Vol. 20, No. 4 April 2012

In the News Despite fall in U.S. food exports to Cuba,

Advertising everywhere shipments of beans edge up every year Competition heats up in Cuba’s rapidly BY VITO ECHEVARRÍA It was also the same year Pat Wallesen visited decentralizing economy ...... Page 3 he Cubans haven’t bought a single grain Cuba for the first time. Wallesen is managing of American rice for years. But when it partner of WestStar Food Co. in Corpus Christi, Tcomes to U.S. beans, state purchasing a major U.S. exporter of dry beans. SEC pressures Telefónica agency Alimport can’t seem to get enough. “The Cubans are opportunistic buyers,” said Spanish telecom giant is hounded over its According to USDA figures, dry bean exports Wallesen, telling CubaNews that global commo- business interests in Cuba ...... Page 4 to Cuba reached $7.7 million last year, up from dity prices have fluctuated not only for beans lately, but other crops as well. He put total annu- $5.6 million in 2010 and $4.3 million in 2009. al dry bean purchases at 45,000 metric tons. Political briefs That’s still a lot less than the record $10.9 mil- “They buy when the time is right. They buy lion worth of beans sold in 2006, though dra- from the U.S. between November and Febru- Rubio lifts hold on Jacobson nomination; matically more than in 2007 and 2008, when U.S. Miami-Dade proposal under fire ...Page 5 ary,” he said. WestStar Foods sometimes sup- farmers exported only $73,000 and $68,000 plies the Cubans with its own inventory of worth of beans to Cuba (see chart, page 3). beans; other times the Texas company sources Manufacturing in trouble Those dramatic ups-and-downs have to do those beans from elsewhere, usually from mainly with Alimport’s consistent efforts to find North Dakota suppliers. Manufacturing’s share of Cuba GDP takes the most beans for the money. The agency be- a steep tumble ...... Page 7 As much as 25% of dry beans eaten in Cuba gan buying beans in 2003, when Alimport’s come from the United States, he said, with the then-CEO, Pedro Alvarez, signed a memo of remainder imported mostly from China. Canada Newsmakers understanding with the Port of Corpus Christi. is also an alternate supplier. Argentine master chef Guillermo Pernot That year, improving ties between the two na- Contrary to public perception, the bulk of tions resulted in nearly $1.2 million worth of dry what’s being shipped from the United States brings Cuban cuisine to D.C., Philly, Atlan- beans shipped to Cuba from the Texas port. See Beans, page 3 tic City and Orlando ...... Page 8 Prieto calls it quits Is Castro’s Cuba a budding narcostate? Cuba’s popular “hippie” culture minister is now an advisor to Raúl Castro ...... Page 9 U.S. officials clearly suggest otherwise Pope’s pilgrimmage BY DOMINGO AMUCHASTEGUI declared the Democrat from California. “Just 90 or years, certain Cuban-American lawmak- miles from Florida, Cuba has the potential to be Winners and losers from Benedict XVI’s a major transshipment point for illicit drugs.” historic 48-hour trip to Cuba ...... Page 10 ers, so-called “sources” in Miami and offi- Fcials of Florida’s judicial system have Evidence? None. Primary or secondary sour- ces to support this assertion? None at all. repeatedly accused the Cuban government and Imagination? A great deal of it. Castro’s secrets its leaders of being involved in drug trafficking. A few days later, University of Nebraska polit- Latell’s new book claims Fidel knew about It didn’t matter that Cuba’s highest-ranking ical science professor Jonathan C. Benjamin- JFK assassination in advance .....Page 14 defector, Brig. Gen. Rafael del Pino, denied it. Alvarado questioned Feinstein’s statement. Nor did it matter when top officials of the Drug “It’s really irresponsible for her to say that,” Enforcement Administration, including Gen. he said. “It sets in motion that the Cuban gov- Chico and Rita Barry McCaffrey, spoke favorably of Cuba’s co- ernment is doing nothing, which is absolutely Cuba’s first animated film a joy to watch, operation with the DEA over the years. not true, and it insinuates that it is descending but not yet a box-office hit ...... Page 15 And it didn’t matter that key officials at Inter- into some sort of narcostate.” pol have praised Cuba’s efforts at drug interdic- A U.S. senator lying? Impossible. But perhaps tion. The fabrication keeps getting repeated. this professor is a leftist or a Castro sympathiz- CubaNews (ISSN 1073-7715) is published monthly by CUBANEWS LLC. © 2012. All rights reserved. More recently, during a Feb. 1 hearing of the er, as some folks in Miami might suggest. Annual subscription: $398. Nonprofit organizations: Senate Caucus on International Narcotics Con- Look then at the U.S. government’s most re- $198. Printed edition is $100 extra. For editorial in- trol, Sen. Dianne Feinstein singled out Cuba as cent assessment: the 2012 International Narco- quires, please call (305) 393-8760, fax your request a potential Caribbean drug smuggling leader. tics Control Strategy Report (INCSR), submit- to (305) 670-2229 or email [email protected]. “I would be remiss not to mention Cuba,” See Drugs, page 2 2 CubaNews v April 2012 ECONOMY Competition heats up in a rapidly decentralizing economy BY DOMINGO AMUCHASTEGUI ments— as well as equipment, vehicles and 40,000 CUC from such lenders. These private f an expanding, fast-growing, vibrant mic- tools — are being leased to individuals, fami- restaurants make anywhere from 6,000 to roeconomy in the hands of private, family lies and cooperatives. 8,000 CUC per month. Ior cooperative ownership is a key indicator Likewise, hundreds of thousands of hec- The same applies to another flourishing pri- of progress, then Cuba is apparently on the tares of land have been allocated to finqueros vate business in Cuba: the renting of rooms, right track. Billboards, brochures and leaflets and private farmers. Despite lingering exam- apartments and houses for foreign tourists. are sprouting up everywhere. Competition is fierce. Getting the neces- sary supplies, funds and other resources is So are collective taxis known as “boteros” — or trucks loaded with passengers — whose becoming a major headache for these newly owners are making fortunes on a daily basis. established businesses. Logistics are subject Some of the most thriving businesses in- to extreme tensions because of growing volve real-estate transactions, and signs ad- demand; prices are subject to more competi- vertising houses and apartments big and tive standards than just a few years ago, and those who failed have learned the lesson. small are becoming quite visible. AMUCHASTEGUI DOMINGO Well-known dissident Vladimiro Roca, on But this competition isn’t limited only to the eve of Pope Benedict XVI’s visit to the new ventures. In Cuba today, there’s a grow- island, said “there are no changes in Cuba” — ing and fierce rivalry between private enter- a comment that echoes similar accusations by preneurs and the state sector. the Obama administration. Government-owned restaurants are losing Yet hundreds of thousands of people are no their old customers. Fancy restaurants — longer dependent on state salaries, but rather even in Old Havana — sit half-empty or worse on their own efforts and creativity. They may most of the time, while state-run hotels are no succeed or not, but that’s how a market econ- match for casas particulares in either price or omy works. quality. State-produced mattresses and furni- By 2015, half of Cuba’s labor force will be ture sell for prices 2-3 times higher than those working on their own. At present, the island made by the “non-state sector.” boasts more than 360,000 self-employed peo- The UBPC (coops strongly subject to state ple and small businesses registered and pay- control until the recent past and which are ing taxes. According to experts, for each of Cartoon chef beckons diners to Paladar La Unica. now being transformed) occupy 38% of the these officially registered people there are best farmland in Cuba, while producing only three or four more who have not registered ples of forced procurement at fixed prices, 18% of the food. At the same time, the private because of mistrust or wait-and-see attitudes. most goods and crops are now moving freely coop sector has 20% of the land but produces And this is just in the urban economy. In across state and private produce markets. more than 60% of all food crops. rural areas, the changes are overwhelming. While Cuba’s state banking entities are be- Bureaucrats within the state sector might The amount of wealth among private farmers ginning to ease on credit and loans to support be thinking about retaliation, wondering how and coops is staggering; one such family this economic surge — as well as granting to stop the trend. But deep down, they know recently bought a mansion in Havana for special support for low-income families and this is no longer possible. Only better quality, 750,000 CUC — and beach hotels in Varadero their housing needs — private money lenders lower prices and more efficient services will are packed with well-off, self-made Cubans. are surrepitiously financing startups. allow the state to successfully compete with Thousands of restaurants, quarries, shops, These include several recently opened, and the new, emerging economy. empty lots and other former state establish- very successful, paladares that got 35,000 to And who said Cuba wasn’t changing? q

reported disrupting three smuggling events 1.5 kg of cocaine, compared to 9,000 marijua- Drugs — FROM PAGE 1 and captured six traffickers (three from the na plants and 26 kg of cocaine in 2010. ted by the State Department. Bahamas and three from Jamaica). Elsewhere, the INCSR asserts that “Cuba Recognition and praise for Cuba’s policies Statistics on arrests or prosecutions were continues to demonstrate commitment to ful- against illicit drugs and trafficking can be not made available, but by the U.S. govern- filling its responsibilities as a signatory to the found in every single paragraph of the 466- ment’s own admission, last year Cuba report- 1988 UN Convention [and all previous agree- page report’s three pages devoted to Cuba. ed 45 real-time reports of “go-fast” narcotics ments in this field].” “Bilateral interdiction efforts and GOC trafficking events to the U.S. Coast Guard. Furthermore, it says, the Cuban govern- [Government of Cuba] intensive police pres- It said the Cuban border guard’s email and ment “continues to exhibit counternarcotics ence on the ground have limited the opportu- phone notifications of maritime smuggling to cooperation with partner nations” such as the nities in or around Cuba for regional traffick- the United States “have increased in quantity U.S., Mexico, Jamaica and the Bahamas. ers,” it says. “Cuba’s domestic drug produc- and quality, and have occasionally included In addition, the INCSR notes that “the Cu- tion remains negligible. Its counternarcotics photographs of the vessels suspected of nar- ban government presented the United States efforts have prevented illegal narcotics traf- cotrafficking while being pursued.” with a draft bilateral accord for continued fickers from having a significant impact on cooperation, which is still under review.” the island.” INCSR PRAISES ‘CONTINUED COOPERATION’ It concludes with the following paragraphs: According to the report, in 2011 the Cuban To combat the limited domestic production “Cuba continues to dedicate significant re- sources to preventing illegal drugs and illegal government interdicted 9.01 metric tons of of marijuana, says the INCSR, Cuba set up Operation Popular Shield in 2003. Efforts to drug use from spreading on the island, so far illegal narcotics, including 8.3 metric tons in successfully. The technical skill of Cuba’s prevent any domestic development of nar- “wash-up events.” That’s a 360% increase from Border Guard, Armed Forces and police give the previous year’s 2.5 metric tons. cotics consumption remained in effect and in In addition, government anti-drug forces 2011 and netted 9,830 marijuana plants and See Drugs, page 3 April 2012 v CubaNews 3 the 2000 Trade Sanctions Reform and Export for the Cuban market. Some of the others are Beans — FROM PAGE 1 Enhancement Act fell 6% in 2011 from the commodity trader PS International, based in isn’t black beans but pinto beans. Wallesen year before, and Brazil emerged as the top Chapel Hill, N.C.; St. Hilaire Seed Co., based says that’s because they’re usually cheaper. food exporter to Cuba for the first time. in St. Hilaire, Minn., and another Minnesota Also, because of Alimport’s long-standing Meanwhile, Wallesen wonders if the entity, Anderson Seed Co. sensitivity to prices, virtually none of the U.S. Cubans will keep buying significant quantities The latter two were owned by local busi- beans being consumed in Cuba are canned. of U.S. dry beans in the short term because of nessman Ron Anderson until recently. Anderson, another active bean exporter to “I doubt you will find any canned beans in higher global prices for beans and other farm goods these days (see chart, below left). Cuba, went through serious financial woes Cuban supermarkets, since they’re so much “The drought in Mexico pushed their pur- earlier this year. In February, Legumex more expensive,” Wallesen told us. chases up, and [world] prices have gone up,” Walker, a specialty grain company based in The increase in dry bean sales comes after he said. The Northarvest Bean Growers As- Winnipeg, bought out his two firms. U.S. rice sales to Cuba have virtually dried up. sociation, a trade group headquartered in “Both our St. Hilaire Seed subsidiary and Before the 1959 revolution that brought Fidel Frazee, Minn., said the price per cwt (100 lbs) our Canadian-based parent, Legumex Walker, Castro to power, Texas and Louisiana rice far- was around $49.00, up $2.30 from February have sold dry beans into the Cuban market mers supplied the bulk of Cuba’s rice needs; and $19.10 above the year-ago price. and expect to continue to do so under the rice now comes mainly from Vietnam. Aside from his own firm, said Wallesen, right market conditions,” said Legumex Overall, U.S. food exports to Cuba under there are few major U.S. suppliers of beans spokesman Jon Austin. q GEORGE GONGORA GEORGE / GONGORA CORPUS-CHRISTI CALLER-TIMES

Corpus Christi, Tex., is a key port for U.S. dry bean shipments to Havana, 850 nautical miles to the south.

