I said:
Tell us what facts are not correct according to you:
Text: http://ernesto-el-che-guevara.piranho.de/index.html
Video: http://www.cubaverdad.net/che_anatomia_de_un_mito.htm
Post by Barry SchierPost by PLDo you deny that Che killed hundreds of people lots in execution?
(1) I assume that when PL asked me, "Do you deny that Che killed
hundreds of people lots in execution?" his intention wasn't to be
"short" on grammar and comprehensibilty, but to be "long" and loud in
rhetorical intent.
this from a hypocrite that posts stuff like:
"i've already stated that, as a Marxist, I bwelieve that which languages
and the extent to which they are taught is a reflection of
socioeconomic interests."
and this in this same post
"instead of actually pulling the trigger in almost all cases, not don't deny
that Che had responsibility "
That, by the way Barry is a "double negative". A "Freudian slip" maybe? Must
have been hard for you to have to admit that Che is a killer.
I can imagine you agony.
More Freudian slips her, hypocrite Barry? (also from this message)
"starts as a "democratic revolution" (i.e., for overthrow of a dictatorship,
end of
theocratic practices and rule, independence) does not shop"
I think people "wbelieve" you are a frustrated propagandist that uses even a
typo or a grammar error to attack people.
Thanks for showing your character again comrade Barry.
Post by Barry SchierAlthough Che Guevara played a leadership / directing role instead of
actually pulling the trigger in almost all
cases, not don't deny that Che had responsibility for the death
sentences meted out as a result of the trials that were held not long
after the triumph of the Cuban revolution,
and the summary executions in the field even against the will of other
revolutionaries?
Not all of Che victims had (even a summary "revolutionary") trial, no?
Video: http://www.cubaverdad.net/che_anatomia_de_un_mito.htm
Post by Barry SchierThere's a principle: impunity for crimes issues an non-verbal license for
others
of the same politics to commit similar acts.
Yep.
Castro kept on eliminating his ennemies (see Ochoa) and even women and
children trying to flee the country:
http://www.cubaverdad.net/13_de_marzo.htm
Post by Barry Schier(2) A televised trial held in a packed stadium is the very opposite of
a "secret trial."
indeed.
It is a Stalinist show trial.
See Ochoa again.
Post by Barry Schier(3) My cited statistics re Cuban literacy and health care indicators
being almost at a par with the "advanced" indusgtrial
countries
We all know that Castro cooks the books.
Cuba's "revolutionary" statistics:
"People emigrating from Cuba or visiting Cuba, including international
health representatives, have reported that it is in line with Cuban
Government
policy to report mild cases of dengue as "influenza". Cuban physicians
have confirmed allegations that some disease reporting in Cuba is
politically influenced (e.g., if dengue were declared wiped out, then
physicians could
report the disease only as influenza-like symptoms). "
"WHO and the PanAmerican Health Organization (WHO's Regional Office for the
Western Hemisphere) cannot
report to the world without clearance from the Cuban government."
See: www.promedmail.org Archive Number 19970627.1390
Michael Thiede is Senior Research Officer in the Health Economics Unit
of the Department of Public Health and Primary Health Care at the
University of Cape Town, South Africa. He writes: " Last year I spent
three months in Cuba. I am still motivated to put together some papers
on Cuban health care. Unfortunately, however, during my stay I was
only able to get hold of the official statistical data and find them
not especially trustworthy.
http://www.stanford.edu/group/wais/cuba_healthcarestatistics62202.html
(link broken)
Some reality:
Sociedad
Un falso primer lugar
Sin la existencia de fuentes independientes, ¿cómo los organismos
internacionales pueden certificar los 'logros' cubanos en salud y nutrición"
http://cubadata.blogspot.com/2006/06/un-falso-primer-lugar.html
(snip)
Post by Barry Schier(4) One of the contributions of Russian revolutionary leader Leon
Trotsky was his theory of "Permament Revolution" which (in a quite
oversimplified summary) statest that a revolution which starts as a
"democratic revolution" (i.e., for overthrow of a dictatorship, end of
theocratic practices and rule, independence) does not shop --- and
should not stop -- with a insurgent movement for accomplish those
goals, but soon expands its aims to become a revolution to overthrow a
system based on inequality.
The opposite of Cuba, no.
The dictatorship was overthrown and Castro replaced the Batista dictatorship
with its won with your Stalinist communist friends (ex allies of Batista) as
main "partners in crime".
See: http://www.cubaverdad.net/revolution.htm
and: http://www.cubaverdad.net/stalinist_system.htm
where the combination of a true Trotskyite view and links to current reality
in Cuba clearly show that Cuba is a Stalinist country.
