Tackling an Economic Crisis by Public Consultation

Abstract

The expansion of the private sector in Cuba, contained in the island's new legislation was ratified by Cuba's National Assembly on 1 August 2011. However, in September 2010, when this new legislation was proposed, it was greeted as a fait accompli with an outburst of joy and relief by the UK mainstream press. 'End of the road for communist Cuba? ONE MILLION jobs could go private in the most radical reforms since 1959 revolution', declared James White in the Daily Mail (15 September 2010). 'Thanks Fidel, but you're 50 years too late', gloated James Delingpole in the Daily Telegraph, adding: 'It's nice, obviously, that the cigar-smoking beardie has finally had the grace to acknowledge the error of his ways. But shouldn't he have worked this out 50 years earlier, and spared the poor Cuban people a heap of communist misery?' And not much more was said about the matter.However, in its haste to tell the British public once more that socialism (or, in their words, 'communism') in Cuba was at the 'end of the road', the western media omitted to mention how these proposals would progress along the road to becoming actual legislation. Neither had it mentioned that they had only acquired their initial form after a major input by the Cuban trade unions. At the time, only about 30 per cent of them had been ratified before the remaining 70 per cent were presented to the country for consideration and amendment prior to their ratification. If the media had possessed the inclination to discover more about the subject, they would have had a very different story to report.In fact, this legislation, deals with a raftof new policies, ranging from housing, transport and food prices to health, education and tourism. But it is the part that relates to the workforce which has generated the most interest.When I met Manuel Montero Bistilleiro a senior official at the CTC (the equivalent of the British Trades Union Congress) in January 2011, he explained that the reasons for this new legislation were very different from those described by the western media.First, as in the case of the UK and most other countries around the world, Cuba has been hit hard by the world financial crisis, which has had disastrous consequences in the developing world, to which Cuba belongs, pushing up prices of food (by almost 50 per cent) and other basic commodities. Added to this, in 2008 the island was hit by three powerful hurricanes that destroyed much of its infrastructure. Finally, one has to take into account the severe economic consequences of half a century of the US blockade, which has been vigorously and progressively reinforced since the 1990s when Cuba was suffering the Special Period. The blockade, which in recent years has been extended to banking, seriously impedes Cuba's ability to trade effectively with other countries.It was during the 1990s, when the Cuban economy was at its lowest ebb and at a time of widespread hardship that the decision was taken to keep everyone working, even if as a result, workplaces would be overstaffed. This applied particularly to the administrative sector. It is only now that efficient staffing levels are to be restored in that sector.As a result, new legislation has been necessary so that Cuba can tackle these challenges, in the same way that many other countries are having to look again at their own legislation in these times of financial crisis. In the case of Cuba, the government has emphasised the need to create a more self-sufficient and economically viable economy. However, at the same time as introducing these new laws, the state has once again declared its clear intention of continuing to maintain and develop a socialist society in which people can enjoy the maximum opportunities and participate, both individually and communally.Manuel, who has worked for 32 years in the CTC, explained to me the important role played by the Cuban trade unions in the new legislation's formulation and eventual enactment. …