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Cuban democracy citations[edit]

Definitions of the word 'democracy'[edit]

"The words democracy, socialism, freedom, patriotic, realistic, justice have each of them several different meanings which cannot be reconciled with one another. In the case of a word like democracy, not only is there no agreed definition, but the attempt to make one is resisted from all sides" George Orwell, from his essay Politics and the English Language 1946 [1]

“Democracy, shouldn’t be regarded in a simplistic, binary manner. There is no single characteristic according to which a nation definitely is or definitely is not democratic. There are, instead, a number of basic characteristics which go into making a viable democracy, and a nation may have some but not all of them. In addition, a country may do well on some of the characteristics it has, but do worse on others".[2]

Philosophers, political scientists, students of semantics and others have debated the meaning and implementation of the term "democracy" since the time of Plato. As a consequence, many different interpretations have arisen. Below are a few examples and definitions.

Dictionary Definition[edit]

  • medieval Latin democratia < Greek dēmokratia "rule of the people" < dēmos "people" + kratos "rule"[3]
  • "Oxford Dictionaries
  1. A form of government in which the people have a voice in the exercise of power, typically through elected representatives.
  2. A state governed in such a way.
  3. A control of a group by the majority of its members.

centralized democracy[edit]

pluralist democracy[edit]

polyarchy/democracy[edit]

direct democracy[edit]

other definitions[edit]

Democracy, Cuba and Wikipedia[edit]

Relevant Wikipedia policy and guidelines statements[edit]

Relevant statement from Wikipedia:Neutral point of view policy

"Wikipedia is an international, collaborative project. Probably, as we grow, nearly every view on every subject will (eventually) be found among our authors and readership. To avoid endless edit wars, we can agree to present each of these views fairly, and not make our articles assert any one of them as correct. And that is what makes an article "unbiased" or "neutral" in the sense we are presenting here. To write from a neutral point of view, one presents controversial views without asserting them; to do that, it generally suffices to present competing views in a way that is more or less acceptable to their adherents, and also to attribute the views to their adherents."

Relevant statements from Wikipedia:NPOV tutorial concerning word ownership

"A common source of obstinacy in NPOV disputes is the belief that one group "owns" a word and has sole authority to define it."
"At the same time, the fact that you disagree with the way a word is used or defined does not automatically imply that there is a POV problem. You must also ensure that your assertions about alternative uses are both significant and verifiable, using appropriate attribution and citation."

Wikipedia Democracy disambiguations.

