Half century of totalitarianism
By: Juan Carlos Hernandez Hernandez
Independent journalist.

From the Cathedral, the balcony of the City council of the city of Santiago of Cuba seems within reach of the hands. The legendary park Turfs by means, shines brilliant, engalanado for the occasion and overwhelmed with chairs.  The roofs of the Hotel Granda House and the Popular Bank that is right to the front, exhibit powerful reflectors that seem mirarte from above. In the Rialto cinema, a camera of installed monitoring controls the access by the main perron to the Church of the Cathedral. All this is the 50 the preparations to celebrate anniversary of the restoration of the totalitarianism in Cuba. What celebration!

In resistance, to pictures of there, in Heredia and Calvario I am Francisco, a old one of slow cadences and frail, so seems that he does not advance, who consumes it to the time where he is. Francisco has been two days rising early to become analyzes in the Policlínico “Camilo Towers�, and to brighten up somewhat its long delay I asked to him to chat awhile on long life.

“I worked in a property in Guantánamo, that was called “the Mariana�, of two cavalries of tieera approximately, like 27 hectares, dedicated to the maize culture. $1,50 pesos daily paid to me, because it did not include food. Sometimes the “adjustments� existed or payments by agreement, an agreement between the owner and a worker so that in a certain time they did any work to him, gained there very many more. The owner of the property had a truck and wholesale bought merchandize that soon sold the workers on credits. Thus he was solved of everything, because the things were worth quilos. Nonéramos rich, but never he lacked the food.

After one it releases and pleasant char it with Francisco, I leave for my house, but when arriving at the Tibolí I am with Mario, a already greater man, verily low of stature, with skin of sailor and a prodigious mind.  With its chair recostada to the wall and in its hands the periodic Masterful Mountain range, seems that it tries to cushion the time. I ask to him, what how it is and with its somewhat hoarse voice it responds to me, with that one of, that all past time better seems to be.

“I pricked stone to the 14 years, in the factory of Jose Billiards, was a small factory to make pieces of granite and 7,00 pesos weekly paid to me. Saturdays we worked until noon, when I was already a time in that factory began to pay 14,00 pesos to me monthly, that at the time of the government Batiste with that wage we stayed. Clear that it was lived, it watches Juana, who had five children and his husband passed away when the major had near six years and to all the man did, all are almost alive, and that was washing and ironing. The one of the violence came later, the murders of young people in the streets were increased after the attack to the Moncada quarter.�

Mario continued explaining me that his papa gained 8 pesos by trip, like sailor in a small schooner, that taking to beers and cocaine tail to Naval Base of Guantánamo, but with that money could attend anyone of the bars of the zone like: The Coffee of Panchín in Large cabins, the Gilded one, the Luck, the Model, the Great Shutdown, the Cidrín, Navy Club, the Coffee of Mongo, the Coffee of India, the Black and white Night club, the Light, the Forno and those that had more money to the Club Nautical, that was only for targets and the managers with its families. “Often I did not have money and she requested 20 pesos to him given to Panchín and she spent it there to me same and she directed later me to anyone of the cinemas of the district: The Medimard, the Maxim or the Great Cinema, concluded Mario¨.

The door was abrió and Martha, the wife of Mario was shown, with two cups of coffee premixed in the hands. After appreciating its attention by the hybrid nectar of coffee and chicharos to him, we asked to him that it was added to the conversation, because it served long time like domestic in house as the rich ones, as decia then and are to us interesting their personal histories.

“Juan Carlos, I worked with my mother washing and ironing, that she was from quenos we rose until we lay down, the hour will never forget to me in that we had to iron those starchy pants.  In any house to wash a tremendous amount of clothes they paid a weight to you.  In the field he was worse, from the 5 in the morning we put ourselves to milk the cows, soon to we boiled milk in studs with firewood or coal for when the workers arrived to have the ready breakfast to him. In From Soria Palm and I believe that here in Santiago of Cuba also, when the Batiste government was used to giving for year end a small box with food, generally rice, kidney beans, etc., and a weight within her, that to where it reached�.

In that the black arrived Ramon, a typical santiaguero, extrovert and to speak pompous, who without thinking twice told us that he belonged in the light of East, a black society that he had his soothes underneath the Church of the Cathedral, in front of the Park Turfs, where they removed his balance for the vestibule and where the targets could not enter.

“Era as now - it says to us what before they were the companies, now they are the corporations, if you worked in one of them at the end of year gave Christmas gifts you, gifts, etc., now if you work in ETECSA or CUBANACAN or the CIMEX, etc., they give jabas or currencies you, according to the case. I am black, and in my house, nobody step hunger.  Nevertheless the family of my woman if enough that she passed needs, a niece even died to him and had to never do a coffin to him with tables of a box of codfish and knew that she passed away�.