Post by Barry Schier(5) Thus, almost all of the original members representing the privileged
class in the cabinet established after the revolution
triumphed quickly resigned and fled to Florida after they discovered that
the Cuban Revolution and its leadetrship
You mean Castro and the communists seized power and started their
repression.
Lots of revolutionaries and peasants took up arms again in the "Escambray
reballion", no.
Castro needed lots of Russian aid to stop that.
Post by Barry Schier(6) Yes (concerning the citation below), most of the leaders of the
Cuban Revolution had no intentions of starting a socialist revolution.
As events and the class conflict heats up and the country becomes more
polarized,
You mean as Castro went for absolutoe power eliminating all up to his
closest "commandantes" satring with the lower ranks over Matos, Camilo and
ending with Che.
Post by Barry Schier(7) Concerning the citations below, as a Trotskyist,
You are no "Trot" Barry.
You are a Stalinist.
You support Castro's Stalinist system, not a true socialist state.
http://www.cubaverdad.net/stalinist_system.htm
where the combination of a true Trotskyite view and links to current reality
in Cuba clearly show that Cuba is a Stalinist country.
You are a Stalinist fraud Barry.
Againt the facts:
The revolution was NOT communist.
Even Che said so. (below a quote form the International Socialist Review)
In the first year of the revolution, Guevara explicitly denied its class
character:
"The Cuban revolution is not a class revolution, but a liberation movement
that has overthrown a dictatorial, tyrannical government."12
12 Che Guevara Speaks: Selected Speeches and Writings, G. Lavan ed. (New
York: Pathfinder, 1967), p. 13.
See: http://www.isreview.org/issues/11/cuba_crisis.shtml
On Batista and the communists (from an anarchist website):
Where were the communists during the Cuban revolution? If we believe Fidel
Castro not on the side of the revolution:
In the course of the guerrilla struggle in the Sierra Maestra mountains, he
(Castro) delivered another speech which, once again, stresses his distance
from the Communists:
"What right does Senor Batista have to speak of Communism? After all, in the
elections of 1940 he was the candidate of the Communist Party ... his
portrait hung next to Blas Roca's and Lazaro Pena's; and half a dozen
ministers and confidants of his are leading members of the CP."
H.M. Enzenburger, Raids and Reconstructions, London, 1976, p.200.
See: http://www.marxisme.dk/arkiv/binns/80-cucas.htm
A version of the facts confirmed in this (Marxist) source:
In November 1940, the communists supported Batista's candidates in the
elections to the Constituent Assembly. In return for their support, Batista
allowed the communists to organize and control the government sponsored
union, Cuban Confederation of Labor (CTC Confederacion de Trabajadores de
Cuba) The first Secretary General of the CTC was Lazaro Pena--who,
ironically, enough, held the same post in the Castro regime. In exchange for
these favors the communists guaranteed Batista labor peace.
(also see the video: Cuba Memoria Sindical) In line with the Communist
Party's "Popular Front Against Fascism" policy, the alliance of the
Communist Party with the Batista was officially consumated when the Party
joined the Batista government. The Communist Party leaders Carlos Rafael
Rodriguez and Juan Marinello (who now hold high posts in the Castro
government) became Ministers Without Portfolio in Batista's Cabinet. To
illustrate the intimate connections between the communists and Batista, we
quote from a letter of Batista to Blas Roca, Secretary of the Communist
Party:
June 13,1944
Dear Blas,
With respect to your letter which our mutual friend, Dr. Carlos Rafael
Rodriguez, Minister Without Portfolio, passed to me, I am happy to again
express my firm unshakeable confidence in the loyal cooperation the People's
Socialist Party [the then official name of the Communist Party of Cuba] its
leaders and members have given and continue to give myself and my
government. . .
Believe me, as always, Your very affectionate and cordial friend,
Fulgencio Batista
In the electoral campaign the Communist candidates won ten seats in the
Cuban parliament and more than a hundred posts in the Municipal councils.
In line with their pro-Batista policy the communists joined Batista in
condemning Fidel Castro's attack on the Moncada Barracks (July 1953 -- the
anniversary of the attack is a national holiday in Castro Cuba)
. . . the life of the People's Socialist Party (communist). . . has been to
combat . . . and unmask the putschists and adventurous activities of the
bourgeois opposition as being against the interests of the people. . .