  • Scaling to global democracy
  • Referenda and semi-direct democracy
  • Indirect democracy
  • Alternative models of democracy
  • Approval voting is a voting system used for elections, in which each voter can vote for as many or as few candidates as the voter chooses.
  • Anticipatory democracy which relies on some degree of disciplined and usually market-informed anticipation of the future, to guide major decisions.
  • Bioregional democracy (or the "Bioregional State")
  • Bloc voting refers to a class of voting systems which can be used to elect several representatives from a single multimember constituency.
  • Bucklin voting is a type of rank preference ballots voting system that can be used for single-member districts and also multi-member districts. It is also known as the Grand Junction system.
  • Cumulative voting A cumulative voting election is counted very similarly to a simple plurality election with the winners being the top vote-getters, however cumulative voters are allowed to split their own vote to some degree amongst multiple candidates. Cumulative voting is used heavily in corporate governance.
  • Corporatism a process by which the state uses officially-recognized organizations as a tool for restricting public participation in the political process and limiting the power of civil society.
  • Condorcet method is a kind of single winner election method, in which voters rank candidates in order of preference. A Condorcet method is a voting system that will always elect the 'Condorcet winner'; this is the candidate who voters prefer to each other candidate, when compared to them one at a time.
  • Deliberative democracy which focuses on hearing out every policy alternative, from every direction, and providing time to research them all.
  • Demarchy which has people randomly selected from the citizenry to either act as representatives, or to make decisions in specific areas of governance (defense, environment, etc.). One of the results of this would be the cessation of political parties and elections.
  • Democratic centralism a organizational method where members of a political party discuss and debate matters of policy and direction and after the decision is made by majority vote, all members are expected to follow that decision in public.
  • Democracy fallacy argumentum ad populum a fallacious argument that concludes a proposition to be true because many or all people believe it; it alleges that "If many believe so, it is so."
  • Dominant-party system is a party system where only one political party can realistically become the government, by itself or in a coalition government.
  • Grassroots democracy emphasizing trust in small decentralized units at the municipal government level, possibly using urban secession to establish the formal legal authority to make decisions made at this local level binding.
  • Instant-runoff voting is an electoral system used for single winner elections in which voters rank candidates in order of preference.
  • Multiparty democracyA two-party system requires voters to align themselves in large blocs, sometimes so large that they cannot agree on any overarching principles.
  • Non-partisan democracyis a system of representative government or organization such that universal and periodic elections (by secret ballot) take place without reference to political parties.
  • Oligarchy is a form of government where most or all political power effectively rests with a small segment of society (typically the most powerful, whether by wealth, family, military strength, ruthlessness, or political influence).
  • Parliamentary system a democratic system of government where the executive branch of a parliamentary government is typically a cabinet, and headed by a prime minister who is considered the head of government.
  • Participatory democracy which involves consensus decision making and offers greater political representation, e.g., wider control of proxies others trust them with, to those who get directly involved and actually participate.
  • Party-list proportional representation a family of voting systems used in multiple-winner elections (e.g. elections to parliament), emphasizing proportional representation. In these systems, parties make lists of candidates to be elected, and seats get allocated to each party in proportion to the number of votes the party receives.
  • Plurality voting system a voting system used to elect a single winner in a given election.
  • Polyarchy rule by the many may be accomplished through multiple elites representing distinct communities in a polity.
  • Preferential voting is an electoral system in which voters rank a list of candidates in order of preference. In other words (on the most common kind of ballot paper used) the voter writes a '1' beside her first choice, a '2' beside her second preference, and so on.
  • Proportional representation an electoral system in which every vote counts equally in the overall outcome of the body or bodies of representatives, creating a close match between the percentage of votes that political parties receive and the number of seats they obtain in legislative assemblies.
  • Range voting uses a ratings ballot; that is, each voter rates each candidate with a number within a specified range, such as 0 to 99 or 1 to 5. Unlike cumulative voting there is no limit on the total ratings given, just on the rating given to each candidate.
  • Referendum is a direct vote in which an entire electorate is asked to either accept or reject a particular proposal.
  • Semi-presidential system is a system of government that features both a prime minister and a president who are active participants in the day to day functioning of government.
  • Single-party state is a type of party system government in which a single political party forms the government and no other parties are permitted to run candidates for election.
  • Single Transferable Vote a preferential voting system designed to minimise wasted votes and provide proportional representation while ensuring that votes are explicitly for candidates rather than party lists.
  • Social democracy A political philosophy that calls upon government to be for the people. In contrast to Socialists, modern Social Democrats do not believe in nationalizing Industry.
  • Soviet democracy is a form of democracy in which workers elect representatives in the organs of power called soviets (councils).
  • Westminster system is a democratic system of government modelled after that of the United Kingdom system, as used in the Palace of Westminster, the location of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. The system is a series of procedures for operating a legislature.
  • World democracy

Illustrative Google searches[edit]

Citations Pro[edit]

