TIME: Almanac 1995

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<text id=93CT1667> <link 93HT0285> <link 90TT0549> <link 89TT1797> <title> Cuba--History </title> <history> Compact ALMANAC--CIA Factbook Caribbean Cuba </history> <article> <source>CIA World Factbook</source> <hdr> History </hdr> <body> Before the arrival of Columbus in 1492, Cuba was inhabited by three groups--Cyboneys, Guanahabibes, and Tainos--the last of which introduced agriculture, including maize and tobacco, to the island. As Spain developed its colonial empire in the Western Hemisphere, Havana (La Havana - "The haven") became an important commercial seaport. Settlers eventually moved inland, devoting themselves mainly to sugarcane and tobacco farming. As the native Indian population died out, African slaves were imported to work on the plantations. A 1774 census counted 96,000 whites, 31,000 free blacks, and 44,000 slaves in Cuba. Slavery was abolished in 1886. Cuba was the last major Spanish colony to gain independence. The independence movement began in 1850, when cuban planters financed and led several expeditions against Spanish garrisons on the island. In 1868, the Ten Years' War for independence began under the leadership of Carlos Manuel de Cespedes, whom the Cubans consider the father of their country. Twenty-four years later, Jose Marti, Cuba's greatest national hero, initiated plans for a general uprising. He announced the "Grito de Baire" in 1895, which heralded the beginning of Cuba's final struggle for independence. Shortly after, Marti died in battle. The United States entered the conflict on the side of the revolutionaries when the USS Maine, anchored in Havana Harbor to protect US citizens, was sunk by an explosion of unknown origin on February 15, 1898. On December 10, 1898, Spain signed the Treaty of Paris, ending the Spanish-American War and relinquishing control of Cuba to the United Staes. The United States administered the island for 3 years. Independence was proclaimed on May 20, 1902. The United States retained the right to intervene to preserve Cuban independence and stability under the terms of the Platt amendment, which established conditions mandated by Congress for the withdrawal of US troops from Cuba. In 1934, the Platt amendment was repealed in keeping with the Roosevelt administration's "Good Neighbor" policy. Later the same year, the United States and Cuba reaffirmed by treaty their 1903 agreement that leased the naval base at Guantanamo Bay to the United States. This agreement remains in force today and can only be terminated by mutual agreement or abandonment by the United States. Gen. Gerardo Machado, elected president in 1924, forcibly extended his rule until a popular uprising deposed him in 1933. Army Sergeant Fulgencio Batista led an army and student revolt and established himself as Cuba's dominant leader for more than 25 years. He ruled through a series of presidents and was himself elected in 1940 for 4 years. In March 1952, shortly before regularly scheduled elections, Batista seized the presidency in a bloodless coup. On July 26, 1953, an armed opposition group led by Fidel Castro attacked the Moncada army barracks at Santiago de Cuba. The attack was unsuccessful, and many, including Castro, were captured and imprisoned. Castro, released by Batista under an amnesty in May 1955, went into exile in Mexico, were he formed a revolutionary group, the "26th of July Movement." On December 2, 1956, Castro and 81 of his followers landed in eastern Cuba. All but 12 were soon captured, killed, or dispersed. From this nucleus, Castro's forces eventually grew to several thousand. While a number of other groups in Cuba also actively opposed Batista, Castro's "26th of July" forces became predominant when Batista fled Cuba on January 1, 1959. Castro's assumption of power was widely acclaimed in Cuba and abroad because he seemed to embody the hopes of most Cubans for a return to democratic government and an end to graft and corruption. Within months, Castro moved to consolidate his power and to set up an authoritarian government. Many leaders of the opposition to Batista were executed or sentenced to lengthy prison terms for opposing Castro's policies. Moderates were forced out of the government, and hundreds of thousands of Cubans fled the island. During an April 1959 visit to Washington, Castro addressed concerns about a reported leftist tilt to his regime by saying, at the National Press Club, "We are against all kinds of dictators, whether of a man, or a country, or a class, or an oligarchy, or by the military. That is why we are against communism." On December 2, 1961, Castro publicly declared himself a Marxist-Leninist. Representative democracy was abolished, effective freedom of expression ended, and all opposition political activity was soon terminated. Current Political Conditions Cuba is a totalitarian state dominated by Fidel Castro, who is president of the Council of State and the Council of Ministers, first secretary of the communist party and commander-in-chief of the armed forces. With support from his brother, Raul, and a few longtime associates, Castro exercises control over nearly all aspects of Cuban life through a network of directorates ultimately responsible to him through the communist party. From January 1959 until December 1976, Castro ruled by decree. The 1976 constitution provides for a party-government structure in which the communist party and its politburo are "the highest leading force of the society and state." The following, along with Fidel and Raul Castro, are members of the communist party politburo: Juan Almeida, Julio Camacho, Osmani Cienfuegos, Abelardo Colome, Vilma Espin, Armando Hart, Esteban Lazo, Jose Machado, Pedro Miret, Jorge Risquet, Carlos Rodriquez, and Robert Veiga. Executive power is vested in the Council of Ministers, which heads