(reported in Daily Worker, U.S organ of the Communist Party, August 10,
1953)
Throughout the Batista period the communists pursued two parallel policies:
overtly they criticized Batista and covertly they cooperated with him.
http://dwardmac.pitzer.edu/Anarchist_Archives/bright/dolgoff/cubanrevolution/chapter6.html
Also: see the video: Cuba Memoria Sindical
http://www.cubaverdad.net/cuba_trade_union_history.htm
216 DOCUMENTED VICTIMS OF CHÉ GUEVARA IN CUBA: 1957 TO 1959
CUBA ARCHIVE
From Armando M. Lago, Ph.D.Žs
Cuba: The Human Cost of
Social Revolution
Manuscript Pending Publication
The exact number of Che's victims in Cuba is unknown. Guevara is said to
have acknowledged ordering many executions -all carried out without
affording the victims due process of law. Combat deaths caused by Che
in Cuba or other countries where he led guerrilla operations have yet to
be tallied.
The following list is not exhaustive and includes only cases for which
historic reference is known -those he personally executed as well as
those killed under his orders. Names are cited as reported. Additional
details, including bibliographic information, are available for most cases.
Executed by Che in the Sierra Maestra during the anti-Batista guerrilla
struggle (1957-1958)
1. ARISTIDIO - 10-57
2. MANUEL CAPITÁN - 1957
3. JUAN CHANG - 9-57
4. "BISCO" ECHEVARRÍA MARTÍNEZ - 8-57
5. EUTIMIO GUERRA - 2-18-57
6. DIONISIO LEBRIGIO - 9-57
7. JUAN LEBRIGIO - 9-57
8. "EL NEGRO" NÁPOLES - 2-18-57
9. "CHICHO" OSORIO - 1-17-57
10. UNIDENTIFIED TEACHER ("EL MAESTRO") - 9-57
11-12. 2 BROTHERS, SPIES FROM THE MASFERRER GROUP - 9-57
13-14. 2 UNIDENTIFIED PEASANTS - 4-57
Executed or sent for execution by Che during his brief command in Santa
Clara (Jan. 1-3, 1959)
