Tuesday, October 26, 2010

The change in Cuba is halfway

Due to its revolutionary and radical political slogans, Cuba is actually a fairly conservative at least in the classic sense of the term. Things tend to change slowly, if you change something, and many Cubans have had the same jobs, neighbors and, of course, political leaders throughout his life. Therefore recent political events are shaking the inhabitants of the island and have created a strange sense of insecurity.

The Cuban government has announced it will lay off 500. 000 state employees during the next six months as part of a massive operation cuts elsewhere would have provoked street protests. Later another 500 will be dismissed. 000 workers or more, as the government of Raul Castro wants to reduce payroll by 20 percent by the state and redirect the labor to more productive activities like agriculture and construction.

The Government is also cutting social services, arguing that some of the rights enjoyed by Cubans from birth (such as education and free health care to subsidized electricity) can not continue to sustain the current economic performance . Even the ration card, one of the pillars of Cuban socialism, is shrinking and there are rumors that point to their total elimination.

As if those cuts were not disturbing enough already, Fidel Castro has returned to public life in recent months, scaring the Cubans with apocalyptic visions of a nuclear war and warning that U.S. tensions with Iran have put the world on the path of atomic destruction.

The communist government has tried to calm the anxieties of the Cubans with promises like “no one will be abandoned.” Many people eagerly await instructions from the government on new employment opportunities and small business licenses, and official information does not end materialize. Instead, the news spend hours reading the essays of Fidel Castro on world affairs or the excerpts that he selected the book “The Wars of Obama” by Bob Woodward.

“There has been much talk and rumors, but nothing concrete. We are still waiting, “said Alberto Ruiz, an employee of a state restaurant has heard that the premises could be converted into a worker cooperative. Ruiz says he’s eager to know more, but like most people are in a situation of uncertainty, knowing that the country’s economy will suffer but changes without knowing how the crisis can be transformed in new opportunities.

The government has said it will grant 250. 000 new licenses for freelancers in the coming months, allowing Cubans to work for themselves as carpenters, accountants and birthday clowns, among other professions. But the basic information on these licenses, especially relating to taxes, has not yet been published, which has on tenterhooks for many potential entrepreneurs.

The growing impatience has surfaced even in the pages of the Communist Party newspaper, Granma. “Lack of what has begun to do with great interest to the country and some important details to be added in addition to phones, places and other bodies to which can go, because our people is not ready for these new phases and must instruct him, including me, “said a recent letter to the editor signed by H. M.

From:  University 5

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