  • Article about the 'protest vote' in Cuban elections.
  • UN Commission on Human Rights resolution 2001/36 reaffirms that "while all democracies share common features, there is no one universal model of democracy"[4]
  • Pushing Polyarchy This paper by William I. Robinison makes the argument that the Western defition of 'democracy' is actually a form of 'Polyarchy' which is distinct and different than the form of popolar democracy practiced in Cuba. "...one particular definition of democracy, that of polyarchy, has achieved, in the Gramscian sense, hegemony among scholars, journalists, charismatic figures, policymakers, and diplomats, not just in the United States, but in the international community and publc discourse in general. As an essentially contested concept, the polyarchic definition competes with the concept of popular democracy."
  • Boris Yopo writes with Latin American Perspectives on the Cuban Transition scathing criticism of the Cuban direct democracy model, yet acknowledges in the bottom paragraph of page six that "...there are 'different types of democracies'..." and goes on at length with arguments that the Cuban type of direct democracy is bad. Yopo also writes that "Cuba’s long dependence on the Soviet subsidies, it’s efficient economy, and it’s rejection of pluralist democracy have all diminished the appeal and credibility of the Cuban experience in the eyes of Latin Americans."
  • Chapter XIV of the Cuban Constitution describes the electoral sytem of Cuba, including: "All citizens...have the right to take part in the leadership of the state, directly or through their elected representatives..." .
  • Dan Christensen website CUBA: Issues & Answers page rebutting arguments that Cuba is not a democracy. "... a broad conception of representative democracy, based on popular sovereignty, in which the functions by which power is exercised are performed by persons chosen in free and fair elections...", "...every Cuban of voting age has an equal opportunity -- regardless of socioeconomic condition or political connections -- to nominate a candidate of their choice and to run for public office...", "...The democratically elected [Cuban] Municipal Assemblies nominate one candidate for each seat in the Provincial and National Assemblies. Candidates can be accepted or rejected by voters in a secret ballot. If a candidate is rejected by the majority, the Municipal Assembly must put forth another one and hold another election soon afterwards. ", "the Cuban people fully support their own unique form of representative democracy which can be seen to be free of the influence of money and party politics. ", "It is in no one's interest to put forth an unpopular candidate if he or she is likely to be rejected by voters. The nomination process includes an extensive consultation with community and labour groups expressly to avoid such rejections.", "...blank or spoiled ballots. ... this is how protests are registered and that it is possible ... to reject any or all candidates in this way, if the majority so chooses.", "...the secret ballot, which at both the provincial and national levels, allows voters to reject any and all candidates." .
  • PARLINE database on Cuban elections: "Blank or spoiled ballots can be a sign of protest, as dissidents on the island had urged people to cast blank ballots. "
  • Latin American Perspectives article by Donald W. Bray and Marjorie Bray. "The academic and popular discussion of Cuba in the United States mostly misses the key point: the revolution is achieving a new form of democracy based upon shared social goals."
  • The Hindu Times editorial Jul 26, 2002. "...Mr. Bush's understanding of the convergence of market reforms and democracy, contemporary history has thrown up abundant examples of how it is the market that kills democracy.", "...the U.S. could not hide its glee at this murder of democracy,...", "...the enormous sacrifices made by its [Cuban] people in standing up to the Northern Colossus [the USA] cannot be bartered away to get a democracy certificate from a country [the USA] whose record in wiping out democracy in that region is unparalleled."
  • Miguel A. Faria in an article titled A Social(ist) Democracy presents an argument harshly critical of the present incumbent goverment in Cuba. Though even with this harch criticism Mr. Faria acknowledges Cuban democracy with the statement that: "Cuba should reject ... being ruled as a social democracy (democratic socialism)...". Essentially complaining that Cuba has the wrong type of democracy, not that Cuba has no democracy.
  • Christian Science Monitor article Nov. 23, 2005: "...Some Cuba watchers write off the tough talk in the post-Castro plan as little more than a domestic political tactic. They say it was aimed at shoring up President Bush's flagging support among Cuban-Americans in Miami during last year's presidential election, when the plan was unveiled. The plan amounts to a statement of goals rather than a blueprint for US action, many analysts say. "The proposed elements do not add up to 'hastening transition in Cuba,' " says Daniel Erikson, a Cuba expert at Inter-American Dialogue in Washington. ..." , "..."The reality is the United States does not know that much about how to build democracy in the developing world,..." Also, "...Nonetheless, most Cuba experts doubt Castro's death will bring an immediate transition toward more democratic government. ...". The statement: 'more democratic government' implys that the existing government, though imperfect, is democratic.
  • The Defeatists webblog editorial, Nov. 25, 2005 commenting on George Bush building democracy in Cuba: "I would hope the State Department has learned something about "building democracy" considering how catastrophically unsuccessful Bush's Iraqi adventure has proceeded. Invading Cuba after the fall of Castro to erect a giant Club Med in Havana and to spread chains of KFC and Starbucks throughout the island would not go over so well. Cubans, like members of any sovereign nation, would challenge their foreign "liberators" with some feisty nationalism." This is significant because of it illustrates a point of belief that Cubans are likely to oppose imposed American style 'democracy' in contrast to domestic soverign Cuban democracy.