— FROM PAGE 2 years in the Army, recalling his latest trip to Drugs Cuba. Cuba a marked advantage against drug traf- RIP: Irving L. Horowitz “Two different Coast Guard attachés with Irving L. Horowitz, who was the Hannah ficking organizations attempting to gain the U.S. Interests Section in Havana told me access to the Caribbean‘s largest island in Arendt Distinguished University Professor that when it comes to terrorism, counter-nar- Emeritus of Sociology and Political Science both size and population. cotics and every other illicit “Greater communication at Rutgers University, died Mar. 21 from activity, their relationship with complications related to heart surgery. and cooperation among the the Cuban military is the best U.S., its international part- in the Caribbean, even better Among other things, Horowitz, 83, edit- ners and Cuba, particularly in than with Mexico,” said ed with Jaime Suchlicki 11 editions of “Cu- the area of real-time tactical Wilkerson, speaking during a ban Communism” which became a standard information-sharing and Jan. 18 policy debate in work on Cuba and its post-1959 history. improved tactics, techniques Washington. “But our military “Dr. Horowitz was a friend, colleague and procedures,” says the wouldn’t like to publicize and contributor to the Institute for Cuban INCSR, “would likely lead to that.” and Cuban-American Studies [at the increased interdictions and Indeed, Feinstein’s accusa- University of Miami],” Suchlicki said. “A disruptions of illegal traffick- tions are reminiscent of those towering figure in the humanities and ing.” made by another lawmaker — social sciences, he was also a Cuban schol- Clearly, the study casts lit- Michele Bachmann (R-MN) ar, concerned with the violation of human tle doubt on Cuba as a reliable — who suggested last rights in Cuba and the totalitarian nature of partner in the war on drugs. November that Hezbollah ter- the Castro regime.” Col. Lawrence Wilkerson, ex-chief of staff rorists were building missile sites in Cuba. His loss, said Suchlicki, “leaves a vacu- to former U.S. Secretary of State Colin Then, as now, these false charges are sole- um in the social sciences and in Cuban Powell, is a promi-nent critic of current policy ly for political gain — without any considera- studies. His brilliant mind and his commit- toward Cuba. The military man, who spent 31 tion for ethics or credibility. q ment will be missed.” 4 CubaNews v April 2012 TELECOMMUNICATIONS SEC pressures Spain’s Telefónica over Cuba business ties BY VITO ECHEVARRÍA es,” Escrig Meliá wrote, noting that some of on that list makes Obama’s telecom liberaliza- he U.S. Securities and Exchange Com- Telefónica’s subsidiaries in Spain and Latin tion policy virtually meaningless, since under mission is hounding Spanish telecom- America have roaming agreements with tele- the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act, Cuba has Tmunications giant Telefónica over its com providers in Cuba. no sovereign immunity in U.S. courts. business dealings with Cuba. The CFO also said that after having studied That, in turn, makes prospective U.S. In a Nov. 29 emailed letter to Telefónica the potential purchase of Cuban state phone phone revenues destined for Cuban coffers CEO César Alienta Izuel, Cecilia Blye — the monopoly Etecsa, his company decided not to vulnerable to seizure from American plaintiffs head of SEC’s Office of Global Security Risk go ahead with the acquisition — and that it with multmillion-dollar default judgments (see — cited a September 2009 news report in has no plans to do so. CubaNews, June 2010, Page 11). which Telefónica allegedly confirmed its The timing of the SEC’s pursuit of informa- Martínez recalled that at a Feb. 14 compli- interest in investing in Cuba. tion from Telefónica is curious, since that ance conference in Washington hosted by the Blye, who asked Alienta if the liquidation of company has invested in telecom services Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign his company’s Cuba affiliate, Telefónica Data throughout Latin America for years. Assets Control (OFAC), officials warned that Cuba (TDC), was completed in 2005, advised More importantly, the SEC’s letter appears foreign companies doing business with coun- him to “describe any equipment, technology to contradict the Obama administration’s poli- tries on the terror list would be subject to or support that you have provided into Cuba, cy of encouraging open telecom links be- more U.S. government scrutiny. directly or indirectly, and any agreements you tween the United States and Cuba. In addition, the 1996 Helms-Burton Act have had with the government of Cuba.” effectively discourages foreign firms from do- Even though Blye didn’t directly threaten CUBA EXPERT SAYS POLITICS IS TO BLAME ing business with both the U.S. and Cuba — Telefónica with legal action if it failed to com- In April 2009, President Obama exempted even though in practice, it has been selective- ply with the SEC’s request, the letter’s very that portion of the U.S. trade embargo which ly enforced due to diplomatic pressure from existence — and the fact that it mentioned prohibited American phone companies from Canada and the 27-member European Union. Washington’s designation of Cuba as a state doing business with the Marxist regime. Martínez insists that Washington politics is sponsor of terrorism — suggested that her Even though the new policy technically cov- behind the latest harassment of Telefónica. agency would find a legal cause of action ered only prospective U.S. telecom deals with “It is irrelevant that the reasons for Cuba against Telefónica if necessary. Cuba, even efforts by Spain’s Telefónica to being on that list are domestic political rea- modernize Cuba’s telecom infrastructure sons. It is on the list, and the enforcement TELEFÓNICA HAS NO IMMEDIATE CUBA PLANS would have still worked toward achieving the agencies have to carry out the law until it is no White House’s goal of a more open flow of longer there,” he told CubaNews by email. Meanwhile, the Madrid newspaper El País “The subtle and indirect manipulation to carried a report about the SEC’s legal harass- communications on the island. New York attorney Tony Martínez, who hammer Cuba comes from Capitol Hill, where ment of Telefónica. That article included not the pro-embargo Congressional cadre press- only Blye’s letter to the company but also the closely follows trade and regulatory issues affecting Cuba, said he saw this coming. es executive agencies to do more on Cuba. Dec. 30 response by Telefónica’s chief finan- “Rather than Congress doing an objective cial officer, Miguel Escrig Meliá, who con- “It is not surprising that the SEC made its inquiry to Telefónica,” he told oversight of our failed policies with Cuba at firmed in writing that TDC had been liquidat- CubaNews. the expense of both the U.S. and Cuban eco- ed in September 2005. “The designation of a country being on the State Sponsor of Terror List has wide-ranging nomies, this political manipulation ensures “U.S. sanctions against Cuba permit, in that scenarios like Telefónica will continue.” varying degrees, activities in connection with implications for that country.” the provision of telecommunications servic- Martínez said Cuba’s continued presence MARTÍNEZ TO COMPANIES: MAKE SOME NOISE Martínez has a few suggestions for compa- nies like Telefónica that find themselves under undue OFAC scrutiny. Cuba struggles to hit sugar projections “Comply with U.S. laws by ensuring you ncient mills and old equipment are de Cuba was milling at just 60% capacity have an active sanction compliance program taking their toll on Cuba’s sugar har- due mainly to mill problems and “the con- in place, and expect that any foreign company Avest, with scattered media and source stant breakdown of harvesting equipment,” in Cuba that happens to also do business in reports indicating that many mills will have but was nevertheless performing better the United States to be under economic sur- to remain open in May to meet output tar- than all the other 13 sugar-producing pro- veillance by U.S. agencies and embassies,” gets, Reuters reported Mar. 9. vinces except Sancti Spíritus. the lawyer advised. Fifteen mills opened in December, anoth- In neighboring Holguín, mills produced “Those companies who do business in the er 28 in January and three in February, in just 52% of their daily target on Mar. 6, U.S. need to get politically active and inform the first harvest since the Sugar Ministry according to the provincial radio station. their congressmen and senators. Foreign com- was replaced in November 2011 by a state- Key sugar-producing provinces such as panies need to complain to their respective run holding company. Matanzas, where local media reported a foreign ministries so this matter is brought up The industry hopes to reverse a long 17,000-toe shortfall, and Camagüey, Ciego in the context of diplomacy as well.” decline, with plans calling for output to de Avila, Holguín, Las Tunas and Granma El País noted that other Spanish companies reach 1.45 million tons, compared with the — where sources said there were similar such as Repsol-YPF SA and BBVA have been 1.2 million tons Reuters estimates Cuba deficits — will now have to mill through subjected to similar pressure from OFAC over produced during the previous harvest. May to meet production targets. its dealings with Cuba and Iran. While there appears to be enough cane Cuba consumes 600,000 to 700,000 tons El País didn’t disclose how it re-ceived to meet this year’s production plan, milling of sugar annually and has a 400,000-ton toll copies of SEC’s correspondence with Telefó- in May is costly as summer rains set in and agreement with China. Cuban sugar is also nica, though it’s our guess that company attor- yields drop due to hot and humid weather. sold for export on the spot market. neys or top officials leaked it to the newspaper Official media reported eastern Santiago – REUTERS NEWS SERVICE in order to step up Spanish and EU pressure against the White House to back off. q April 2012 v CubaNews 5 POLITICAL BRIEFS RUBIO LIFTS HOLD ON JACOBSON NOMINATION In their own words … Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) said he’ll lift his hold on Roberta Jacobson’s nomination as assistant “Let all those you meet know, whether near or far, that I have entrusted to the secretary of state for Western Hemisphere affairs Mother of God the future of your country, advancing along the ways of renewal — a job that includes overseeing U.S. relations and hope, for the greater good of all Cubans. I have also prayed to the Virgin for the needs of those who suffer, those who are deprived of freedom, those who are with Cuba, the Miami Herald reported Mar. 23. Rubio’s change of heart comes “following separated from their loved ones or who are undergoing times of difficulty.” months of negotiations with the administration in — Pope Benedict XVI, in a Mar. 27 homily at the basilica housing the original statue the hopes of cracking down on abuses of the peo- of the Virgin Mary in Santiago de Cuba, the first leg of his three-day trip to Cuba. ple-to-people Cuba travel policy,” his office said. “This policy has been abused by some people “I beg