Bringing distances together

Bringing distances together

By Elsa Claro

May 23 2012

They say that whenever there´s a rumor, there´s a reason and though there are not so many rumors or reasons to aspire to a Guinnes record, the ongoing period has been rich in exchanges of perspectives for Cubans on both sides of the Gulf.

The dialogue fostered by the Catholic Church in past April, was another good attempt to bring Cubans from both banks, including specialists, together in the analysis of sensitive matters dealt with in appropriate serenity. Migration in all its variants and problematic, along with alluring topics, as it´s the case of probable re-insertion of the Cuban American in those economic structures suffering a bit by bit transformation in the island.  Not always tidily, giving thus a cue for ill-intentioned hubbub; traitors, pharisaic and tricksters are hard to do without.

In other U.S contexts, there was the seventh academic debate related to the possibilities of normalizing U.S-Cuba relationships. For Andrés Serbin, in charge of CRIES (Regional Coordinator of Socioeconomic Research), which sponsored the event, it showed that the majority of countries in the continent support the elimination of the anomalous exclusion of Cuba from the recently held Summit of the Americas.

 The strong emphasis on not excluding Cuba from hemispheric reunions could bring about a remedy in the regularization of links between Washington and Havana. These experts are only attempting to solve certain aspects hindering an approaching attitude, a fruitful pragmatic outcome for both parts.

 Philip Brenner, professor of the American University in Washington, suggested that the Obama administration puts Cuba out of the list of terrorists states, because of lack of substantial reasons to keep it there or having included it, for that matter.

 Among the suggestions offered by the group of Cuban American specialists we have to open bilateral trade within standard frames, liberalize travelling in both directions and to open the dialogue in mutual interest matters such as environment, drug trafficking and terrorism.

Among factors rendering the contacts easier, there is the influence of the more recent and not at all hostile economic emigration, as well as a percentage within the old, those who have changes vision or keep themselves neutral. Those who opt for confrontation are less, estimated the specialists, though they acknowledge their power and intentions to use it.

 For the time being, negative factors take the upper hand, specially considering the upcoming elections where the Cuban issue has a bearing though not in the hottest spot among so many complex and perplexing troubles. That´s why it won´t be useless to keep on looking for a salutary proximity.

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