1. RAMÓN ALBA - 1-3-59**
2. JOSÉ BARROSO- 1-59
3. JOAQUÍN CASILLAS LUMPUY - 1-2-59**
4. FÉLIX CRUZ - 1-1-59
5. ALEJANDRO GARCÍA ALAYÓN - 1-31-59**
6. HÉCTOR MIRABAL - 1-59
7. J. MIRABAL- 1-59
8. FÉLIX MONTANO - 1-59
9. CORNELIO ROJAS - 1-7-59**
10. VILALLA - 1-59
11. DOMINGO ÁLVAREZ MARTÍNEZ - 1-4-59**
12. CANO DEL PRIETO - 1-7-59**
13. JOSE FERNÁNDEZ MARTÍNEZ-1-2-59
14. JOSÉ GRIZEL SEGURA - 1-7-59** ( Manacas)
15. ARTURO PÉREZ PÉREZ - 1-24-59**
16. RICARDO RODRÍGUEZ PÉREZ - 1-11-59**
17. FRANCISCO ROSELL - 1-11-59
18. IGNACIO ROSELL LEYVA - 1-11-59
19. ANTONIO RUÍZ BELTRÁN -1-11-59
20. RAMÓN SANTOS GARCÍA - 1-12-59
21. PEDRO SOCARRÁS - 1-12-59**
22. MANUEL VALDÉS - 1-59
23. TACE JOSÉ VELÁZQUEZ - 12-59**
**Che signed the death penalty before leaving Santa Clara.
Executions documented for La Cabaña Fortress prison during Che's command
(January 3 to November 26, 1959)
1. VILAU ABREU - 7-3-59
2. HUMBERTO AGUIAR - 1959
3. GERMÁN AGUIRRE - 1959
4. PELAYO ALAYÓN - 2-59
5. JOSÉ LUIS ALFARO SIERRA - 7-1-59
6. PEDRO ALFARO - 7-25-59
7. MARIANO ALONSO - 7-1-59
8. JOSÉ ALVARO - 3-1-59
9. ALVARO ANGUIERA SUÁREZ - 1-4-59
10. ANIELLA - 1959
11. MARIO ARES POLO - 1-2-59
12. JOSÉ RAMÓN BACALLAO - 12-23-59**
13. SEVERINO BARRIOS - 12-9-59**
14. EUGENIO BÉCQUER - 9-29-59
15. FRANCISCO BÉCQUER - 7-2-59
16. RAMÓN BISCET - 7-5-59
17. ROBERTO CALZADILLA - 1959
18. EUFEMIO CANO - 4-59
19. JUAN CAPOTE FIALLO - 5-1-59
20. ANTONIO CARRALERO - 2-4-59
21. GERTRUDIS CASTELLANOS - 5-7-59
22. JOSÉ CASTAÑO QUEVEDO - 3-6-59
23. RAÚL CASTAÑO - 5-30-59
24. EUFEMIO CHALA - 12-16-59**
25. JOSÉ CHAMACE - 10-15-59
26. JOSÉ CHAMIZO - 3-59
27. RAÚL CLAUSELL - 1-28-59
28. ÁNGEL CLAUSELL - 1-18-59
29. DEMETRIO CLAUSELL - 1-2-59
30. JOSÉ CLAUSELL - 1-29-59
31. ELOY CONTRERAS 1-18-59
32. ALBERTO CORBO - 12-7-59**
33. EMILIO CRUZ PEREZ - 12-7-59**
34. ORESTES CRUZ - 1959
35. ADALBERTO CUEVAS - 7-2-59**
36. CUNI - 1959
37. ANTONIO DE BECHE - 1-5-59
38. MATEO DELGADO - 12-4-59
39. ARMANDO DELGADO - 1-29-59
40. RAMÓN DESPAIGNE - 1959
41. JOSÉ DÍAZ CABEZAS - 7-30-59
42. FIDEL DÍAZ MARQUINA - 4-9-59
43. ANTONIO DUARTE - 7-2-59
44. RAMÓN FERNÁNDEZ OJEDA - 5-29-59
45. RUDY FERNÁNDEZ - 7-30-59
46. FERRÁN ALFONSO - 1-12-59
47. SALVADOR FERRERO - 6-29-59
48. VICTOR FIGUEREDO - 1-59
49. EDUARDO FORTE - 3-20-59
50. UGARDE GALÁN - 1959
51. RAFAEL GARCÍA MUÑIZ - 1-20-59
52. ADALBERTO GARCÍA - 6-6-59
53. ALBERTO GARCÍA - 6-6-59
54. JACINTO GARCÍA - 9-8-59
55. EVELIO GASPAR - 12-4-59**
56. ARMADA GIL Y DIEZ CABEZAS - 12-4-59**
57. JOSÉ GONZÁLEZ MALAGÓN - 7-2-59
58. EVARISTO BENERIO GONZÁLEZ - 11-14-59
59. EZEQUIEL GONZÁLEZ - 1-59
60. SECUNDINO GONZÁLEZ - 1959
61. RICARDO LUIS GRAO - 2-3-59
62. RICARDO JOSÉ GRAU - -7-59
63. OSCAR GUERRA - 3-9-59
64. JULIÁN HERNÁNDEZ - 2-9-59
65. FRANCISCO HERNÁNDEZ LEYVA - 4-15-59
66. ANTONIO HERNÁNDEZ - 2-14-59
67. GERARDO HERNÁNDEZ - 7-26-59
68. OLEGARIO HERNÁNDEZ - 4-23-59
69. SECUNDINO HERNÁNDEZ - 1-59
70. RODOLFO HERNÁNDEZ FALCÓN - 1.9.59
71. RAÚL HERRERA - 2-18-59