Your Holiness to intercede for those who are in prison because of their who are more interested in profiting from tourism convictions. I implore Your Holiness to take up the defense of those Cubans who than in a meaningful effort to bring about demo- are demanding freedom at the risk of persecutions and humiliation.” cratic change in Cuba,” Rubio said in a statement. — Lech Walesa, founder of the Solidarity movement and former president of Poland, “In doing so, they have also undermined our in a Mar. 8 letter to Pope Benedict XVI on the eve of the pontiff’s visit to Cuba. entire Cuba policy by providing hard currency to a cruel regime that oppresses its people.” “Our people welcome our beloved René to the country and will not cease in the Rubio said that as a condition for lifting his nom- struggle for his definitive return, along with his four dear brothers.” ination hold, he asked the administration to — enforce its own regulations and stop what he Official Cuban TV announcer, in a Mar. 30 newscast following the return of con- victed Cuban 5 spy René González. On Mar. 19, U.S. District Judge Joan Lenard called “the more egregious abuses.” granted González permission to visit Cuba to see his brother, who is dying of cancer.. The State Department agreed to make changes that will require applicants to show how their itin- eraries constitute purposeful travel that would sup- “He is going to follow that order to the letter. Like I said from the beginning, this has nothing to do with politics. It’s a humanitarian visit.” port civil society in Cuba and help promote their independence from Cuban authorities, Rubio said. — Philip Horowitz,González’s Miami lawyer, saying his client will obey the order to return to Florida since he doesn’t want to jeopardize the cases of his four colleagues. STATE BARS CUBAN DIPLOMATS FROM NYC EVENT The State Department says it rejected applica- “The Cuban government wages a permanent campaign of harassment and tions from two senior Cuban diplomats to travel short-term detentions of political opponents to stop them from demanding to New York to attend the annual Left Forum, but respect for civil and political rights. Criticism of the government is not tolerated in Cuba and it is routinely punished.” not for political reasons, said the Washington Post. According to State Department spokeswoman — Amnesty International, which on Mar. 22 put four jailed Cubans on its global list Victoria Nuland, they were denied because U.S. of prisoners of conscience — the only inmates in Cuba to have such a designation. diplomats in Havana are routinely refused per- mission to travel outside the Cuban capital (see “We are updating our economic model, but not talking about political reform.” article on Left Forum, page 6 of this issue). — Marino Murillo, Cuba’s minister of economy, speaking Mar. 27 in Havana to a room packed with foreign journalists covering the papal visit. LAWYER: COUNTY CAN’T ENFORCE FOREIGN POLICY Florida had no authority to enact a pending law “Anyone who can figure out how to keep a 1957 Chevy running is going to fig- that would prohibit local governments from hir- ure out how to organize online. I think you would be shocked at how quickly ing firms that do business with Cuba, Reuters things would begin to unravel for the regime if the people of Cuba had unfiltered reported Mar. 22, because federal law trumps access to the Internet and social media.” state law when it comes to foreign policy. — Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL), one of several speakers at a recent Heritage Foundation That’s the word from Miami-Dade County panel in Washington examining the role of Internet access and social media in Cuba. Attorney Robert Cuevas, who insists the country should not enforce the law now awaiting Florida “I’ve had so many people ask for the posters. They want to hang them inside Gov. Rick Scott’s signature. their homes, because if they put them on the door someone will steal them.” The new law is the latest in a long-running series of attempts to set foreign policy toward — Rev. Gustavo Cuñil of Santiago de Cuba, talking Mar. 31 about color posters of Cuba at the local level in Florida, which is home Pope Benedict XVI with Miami Herald’s visiting correspondent, Mimi Whitefield. to about 1.2 million Cuban-Americans. It would bar local governments from awarding “I’m very happy he’s coming. I was here when [Pope] John Paul came, and contracts of $1 million or more to companies that there were always plenty of tourists that followed.” engage in business with Cuba. It would also force — Juana de Armas, a shopkeeper in Old Havana. firms bidding on such contracts to submit affi- davits certifying they do not do business in Cuba. “Hofstra Law is excited to be one of the first law schools to take advantage of Cuevas told county commissioners that federal the government’s endorsement of educational exchange with Cuba, and we hope law does not authorize states to enact such that our program will provide students with an academically and culturally restrictions and they need not enforce it. enriching experience. This expansion of our study-abroad offerings also He cited several previous court rulings that responds to the complexities of the legal field, which increasingly demands state and local governments cannot interfere future lawyers to be prepared for an ever-more interconnected world.” with the federal government's ability to set for- — Nora Demleitner, dean of the Maurice A. Deane School of Law at New York’s eign policy nor can they adopt sanctions that Hofstra University, 30 of whose students are now in Cuba studying export exceed those set by Congress. laws and controls. Hofstra is the first U.S. law school ever to apply for Am- “If the county were to violate federal law in this erican Bar Association accreditation for a study-abroad program in Cuba. area, it would be exposed to liability under feder- al civil rights laws,” Cuevas said. 6 CubaNews v April 2012 BUSINESS In-flight magazine now available on charter flights to Cuba BY DOREEN HEMLOCK arrived in the United States in 1980 — at the flight operators, Miami companies that ship new in-flight magazine is now being dis- age of 16 — and has been back to Cuba often. freight to Cuba, restaurants in Havana includ- tributed on U.S. charter flights to Cuba. Cancio, a longtime anti-embargo activist, is ing Paladar La Guarida and Café Laurel, and A a music promoter who’s brought big-name some of Cancio’s own ventures: consulting The monthly magazine, OnCuba, is the brainchild of entrepreneur Hugo Cancio and Cuban artists like Silvio Rodríguez and Los company Cuba Business Development Group his Miami-based Fuego Media Group. Van Van to the United States. and mobile telephone business Mascell. One year ago, he and New York attorney And the inaugural March issue is full-color Cancio said a full-page ad in OnCuba now Antonio Martínez formed a political action retails between $1,800 to $2,000, but prices and glossy, with 48 pages of articles, photos will vary based on the number of editions and charts. Features in that issue include the booked and on magazine volume. island’s patron saint Virgin of Charity, painter He’s hoping to expand circulation to more Bonachea, hurdle jumper Dayron Robles, airlines that serve Cuba and plans to speak Cuba’s Oscar film entry “Habana Station” and with Cayman Airways, Cubana de Aviación places to hear live music in major cities. and others for placement on their flights. All articles are published both in their orig- “Our long-term goal is for this magazine to inal Spanish and in English. become the magazine for all travelers to Cancio said he printed 22,000 copies for Cuba,” he said. March, hoping to capitalize on a surge of trav- Initial reaction to OnCuba has been posi- elers to Cuba for Pope Benedict XVI’s Mar. tive. Readers said they like the timely content 26-28 visit. He aims to print an initial 15,000 to and artsy photos. But questions surfaced 20,000 copies monthly after that for the half- Hugo Cancio and the April edition of his magazine. about its financial viability. dozen companies that operate charter flights The magazine must print different versions to Cuba from Miami, Ft. Lauderdale, Tampa, committee to pressure Washington to lift the for competing charter companies. It will New York and other U.S. gateway cities. travel ban (see CubaNews, May 2011, page 6). depend on ads mainly from a limited pool of Cancio told CubaNews the idea for the new To get OnCuba off the ground, Cancio as- U.S. companies that serve tourism to Cuba. magazine came one day when he was at sembled a team of writers, photographers, And some wonder how many Cuban enter- Miami International Airport and overheard a editors, designers and translators in Cuba led prises can afford its glossy ads. group of Americans on a National Geographic by veteran magazine editor Tahimi Arboleya. Cancio says he’s looking beyond the print expedition discussing where in Cuba to go in Their aim: to share the mystery and allure edition to draw readers and advertisers. His between their programmed events. of Cuba, as Arboleya puts it in her first edi- team has also launched a website, Facebook Some asked questions about how currency tor’s column. That includes culture, history, page, Twitter account and YouTube channel exchange worked on the island. nature, daily life and travel. There’s a guide to to engage audiences. “I love Americans traveling to my native currency exchange and Customs issues. Details: Hugo Cancio, Fuego Media Group, country, so it came to me: It’s time for us to Plans call for a business section soon. 8010 NW 156th St., Miami, FL 33016. Tel: (786) put together a magazine,” said Cancio, who Advertisers in the first edition are charter 347-5244. URL: www.oncubamagazine.com. Cuban diplomats sound off at New York’s annual Left Forum BY VITO ECHEVARRÍA are 90 miles from a country whose govern- tion — in which the “Cuban Five” will be ex- he Left Forum, an annual event hosted ment has made it clear that they want to changed for U.S. prisoner Alan Gross, who’s by New York’s Pace University, held a destroy the Cuban revolution.” serving a 15-year sentence in Cuba for illegal- Tdiscussion titled “New Developments in Nuñez Mosquera added: “Our main objec- ly distributing telecom equipment. Cuba” — yet the Mar. 17 seminar was over- tiv is to save the Cuban system of social jus- “The Cuban Five should never have been shadowed by the absence of its original guest tice, that nobody will be abandoned. How we incarcerated, because it was clear that they speakers: Juan Lamiguero, deputy chief of the do that must be only through the Cuban way.” were fighting against terrorism,” said Nuñez Cuban Interests Section in Washington, and The diplomats also discussed Raúl’s ongo- Mosquera. “What will happen during the sec- Patricia Pego Guerra, its first secretary. ing campaign against corruption, which has ond term of Obama? I don’t know. Of course, Event organizers explained that the State landed several foreign businessmen in jail in- Cuba will be interested in finding a solution Department had denied their request to trav- cluding Canadian entrepreneurs Cy Tokmak- that would be acceptable to everybody.” el to New York (Cuban diplomats stationed in jian and Sarkis Yacoubian, and British real- Just a few days after the diplomat’s state- Washington must get explicit U.S. permission estate developer Amado Fakhre. ment, René González — who had been to travel beyond the Beltway). CubaNews asked whether all this may hurt behind bars for 13 years and was on probation In their place came half a dozen members the government’s efforts to attract investors. since last October — received permission to of Cuba’s mission to the United Nations, led Diplomatic functionary Jairo Rodríguez visit his seriously ill brother in Cuba. by Pedro Nuñez Mosquera, Cuba’s envoy to insisted that his government puts priority on Rodríguez was also asked his opinion of the UN, and his deputy, Oscar León González. transparency — and that regardless of what Occupy Wall Street protesters, who were After his speech, Nuñez Mosquera contras- happens to the businessmen, Cuba’s econo- egged on during the forum by filmmaker ted Cuba’s gradual economic changes under my will still have foreign input. Michael Moore and later arrested by NYPD Raúl Castro to the dramatic market reforms “Should we allow foreign investors to en- officers after marching on Zuccotti Park. undertaken long ago by China and Vietnam. rich themselves through corrupt [Cuban] of- “It is curious these things are happening in “We cannot be in a hurry. We must be care- ficials, without taking into account the nation- rich countries, where they’re not supposed to ful to do what Cuba can do, because China is al law?” said Rodríguez. “These challenges happen,” he said sarcastically. “As Cuban dip- 10,000 miles away. It is not suffering an eco- can only be answered by the Cuban people.” lomats, we’re not supposed to interfere in the nomic blockade. They have their own peculi- Speculation was raised on a possible “spy internal affairs of other states. But what I see arities,” he said. “We can never forget that we swap” — perhaps following Obama’s re-elec- is a reflection of what’s going on in society.” q April 2012 v CubaNews 7 ECONOMY Manufacturing’s share of Cuban GDP takes a steep tumble BY ARMANDO H. PORTELA uba’s manufacturing sector has per- formed poorly over the past decade C(2003-11) when compared to what the nation achieved two decades earlier (1983-91). Manufacturing’s share of Cuba’s GDP is now 13.1% — down from 36.1% in the period right before the collapse of the Soviet bloc, when the island suddenly lost its economic umbrella, including markets, suppliers, finan- cial guaranty and political patrons. For instance, fertilizer production — a key indicator in a country that was largely dependent on sugar exports for most of its history — is currently just over one-fifth what it was in the 1980s. This isn’t the only cause of problems in the agriculture sector, but cer- tainly accounts for part of its downfall. It’s the same story with other industries, some of them essential to Cuba’s economy. Others aren’t so fundamental, but their failure forces Cuba to divert some of its surplus cash to imports, such as tires and batteries. It’s impossible to depict the collapse of Cuba’s manufacturing sector in a few graph- ics on one page, but the pattern is the same for many key products including cement (see CubaNews, March 2012, page 8), concrete pre- fabs, textiles, milled rice, petroleum products, chemicals, food preserves, home appliance, vehicle assembly and soap, to name a few. Exceptions do exist, such as electric power generation, which is 26% higher today than two decades ago. That’s thanks in part to nat- ural gas usage by Energas, a Cuban-Canadian venture that currently generates 11.6% of the electricity produced in Cuba. Under current circumstances, it’s nearly unthinkable to return to previous output lev- els. It is not just a matter of investments, ener- gy or the availability of raw materials. It also has to do with quality and competi- tiveness — factors generally disregarded by Cuba’s state-run manufacturing entities. Other factors holding Cuba down include the island’s enormous industrial investments of the 1970s and ‘80s which today cannot be saved, and an immense bureaucratic appara- tus that prevents individual entities from mak- ing timely decisions about technology, freely using their income, receiving or disclosing information, or lobbying for their needs. Nevertheless, Cuba’s domestic market — strongly dependent on imports in a cash- starved environment — offers strong poten- tial for manufacturing growth. And a global- ized market would give Cuba’s manufacturing sector a chance to play a prominent role as a provider of goods and services. q 8 CubaNews v April 2012 NEWSMAKERS Argentine chef brings Cuban cuisine to 4 U.S. restaurants BY LARRY LUXNER model for the famous statue that graces the the best Cuban chefs to the U.S. for a visit. ashington’s most popular Cuban res- entrance to the University of Havana). “I went back to Havana in March, brought taurant is owned by two Jews from “My wife said, ‘why don’t you go with María all the chefs together and made a proposition: WPhilly and managed by an Israeli and spend the New Year in Havana?’ In a mat- let me spend time in the kitchen with you and who’s never been to the island. Its chef is an ter of a week, I got my papers in order and left. see exactly what you’re doing. Then I will pick Argentine whose sole connection to Cuba is “While I was in Cuba, I started looking at five of you, take you to the United States and his wife — a distant relative of the island’s we’ll make a paladar there — three nights in third president. Philadelphia and three in Washington.” And its moderately expensive food, some critics say, is distinctly un-Cuban. A CROSS-CULTURAL CULINARY EXPERIENCE Yet the Cuba Libre Restaurant & Rum Bar Pernot selected five chefs, four of whom — located at 9th and H streets at the entrance accepted immediately. The only one to de- to Washington’s Chinatown — continues to cline was Lilliam Domínguez, proprietor of La pack customers in night after night. Cocina de Lilliam — one of the most expen- On Friday and Saturday evenings, the Cuba sive yet highly regarded paladares in Cuba. Libre’s dining room magically becomes a “The U.S. Interests Section in Havana was stage where professional salsa dancers thrill very interested and offered to help me as patrons with their colorful exotic floor shows. much as possible to expedite their papers,” he And unlike any other restaurant we know said. “I try not to get involved with politics, but of, this one has actually braved official bur- since it’s a good thing to bring artists and eaucracy on both sides of the Florida Straits musicians, I thought, ‘why not chefs?’ to not only bring Cuban chefs to the United Everything worked out, and the first chef to States, but American foodies to Cuba as well. visit was Luís Alberto Alfonso Pérez — known “We’re sold out on the first trip, and start- as Lucio — of El Gijones, back in February. ing to book the second one already. I think it’s His signature four-course menu: lobster going to be in October of this year,” said salad, pineapple sorbet and truffle oil-infused Guillermo Pernot, the restaurant’s Buenos black sesame seeds, followed by eggplant- Aires-born chef. “The New York Times is going wrapped raviolis, lamb ropa vieja filling, then with us, a lady named Marian Burros who “chuleta de jabalí lechal” — baby wild boar wrote an article about food in Cuba, and now rib chop, sour orange-canela compote and she’s going to revisit the island.” yucca tamal — topped off with flan de queso. Pernot, 56, spoke to CubaNews last month, Pernot’s next Cuban visitor will be Alain squeezing us in for a few minutes at his Rivera of Doctor Café, who arrives in June. restaurant before the dinner rush. His four-course menu sounds equally The award-winning chef, who came to the mouth-watering: “merluza al escabeche” — U.S. in 1975, is married to Lucia Menocal, a fresh cod in vinegar-chili sauce, lamb tongue distant cousin of Aurelio Mario Gabriel Fran- and beet salad — followed by fresh corn pasta PHOTOS PHOTOS BY LUXNER LARRY

Top: Chef Guillermo Pernot of Cuba Libre in Washington, D.C. Above left: Duo of skirt steak with onion-lemon sauce, mushroom escabeche salad, pan-roasted mahi-mahi, black rice asopado and chipotle allioli. Above right: salmón con salsa de guindas with roasted sweet potato mash and fennel-cherry blossom salad. cisco García Menocal, who served as Cuba’s different restaurants. They have some lousy cannelloni and sweet crab meat enchilado fill- president from 1913 to 1921. food and some great food,” he explained. “We ing, then a third course of grilled yellowfin “We both used to work at the Four Seasons came back with the idea of discovering these tuna, malta-honey reduction, ruby red grape- Hotel in Philadelphia, 24 years ago,” he told paladares and the beauty of the Cuban cuisine fruit and lavender supreme, finished off with us. “I was in the dining room, and Lucia was that has since been lost.” chilled mango soup and Cuba Libre’s own the night manager at the hotel’s front desk.” Pernot (no relation to Pernod-Ricard, the fiver-year-old rum ice cream. In December 2010, Pernot’s sister-in-law — French conglomerate that produces Havana Conversely, Pernot and his wife Lucia are a professor at Yale — announced she was Club rum in a joint venture with the Cuban bringing Americans to Cuba to sample those going to Cuba for the first time in more than government) discussed his trip with one of same dishes at the source, under a special 50 years, in order to gather research to write the restaurant’s two owners, Barry Gutin. “people-to-people” license provided by Insight a book about her illustrious family (Lucia’s Together, they hatched a brilliant idea: Pernot Cuba, a division of Cross-Cultural Solutions. grandmother, Maria Wilson Menocal, was the would go back to Cuba, and arrange to bring See Pernot, page 9 April 2012 v CubaNews 9 Amnon Pick, the restaurant’s Israeli-born lowed to develop culinarily, but because of Pernot — FROM PAGE 8 general manager, joined the company in 2004 communism wasn’t allowed to. If their chefs A large advertisement at the entrance to the when it opened in Atlantic City. He helped were given the right tools, they’d be in a much restaurant, and on its website, proclaims: open the Washington location in October more advanced stage today.” “Taste what Cuban cuisine is today. Meet the 2010, working with Cuba Libre’s parent com- Pernot agrees wholeheartedly. chefs that inspired Cuba Libre’s new menu. pany, Guest Counts Hospitality. “The Americans are eating Cuban food that is 50 or 60 years old,” he insisted. “Cuba has Dine at the premier paladares, hand-selected ‘CUBA LIBRE’ OWNERS LOOKING TO EXPAND by Chef Pernot. Visit the Cuban Culinary As- changed. It’s no longer just rice and beans, sociation and interact with students work ing The D.C. restaurant seats 236, including 26 and ropa vieja. Our menu has a couple of clas- to restore Old Havana.” patrons in the main bar. In the summer, an sic dishes, but also new items, and for this rea- At $4,000 per person, the trip isn’t cheap — additional 74 people can sit out on the patio. son some people say this is not Cuban food. Pick says “business is pretty good, with