‘It is imperative that we make changes’
An
interview with Cuban politologist and editor Rafael Hernández
By
Manuel Alberto Ramy
The
following is a condensed version of a long and revealing interview
broadcast by Radio
Progreso Alternativa
on Wednesday, Nov. 28, 2007. To listen to it in its entirety (in
Spanish only), click on the link that appears in the previous
sentence.
"Cuba
today is experiencing an intellectual movement never before seen,"
affirms Cuban politologist Rafael Hernández, who for years has
promoted a culture of debate in our country.
That
statement explains the existence of the quarterly magazine Temas,
edited by Hernández, which — in 52 issues — has touched on
practically every problem that affects intellectuals worldwide,
particularly the most pressing problems of today’s Cuban reality.
To
Hernández, "the magazine is in some way the mirror of
that intellectual movement, of that output of ideas, of that
diversity of Cuba’s contemporary thinking that looks not only
inwardly but also outwardly, at the rest of the world."
From
Havana Read Spanish Version
‘It
is imperative that we make changes’
An
interview with Cuban politologist and editor Rafael Hernández
By
Manuel Alberto Ramy
maprogre@gmail.com
The
following is a condensed version of a long and revealing interview
broadcast by Radio
Progreso Alternativa
on Wednesday, Nov. 28, 2007. To listen to it in its entirety (in
Spanish only), click on the link that appears in the previous
sentence.
"Cuba
today is experiencing an intellectual movement never before seen,"
affirms Cuban politologist Rafael Hernández, who for years has
promoted a culture of debate in our country.
That
statement explains the existence of the quarterly magazine Temas,
edited by Hernández, which — in 52 issues — has touched on
practically every problem that affects intellectuals worldwide,
particularly the most pressing problems of today’s Cuban reality.
To
Hernández, "the magazine is in some way the mirror of
that intellectual movement, of that output of ideas, of that
diversity of Cuba’s contemporary thinking that looks not only
inwardly but also outwardly, at the rest of the world."
In a
small office on the fifth floor of the ICAIC building [Cuban
Institute of Cinematographic Arts and Industry], Hernández
sits in his trench of ideas. This thinker of average height, a
forehead so ample that it has displaced his hair, of fragile
appearance and solid thinking, chats not only with words but also
with his eyes, which often appear tired of traveling to the future
with a round-trip ticket.
To him,
Temas "is
a sort of stethoscope, the device doctors use to hear the heartbeats
of contemporary society, primarily Cuban but also the state of
thinking in Latin America."
This
monitoring of Cuban hearbeats began in 1995 under the sponsorship of
Culture Minister Abel Prieto, who asked Hernández to edit the
magazine "so it could become a space for debate, from the
perspective of a critical reflection of Cuba’s and the world’s
contemporary problems. That was a necessity at the time, and still
is."
The date
is significant, because it places the promotion of the debate of
ideas 12 years earlier than its beginning in Cuban society. In
addition, Hernández says, the publication of the magazine for
the purpose of debating — and "debate is discrepancy" —
reprises a rich process of criticism and introspection that were
interrupted by extraneous events that affected Cuba.
The
politologist takes out his return ticket because "to understand
the present, you have to look backward." He tells me that
between 1986 and 1990 "a very important process of public
discussion took place, which in my judgment is the most profound and
democratic critical debate ever staged in Cuba, and it culminated
with the call to the Fourth [Cuban Communist] Party Congress."
The
debate "developed a docket of problems, of basic things that had
to do with the mismanagement of the Cuban socialist model, not only
in connection with economic aspects but also political, social,
cultural, etc. At that point, an expectation for change was created;
the temperature of public opinion, of the critical social
consciousness about those problems, was already high.
"At
that exact moment, the crisis of the Special Period unraveled and
amid that crisis it was clearly impossible to go ahead with the
agenda of the so-called ‘rectification’ and to implement policies
that provided answers to the problems."
As I
listen, I recall that Hernández is not the first of the
personalities that I have interviewed who refer to that period
(1986-1990) of strong critical debate, which I immediately associate
with the early alert sounded by Fidel Castro about the likely
collapse of the Soviet Union and the socialist bloc in general.
Another
detail that many of the analysts and Cubanologists who write in the
foreign press should be aware of is that the current debate in Cuba
is focused on the need to perfect the "Cuban socialist model,"
not on the option between the socialist system and some other system.
"The
system’s principles must be defended, but the model itself must be
transformed" so it may be buttressed, Hernández affirms.
"I have heard — and I don’t know if the figure has been used
officially — that more than 2 million proposals have been received
and recorded.
"No
doubt, some of the proposals are not viable, but I am sure that all
the proposals involve every important problem in Cuban society, all
the problems that affect the operation of the Cuban socialist model.
And I think that that’s what the discussions have been all about."
The
fluidity of the dialogue returned us to the present, so the question
was inevitable: The open debates in the workplaces, nuclei of the
Comunist Party and the barrios
throughout Cuba — are they
a simple exercise by the people on the psychiatrist’s couch, a simple
catharsis?
"That
cannot happen," he replies, emphatically. "We are in a
crucial moment in the history of our country. Into this moment have
come together an immense capacity of intellectual creation and an
immense social energy. We have a truly educated population, people
who think with their own heads. As a result, after all these years,
we have at our disposal a public opinion, a citizenry with a capacity
for consistent critical analysis, consistent and committed.