the government. Legislative power resides with the National Assembly of People's Government (a rubber-stamp legislature), but day-to-day control is held by the Council of State. Vice Presidents of the Council of State include: Juan Almeida, Osmani Cienfuegos, Jose Machado, Pdero Miret, and Carlos Rodriguez. The communist party is Cuba's only legal political party, and it monopolizes all government positions, including judicial offices. All pre-1959 political parties and political organizations have been abolished. Though not a formal requirement, party membership is a de facto prerequisite for high-level official positions and professional advancement in most areas. Cuba's trade unions, women's federation,a nd youth and other mass organizations are completely controlled by the government and party. These organizations attempt to extend Cuban government and communist party control over each citizen's daily activities at home, work, and school. The party is composed of the pre-revolution Communist Party of Cuba (in existence since 1925 under a variety of names), which was absorbed, with two other main political groups supporting the revolution, into a new political entity formed by Castro in July 1961. Further refinements resulted in the emergence in late 1965 of the Cuban Communist Party, which held its first congress in 1975. The second and third party congresses were held in 1980 and 1986 and resulted in changes in the membership of the central committee and politburo. Policy changes emphasized increased political indoctrination and the introduction of minor economic incentives. The politburo and central committee together include most of the country's military and civilian leaders. The constitution states that civil liberties cannot be exercised "contrary to the existence and objectives of the socialist state" (Article 61). Cubans do not possess equal protection under the law, the right freely to choose government representatives, freedom of expression, freedom of peaceful assembly and association, or freedom to travel to and from Cuba without restriction. The government and communicst party control all electronic and print media. Cuba has no independent judiciary. Although the constitution specifies that the courts shall by "a system of state organs independent of all others," it explicityly subordinates the judiciary to the National Assembly of People's Government and thus to the Council of State. The People's Supreme Court is the highest judicial body. Due process safeguards can be constitutionally circumvented, and defense attorneys face severe disadvantages under the Cuban judicial system. The Ministry of Interior ensures political and social conformity, as well as internal security. It operates border ad police forces, orchestrates public demonstrations, investigates evidence of nonconformity, regulates migration, and maintains pervasive vigilance through a network of informers and 80,000 block committees (Committees for the Defense of the Revolution - CDR). In practice, the top leadership determines the degree to which civil liberties are exercised and what is "against the revolution." In 1987 and 1988, prior to a visit to the island of a UN human rights working group, the Cuban government sought to improve its image abroad by tolerating domestic human rights groups and freeing many political prisoners. In 1989 and 1990, increasing Cuban subversion in the Caribbean basin, the delivery of sophisticated Soviet weaponry to Cuba, and the Cuban government's deliberate efforts to violate US sovereignty and immigration laws through the 1980 Mariel exodus - eroded any possibility of significant improvement in bilateral relations and posed new challenges to US and allied security interests. In the Mariel exodus, Castro mixed criminals and other undesirables in with about 125,000 Cubans seeking refuge in the United States. Quiet efforts to explore the prospects for improving relations were initiated by the United States in 1981 and 1982; however, the Cuban government refused to alter its conduct with regard to US concerns about Cuba's support for violent political change and its close political and military cooperation with the Soviet Union. The liberation of Grenada by the United States and regional allies in 1983 and the expulsion of Cuban forces based there was a setback for Cuba's plans to expand the revolution in the Caribbean basin. A year later, the United States and Cuba negotiated an agreement to normalize immigration and return to Cuba the "excludables" who had arrived during the 1980 Marieal boatlift. Cuba suspended this agreement in May 1985, following the initiation of the Voice of America's Radio Marti, which broadcasts current national and international news of interest to residents of Cuba. The Mariel agreement, reinstated in November 1987, allowed normal migration to occur between the two countries. Cuban support for subversive groups, internal repression, and the continuing Soviet military connection are primary areas of concern to the United States and major obstacles to improved bilateral relations. The United States expressed concern over the 1989 trials and execution of senior military officials under questionable circumstances and without due process and the jailing of human rights activitst who testified before the UN Human Rights Commission delegation which visited Havana in 1988. Goals of US policy remain to: -- isolate Cuba in the international community; -- enforce a comprehensive economic embargo; and -- provide access to news and other information to the Cuban people pending fundamental changes in Cuban behavior. Despite existing tensions, the United States continues to discuss areas of mutual concern, such as immigration, with the government of Cuba. Source: U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Public Affairs, October 1990. </body> </article> </text>