lunch- but the whole concept of traveling to Cuba still My own brother-in-law refuses to eat here.” es averaging 100 and dinners of 150-200 dur- But business is business, and Pernot said has that forbidden fruit appeal, so it’s no su r- ing the week, and 400-500 on the weekends.” prise that all 18 slots quickly filled up. In fact, the owners — who don’t discuss revenues or The first Cuba Libre restaurant opened in profits — want to open outlets next in Atlanta the cross-cultural culinary exchange has gone Philadelphia, so it’s an 11-year-old concept. far more smoothly than Pernot anticipated. and Boston, and possibly Chicago, though not “We try to put you in the street scene of New York (“too expensive,” he says) or Los “The Cuban government has been very Old Havana and give you a high-energy dining welcoming,” he told us. “Knock on wood, they Angeles (“the West Coast is too far”). experience,” said Pick, who grew up in the What about South Florida, home of the haven’t given us any trouble so far.” Mediterranean resort town of Caesaria. “Our Unfortunately, the same can’t be said about world’s largest Cuban exile community? servers are dressed in guayaberas to create “That’s something we’ve thought about in some restaurant patrons. the feeling that you’re in Havana. It’s always “One woman came in here very upset, ask- the past,” said Pick. “Miami already has lots of fun to see the impression of guests walking in Cuban restaurants, so we’re not eager to go ing how come we arrange trips to Cuba, say- here for the first time.” ing it’s obscene and why are we feeding the How Cuban is the food at Cuba Libre really, there. But if the opportunity is right, of course government,” Pernot said. “I told her we’re we asked Pick. we would.” q not interested in helping the Cuban govern- “It’s what we call nuevo cubano,” he replied. Larry Luxner is a longtime freelance journalist ment. We just want people to experience food “We do have traditional food, but we want to and photographer based in Bethesda, Maryland. in Cuba today. That’s all we care about.” represent Cuba as it should have been al- He has been editor of CubaNews since May 2002. Prieto quits as culture minister, becomes advisor to Raúl uba announced Mar. 6 that Culture Minister Abel Prieto will be In other recent government appointments: replaced by his first vice-minister, Rafael Bernal Alemany, who n Vice President José R. Fernández, 88, was replaced by Politburo Chas worked with Prieto for the last 15 years. member Miguel Mario Díaz-Canel Bermúdez, 51. Fernández has Prieto, meanwhile, will become an advisor to President Raúl Cas- been a key military and political leader for more than 50 years. He’ll tro. That means the long-haired politician is joining Raúl’s inner cir- continue to work with Raúl Castro as a personal advisor. cle, which already consists of Marino Murillo (minister of econom- Díaz-Canel, formerly minister of higher education, has been char- ics); Leopoldo Cintra Frías (minister of the Revolutionary Armed acterized as a “rising star” among the younger generation. He’s been Forces); Gladys Bejerano (general comptroller) and Luís A. Rodrí- repeatedly praised by Raúl for his excellent performance as a guez López-Callejas (CEO of GAESA, the holding company for the Communist Party leader in Villa Clara and Holguín over the last 20 Cuban Ministry of Defense). years. Díaz-Canel is being replaced as minister of higher education Abel Prieto, 61, is without a doubt one of the most popular leaders by his first vice-minister, Rodolfo Alarcón Ortíz. in Cuba — especially among intellectuals, artists, scientists and large n Dr. José Miyar Barrueco, 79, is stepping down as minister of sci- segments of the political class. With his typical ‘60s hippie look, he ence, technology and the environment. He’s being replaced by Elba was always known as an open-minded, straightforward man who was Rosa Pérez Montoya, who is in her early 50s and has most recently not afraid to speak his mind. headed the science department of the Party’s Central Committee. Generally regarded as a minor expert in literature by bureaucrats Miyar, for many years Fidel Castro’s personal assistant, secretary in the Ministry of Education, Prieto reluctantly joined the all-power- of the Council of State and a member of that body, will now be in ful Politburo in the early 1990s. But he never showed any particular charge of OSDE (Organización Superior de Dirección Empresarial), interest in positions or titles. His eventual resignation from the Polit- which oversees R&D, production and marketing for Cuba’s biotech buro was accepted during last year’s Sixth Party Congress, where and pharmaceutical industry. Prieto insisted on dropping his ministerial post at some later date. n Army Corps Gen. (ACG) Leonardo Andollo has been appointed Yet being chosen by Raúl as his advisor is a clear indication of how first vice-chairman of the Comisión Permanente de Implementación much the old leaders value Prieto. y Desarrollo, next in line to Murillo. Andollo, 67, joined the revolu- A lifelong fan of the Beatles, Prieto pushed for the construction of tion as a teenager. In 1989, when he was only 44, he was promoted to John Lennon’s statue in Havana’s Vedado district, in a park where brigadier-general — the youngest in Cuba. A member of the Central many young people used to hang out. He persuaded Fidel Castro to Committee since 1986, he is a key figure in FAR’s economic activities attend the statue’s inauguration, where Prieto and his friends sang and the implementation of Perfectamiento Empresarial.. “Imagine” — and then listened to Fidel apologize for not having cor- n ACG Samuel Rodiles Planas, 80 and one of the oldest generals rectly understood the Beatles’ contribution to the world. still on active duty, has been named chairman of the Institute of Phy- Years later, in 1993, when Fidel starting blasting away at the many sical Planning. His mission: to reorganize and regulate Cuba’s con- artists and intellectuals who were “betraying” their country, Prieto struction industry by individuals, state entites and foreign investors. interrupted the old comandante to disagree. It takes a special kind of Second-in-command of the Western Army in the early 1990s and courage to do this, and everyone saw it. then in charge of the Defense and Security Committee of Cuba’s Prieto, who along with Fidel spent many hours in a meeting last National Assembly and Inspector Chief of the General Staff, this month discussing current events with 100 or so intellectuals from aging veteran has been on the Central Committee since 1965 and a Latin America, Europe and the Caribbean, is also responsible for pro- member of the National Assembly since 1992. moting a wide range of debates, discussions and publications. – DOMINGO AMUCHASTEGUI 10 CubaNews v April 2012 INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS Pope Benedict’s pilgrimage to Cuba: Winners and losers BY DOMINGO AMUCHASTEGUI A political tug-of-war was sparked by some- no use anymore ... and has failed in Cuba.” ast month, as the visit of Pope Benedict thing the pope said before arriving in Cuba: This isn’t just a gross manipulation of what XVI to Cuba drew nearer, opposition “It is evident today that Marxist ideology in the pontiff had actually said, but overlooks Lforces in Miami and Havana staged an the form it was conceived does not corre- the fact that similar statements can be found intense war of words by every means at their spond currently with reality.” He added: “New in 19th-century literature and the works of disposal. They urged no less than “rabo y ore- models must be built with patience and in a Max Weber and Antonio Gramsci — not to jas” (literally, maximum performance deman- constructive way.” mention what Fidel Castro told visiting Ame- ded of good bullfighters) rican journalist Jeffrey Goldberg a year ago. from the Vatican. BENEDICT’S 48-HOUR WHIRLWIND VISIT TO CUBA Benedict and his entourage expressed their Anything else, they satisfaction with the visit, particularly how at said, and the pope every occasion he was able to publicly convey would just be playing key concepts and ideas criticizing “fanat- into the hands of the acism” while advocating for “the strengthen- Castro brothers. ing of religious freedom.” Regarding the The pontiff also spoke of “consolidating Catholic Church in social bonds and securing the rights of future Cuba, there was a real generations,” and the need to expand church contest to see who freedoms in Cuba. would insult Cardinal The pope’s meetings with both Raúl and Jaime Ortega y Alamino Fidel Castro were well-publicized, though no and the church in gen- specifics were disclosed. eral for its complicity All this makes the Vatican look great, with with the Cuban regime. one notable exception. Conspicuously absent Condemnation of that were any meetings or dialogue with other reli- regime and promotion Others in Miami and Cuba began rephras- gious communities in Cuba, especially those of its downfall were its chief de-mands; noth- ing the pope’s comments, as a general state- with African religions and their well-known ing short of this was acceptable. Miami-based syncretic interactions with Catholicism. exiles urged the opposition to take to the ment and not referring specifically to Cuba, streets and fight for what they believed in. by quoting him as having said “Marxism is of See Pope, page 13 A showdown was needed to expose the Castro regime; it was also necessary to “spoil the pope’s fun” in Cuba, in the words of Mau- ricio Claver-Carone, head of the Washington- The 2012 papal visit: A view from Havana based US-Cuba Democracy PAC. ope Benedict XVI’s call for changes in Espacio Laical, a magazine of the Havana In the minds of these hardline exiles, the Cuba and the world should also focus archdiocese’s lay council, editorialized that pope was obligated to meet with dissidents Pon churches, say members of Cuban by outlining “how much remains to be done and politicize his 48-hour visit at all costs. But civil society who, independently of their to achieve a better country,” Benedict pro- the Vatican publicly announced that the pope beliefs or ideologies, recognized the impact moted truth and life, marriage and the fam- would not engage in any kind of talks with of the pope’s visit to this socialist nation. ily, freedom and justice, dialogue and social opposition forces, thereby following the Convinced many people “will not yet fully inclusion, forgiveness and reconciliation. example set by John Paul II in 1998. comprehend” the real importance of Bene- This proposal, the magazine’s editors dict’s Mar. 26-28 visit, Rev. Raimundo added, consists of the need for “a method- WHAT DID THE POPE ACTUALLY SAY? García told IPS that the Catholic Church is ology of relating to and accompanying an It is significant that Benedict — who ar- demonstrating its power of renewal “amidst extremely diverse society, in which move- rived in Cuba directly from Mexico — did not very complicated circumstances.” ments are taking shape that defend agen- hold talks there with opposition parties such “It is evident that Cuba increasingly does das related to religious, environmental, as the PRD, the PT or the Zapatistas, all of not match the image that