"The
fact that the leadership of the Revolution summons us to a discussion
of the nation’s problems and asks us to express ourselves openly is a
measure of the willingness for change that exists in the country. I
don’t think that the leadership of the Revolution can call to a
discussion of a number of problems and then do nothing."
Before I
can formulate my next question, Hernández answers it. "It’s
not a question of whether we should make changes or not. The fact is
that it is imperative that we make changes. Politics is not the art
of exercising human will; politics is the art of what’s possible and
meeting the needs that reality imposes upon us. Cuban society today
demands changes and it is a fundamental element of socialism in Cuba
that consensus should be articulated around the response to those
changes."
Applying
to the problems a traditional Cuban song, I tell him that the
accumulated difficulties "are so many that they trip each other
up" and that, in my opinion, they could exceed the responses.
Hernández’s
reply: "We have a number of material problems; we have a number
of problems related to the scarcity of resources, but other problems
don’t have anything to do with that. They have to do with
mentalities, with ways of thinking and conceiving socialism, with
ways of thinking and conceiving participation.
"Without
the effective participation of the citizenry in the control of
politics and the decision-making process, we cannot solve any
important problem, whether it’s the production of milk, local
transportation, energy supplies, the savings of resources or the
construction of homes.
"All
that involves the participation of citizens in the making of
decisions involving priorities and in their control of politics. No
bureaucratic administrative mechanism can control politics or prevent
corruption like the people can."
Hernández
tells me that, in its 52 issues, Temas
has broached issues such as
transitions, the role of the market in socialism, national consensus,
socialist property, and the citizens’ effective participation, among
other topics.
In round
tables and articles, the magazine has published the opinions of
economists, sociologists, anthropologists, musicians, writers,
filmmakers, and designers, as well as the discussions and criticism
made daily by the ordinary Cuban. Not just print them, but also
present them in forum-debates, which any citizen can attend and join.
These discussions are even advertised on television, Hernández
says.
Has the
magazine received phone calls or reprimands for the articles it
publishes? I ask. Has anyone tried to censor it?
"Everything
that is displayed in the intellectual terrain with ideas, with
critical points of view, has to overcome obstacles," he answers.
"That’s natural, that’s normal. If someone doesn’t want to fall
ill with lead poisoning or silicosis, one should not work in a mine.
If one doesn’t want problems with the spine, one should not work at a
computer.
"Professions,
jobs have their own occupational diseases. Our job has them, too; it
runs into mentalities that at some point resist the airing of certain
things."
I try to
interrupt him, but he continues: "In Cuba in the past 15 years,
the battle has been waged in an adequate, negotiated manner, through
dialogue. The dialogue between the institutions that make decisions
and the institutions in the world of culture, the world of thinking,
is increasingly fluid. And ‘fluid’ doesn’t mean there is no
disagreement.
"The
resistance to new ideas, criticism and changes is something that I
find in my neighborhood. I don’t have to go to any government office
to meet with resistance. In our civic culture, there are elements
that resist change and refuse to accept specific criticism or reject
the convenience of discussing specific problems in public.
"It’s
not a mentality that’s exclusively installed in the head of some
bureaucrats but in the heads of many citizens I know who are
reluctant to discussion. They don’t really believe that a debate can
unfold and go to the core of an issue and contend that we are often
not ready for debate.
"When
we talk about debate or criticism, we often talk about censorship,
restrictions, control, but we never talk about our own lack of a
‘debate culture.’ We must foster a culture of debate from the start,
because our society doesn’t have it.
"We
often call a debate ‘good’ when the participants say the same as we
think. That’s not debate; debate is discrepancy. And it is very
important that in a debate we express divergent positions in a spirit
of dialogue, of mutual respect. And I think that politics is going
through that stage right now."
To this
Cuban politologist who has given courses in several U.S. and European
universities as an invited professor, participation and criticism are
essential to build the model of Cuban socialism.
"All
the discussion about Raúl’s speech on July 26 is a discussion
that calls to discrepancy. And that is something that, to me, is
essential for the vitality of a political culture. In our case,
socialist cultural politics cannot be healthy if it is not developed
from the debate and criticism of an immense majority of citizens.
"Public
opinion in Cuba is represented by the immense majority of citizens,
not by a group that controls a specific number of communications
media. And that’s essential to make changes and to express, to permit
the media (including magazines like Temas)
to confront and deal with
the problems facing the ordinary citizen."
Hernández
final words seem to coincide with the idea held by many
Cuban
intellectual and politicians about the future of Cuba.
"All
the formulas destined to promote, emphasize and deepen the social
contents of socialism are formulas directed at the core of the
central problems of Cuba’s development. The Revolution must go
forward and leave more and more room for the new generations.
"Those
new generations are demanding capability, power, a degree of decision
over their own ideas, their own problems and criteria about the
meaning of a socialist society. And I think that the socialism of the
future is the socialism of the young."
Manuel
Alberto Ramy is Havana bureau chief of Radio Progreso Alternativa and
editor of Progreso Semanal, the Spanish-language version of Progreso
Weekly.