  • In the journal Foreign Affairs May 2006 article titled Left vs. Left in Latin America scholar Jorge G. Castañeda argues that Fidel Castro holds power in Cuba through ongoing popular support: "... the Castroists and Communists all came together -- and they remain together today..."
  • In an editorial in the Iraqi opposition press Uruknet regarding prisons at Guantánamo Bay "...seems to be precious little justice and democracy in this system...", with unmistakable pointed irony, aimed at the undemocratic United States controlled base at Guantánamo Bay on the Island of Cuba; a clear and contrary point of view.
  • In the book Work and Democracy in Socialist Cuba Linda O. Fuller writes "In contrast to the common image of Cuba as a totalitarian dictatorship, Linda Fuller argues that, as Cuban socialism has matured, important democratic advances also have been made."
  • The conservative Heritage Foundation article titled How to Support Cuba's Democracy-in-Waiting writes: "...the peaceful departure from a totalitarian dictatorship to a market-oriented democracy.". The adjective 'market-oriented' when applied to democracy overtly reveals the systemic bias commonly implicit when conservatives describe 'free democracy'. Their definition actually means free 'market-oriented democracy' as opposed to socialist democracy, which by implication is not 'free' because it is not 'market-oriented'.
  • The Hindu Times December 5, 2003, commenting upon George Bush announcement about bringing democracy to Cuba: "The challenge here is to decipher if this announcement is a part of the long-standing historical diatribes, agitation and aggression by the U.S. towards Cuba. Or is it a surge of new hostility under way for Latin America in general, and Cuba in particular, from the Bush administration?" This is significant because it gives indication that one point of view in the world is that the United States administrations statements regarding bringing democracy to Cuba need to be 'deciphered' and cannot be accepted at face value.
  • The CIA World Factbook describes elections in Cuba.
  • From the British Embassy in Cuba "The UK along with EU partners, shares the goal of a peaceful transition to a pluralist democracy in Cuba." and makes reference to the EUROPA statement which describes the electoral process in Cuba.
  • Political scientist Robert Dahl defines a democracy as "a political system that is completely responsive to all of its citizens, adding that it is a totally "ideal" system in the sense that there are no examples past or present and may, in fact, be impossible. Instead, he places existing and possible systems on a two dimensional continuum between dictatorships and polyarchies, where polyarchies are systems with high levels of "public contestation" (liberalization) and high levels of "inclusiveness" (citizen participation)." [5]
  • A Short Discussion of the Cuban Electoral System from Cuban govenment files "...The above manifests the essence of Cuban democracy, of the system instituted, endorsed, and supported by the immense majority of Cubans. However, we do not claim to have reached the development of a perfect democracy."
  • British political figure and writer Peter Taaffe writes in Cuba:Socialism And Democracy "A planned economy had been established but was there real workers’ democracy in Cuba? What were the international dimensions and the effects of the Cuban Revolution? These issues were hotly debated at the time, and have been a source of constant controversy since."
  • Commitees in solidarity with Latin America & the Caribbean write "Critics continue to say that Cuba is undemocratic, closed off, repressive, and that critical ideas in general are suppressed. An investigation of the education system and the young people in Cuban schools paints a very different picture"
  • From Socialism and Democracy Online "It is clear, however, that Cuba remains committed to its original social and political objectives in crucially important areas such as education, the justice system, health, sports and recreation, and various forms of participatory democracy at the local level."
  • From Globalization And The Developing Countries "Cuba remains a one-party or no-party “representative democracy” that allows a measure of political participation in the selection and election of candidates for public offices, except the presidency."
  • Steve Ludlam, politics professor from the University of Sheffield attends the election of candidates for Cuba’s municipal elections. Descibes his experiences in a piece called "Participation is key to Cuba’s democracy"
  • Wikipedia editor Bletch, a well known proponent of the 'Con' point of view, acknowledges that "...Cuba does indeed have free elections...", though he goes on to argue that the type of free election in Cuba is "... is simply unknown in the English speaking world, and therefore is irrelevant ...".
  • The International Socialist Review August 2003 article Cuba, Democracy and the Bush Doctrine laments that "...workers have never been in power in Cuba. The local councils, the Committees for the Defense of the Revolution, transmit government policy and sometimes act as the regimes eyes and ears, but they are not democratic instruments for setting or influencing state policy. " This article is C because it contains a harsh criticism from the point of view of the 'left' aimed at the electoral system in Cuba, and is notable that the essence of the complaint is that the workers fail to exercise effective electoral control at the level of the local councils. A harsh criticism, but regardless, it fundamentally is based on the premise that electoral power in Cuba rests with the local councils. In short, Cuban democracy is a defective, corrupt and failed form of democracy, but none-the-less, a form of democracy.