many have of it immigration, sexual orientation, gender which represent large constituencies. and political issues.” Three days before Benedict’s arrival on the being frozen in space and time,” the retired They also cited the need to include both island, an attempt to “occupy” churches in pastor of the Presbyterian Reformed Cubans on the island and in the diaspora. Havana, Holguín and Pinar del Río failed com- Church in Cuba said via email. “Some émigrés do not want any ties with pletely. Also unsuccessful was an attempt by García, who’s also director of the Chris- their homeland or political groups, on the Ladies in White to stage protests. tian Center for Reflection and Dialogue in either end of the spectrum, and do not No significant incidents were reported in Cuba, acknowledged what he called the agree with dialogue and consensus as a Santiago de Cuba or the national sanctuary at church’s “capacity for dialogue” with the methodology for building the country,” the El Cobre. Few people took to the streets in government. “This might be the right time two editors said in their response. support of the opposition. Of course many to reach out,” he said. The word “dialogue” is at the center of reasons exist for this. Fourteen years after Pope John Paul II’s many analyses on this issue, including A special report published by The Econo- visit — which was considered a turning among communists and sexual rights ac- mist describes Cuba’s opposition as follows: point in relations between the Catholic tivists like Dr. Alberto Roque, who pub- “The traditional dissident groups are small, Church and the Cuban state — Benedict lished an article on his blog, HOMO@sapi- faction-ridden and heavily infiltrated by state found a society that is increasingly hetero- ens.cu, questioning whether or not the security. Some are opportunists and have geneous, Catholic intellectuals Roberto Catholic Church also “perceives itself as been easy for the regime to caricature as Veiga and Lenier González acknowledged part of the world” that must change. agents of the United States.” in a joint response to questions from IPS. – INTER PRESS SERVICE Obviously enough, they were the losers. April 2012 v CubaNews 11 12 CubaNews v April 2012

grants some flexibility to Cuban authorities SANTIAGO GETS EXPERIMENTAL SOLAR POWER BUSINESS BRIEFS to update its economic model and the minis- A microphotovoltaic system has been con- terial reorganization following the Party nected to the power grid in Santiago de SEC PROBES OREGON FIRM OVER CUBAN NICKEL Congress in April 2011,” the Mouvement des Federal officials are investigating Portland- Cuba, with a view to evaluating the technolo- Entreprises de France (Medef) said in an gy under tropical weather conditions and based Esco Corp. for using nickel obtained invitation letter to delegation participants. leading feasibility studies before it is extend- from Cuba in violation of the trade embargo, The delegation was headed by Pierre ed to the rest of Cuba, ACN said Feb. 18. OregonLive.com reported Mar. 17. Pringuet, CEO of Pernod Ricard SA. The Rubén Ramos, director of the Center for Esco lawyers said they expect the compa- Paris-based liquor giant is the foreign part- Solar Energy Research (CIES), said the new ny to face fines of no more than $5.5 million, ner in the Havana Club rum joint venture. system — made up of 30 solar panels — will but acknowledge penalties could be more, The group met, among others, Deputy For- feed 7.5 kilowatts into the grid. according to a public filing with the U.S. During 2012, the system’s power should be Securities and Exchange Commission. eign Minister Dagoberto Rodríguez. This was the second Medef delegation to visit doubled to 70 kw/day. Because of its climate, Disclosure of the violation by a Canadian said Ramos, Cuba has great solar energy po- subsidiary comes at a delicate moment for Cuba since 2008, said CubaStandard.com. Lellouche was the highest-ranking French tential that would enable the development of Esco, a company whose managers have been technological solutions to replace fossil fuel. trying to take the manufacturer public on the official to visit Cuba in nine years. France Nasdaq exchange. Esco announced its plans suspended bilateral government cooperation in 2003, after Cuba imprisoned 75 people in a CUBAN MARINE SCIENTIST WINS PEW AWARD in May for a $175 million public offering that Fabián Pina Amargós, a scientist with the has since languished. crackdown. In December 2010, a week after Cuba announced it had freed all of the 75, Center for Coastal Ecosystems Research in The Cuban disclosure was contained in a Cayo Coco, Cuba, has been awarded a 2012 317-page amended IPO document filed by France and Cuba resumed cooperation. Politics aside, the main stumbling block is Pew Fellowship in Marine Conservation for Esco and appearing on the SEC’s website. his project to study and conserve goliath “We learned that a foundry operated by Cuba’s debt and its falling behind on pay- ments to French government agency Coface, grouper populations in Cuba. one of our foreign subsidiaries had been pur- The Pew fellowship — which gives recipi- chasing and using material from a distributor which has not provided credit guarantees ents $150,000 for a three-year project aimed that obtained the material from a supplier related to Cuba since 2006. A Cuban delega- at addressing conservation challenges facing that procured the source material from tion traveled to France in January to discuss the oceans — is the first ever given for re- Cuba,” said the statement. debt issues; neither Coface nor the Cuban search in Cuba, and will be conducted under “We voluntarily reported the violation to government made an announcement about a U.S. Treasury Department license. OFAC, stopped purchasing from the distribu- the outcome of the talks. Pina Amargós hopes to establish important tor, temporarily halted production at the In its latest Cuba risk assessment, Coface scientific data and better management rec- foundry and sequestered all inventory con- predicts “mediocre” growth for 2012, citing ommendations for goliath grouper in Cuba, taining Cuban material. In July 2011, we re- the slowness of reforms and a slow shift of the Caribbean, and the Gulf of Mexico. sumed production at the foundry with mate- workers from state to private-sector jobs. Details: Jo Knight, Pew Marine Fellowship, rial provided by another supplier and subse- Coface expects rising unemployment, infla- Ocean Division, 901 E Street NW, Washington, quently received a license to sell most of the tionary pressure, slowing tourism, and a fall DC 20004-2037. Tel: (202) 552-2070. Fax: inventory that contained Cuban material.” in nickel prices to depress growth this year. (202) 552-2299. Email: [email protected]. The OFAC investigation could take months to complete, said the company, warning that penalties could be significant because each purchase of Cuban material and each sale of a product containing the material could Cuba: AIDS vaccine testing on humans? result in a fine of up to $65,000. uba will soon embark on testing a grams, including free care with anti-retrovi- Esco has four foundries in Canada, among new AIDS vaccine on human subjects, rals, some of them Cuban-made. The CIGB, CCaribbean360.com reported Mar. 7. which groups about 20 research units in about 30 plants worldwide. It’s possible a Canadian subsidiary of Esco did business Speaking at a biotechnology conference Havana, drives exports of Cuban biotech with a Cuban supplier without perhaps realiz- in Havana, a leading Cuban researcher said products including vaccines and other ing the ramifications. Cuba’s top biotech teams have successfully drugs. Cuba exports $400 million a year in The Cuban connection could embarrass tested a new AIDS vaccine on mice, and are these products, making them its second- Esco, which makes parts such as teeth for ready to soon begin human testing. largest export by value after nickel. gigantic mining shovels. But a $5.5 million “We are now preparing a very small, Some 600 scientists from 38 countries attended the biotech conference, among fine would hardly set the company back. The tightly controlled Phase One clinical trial with HIV-positive patients who are not in them Nobel-winning U.S. chemist and SEC filing showed Esco’s net sales jumped molecular biologist Peter Agre. to $1.12 billion in 2011, up 32% from $850 the advanced stages of disease,” said Enrique Iglesias, who heads the vaccine In related news, CIGB-300 — a synthetic million in 2010. Gross profit grew 34%, from development team at Havana’s Biotech and anti-tumor, peptide-based drug designed to $223 million in 2010 to $299 million last year. Genetic Engineering Center (CIGB). treat uterine cancer — received an award Iglesias, addressing the Havana 2012 from the Latin American Society of FRENCH TRADE MISSION UPBEAT ABOUT CUBA International Biotechnology Conference, Pharmacology. The drug, patented in 2001, A business delegation that included execu- said the Teravac-HIV 1 vaccine was made is being mass-produced to be used in clini- tives of 17 French corporations spent three from recombinant proteins aiming to cal trials that started in 2006 for stage one days in Havana March 5-7 to scout for invest- “cause a cellular response against HIV.” and two of uterine cancer. ments in energy, transportation, telecom and However, he quickly downplayed high CIGB project leader Silvio Perea said the agribusiness, reported CubaStandard.com. hopes for a long-awaited AIDS vaccine. drug has been submitted to clinical trials to The Mar. 5-7 mission followed a November “So far, there have been more than 100 confirm its therapeutic efficacy. 