, are strengthening the trend towards socialism within the Bolivarian revolution.

Cuba’s solidarity with and support for Bolivian president Evo Morales has also increased resistance to the dictates of imperialism in the region. All of these developments are of great concern to the U.S. imperialists.

Solidarity with Cuba

Perhaps the most alarming aspect of the report is that it only includes the parts that the commission deemed fit for public consumption. A major portion of it is classified. Given the U.S. government’s stance on Cuba, we can only imagine that this portion would contain all sorts of different scenarios for U.S. intervention, from assassination attempts to direct military attack.

Cuba has strongly denounced this latest installment of the annexation plan coming from the U.S. government. Other governments and progressive organizations all over the world have publicly repudiated the imperialist report.

The revolutionary consciousness of the Cuban people is very high. We can be sure that the majority of Cubans will fight to defend the revolution at all costs. Despite the organized resistance of the Cuban people, the report and any potential implementation of its colonial measures will bring suffering to the Cuban people. It is our obligation as revolutionaries to expose this latest aggression against Cuba and to stand with the people and government in defense of their country and socialist revolution.

In his strong response to the report, Hugo Chávez said, “Rather than thinking of a transition plan for Cuba, the United States ought to elaborate a transition plan for themselves, because this is the century that will see the end of the U.S. empire.” Let’s all work on that transition plan for the United States and make Chávez’s prediction come true.