Church official wants faster reforms ‘with pauses’
The spokesman for the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Havana, Orlando Márquez Hidalgo, on Nov. 26 published an article in the Archdiocese’s magazine, “Palabra Nueva,” giving 10 reasons why the social and economic reforms proposed by the government should be speeded up.
Márquez is also the magazine’s editor. The article, titled “Life Is Not a Rehearsal,” did not say whether Márquez’s views reflect those of Havana’s Archbishop, Cardinal Jaime Ortega y Alamino.
(Read “Archbishop Ortega and the Bishops Conference” in Progreso Weekly, Nov. 17. )
Cuba’s authorities have maintained that, to reach a “prosperous and sustainable socialism,” the reforms must be applied gradually and after a trial period to avoid mistakes ñ in other words, after a rehearsal. The official position is that the changes should be made “without pause but without haste.”
Márquez disagrees and proposes that the “actualization,” or update, be conducted “with haste but with pauses.” Following are excerpts from his article, translated into English by Progreso Weekly.
(For the full article, in Spanish, access:
http://www.palabranueva.net/newPage/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=577:la-vida-no-es-un-ensayo&catid=203:opinion&Itemid=257 )
“The category of time is much too important not to be given the attention it deserves. Most respectfully, I think, then I say that this process of reforms or actualization should be conducted with haste but with pauses ñ with haste to move forward in an expeditious and unhesitating manner, but with the strictly necessary pauses to enable [the government] to redirect its course or cast away the structural or human obstacles that prevent the forward motion. […]
“The current proposal of achieving a ‘prosperous and sustainable socialism’ indicates ñ no more, no less ñ that in the past we lived a socialism that was neither prosperous nor sustainable. And that’s not a minor thing, because ‘the past’ means five decades, the time span of three generations of Cubans. […] It hurts too much to know that we didn’t take advantage of it as we should have, because it is not a material good that can be regained later. Time lost does not return, because we never had it; we cannot recoup it or acquire it as our property. […]
“For that reason, it is important that the ongoing process of reforms move forward expeditiously. It is understandable that [the authorities] try to avoid an overflow or a bolting of the ‘market horses,’ but such an opinion should not weigh more than the economic and existential needs of the people, the families and the country. It does not impede – rather, it encourages – bureaucracy, the black market and illicit enrichment.
“Finding the balance between the political considerations and the demands of the citizens has always been a challenge to every public servant, and that is precisely what enables him to gain the trust of the citizens.
“The issue of time in this process of reforms is important for various reasons.
“First, because what has been announced, though lacking in specificity, raises very natural expectations in a citizenry that is prepared for greater conquests but has very limited spaces and has been bitten by discouragement. And the discouragement of citizens is not a good ally of anyone or anything.
“Second, because despite what has been put into practice, the economic indicators and the family basket continue to be squalid.
“Third, because you cannot hope to build a prosperous country and society if you do not enable the existence of prosperous citizens and don’t open the doors to the sources of finance that generate prosperity, something that does not eliminate the proposal of the social function of wealth. The idea of a wealthy country without wealthy citizens may seem original but isn’t, because that was what the Soviet Union and Mao’s China were: countries of great wealth inhabited by poor people.
“Fourth, because the statistics and forecasts tell us, without dissimulation, that by 2030 we shall be a nation with 30 percent of our population over the age of 60, similar to some developed countries but with a peculiar difference: our 30 percent – elderly and nonproductive citizens – would be a poor sector in an underdeveloped and poor nation.
“Fifth, because if the above comes to pass as predicted, perhaps the best way to deal with it is to create conditions that, on one hand, stimulate childbirth and, on the other hand, discourage emigration and encourage the immigration of younger people who are willing to work and invest capital and knowledge here, including Cuban émigrés who are willing to return.
“Sixth, because it is a waste of time to insist on the proven inefficacy of government property, especially every branch of production and services. It is much too boring and absurd to read the same calls to efficiency, control or labor discipline in state-run companies that were published in the official press 25 years ago or last week.
“Seventh, because the economic and technological disadvantage of both the nation and the citizens places us in a vulnerable position when we need to inject ourselves into a globalized economy and see the possibility of a lifting of the United States embargo/blockade.
“Eighth, because economic stability and personal and familial prosperity can be an effective means ñ though not the only one ñ for the noble goal of recovering some values that are lacking in today’s society. […] Many of those antisocial and immoral behaviors are provoked in part by the material shortages that have accumulated over generations and by their consequences: theft in state-run institutions, the imposition of controls that contradict the freedom that is presumably being defended, disrespect for authority, the traffic in influence performed by people who hold highly responsible jobs yet receive low wages, the lack of housing, and urban decay.
“Ninth, because accelerating the reform or actualization and generating wealth would be the best way to stop and then overcome the decadence of society’s two most important sectors: health care and education.
“And tenth – and no less important – because the more advanced the process of reform is, the more favorable will be the conditions for those who will have the political responsibility to lead the country in the immediate future. […]
“It is true that the economy is very important, as demonstrated by this process of reforms or actualization that attempts, in addition, to bring order to [an area] where contempt for economic laws has prevailed for such a long time […]
“But for the Church – and the Christian – the essence of the issue is more complex and rich. Contrary to what some people interpret (often lightly), it is not a question of favoring the market and rejecting policies that seek to reduce social differences to a minimum. […] For the Church – and for me, personally – it is not a question of a theological choice between capitalism and socialism or to reduce the issue to mere economic indices or shouts of denunciation from a mob.
“There is something that is above the economy, politics and parties: it is the person. The human being is at the center of the issue, is the supreme subject on the list of priorities, the axis around which every social project emerges and acquires its authentic value. ‘Created free by God to live forever in freedom,’ to seek the truth and undertake actions that dignify him in body and spirit, it is the human being, in his individual and social condition, who must always be the main focus of every political, economic, cultural and social action.
“In the face of the freedom and dignity of man, of all men, any social project is useful only if it reveres the former and serves the latter. That freedom and that dignity must prevail during our lifetime in this world. And life is not a rehearsal, we have only one chance to live it, and that time is sacred.”