2011 visit by Foreign Trade Secretary Pierre clinical tests [on humans] with HIV” in Details: Dr. Luís Herrera Martínez, Direc- Lellouche, who expects French investments Cuba and other countries, he said, “and all tor-General, Centro de Ingeniería Genética y in Cuba to rise from €150 million ($201 mil- of them have failed.” Biotecnología, Ave. 31 e/158 y 190, Playa, lion) to €250 million ($335 million) this year. Cuba spends more than $200 million a Habana. Tel: +53 7 271-8008. Fax: +53 7 “Despite the U.S. embargo, the improve- year on AIDS prevention and care pro- 273-6008. Email: [email protected]. ment of the economic situation since 2009 April 2012 v CubaNews 13 INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS Red tape threatens international development aid for Cuba BY PATRICIA GROGG / INTER PRESS SERVICE Foreign aid has been regulated to date by for two years for a decision on whether or not xcessive delays by the Cuban govern- Resolution 50, passed in 2008, which modified they will be included in the economic plan,” ment in evaluating foreign aid projects Resolution 15 of 2006, regarding the “norms said Paola Larghi, of the International Com- E for economic collaboration that Cuba re- mittee for the Development of the Peoples, an for their compatibility with the country’s Italian NGO that’s been working in Cuba for economic planning policies have created ceives.” These regulations primarily spell out the obligations and duties of NGOs and other 20 years. uncertainty for aid organizations, which have Larghi says the process lacks clarity and sometimes even been forced to return funds organizations involved in cooperation. In 2009, the ministry for foreign investment transparency — and that delays in decision- to donors due to missed deadlines. making are having a major impact on NGOs “A lot of money is being lost simply and economic cooperation was merged with the ministry of foreign trade, which since with respect to planning and donations. because of bureaucracy,” an economist who “Because of this, cooperation funds are asked to remain anonymous told IPS. then has overseen this sector. Some NGOs that operate in Cuba say it was being sent back, for projects that could not be Representatives from several NGOs with implemented,” Murillo said. offices in Cuba said the most serious aspect of Elio Perón, a consultant with the Dutch this problem is that many of these projects organization Hivos, the Humanist Institute for are related to food security. Development Cooperation, said the philoso- “We’ve been in an impasse for the last three phy of including aid projects in the economic years, where we don’t know exactly what role LUXNER LARRY plan is aimed at improving efficiency. or part will be given to cooperation,” said “That is the Bible, full of good intentions,” Pepe Murillo of the Mundubat Foundation, a he remarked. Spanish NGO that’s been working in Cuba in Perón said the problem is the result of ad- the areas of agriculture and rural develop- ministrative changes Cuba is trying to intro- ment since 1996. duce, which “unfortunately” have not found A project by Mundubat and Japan to the best channel. improve drinking water and sanitation servic- “It is a question of putting new concepts es in the municipality of Isla de la Juventud, a EU’s Cuba mission fronts Quinta Avenida, Havana. into practice; as I see it, it is an administrative small island off the southwest coast of the problem, not a political position,” he said. main island, has benefited almost 80,000 peo- like starting over, with new experts, working ple in its capital, Nueva Gerona, and in the methods and assumptions. BUREAUCRACY ENDANGERS FOOD PROGRAMS surrounding countryside since 2011. “Trade relations have been thrown togeth- On that point, NGO representatives agreed er with cooperation with civil society organi- that the political stance toward them that NGOs: WITH MERGER, IT’S LIKE ‘STARTING OVER’ zations from the European Union and coun- existed in the 1990s has been replaced by a Within the process the government calls tries from other regions that are here based “technocratic and bureaucratic” approach, the “updating” of Cuba’s economic model, all on solidarity, which has nothing to do with which especially affects projects related to foreign aid received by Cuba must be includ- foreign trade,” said Eva Fernández, of the food production. ed in the “national economic plan” to ensure Spanish NGO Acsur Las Segovias. “That sector, which the government of Raúl that it is in line with economic planning goals. In addition, the economic plan has become Castro has made a national priority, is the one The “economic and social policy guidelines a straitjacket that is keeping projects from that is experiencing the greatest difficulties at of the party and the Revolution,” Cuba’s road meeting deadlines. First they must be this time,” Murillo explained. map for modernizing its economy, also state approved by the ministry of foreign trade, and “We have pointed out that contradiction, that it is necessary to “perfect and comple- then by the ministry of economy and planning but the response [from officials] is always the ment the legal and regulatory framework” for — a slow-moving, complicated process. same: if it is not in the ‘guidelines’ or the eco- aid that is given and received. “We have projects that have been waiting nomic plan, it does not go forward.” Sources with the EU delegation in Havana told IPS that a dozen European NGOs cur- which the world at large condemns the U.S. rently have aid projects in Cuba. In addition, Pope — FROM PAGE 10 embargo. The current scope and pace of re- the EU subsidizes plans implemented by Then who’s the net winner? forms in Cuba only adds more legitimacy European “non-state actors” that do not nec- According to Elizardo Sánchez Santacruz, a while improving the regime’s public image. essarily have offices in Cuba. professional dissident for the last 30 years, Before the pope it was Brazilian President The NGOs arrived on the island during the “the winner from this visit was the [Cuban] Dilma Rousseff. In a few days, Mexican height of the 1990s economic crisis, to pro- regime itself in terms of international legiti- President Felipe Calderón will arrive. vide aid and show solidarity with the Cuban macy and public image. The Pope’s messages And a few more days after that, the 46- people. “Those were times when people were were extremely cautious not to bother the member Organization of American States will predicting the collapse of socialism here,” regime; it’s obvious that the Catholic Church, hold its annual summit in Cartagena, Perón recalled. in Cuba and the Vatican, want to maintain and Colombia, where it’ll debate the need to incor- In the opinion of the Hivos consultant, the improve their relations with the regime.” porate Cuba as an active and legitimate par- authorities don’t seem to have realized that a Sánchez is right that the Cuban government ticipant in future OAS summits. reduction in aid from NGOs translates into is “the big winner,” but wrong about some- All of this is what has given the Cuban gov- decreased political potential, solidarity and thing else: The degree of international legiti- ernment international legitimacy. Don’t international influence. macy that government has achieved isn’t blame the pope for this. q “The most intelligent thing,” he said, thanks to the visit of Pope Benedict XVI, or “would be to especially support these organi- even that of Pope John Paul II in 1998. CORRECTION: In our March 2012 issue we zations that are in solidarity with Cuba.” q These were steps in a long chain of events ran a news brief about Sherritt’s earnings, but Patricia Grogg reports regularly from Havana linked to Cuba’s international standing over neglected to credit CubaStandard.com as the for Inter Press Service, a UN-affiliated, nonprofit the years on key issues, and the degree to source of the information. We regret the error. progressive news organization based in Rome. 14 CubaNews v April 2012 BOOKSHELF ‘Castro’s Secrets: The CIA and Cuba’s Intelligence Machine’ BY DOREEN HEMLOCK as saying. “In truth, we lost during most of the JFK to end the missile crisis, Latell wrote. id Fidel Castro have a moral responsi- Cold War to the Cubans.” In his memoirs, Soviet Premier Nikita bility to warn the Americans if he had a Havana’s spy network was particularly Khrushchev later described Fidel as “young Dhint that communist sympathizer Lee skilled in counterintelligence and the use of and hotheaded.” Latell quotes Khrushchev Harvey Oswald might kill President John F. double agents. Indeed, Rolando Cubela — a recalling: “I told Castro…You wanted to start Kennedy on Nov. 22, 1963? top CIA contact who was supposed to provoke a war with the United States. If the war would That’s the thorny question former CIA offi- a coup to overthrow Castro — turned out to have begun, we would somehow have sur- cer Brian Latell leaves readers to ponder in be a double-agent who told the Cubans all vived, but Cuba no doubt would have ceased to exist. Yet you suggested a nuclear strike!” his latest book, “Castro’s Secrets: The CIA and about the American plan, Latell said. (Palgrave-Mac- The engaging book focuses on the early On JFK’s murder, the book claims that top Cuba’s Intelligence Machine” Cuban authorities knew that Oswald went to millan; ISBN 978-0-230-62123-7; hardcover 1960s and specifically on two key incidents: the Cuban consulate in Mexico City three cost, $27; release date: Apr. 24). the Cuban Missile Crisis in October 1962 and Kennedy’s assassination in 1963. times between Sept. 27 and Oct. 2, 1963, seek- Latell gives no definitive answer, but sug- ing a tourist visa. Denied entry to Cuba, Os- gests that since Castro knew the Americans It relies heavily on testimony by ex-intelli- gence officer Florentino Aspillaga Lombard, wald left the consulate saying, “I’m going to were trying to kill him, the Cuban leader kept kill Kennedy for this.” mum about Oswald’s possible intentions “act- the son on a Cuban security officer who re- portedly worked with Fidel before defecting. Weeks later, just hours before JFK was ing in self-defense.” shot, Cuban officers in Havana asked young The 264-page book, including detailed On the missile crisis, Latell claims that Fi- del, then only 36, pushed for a preemptive spy Aspillaga to switch from his usual task of notes, draws largely on interviews with monitoring of CIA communications to listen Cuban spies who defected — and with former nuclear strike on the United States that could instead for news in Texas. and current CIA officers — to construct a pic- have proved catastrophic for both neighbors. “Castro knew,” Latell said Aspillaga Lom- ture of Cuban intelligence mainly from the Fidel believed a U.S. attack or invasion of bard told him, recalling the orders given to early years of the Cuban Revolution until the Cuba was imminent and wrote to Moscow him that morning of Nov. 22, 1963. “They collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. that “the Soviet Union must never allow the knew Kennedy would be killed.” It describes Fidel as the supreme master in circumstances in which the imperialists a top-notch spy system that the CIA long launch the first attack against it.” Details: Elisabeth Tone, Marketing Assistant, That “Armageddon letter” hastened Mos- Palgrave-Macmillan, 175 Fifth Ave. Suite #203, underestimated. “They were better than us,” New York, NY 10010. Tel: (646) 307-5343. Fax: Latell quotes an American intelligence officer cow’s decision to broker a peaceful deal with (212) 982-5562. URL: www.palgrave.com. Latell’s new book a fanciful attempt at rewriting history ater this month, Brian Latell’s newest work, “Castro’s Secrets: agents were debriefed and squeezed to the last drop by the CIA and The CIA and Cuba’s Intelligence Machine,” will hit the book- the FBI. But Latell — himself an ex-CIA analyst — seems unsatisfied Lstores. It’s his second book, actually. with the work of his colleagues, so he goes back in time to ask the The first one, “After Fidel” — though essentially based on second- questions, and get the facts straight, something his colleagues and third-hand versions, and Miami gossip — had a final chapter dis- apparently had not been able to do. cussing the role of Raúl Castro. And that chapter, Shame on Latell’s fellow spies who overlooked much more balanced than the others, upset quite a such crucial questions and stories. Shame on those lot of exiles in South Florida. experts at the CIA, the FBI, the Warren Commission Now, “Castro’s Secrets” revists a number of epi- and the Church Committee for handling the case so sodes connected, in one way or another, to the CIA inefficiently. And from there, Latell draws the most and Cuba’s intelligence service (DGI), which was