72. JESÚS INSUA - 7-30-59
73. ENRIQUE IZQUIERDO- 7-3-59
74. SILVINO JUNCO - 11-15-59
75. ENRIQUE LA ROSA - 1959
76. BONIFACIO LASAPARLA - 1959
77. JESÚS LAZO OTAÑO - 1959
78. ARIEL LIMA LAGO - 8-1-59 ( Minor)
79. RENE LÓPEZ VIDAL - 7-3-59
80. ARMANDO MAS - 2-17-59
81. ONERLIO MATA - 1-30-59
82. EVELIO MATA RODRIGUEZ - 2-8-59
83. ELPIDIO MEDEROS - 1-9-59
84. JOSÉ MEDINA - 5-17-59
85. JOSÉ MESA - 7-23-59
86. FIDEL MESQUÍA DIAZ - 7-11-59
87. JUAN MANUEL MILIÁN - 1959
88. JOSÉ MILIAN PÉREZ - 4-3-59
89. FRANCISCO MIRABAL - 5-29-59
90. LUIS MIRABAL - 1959
91. ERNESTO MORALES - 1959
92. PEDRO MOREJÓN - 3-59
93. DR. CARLOS MUIÑO, M.D. - 1959
94. CÉSAR NECOLARDES ROJAS - 1-7-59
95. VICTOR NECOLARDES ROJAS - 1-7-59
96. JOSÉ NUÑEZ - 3-59
97. VITERBO O'REILLY - 2-27-59
98. FÉLIX OVIEDO - 7-21-59
99. MANUEL PANEQUE - 8-16-59
100. PEDRO PEDROSO - 12-1-59**
101. DIEGO PÉREZ CUESTA - 1959
102. JUAN PÉREZ HERNANDEZ-5-29-59
103. DIEGO PÉREZ CRELA - 04-03-59
104. JOSÉ POZO - 1959
105. EMILIO PUEBLA - 4-30-59
106. ALFREDO PUPO - 5-29-59
107. SECUNDINO RAMÍREZ - 4-2-59
108. RAMÓN RAMOS - 4-23-59
109. PABLO RAVELO JR. 9-15-59
110. RUBÉN REY ALBEROLA- 2-27-59
111. MARIO RISQUELME - 1-29-59
112. FERNANDO RIVERA - 10-8-59
113. PABLO RIVERO - 5-59
114. MANUEL RODRÍGUEZ - 3-1-59
115. MARCOS RODRÍGUEZ - 7-31-59
116. NEMESIO RODRÍGUEZ - 7-30-59
117. PABLO RODRÍGUEZ - 10-1-59
118. RICARDO RODRÍGUEZ - 5-29-59
119. OLEGARIO RODRÍGUEZ FERNÁNDEZ - 4.23.59
120. JOSÉ SALDARA - 11-9-59
121. PEDRO SANTANA - 2-59
122. SERGIO SIERRA - 1-9-59
123. JUAN SILVA - 8-59
124. FAUSTO SILVA - 1-29-59
125. ELPIDIO SOLER - 11-8-59
126. JESÚS SOSA BLANCO - 2-8-59
127. RENATO SOSA - 6-28-59
128. SERGIO SOSA - 8-20-59
129. PEDRO SOTO - 3-20-59
130. OSCAR SUÁREZ - 4-30-59
131. RAFAEL TARRAGO - 2-18-59
132. TEODORO TELLEZ CISNEROS - 1-3-59
133. FRANCISCO TELLEZ - 1-3-59
134. JOSÉ TIN - 1-12-59
135. FRANCISCO TRAVIESO - 1959
136. LEONARDO TRUJILLO - 2-27-59
137. TRUJILLO - 1959
138. LUPE VALDÉS BARBOSA - 3-22-59
139. MARCELINO VALDÉS - 7-21-59
140. ANTONIO VALENTÍN - 3-22-59
141. MANUEL VÁZQUEZ - 3-22-59
142. SERGIO VÁZQUEZ - 5-29-59
143. VERDECIA - 1959
144. DÁMASO ZAYAS - 7-23-59
145. JOSÉ ALVARADO - 4-22-59
146. LEONARDO BARÓ - 1-12-59
147. RAÚL CONCEPCIÓN LIMA - 1959
148. ElADIO CARO - 1-4-59
149. CARPINTOR - 1959
150. CARLOS CORVO MARTÍNEZ - 1959
151. JUAN GUILLERMO COSSÍO - 1959
152. CORPORAL ORTEGA - 7-11-59
153. JUAN MANUEL PRIETO - 1959
154. ANTONIO VALDÉS MENA - 5-11-59
155. ESTEBAN LASTRA - 1-59
156. JUAN FELIPE CRUZ SERAFIN - 6-59**
157. BONIFACIO GRASSO - 7-59
158. FELICIANO ALMENARES - 12-8-59
159. ANTONIO BLANCO NAVARRO - 12-10-59**
160. ALBERTO CAROLA - 6-5-59
161. EVARISTO GUERRA - 2-8-59
162. CRISTÓBAL MARTÍNEZ - 1-16-59
163. PEDRO RODRÍGUEZ - 1-10-59
164. FRANCISCO TRUJILLO - 2-18-59
**The death sentence was signed by Che, but the execution was carried
out after he left his command.
15 additional executions were reported by The New York Times, but names
are unknown.