  • A BBC article titled Cuban elections reaffirm socialist identity describes the January 1998 elections in Cuba giving special emphasis to the socialist framework of the election. Of special interest is the description of " Some 5.01% of the votes were not valid because they were blank or annulled.", which may be an indication of a form of democratic electoral expression in opposition to the incumbent government.
  • In an article titled Democracy in Cuba, Teresita Jorge writes: "Cuban elections are an authentic way for people to participate in the life of the nation, far from the politicking, fraud and the marketing of votes that takes place in many countries."
  • On a British website, the journalist Ivan Terrero reports on the Cuban Elections, March 2005, writing in part: "The fact that we are in Cuba, witnessing this full participation by the Cuban people in electing their own leaders from the grassroots, is extremely interesting, and vindicates the significance of the role of the Cuban Revolution,...".
  • In an editorial on the Venezuela News And Views website, editorialist Val Prieto writes in part: "...there are elections every 5 years in Cuba - for national and municipal candidates, where the Communist Party has no role. There have been plenty of non-Party members elected... including priests. 95% of people voted and 5% of the ballots were spoiled or left blank, if you want to guage opposition."
  • Website devoted to detailed information and statistics on Cuban electoral process from the Cuban Ministry of Foreign Affairs
  • The New York based monthly periodical Political Affairs Magazine April 2005 issue includes an article about the Cuban electoral process which states in part: "The upcoming municipal elections, which have been organized every two years since 1976, are scheduled for April 17 and, in cases where it is necessary, a second round takes place on April 24. In order to arrive at the act of voting (secret and non-obligatory)) the electoral process was initiated in January and its most important stage has just concluded (February 24- March 24): the assemblies to nominate candidates for delegates. It is a highly participative process.".
  • Encarta Encyclopedia entry for Cuba "The revolution professed centralized democracy, meaning that popular participation occurs within designated mass organizations established and controlled by the state. The Communist leadership believes that traditional democracies in Latin America often become military dictatorships or become subject to government corruption, which renders their democratic institutions meaningless. In theory, the Cuban government avoids dictatorship and corruption by creating a strong, centralized political structure that makes every effort to incorporate the opinions of the people when making policy decisions. This, to their way of thinking, qualifies Cuba as a democracy and not a totalitarian government. However, Castro makes all major decisions, without popular referendums."
  • US Lawyer and consitutional analyst Tom Crumpacker states in his paper An analysis of democracy, oligarchy and US-Cuba Policy that "(Cuba has) forged a political system that seeks to preserve their sovereignty and independence, with institutions that achieve democracy by participatory consensus rather than class warfare or clashing ideologies." And asks the question, "does our oligarchy fear that if the Cuban revolution continued to succeed (based as it is on real democracy) that the US own drive for world empire might fail by regime change or perhaps even progressive political system change here?"
  • Susan Babbitt writes in an article called Cuba, Democracy and the armed owl in the "Journal on African Philosophy" that "When people on the left claim that Cuba is not democratic, they generally cite a number of reasons. One, of course, is that there exists a single-party political system. Another is that there is no U.S. - style free press. 1 But we might wonder why democracy, which means rule by the people, must necessarily involve these two features. Perhaps, the arguments are that the single-party system and the absence of an American-style free press are such that in fact the people are prevented from taking control of their own destiny, of ruling themselves. But if this were the case, it would seem that the arguments should involve some discussion of what it means for a people to rule itself and, given a defensible articulation of this notion, evidence that the kind of one-party system that exists in Cuba does not fulfill its responsibility. Indeed, it would seem to be important to discuss what it means, in fact, for there to be “a people”. Often, I have noticed, well-intentioned North American liberals come to Cuba and claim as a result of their investigations that “the people” are dissatisfied with Cuban socialism. But it is not clear why those who are not members of the Communist Party should have more of a claim to being “the people” than the large number who are. And even if we could be sure about what the majority thinks, it is not clear how, without begging some questions about real interests, this can provide evidence that Cuba is or is not democratic"
  • Los Angeles based journalist, Walter Lippmann wrote this editorial entitled Cuba's Diverse Challenges quoted in part: " In Cuba, voting is completely voluntary. The authorities do what they can to make it as easy as possible. Where I stay in Havana's Vedado, there are three polling stations within ONE BLOCK of my door. What we would call election precincts, they call circumscriptions. It's a secret ballot there as it is here. One big difference is that the Cuban system isn't automated. The ballots are hand-counted. The ballot boxes are guarded by elementary school children who belong to the Young Pioneers. In Cuba candidates don't spend any money. Indeed, they're forbidden to spend money and the only literature is a single sheet which lists their individual qualifications. Candidates make personal appearances, but campaigning and debating US-style doesn't occur. "
  • Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez stated in 2005 [6] "People ask how I can support Fidel if he’s a dictator? But Cuba doesn’t have a dictatorship, it’s a revolutionary democracy."