un- fantastic conclusions ever made by a former U.S. der the direct orders and supervision of Fidel Castro. intelligence man. (Fellow comandantes Ramiro Valdés and Manuel It would be interesting to see if Latell could sustain Piñeiro, known as Redbeard, played minor roles). his arguments in a federal court, where — most The problem is that this second book is based probably — his case would be dismissed for lack of almost exclusively on secondary sources, including a substantial evidence, not to mention extremely huge number of public documents, books and testi- biased testimonies from witnesses who 40 years later monies. No primary sources, from either the CIA or come up with versions that sound quite different the DGI, are quoted to support the alleged “secrets.” from their exhausting debriefing sessions in the past. Nor are any new facts provided to substantiate any There’s another problem. More than 80% of his of Castro’s so-called secrets. information attempting to prove Fidel knew in ad- Well-known episodes of the Cold War, and in par- vance comes from just one source: Florentino Aspil- ticular of U.S. hostility and assassination plans against the Cuban laga Lombard, a DGI case officer who defected in 1987 in Bratislava. Revolution and Fidel Castro, are the object of various reinterpreta- That agent, who previously worked for Cuba’s counter-intelli- tions, as are some of Cuba’s major intelligence operations. gence services, claims that when he was a teenage rookie at CI, But these are entirely based on recent testimonies given to the someone shared with him vital inside information on the JFK assas- author by agents who defected mostly in the 1960s, ‘70s and ‘80s. sination — thereby allowing him to point the finger at Fidel. The crux of these testimonies are aimed at proving one thing: that Latell needs to prove that this key source, Aspillaga, is even Fidel Castro knew in advance about the plot to kill John F. Kennedy. smarter than James Bond. This is the backbone, the very essence, of Latell’s book. Com- For that sake, he states that this agent was “the most informed, pared to the JFK conspiracy, the other topics in “Castro’s Secrets” highly decorated officer ever to defect from Cuban Intelligence.” seem like minor anecdotes. At the time of their defection, those See Latell, page 15 April 2012 v CubaNews 15

Latell — FROM PAGE 14 ARTS & CULTURE Not true at all. Other men and women with greater credentials are walking the streets of America as normal U.S. citizens. ‘Chico and Rita’ not yet a box-office hit If Aspillaga was what Latell tells us, then BY VITO ECHEVARRÍA The marketing of “Chico and Rita” revived the popularity of pre-Castro era Cuban culture why was he never sent abroad on risky, com- ast February’s Academy Awards had a plex missions as others were? Why wasn’t it to a European and American audience en- surprise nomination connected to Cuba: thralled with bands like Buena Vista Social until 1986 that he got his first assignment ov- L“Chico and Rita” competed for best ani- Club and spin-off acts like Compay Segundo erseas — and why in Bratislava of all places, mated feature film, losing to the Johnny Depp- working under the cover of Cubatecnica? and Ibrahim Ferrer during the late 1990s. voiced movie “Rango.” They and the foreign tourists who visited Surely an agent with such brilliant creden- “Chico and Rita” — which has received rave tials, as those portrayed repeatedly by Latell, Cuba in recent years helped fuel the film’s reviews worldwide — is an animated cartoon success in the two countries, Spain and Eng- should have been named to key intelligence film about the romantic posts like New York, Paris, Prague, Madrid or land, where it was originally ups and downs of a tal- released. Mexico City. By any standard, Bratislava was ented Cuban jazz a third-rate assignment within the DGI. According to the Holly- pianist and a sultry the film’s dis- singer during the late wood Reporter, JUST ANOTHER CHEAP CONSPIRACY THEORY tribution in Spain by Walt 1940s who both trek to Disney International result- Most of the testimonies quoted by Latell as New York in search of ed in more than $1 million part of his “secrets” come not from direct par- fame and fortune. of gross receipts at theaters ticipants but were rather overheard; indiscre- The movie — made in that country. tions of other agents in gross violation of the on a $13 million budget And even though it lost norms of compartmentalization and source — is a collaboration out to Johnny Depp on protection, things these defectors learned between Spain’s Fer- Academy Awards night, casually or by chance. nando Trueba (whose “Chico and Rita” still won a If Cuban intelligence is, according to Latell, film “Belle Epoque” Goya award in Spain for “one of the world’s best and most aggressive won an Oscar for best best animated feature film. intelligence services” that regularly outper- foreign-language film Referring to the movie’s formed both the CIA and the FBI, then how is in 1993); artist/design- Oscar nomination, Mariscal it possible these defectors were the benefici- er Javier Mariscal, and told Reuters he was “very aries of so many monumental indiscretions? It the British animation surprised, because normal- just doesn’t add up, to say the least company Magic Light ly animation is an American Latell plays very well with words. He never Pictures. market. It’s very strange states that Fidel Castro was behind JFK’s as- It uses the romance that Hollywood saw our film sassination. He’s more careful. He says Fidel between the two main and liked it enough to nomi- knew in advance, quoting Aspillage in a “sen- characters to bring to nate it.” sational revelation” that “Castro knew one life Cuba’s vibrant Mariscal is right: “Chico hundred percent that they were going to musical scene during and Rita” bumped off Holly- shoot at Kennedy.” the pre-Castro days. wood heavyweights Steven Spielberg and So Fidel was aware that Kennedy was going At that time, Cuban bands were often in Pixar Animation Studios, whose “The Adven- to be shot, and in Dallas? That can only lead to demand at concert halls and VIP nightspots in tures of Tintin” and “Cars 2” were expected to one obvious conclusion: if the Cuban leader New York, Las Vegas and elsewhere. Some be nominated in that Oscar category. really did know in advance, it’s because he Havana-bound flights from U.S. cities back in “Chico and Rita won prizes internationally, was part of the conspiracy. those days even included Cuban musicians but is not a success from an economic point of Despite Latell’s efforts to construe an who entertained their fellow passengers. view,” says Trueba. “It’s more of an ‘art film’. entirely new “conspiracy theory” in which Financing came from U.K. sources and Film animation for adults is something new, Fidel Castro and Cuba are a guilty party in the Spanish broadcasters TVE and TV3, while risky enough, unlike children’s animation, murder of John F. Kennedy, he can’t hide Grammy-winning Cuban musician Bebo which is a very safe market, since parents are from what is evident and factual. Grudgingly, Valdés — an innovator of his country’s always looking for films to take their kids to.” he has to quote more qualified authors who mambo sound — performed the film’s sound- One benefit of the movie’s Oscar nomina- have already dealt with this issue. track, which also incorporates the legendary tion is its expanding audience in the U.S. mar- “The overwhelming majority of Americans, Latin jazz music of Dizzy Gillespie, Thelonious ket. Dave Jesteadt, director of the film’s U.S. as well as most conspiracy theorists, have dis- Monk, Chucho Valdés, Charlie Parker, Tito distributor, GKIDS/LumaFilms, told Puente, Chano Pozo and Ben Webster.” Cuba- carded the theory that Cuba was behind the News recently that “Chico and Rita” on the assassination.” The Warren Commission, the verge of going beyond the art-house crowd in Church Committee and the House Assassina- DESPITE PRIZES, FILM NOT A FINANCIAL SUCCESS New York and Los Angeles. tions Committee, along with five million Even so, actual Cuban input for the movie “We are at around $150,000 in U.S. box- pages of declassified CIA files and other gov- was strictly musical. office revenues, but that is only after two ernment documents, have confirmed that “no “We did not receive any help from the weeks of release and in a small number of the- smoking gun” points at Cuba. Cuban government. I neither asked for it nor aters,” he notes. This is the official, well-documented posi- had any agreement with them,” Trueba said. “It’s continuing to open over the next few tion of the U.S. government. Latell’s efforts to “What we received was much help and collab- months, so this is just the beginning. The prove otherwise smack of sheer manipulation oration with Cuban musicians — both inside Oscar nomination definitely boosted interest and a total lack of credibility. and outside the island.” in theaters and audiences, and sent the film It’s no surprise that Trueba and Mariscal – DOMINGO AMUCHASTEGUI from 10 or so theaters to over 100 [in the worked together in this film. Back in 2000, United States], and possibly many more.” Former Cuban intelligence officer Domingo they also collaborated on the Latin jazz docu- Like Buena Vista Social Club more than a Amuchastegui has lived in Miami since 1994. He mentary “Calle 54” – which brought together decade ago, “Chico and Rita” has proven once writes regularly for CubaNews on the Communist some of the same musicians highlighted in again that among Cuba’s most enduring Party and South Florida’s Cuban exile community. this film too. exports is its music and culture. q 16 CubaNews v April 2012

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Details: Vanessa López, Institude for Cuban & Cuban-American Studies, 1531 Brescia Avenue, Coral Gables, FL 33146. Tel: (305) 284-5386. Email: [email protected]. Apr. 20-24: “Culinary Tour of Havana.” Join Chef Guillermo Pernot and his wife Lucia on a trip to Cuba, meet the chefs that inspired the new menu at Washington’s Cuba Libre bar and restaurant. Dine at Bar Oviedo, El Gijonés, La Cocina de Lilliam, La Guarida. Travel provided Editor by Insight Cuba, a licensed provider of people-to-people travel. Cost: $4,000 per person, dou- n LARRY LUXNER n ble occupancy. Details: Emily Jarmuth, Sales & Marketing Director, Cuba Libre Restaurant, 801 Washington correspondent 9th St. NW, Washington, DC 20001. Tel: (202) 408-1600. Email: [email protected]. n ANA RADELAT n Aug. 4-6: “Where is Cuba Going?” 22nd Annual Meeting of the Association for the Study of Political analyst n DOMINGO AMUCHASTEGUI n the Cuban Economy, Hilton Miami Downtown Hotel. Speakers at this key event include Jorge Domínguez (Harvard); Richard Feinberg (University of California-San Diego) and Eusebio Feature writers Mujal-León (Georgetown). “We are also working towards bringing Cuba-based economists n TRACEY EATON n and scholars to the conference.” Registration before July 15: $75 for members, $175 for non- n VITO ECHEVARRÍA n n DOREEN HEMLOCK n members. Details: ASCE, PO Box 28267, Washington, DC 20038-8267. Email: [email protected]. Cartographer n ARMANDO H. PORTELA n

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