‘I believe that our deficiencies in news reporting should be among the immediate improvements,’ Silv
‘I
believe that our deficiencies in news reporting should be among the
immediate improvements,’ Silvio Rodríguez declares
First
of a two-part interview
By
Diego M. Vidal Read Spanish Version
From
Sur (Argentina)
Progreso
Weekly has decided to present the interview given by famous Cuban
singer-composer Silvio Rodríguez to Argentine journalist Diego
Vidal in two parts. With great pleasure, we give you the first half.
Q.:
When
a Cuban is interviewed — especially someone like you, whose presence
anywhere signifies Cuba and the revolution — it is inevitable to ask
him how the island is living through the changes that are occurring.
A.:
Watching
the national newscast on television for three straight days is enough
to tell you that Cuba is a country submerged in a kind of stupor and
that it needs to improve at least the image it has of itself.
According to the Cubans with whom I talk daily — because obviously I
am not in touch with the whole world — our people feel an enormous
need for changes (not of principles) that are truly deep. I believe
the Cuban government is aware of this when I see President Raúl
Castro say that socialism is equality of opportunities but not
egalitarianism, a concept that had not been set forth in half a
century of revolution. As to the real possibility of changes, I
understand that many improvements can come only through more
production, but I always believe that there are urgent rectifications
that don’t have to wait for that. To mention just one example: the
exit permit we Cubans need to travel abroad.
Q.:
From
the outside, everything looks a bit dim, perhaps because of the
distance, but also because of the excessive propaganda against Cuba.
How have you experienced the process of Fidel’s health and Raul’s
assumption of the revolution’s helm?
A.:
Exactly
the way most of the people have. I have [learned the news] from the
official communiqués and, on occasion, through the foreign
press before the Cuban media. Of course, I believe that our
deficiencies in news reporting should be among the immediate
improvements.
Q.:
The
process of criticism and the presentation of situations that irritate
Cuban society is not new. Particularly in your case, because your
discrepancies on many issues have been public and notorious. Do you
think that today there is more space for that, or is it that your
position as an artist (and even a national deputy) gives you more
room to criticize?
A.:
It is
evident that there are spaces for debate that did not exist before,
and these are spaces that have been conquered slowly but constantly
for the past several years. Popular opinion has contributed a lot to
that; it has expressed itself through whatever channels it can find.
And even though it wasn’t always listened to, it continued to
manifest itself and exert pressure. It is also true that we writers
and artists have contributed our grains of sand. Recently, that
became palpable in the combativeness seen during the UNEAC congress.
Truths were spoken then that can only be erased with rectifications.
At that time, I wrote some verses, remembering the Che of "Socialism
and Man in Cuba," that say: "Guevara, the human, said /
that no intellectual should / be on the payroll / of official
thought."
Q.:
In
your songs, you were very critical of, or at least ironical about,
the reality in Cuba, such as the measures taken to legalize the
dollar or open the country to tourism. You focused on the
contradictions and differences that emerged later. How was Cuban
society affected by the aftermath of that?
A.:
All
that happened when European socialism foundered and Cuba lost 80
percent of its international trade overnight. At the time, measures
were taken that were considered extreme, because of the very harsh
situation in which they placed us. In addition to the legalization of
hard-currency possession and the opening to international tourism,
the government authorized the opening of farmers’ markets and a few
small economic activities by entrepreneurs, such as the private
restaurants called "paladares."
Those
were measures that the people had wanted previously, because
obviously they boosted the national economy. But it took the collapse
of the socialist camp for the government to authorize them. Those
measures of relief were simultaneously called "deviations from
the right path," and ever since then the State has treated those
initiatives with much reticence, to the point that it views those
people who hold foreign currency as half-delinquents.
One
of the basic problems of our socialism is that the State considers
itself self-sufficient when it comes to operate the commerce and
services that every society requires. In search of an ideal model of
socialism, a so-called "revolutionary offensive" was waged
in 1968 that privatized even the hamburger stands. Afterward, the
State tried to substitute national commerce with companies that have
been mired in bureaucracy and inefficiency.
The
recent measure to eliminate wage ceilings seems to me to be hopeful,
because it suggests that a change in concept is possible, in terms of
social and individual participation in the economy. I believe that
the national reality and the future are screaming for a more
participative socialism with greater freedoms.
Q.:
In
this context, the documentary "Men on Deck" was shown,
recalling your trip aboard the ship Playa Girón at a time when
you were not well liked. What can you tell me about those days?
A.:
I have
never liked to delve on personal issues from those days, when I got
into trouble for singing or behaving in a certain way, or for
expressing solidarity with friends who were in trouble. And I like it
even less now, when I see people who try to describe themselves as
victims or dissidents in search of applause or international
legitimacy. Opportunism has always turned my stomach. If I ever write
my memoirs, I shall tell what I remember from those years as what
those events were — setbacks that can occur in anyone’s life and
anywhere.
Q.:
Not
long ago, there was a public reappearance of personages from the
so-called Gray Quinquennium of the Revolution, in the 1960s, and the
world of culture reacted with what became a "war of e-mails,"
a virtual debate. What did you feel when you saw those people looking
for some sort of historical reparation?
A.:
The
first thing I felt was surprise. I didn’t expect such a reaction,
perhaps because I myself did not react that way when I watched a
former leader on TV with whom I had differences. My reaction that
night was very different, because when I watched that person on TV I
thought he was facing up to his own negative legend, and I thought it
was a brave gesture. I even looked at my companion and told her: "I
think we’re growing up."
Days
later came the flood of e-mails, which I thought was very positive as
a catharsis. I saw myself reflected in some of those messages; not in
others. Maybe the things that happened to me were not as serious as
happened to others or maybe I did not let them affect me so much,
even though I ended up in a psychiatrist’s office. I believe I am a
person who knows how to forgive (though not to forget) or, at least,
someone who knows that to forgive is healthy.
Q.:
Is
it somehow necessary for the Cubans abroad to participate in the
current process on the island?
A.:
I
believe that any sensible idea deserves attention, no matter where it
comes from. I am among those who believe that we can learn from
distant voices. More than anything, I trust in the reasons, the
ability and the feelings of those who know reality, not through
theory but through dealing daily with it.