Citations provided by Adam Carr in support of 'not a democracy' claim[edit]

  • [7] Does not mention the word 'democracy' in the entire article and rather addresses human rights.
  • [8] Primarily an article about the Ukraine. It doesn't mention Cuban democracy, the closest it comes is to claim that Cuba is not 'free'.
  • [9] Again, doesn't mention Cuban democracy, and mostly is a criticism of human rights of a group of countries including Cuba.
  • [10] This article does not even mention the word democracy.
  • [11] Again, a critique of Cuban human rights violations. No mention of a claim that Cuba is not a democracy. The closest it comes are quotes of complaints by dissidents expressing their point of view about a lack of Cuban democracy.
  • [12] Again, an article about Cuban human rights, with no mention of the word 'democracy' at all in the article.
  • [13] Again, an article about Cuban human rights, with no mention of the word 'democracy' at all in the article.
  • [14] A listing of members of an organization titled 'Community of Democracies', all this proves is that Cuba does not belong to that organization.
  • [15] A description of Cuban dissidents described as 'democracy advocates', which hardly is proof that Cuba is not a democracy or that various credible points of view about this issue do not exist.
  • [16] Partisan editorial expressing a point of view well summarized with this quote "...the surest way to bring freedom and democracy to Cuba was to flood the island with tourists". This still does not prove that 'Cuba is not a democracy' or that credible other points of view do not exist.