Information provided by
CUBA ARCHIVE, an initiative of the
FREE SOCIETY PROJECT, INC.
www.CubaArchive.org
http://www.miscelaneasdecuba.net/web/article.asp?artID=5649
On the revolution and the communists:
The Cuban Revolution
A Critical Perspective
by Sam Dolgoff
The Character of the Cuban Revolution
A Non-Social Revolution
The myth, induced by the revolutionary euphoria of the pro-Castro left, that
a genuine social-revolution took place in Cuba, is based on a number of
major fallacies. Among them is the idea that a social revolution can take
place in a small semi-developed island, a country with a population of about
eight million, totally dependent for the uninterrupted flow of vital
supplies upon either of the great super-powers, Russia or the U.S. They
assume falsely that these voracious powers will not take advantage of Cuba's
situation to promote their own selfish interests. There can be no more
convincing evidence of this tragic impossibility than Castro's sycophantic
attitude toward his benefactor, the Soviet Union, going so far as to applaud
Russia's invasion of Czechoslovakia in 1968, a crime certainly on a par with
the military coup in Chile, which Castro rightfully condemned. To assume,
furthermore, that the Cuban social revolution can be miraculously achieved
without simultaneous uprisings in Latin America and elsewhere, is both naive
and irresponsible.
Nationalization Versus Socialism
To equate nationalization of the economy and social services instituted from
above by the decree "revolutionary government" or a caudillo, with true
socialism is a dangerous illusion. Nationalization and similar measures,
under the name of "welfareism," are common. They are widespread, and in many
cases deep-going programs, instituted by democratic "welfare" states or
"benevolent" dictators as an antidote to revolution, and are by no means
equtvalent to socialism.
Russia and Cuba: Two Revolutions Compared
Another fallacy about the nature of the Cuban Revolution can perhaps be best
illustrated by contrasting the early stages of the Russian Revolution of
1917 with the Cuban events. Analogies between the Russian and Cuban
Revolutions--like analogies in general--fail to take into account certain
important differences:
Czarism was OVERTHROWN by the spontaneous revolts of the peasant and
proletarian masses only after a prolonged and bloody civil war.
In Cuba, the Batista regime COLLAPSED WITHOUT A STRUGGLE for lack of popular
support. There were no peasant revolts. No general strikes. Theodor Draper
(and many other observers) argues persuasively that since there were at
least "500,000 agricultural workers in Cuba" there could not have been many
peasants in a
. . . guerrilla force that never amounted to more than a thousand. . . there
was nothing comparable in Cuba to the classic peasant revolution led by
Zapata in Mexico in 1910. . . there was no national peasant uprising.
Outside the immediate vicinity of the guerrilla forces, revolutionary
activity, in the country as a whole, was largely a middle class phenomenon,
with some working class support, but without working class
organizations...(Castroism: Theory and Practice; New York, 1965, p. 74-75)
[This takes on added significance when we consider that the unions comprised
ONE MILLION out of a total population of about six million when the
Revolution began, Jan. 1, 1959.]
In Russia, the masses made the social revolution BEFORE the establishment of
the Bolshevik government. Lenin climbed to power by voicing the demands of,
and legalizing the social revolutionary DEEDS of the workers and peasants:
"All Power to the Soviets," "The Land to the Peasants," "The Factories to
the Workers," etc. In Cuba, Castro, for fear of losing popular support,
carefully avoided a social-revolutionary platform--assuming that he had one.
Unlike Lenin, he came to power because he promised to put into effect the
bourgeois-democratic program.
History is full of unexpected twists and turns. Ironically enough, these two
different revolutions had similar results: Both Lenin and Castro betrayed
their respective revolutions, instituted totalitarian regimes and ruled by
decree from above.
The well-known anarcho-syndicalist writer and activist, Augustin Souchy,
makes a cogent comparison between the Spanish Revolution (1936-1939) and the
Cuban Revolution (both of which he personally witnessed):
. . . while in Spain, the confiscation of the land and the organization of
the collectives was initiated and carried through, by the peasants
themselves; in Cuba, social-economic transformation was initiated, not by
the people, but by Castro and his comrades-in-arms. It is this distinction
that accounts for the different development of the two revolutions; Spain,
mass revolution from the bottom up; Cuba, revolution from the top down by
decree . . . (see Cuba. An Eyewitness Report, below)
Which brings to mind the celebrated phrase of the "Apostle" of Cuban
independence Jose Marti: "To Change the Master Is Not To Be Free."
Revolution the Latin American Way
The Cuban Revolution draws its specific character from a variety of sources.
While not a Latin American "palace revolution" which produced no deep seated
social changes, it nevertheless relates to the tradition of miltarism and
bogus paternalism of Latin American "Caudillismo," the "Man on Horseback."