The lack of proposal, the do-nothing policy in which is the country leads the people to reflect on the past, it does not project the future like something desirable and possible. She insists herself on remembering the past in his ends, positive as as much negative. In that sense I have gathered many opinions, almost all aim at that it was essential to overthrow the Batiste dictatorship, but very few approve outside that necessary to change it by the totalitarian regime that has been existing for 50 years in the Island.

The historical coincidence of both periods of equal times, for two different political systems invites to the comparative analysis and the balance of both. In Santiago of Cuba, seven of the eight existing hospitals aqueduct and sewage system, warehouses, bakeries, markets, etc. were constructed during the governments previous to 1959 and infrastructures of paved streets, are the same since then, like the majority of the schools whereupon counts the province. To have eradicated the illiteracy, having taught to read and to write to thousands of farmers is one of the most visible profits of the Revolution, according to its apologists, but wisely used to instill in those people the seed of the communist ideology and the scorn to other social systems. As what it served to have taught to read those people, itself they can read what the Government allows them that they read and of what served them to have taught to write, itself can emphasize it the supposed profits of the Revolution?

The access totally prohibited to massive mass media of the country has contributed at that this macabre project of Nation arrives at 50 years. A society cannot be conceived that claims to be democratic with a system of opinions so controlled. As a example, only in the city of Havana with approximately a million inhabitants before the 59, they existed more than 20 newspapers, more than 30 radio broadcasting stations and 5 companies of television.

When commemorating itself the 50 anniversary of the triumph of the Revolution it is good for emphasizing which were the premises that animated many of which they died in that bloody fratricidal war. The attackers to the Moncada quarter who died in this city, had like main intention to overthrow the Batiste dictatorship, pear immediately later to settle down a State of Right, with free, pluralistic elections and I am transparent as it appears in the Manifesto of the Mountain range.

Those premises subtly were manipulated, when arriving at the 50 years of a unique government, we realize that our electoral system does not satisfy the expectations with our town and some aspects it enters contradiction with the same Constitution of the Republic. The own existence of the Commissions of candidacies is a mortal trap. On the other hand, our penal Code is an insurmountable barrier, that by any opinion or supposed pre criminal availability can condemn to you.  The most visible example is 88 law or law jaw.

The monopoly of the education has been one of the arms of the regime for the ideological submission. In Santiago of Cuba the Salle existed a prestigious school “� that agglutinated at the time to hundreds of young students who wanted to receive a religious education and a human formation in values. Nevertheless, next to the Catholic University of Santo Thomas de Villanueva they were estatizadas and its professors expelled from the country. To the schools “the Salle� was allowed them to later return to the country years, but with its functions very diminished. The communist formation of form forced to the new generation enters frank contradiction with one of articles of the universal declaration of the human rights, since it denies to the parents the possibility to them of giving to his children the education that they wish.

When I visit the University of East or the Institute Polytechnical Superior “Julio Antonio Mella� and I am related to the students, I realize that the censorship imposed by the government has pierced until the tuéstanos of the educational system.  A censorship that not only goes directed to prohibit any type of manifestation against the system, if not which they go further on, limits the knowledge of the reality that surrounds to him. The immense majority of the students of our country does not know do not know that the Units of Confrontation of the Security of the State exist, nor who are those of political prisoners in country and what he is worse, the causes and reasons for which they are imprisoned.

 when arriving at these 50 years of revolution, we can say that the country more is fragmented than ever. Million people living in I exile, remote of its relatives and million wanting to leave the country.  The long rows in front of the embassy of Spain confirm therefore it.  The new law that allows many Cubans to become citizen Spaniards abre the doors to be able to emigrate, unique via which many people see as solution to their problems and is not arranged to hope other 50 years to solve them.

 to the principle of the Revolution many considered that a Law of the Agrarian Reformation was not necessary. This type of reforms, from World War II had had discouraging results, generating delays in the process of economic growth of many countries.  Rather a policy of agrarian development was requested that with an Earth use more adapted and the use of Science and the Technique would help to elevate the standard of life of the farmer. Nevertheless there were such Agrarian Reformation, but no massive earth confiscations to form a great state large estate. Nowadays we were whereupon more of 50% of cultivable earth into the hands of the State she is idle or sub - operated and the tendency of the last years it has been the increase.

The Cuban Government has not wanted to legally recognize the existence of parties and political movements of opposition within the country, although many of them have asked for their legality to the Ministry of Justice and the Council of State. However, we can say that in these 50 years with the repression of that great machinery that the Department of the Interior have not been able to silence to the opposition and every day we are plus which we dare to freely express our opposite opinions to the governmental opinion, although are persecuted, watched, harassed, stopped in its quarters and the condemned to prison.

And we acted thus, because we are convinced of the martiano thought when it said: “I want that the law first of our republic is the cult of the Cubans to the total dignity of the man. In the cheek the blow has to feel all true man that receives any cheek of man�.

 Jose Martí

Freedom for all the political prisoners!

Health and happiness for all ours undergone town!