Citations provided by User:NWOD[edit]

"This is, however, disputed. "

Citation provided by mcmachete 11:50, 26 April 2006 (PST)[edit]

The 1992 Torricelli Law, was overturned in part by the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals and strongly criticised under International Law [17] does indeed make several condeming statements reflecting resolve of the United States Congress and does proves the point that a majority of the 103rd United States Congress shared a common point of view on this topic. Regardless, it does not prove that this common point of view is the only credible point of view. To defend a 'not a democracy' statement you must prove a negative which is very hard to do. Clearly, the US Congress shares the point of view with many around here that the only type of 'democracy' is a multi-party democracy. Yet, this is a point of view that is not shared universally.

mcmachete citations 20:44, 27 April 2006 (PST)[edit]

13.Michael G. Kozak June 17, 2004 [18] speed announcing the formation of the Commission for Assistance to a Free Cuba, CAFC. At the press confernce, the question was asked [19] "...does that mean the President subscribes to the recommendations contained in it, including the recommendation to undermine the succession strategy established by the Cuban Government?" and the answer was "...in general, yes...".

14.Amnesty International 3 June 2003 [20] Describing, in part, arrests of pro-democracy members of illegal opposition parties

15.Douglas Payne 'Repression of Dissent' December 1998 [21] A detailed article describing dissenting organizations in Cuba who have in part "...advocated political dialogue with the government as a means to achieving a more democratic Cuba."

16. PRENSA INDEPENDIENTE Marzo 3, 2006 [22][23] Article reporting arrest of a Cuban charged with "...suspicion of a robbery with force" though this person is also a known member of the Party Democratic Solidarity.

17.Penny L. Parker March 10, 1995 Summary of United Nations session on Human Rights: [24] Includes mention of ...Cuba tabled three resolutions critical of the United States, two of which were adopted. ..., L.60 [1995/45] Adopted w/o vote, 3 March 1995. This resolution sponsored by Cuba is directed toward the U.S. trade blockade of Cuba..., L.83 [1995/62] Freedom of travel and family reunification. Adopted by vote of 27-9-17, 7 March 1995. This is a resolution tabled by Cuba, which is intended to criticize certain practices of the U.S. "

18.US State Dept profile of Cuba [25] "Government Type: Totalitarian Communist state; " Though, obviously, the United States State Department cannot be considered that according to congressional hearings in the 1970s which documented numerous CIA attempts to kill Castro and U.S. interference in the politics of several other Latin American countries.

19.State Dept. press release of statements by Alan Larson Sep. 4, 2003.[26]""designed to encourage a peaceful transition to a democratic government...an open market economy," Again, the criticism appears to be the lack of market based democracy in Cuba. A contrary argument is that democracy based on corporate financing of elections does not necessarily promote representation of individual democratic rights.

20.Transcript of Pres. Clinton interview PBS January 21, 1998 [27] Includes Clinton statement " I think it's one of the reasons that every country in this hemisphere is a democracy and a market economy except for Cuba.". Notable because of link between democracy and market economy, raising question as to the extent of the nature of complaint including criticism of socialist economy linked with the democracy complaint, in other words: The Clinton criticism appears to be 'Cuba does not have a market based democracy'. Contrary argument similar to (19.) above

21.THE OPPENHEIMER REPORT Apr. 16, 2006 interview with Peruvian president elect Ollanta Humala [28] "...obviously, according to our standards, Cuba does not qualify as a democracy, but added immediately -- with irony -- that Peru ``is democratic; we have democratized poverty."

Citations Con[edit]

  • George Bush May 20, 2002 speech giving justification of embargo. Though in this same speech George Bush said "..when Cuba has a new government that is fully democratic.." which could be interpreted that he views Cuba as, albeit defective and incompletely, democratic now. This speech was widely criticised in editorials [29][30] [31][32].
  • PBS editorial Transcript of PBS editorial about Elian Gonzalez and Cuban USA relationship which ends with the contrary point: "...But dissenters in Cuba and almost all Cubans in the US say that the real problem is that Cuba is not a democracy." Again, the editorial policy of PBS is required to report the opposing point of view, for point of view balance.
  • TuftsDaily article where sophomore Maria Mayoral is interviewed and quoted after taking a class offered by Tufts University Romance Languages Department Associate Professor of Spanish, Claudia Kaiser-Lenoir. There are some credibility questions regarding the opinion of a sophomore language student, reported by reporters for a student paper.
  • Testimony of Otto J. Reich to the US Senate Committee on Commerce. Though in this testimony, Mr. Reich describes "...moving towards a more open or representative government." Which again implies that the Bush administration believes that the Cuba has, albeit inadaquate, a representative government now. Also, this testimony included the statement of the USA '"...assesment that Cuba has at least a limited, developmental biological weapons research and development effort" The overall hostile content of this Bush Administration statement calls into question, certainly the neutrality, and also credibility of this 'not a democracy statement'. Also, according to the Christian Science Monitor the Bush Administration has subsequently (Sept.8, 2005) distanced itself from this testimony [33].
  • Economist Magazine. A short article dated Sep 15th 2005, mentions "...all (except Cuba) are democracies" in passing in an article about poverty in Latin America. The credibility of this article is subject to some question because of the fact that the subject of the article was poverty not politics or democracy.
  • Freedom House states "Cubans cannot change their government through democratic means." which is apparently an unequivocated statement. Though, the policy statement of this website also states "Freedom House is a leading advocate of ...democracy, free market economics,..." which seems to indicate that the version of democracy that Freedom House advocates is the free market democracy as opposed to socialist democracy practiced in Cuba.
  • The website adam-carr.net states flatly "There have been no elections in Cuba since 1952" yet the CIA World Factbook states that in Cuba elections are held every five years.
  • Sandy Berger quote [34] in response to an interview question about duplicity in policy towards China and Cuba "Well, I think that we have very different historical relationships with China and with Cuba. Cuba, we have had an embargo on Cuba for 37 years. It is the only non-democracy in the hemisphere. There has been very little evidence that there's any interest on the part of Mr. Castro in significant liberalization, economic or political. And at this stage of the game, to end that embargo would be to send, I think, just the wrong signal. So in each situation, you have to decide what is the best course topursue with respect to your objectives." Note, that again the US policy groups economic and political together, a clear implication that the US form of acceptable democracy is 'market oriented democracy' as opposed to 'socialist democracy' practiced in Cuba.