"Caudillismo"--"right" or "left," "revolutionary" or "reactionary"--is a
chronic affliction in Latin America since the wars for independence
initiated by Simon Bolivar in 1810. The "revolutionary caudillo" Juan Peron
of Argentina, catapulted to power by "leftist" army officers, was deposed by
"rightist" military officers. Maurice Halperin calls attention to the ". . .
expropriation of vast properties in Peru in 1968 and in Bolivia in 1969 by
the very generals who had destroyed Cuban supported guerrilla uprisings in
their respective countries. . . " (The Rise and Fall of Fidel Castro;
University of California, 1972, p. 118)
The militarization of Cuban society by a revolutionary dictatorship headed
by the "Caudillo" of the Cuban Revolution, Fidel Castro follows, in general,
the Latin American pattern. Like other revolutionary Latin American
"Caudillos, " Castro would come to power only on the basis of programs
designed to win the indispensable support of the masses. Edwin Lieuwen
marshalls impressive evidence:
. . . In Chile in 1924, Major Carlos Ibanez established a military
dictatorship [that] was notably successful in combining authoritarian rule
with policies aimed at meeting popular demands for greater social justice.
Successful but short lived revolutions took place during 1936 under the
leadership of radical young officers inspired by ideas of social reform and
authoritarian nationalism. . In Bolivia a clique of radical young officers
came to power. Major David Toro and Colonel German Busch successfully headed
regimes that had social revolution as their goals. . . they catered to
the downtrodden and pledged to build a new nation. Toro and Busch based
their dictatorial regimes on attempts to win mass support ... (Arms and
Politics in Latin America; New York, 1961, pgs. 60, 62, 78, 79)
When in 1968, a "revolutionary" military Junta seized power in Peru, the new
military government proclaimed the fundamental principle underlying all
"radical" military regimes":
. . . the final aim of the State, being the welfare of the nation; and the
armed forces being the instrument which the State uses to impose its
policies, therefore, . . . in order to arrive at collective prosperity, the
armed forces have the mission to watch over the social welfare, the final
aim of the State... (quoted, Modes of Political Change in Latin America, ed.
Paul Sigmund, New York, 1970, p. 201)
Dr. Carlos Delgado, Director of the Information Bureau of the Revolutionary
Government of Peru, after stressing that the revolution was " . . .
initiated from above" by decree, boasted that the dictatorship in "...the
last four and a half years" accomplished more for the betterment of the
people than in the "whole epoch of Republican rule." The revolution was
hailed, boasted Delgado, even by the French Marxist thinker, Henri Lefebvre,
as one of the most important historical events of the contemporary world..."
(see Reconstruir, anarchist bi-monthly, Buenos Aires, Nov.-Dec. 1974)
There is an umbilical connection between militarism and the State, fully
compatible with, and indispensable to, all varieties of State
"socialism"--or more accurately State Capitalism. George Pendle (and other
observers) with respect to Peron's social and welfare programs initiated to
woo mass support concludes that:
...Peron's National Institute of Social Security...converted Argentina to
one of the most advanced countries in South America. . . it was not
surprising that the majority of workers preferred Peron to their traditional
leaders...they felt that Peron accomplished more for them in a few years
than the Socialist Party achieved in decades...(Argentina; Oxford University
Press, London, 1965, pas. 97, 99)
. . . In Havana Premier Fidel Castro proclaimed three days of mourning and
Cuban officials termed Peron's death a blow to all Latin America. . .(New
York Times, July 2, 1974) This cynical proclamation was not made solely for
tactical reasons, but in recognition of the affinity between the Castro and
Peron regimes. As early as 1961, there were already informal contacts
between Che Guevara and Angel Borlenghi "... a number two man in Peron's
government and his Minister of the Interior for eight years ... Che told
Borlenghi that there's no question about it that Peron was the most advanced
embodiment of political and economic reform in Argentina ... and under Che's
guidance a rapport was established between the Cuban Revolution and the
Peronist movement ... Che has in his possession a letter from Peron
expressing admiration for Castro and the Cuban Revolution and Che had raised
the question of inviting Peron to settle in Havana . . . " (quoted by
Halperin, from Ricardo Rojo's work, My Friend Che; ibid. p. 329-330)
Herbert Matthews supplements Rojo's revelations:...the Argentine journalist
Jorge Massetti who went into the Sierra Maestra in 1958, became friends with
Guevara. He was trained for guerrilla warfare in the Sierra Maestra and in
1964 was killed in a guerrilla raid in Argentina . . . Massetti was credited
with convincing Guevara that Peronism approximated his own ideas. Hilda
Gadea--Guevara's first wife--wrote that for Ernesto Guevara, the fall of
Peron Sept. 1955 was a heavy blow. Che and Massetti blamed it,...'on North
American Imperialists'...(ibid. p. 258)
[Carmelo Mesa-Lago notes the connection between State Socialism and
militarism. Castro enthusiastically hailed] " . . . the Peruvian Social
Revolution as a progressive military group playing a revolutionary role. .
