Saving Cuba
by Jorge Vargas
It was once said in the American colonies of the Iberian tyrant, that if Peru was the wallet of the Empire, and if Mexico its crown, then Cuba was most certainly the most valuable of its pearls.
And, as such, it was the last of the colonies to be liberated from that cold, cruel, Castillian grip that held imprisoned half of America from 1492 until the early 19th century when, from the winds of French rebellion, dreams of liberty arose and served to trash every castle, every fortress, destroy every soldier and every general, such that the whole of America. Almost, the whole of America.
Cuba did not learn of freedom until the great José Martí, a radical who had lived for some time in New York before returning to Havana and preaching of a Latin independence, came and spoke of re-igniting the fires that had first erupted when, in Guayaquil, two great giants met and the whole of Earth shook and the Spanish Empire began to breathe its last breaths.
Martí wrote of a Cuba free from the castigations and humiliations that, in his view, the United States would rain down upon the Spanish pearl. He wrote of freedom and of an enduring alliance between Cuba and the mighty nations of Southern America that were, at that time in their long history, still attempting to carry out the Bolivarian dream of unity through brotherhood and love - never to be confused with the poisonous and venomous bastardization that is the Bolivarian Movement of President Hugo Chavez of Venezuela, for that is moved not by love for Iberian America but rather by hatred for the United States, and of hatred, nothing good will ever arise.
But, and this we South Americans do not often speak of, betrayed was the island-pearl. Left behind. Forgotten. Cast aside. Looked down upon. Mistreated. Left to the wolves.
The United States was interfering too heavily with Cuba. How could we have dared? What were we then to combat the United States? What business did the beautiful Argentina have with Cuba? What business could the ever-practical Chile have with Cuba? What could war-torn Peru have done to help against the rising behemoth?
Cuba became a play-thing of the United States for 55 years after 1898.
And along came Stalin and Lenin and communism's triumph over fascism. Along came Commander Fidel Castro and his crew of vicious communists, and his villanous comrade: Ernesto "Ché" Guevara. That villanous comrade today glorified by U.S. university students who are still in love with romanticized tales of uprisings against corrupt regimes, without ever realizing that, under their very noses, corruption grows stronger every day. Without ever realizing that "Ché" was but a criminal who deserved the death he received.
Castro held on to Cuba for some fifty years.
Cuba excelled during the Cold War: Cuba sent soldiers to far-away wars in Angola. Cuba's doctors became the miracle workers of Iberian America and, in many ways, surpassed the excellence of U.S. and Canadian doctors. Cuba counted on the safest streets in the world, and served as a paradise resort for Latin American and European tourists.
Then, the USSR fell. So, too, did Cuba. At least, for a while.
Today, Cuba, having replaced Fidel Castro with his brother, Raúl Castro, is rising again with help from China and, increasingly, with assistance from Russia.
Already, Cuba is opening up. Cuba, the white pearl turned black, is returning to the light once more. Cuba is following the model of the world's most economically successful nation at present: The People's Republic of China.
And that model is paying dividends.
The United States has recognized this, and it grows closer, with each day, to opening relations with Cuba. Though that be to curtail Cuba's growth through direct manipulation (as is the wont of the behemoth) or to share in Cuba's economic gains still remains to be seen.
But all this will do is maintain Cuba in its status as an ideological, geo-political, and diplomatic battle-field.
What became of that pearl that Iberian America, the inheritor of the Spanish Empire, once coveted? What became of Martí's Bolivarian brotherhood with South America?
Will we South Americans again forget Cuba?
2009 is a far different time than 1898.
The United States is not such a big deal these days. The United States is becoming the world's biggest example of a push-over.
And China is powerful, yes, but China is too far away to inspire fear like the United States did in 1898, and China, unlike the United States, does not have such a long history of belligerence.
Russia, on the other hand, is a completely different proposition. Russia needs us as much as we need Russia, if not more so.
Therefore, this time around, there can be no excuses.
Argentina and Chile can afford to help Cuba. Peru is no longer war-torn. Brazil is becoming the world's largest economic miracle. Venezuela is still rich with money from petroleum - despite what the U.S. would like to believe, "petro-Dollars" do not disappear very quickly.
Only Colombia would not help Cuba, but that is because the land of Columbus has long been in the pocket of the United States. Besides, what is Colombia?
Compared to Brazil, compared to Chile, compared to Argentina, compared to Peru, and compared to Venezuela, Colombia is very little. Colombia is about as pivotal as Guyana in this situation.
So, Colombia aside, the powerful nations of South America can today rise up, without any excuse to do the contrary, and assist the island-pearl, assist that beloved island that is always abandoned and left dreaming by the sea.
Today, we can begin sending Cuba's excellent doctors the advanced medical software that they need to fully surpass the overly-cautious medical practitioners of the United States. Today, we can begin sending the Cubans school-desks, blackboards, brick, wood, and the countless other resources and items that Cuba needs to build schools and universities. And, in return?
Ideologically, we would have regained Cuba. We would have said to the world that though we long-ago lost Mexico to always live with one arm pulled by Latin America and another by the United States, we did not yield the second border nation: Cuba. We would have said to the world that we, too, can assist our brothers, and that we can do so without foreign interference in what is most certainly a Latin affair.
Militarily, we would have kept China and Russia from the possibility of opening up their own Guantanamo-style base in Cuba - one militaristic empire having a base in Latin territory is enough. We would have also increased Cuba's resolve and strength such that Cuba could once again formidably confront the United States on the Guantanamo Bay base issue.
Diplomatically, we would have demonstrated to the world that we are capable of a concerted effort, adding more strength to the MERCOSUR pact that today seeks to become South America's formidable answer to the, thus far, all-white European Union. We would also have gained an ally in the United Nations, which is always useful, should Cuba ever hold a seat on the Security Council again.
Politically, we would have demonstrated to our own domestic publics that we are now capable of holding off the strength of empires, as was the case when Peruvian and Chilean patriots fought off the Spanish navy on the shores of Callao, Peru in 1866.
And, in terms of diplomacy on the scale of the American hemisphere, of our half of the Earth, of that segment of the planet named after Amerigo Vespucci, the explorer, we would have demonstrated to the United States that theirs is not the only wallet in America, that they are not the only ones with sands on the Caribbean, that if they want to have control of Central America and the Caribbean, they are going to have to loosen up their wallets considerably and start handing out more aid than they have thus far done.
Thus, we South Americans have a historical, cultural, political, economic, and humanitaran need to assist Cuba and help Cuba rise out of her current battle-field status and, in that same moment, join Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Peru, and Venezuela by joining ranks with those nations of Latin America which have not yet forgotten their Iberian roots and their amazing history, those nations of Iberian America that have yet to sell themselves out to the United States for Dollars and nonsense, those nations of Hispanic America still retaining the right to consider themselves summarily majestic.
This was always Cuba's destiny, for she was once the pearl of the largest and strongest empire in human history, but she, being fragile, can not fulfill it alone.
Will we, the nations of Hispanic America still retaining the right to be named majestic, help her? Or will we let her become a pawn in the game of empires for another 100 years?