Other Relevant Citations and Further Reading[edit]

  • Linguist Geoff Nunberg discusses political language and the word democracy "Political language is a matter of artful reinterpretation -- neutralizing and blurring the words your opponents have used against you, and making slogans out of the ones that everyone takes for granted."[35]
  • Norval, Aletta, ‘Radical Democracy’ in Clarke and Foweraker, (eds) Encyclopedia of Democratic Thought (London: Routledge, 2001).
  • Kohn, M., ‘Language, Power, and Persuasion: Toward a Critique of Deliberative Democracy’ (2000) 7(3) Constellations, pp. 408–429.
  • Laclau, Ernesto, ‘Democracy and the Question of Power’ Constellations (2001) 8:1, pp. 3–14.
  • Glynos, Jason, ‘Radical Democracy: Democratic Theory from an Anti-essentialist Perspective’ (2001) 17 Essex Papers in Politics and Government: Sub-series in Ideology and Discourse Analysis (University of Essex).
  • Schwartz, J. M., The Permanence of the Political. A Democratic Critique of the Radical Impulse to Transcend Politics, (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1995).
  • Roman, Peter, People's Power in Cuba (Westview Press, 1999)[36]

IFCO/Pastors for Peace[edit]

  • Ross Douthat July 7, 2001: scathingly critical National Review article which quotes Reverend Lucius Walker: "Why is the United States government so pathologically obsessed with the destruction of Cuba? I thing the answer is simple…. Cuba is a good example which capitalism cannot tolerate." ; and Ellen Bernstein: "I know of no more democratic country in the world than Cuba." ; Arnold August: "the Cuban Revolution…heralded the realization of true democracy."
  • IFCO/Pastors for Peace website
  • What can we learn from Cuba on elections? Interview conducted by Barbara Jean Hope
Reverend Lucius Walker Jr. ""The world tells us that Cuba is a dictatorship. If Fidel Castro is a dictator, he is the only dictator who is elected. Anyone running for office is nominated by people in a town meeting. Nobody nominated is allowed to put forward more glossy material than another. That means that a Bush would have no better chance of swaying public opinion than anybody else. ...[Cuban elections are] the most democratic in the world. There’s no ability to buy elections, no possibility for the type of corruption that has occurred in Florida. ... [Cuba has] a democratic system that should be adopted by more countries in the world. If we would look at the Cuban system, it would be useful."

Varela Project[edit]

United States policy towards Cuba[edit]

'Helms-Burton Act'[edit]

'Cuban Liberty and Democratic Solidarity (Libertad) Act of 1996,'

John Bolton[edit]

John Bolton, in his role as undersecretary of the U.S. State Department accused Cuba on May 6, 2002 of maintaining a bioweapons program [37]. Later, Bolton was criticised for [38] pressuring subordinates who questioned the quality of the intelligence John Bolton had used as the basis for the assertion. [39] [40][41]

Torticelli Act[edit]

Commission for Assistance to a Free Cuba (CAFC)[edit]

  • Announcement speech [42]

News[edit]

Criticism[edit]

links[edit]

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