." (Cuba in the 1970s: University of New Mexico Press, 1975, p. 11]) In an
interview, Castro emphatically maintained that social revolution is
compatible with military dictatorship, not only in Peru, but also in
Portugal and Panama.
[When the military junta in Peru] took power...the first thing they did was
to implement agrarian reform which was MUCH MORE RADICAL than the agrarian
reform we initiated in Cuba. It put a much lower limit on the size of
properties; organized cooperatives, agricultural communities; . . . they
also pushed in other fields--in the field of education, social development,
industrialization. . . We must also see the example of Portugal where the
military played a decisive role in political change. . .and are on their way
to finding solutions. . . we have Peru and Panama--where the military are
acting as catalysts in favor of the revolution. . . (Castro quoted by Frank
and Kirby Jones, With Fidel; New York, 1975, p. 195-196)
[The evidence sustains Donald Druze's conclusion that] . . . the programs of
modern 'caudillos' embodies so many features of centralism and National
Socialism, that it almost inevitably blends into communism...(Latin America:
An interpretive History; New York, 1972, p. 570)
Militarism flourishes in Cuba as in Latin America. Castro projected
militarism to a degree unequalled by his predecessor, Batista: total
domination of social, economic and political life. In the Spring of 1959, a
few months after the Revolution of January 1st, Castro, who appointed
himself the "Lider Maximo" ("Caudillo") of the Revolution and
Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, promised to cut the size of the army
in half and ultimately to disband and replace it by civilian militias and
police. "The last thing I am," said Castro, "is a military man . . . ours is
a country without generals and colonels. . . "
Within a year after the disintegration of the Batista Army, Castro turned
Cuba into a thoroughly militarized state, with the most formidable armed
force of any in Latin America. For the first time in Cuban history,
compulsory military service was instituted. Now, Cuba has adopted the
traditional hierarchical ranking system of conventional armies. The Cuban
army differs in no essential respect from the armies of both "capitalist"
and "socialist" imperialist powers.
"Communism" a la Castro
Insofar as relations with the communists are concerned, Theodore Draper
notes the striking resemblance between the policies of Batista and Castro:
. . . Batista paid off the communists for their support, by among other
things, permitting them to set up an official trade union federation, the
Confederacion de Trabajadores de Cuba (CTC) with Lazaro Pena as its
Secretary-General. In 1961, Castro paid off the communists for their
support, by, among other things, permitting Lazaro Pena to come back
officially as Secretary General of the CTC...(ibid. p. 204)
If we accept at face value Castro's conversion to "communism," his
"communism" embodies the Latin American version of Stalinism, absolute
personal dictatorship. But "Caudillos" are not primarily ideologues. They
are, above all, political adventurers. In their lust for power, they are not
guided by ethical considerations, as they claim. In this respect, there is
no essential difference between capitalist states and "revolutionary
socialist states." All dictators conceal their true visage behind the facade
of a political party, paying lip service to goals supposedly popular with
the masses. Castro became a "communist" because he considered that his
survival in power depended on cementing cordial relations with his saviors,
the "socialist" countries (former enemies) and by extension with Batista's
former allies, the domestic "communists." To promote his ends, Castro
established relations with Franco Spain and the Vatican. Nor did he hesitate
to side with the Arab oil magnates--lords over their impoverished
subjects--in the mid-east disputes, or to endorse the Russian invasion of
Czecho-Slovakia.
The Real Revolution Is Yet To Come
Albert Camus observed:
. . . the major event of the twentieth century has been the abandonment of
the values of liberty on the part of the revolutionary movement, the
weakening of Libertarian Socialism, vis-a-vis Caesarist and militaristic
socialism. Since then, a great hope has disappeared from the world, to be
replaced by a deep sense of emptiness in the hearts of all who yearn for
freedom... (Neither victims Nor Executioners)
Whether Castro is working out his own unique brand of "Cuban Socialism" is a
relatively minor question. Even if Castro had no connection with the
communist movement, his mania for personal power would lead inevitably to
the establishment of an "independent" totalitarian regime. What is decisive
is that the Cuban Revolution follows the pattern established in this century
by the aborted Russian Revolution of 1917. This pattern is the
counter-revolution of the State.
See:
http://dwardmac.pitzer.edu/Anarchist_Archives/bright/dolgoff/cubanrevolution/chapter3.html
PL