There are few better examples of failed American foreign policy than our trade embargo against Cuba.
Cuba is back in the news after President Obama caused quite the stir yesterday when it came out that he shook hands with Raoul Castro, brother of Fidel and now official leader of Cuba, at Nelson Mandela’s funeral. Followers of the politics surrounding the United States’ relationship with Cuba would not be surprised by the reaction from many conservatives. Republican Congresswoman from Florida Ileana Ros-Lehtinen pronounced the hand shake, “nauseating.” While Republican Senator John McCain went so far as to compare Obama to Neville Chamberlain shaking hands with Adolf Hitler.
Partisan chest-thumping aside, one of the more frustrating things about these lines of attack is how they completely ignore questions about if America’s five decade long policy of sanctions and non-engagement with Cuba is in fact working. In no small part because if we do ask these questions, the only reasonable answer is a pretty resounding “no.”
Yes it’s true that Cuba is an authoritarian Communist society with little regard for human rights, and yes this on the whole is a bad thing. But there are lots of authoritarian societies in the world that America doesn’t impose sanctions on. I’d agree that putting human rights activists in jail for criticizing the government is bad, and the world would be a better place if governments didn’t do that sort of thing. But I think it’s bad when it happens in Cuba and also when it happens in an American ally like Qatar. And if shaking the, “bloody hand of a ruthless dictator” as Representative Ros-Lehtinen put it, is some great sin why isn’t she publicly scourging Donald Rumsfeld?
I’m not asking Raoul Castro’s critics to label him a nice guy, but I would like them to at least be consistent in their policy prescriptions. If we should respond to human rights abuses by cutting off all trade then there are a lot of Middle Eastern countries we need to impose embargoes on as well. The funny thing is I don’t see Ros-Lehtinen (or anyone else for that matter) introducing legislation to end trade with Qatar anytime soon.
The United States broke off diplomatic relations and imposed economic sanctions on Cuba over 50 years ago in direct response to Cuba becoming a Communist society and allying itself with the Soviet Union. In the resulting five decades a lot of things have changed. In fact Communism has disappeared from Eastern Europe and China has transitioned to a market economy without the use of comprehensive economic embargoes. Meanwhile our policy of criminalizing American tourism in Cuba and outlawing trade between our two countries has completely failed to bring about democratic reforms, respect for human rights or any other social changes we claim we support.
If the definition of insanity really is, “doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results,” we’ve being going crazy over Cuba for over half a century now. It’s probably time we try something new, it might even get us different results.
Photo wilsonaraujo/Flickr
I am not trying to argue with anyone John, just pointing out that we are all quick to judge others, but never look at ourselves. The US has amazing things and people to offer the world but because its prominent leaders and intellectuals are so busy judging and assuming they have the “Moral” authority, all they offer is failed foreign policy that cost human lives at home and abroad. In my humble opinion what we need more of is empathy not morals. The first step in solving this problem is to be entirely honest and not speak in half truths.… Read more »
I don’t think you understand the problem because your article is bias. I am guessing the fact that you are a patriot, which is hammered into all of us no matter where you are raised. You really missing the cause of the problem. The fact that you portray Cuba, Qatar e.c.t. as been violators of human rights (which is true) but mention nothing of the US violations of human rights is a distortion of the truth. What you should really be asking is if the US government violates human rights just like pretty much every other national government, what right… Read more »
Well that’s another argument entirely, for me the important question from a public policy stand point is simply “does this policy work?” If it clearly doesn’t, the moral questions about when to use sanctions is kind of superfluous.
(Sorry for my English, but here I go): The problem is that the Soviet Union was economically supporting Cuba. After the Soviet Union was over, Fidel Castro targeted Venezuela and found a bunch of resentful people and a Mesias (Hugo Chavez) who would “save them from capitalism and the misery around it”. I am Venezuelan, and I now live under the dictatorship of Raul Castro, cause Castro rules Venezuela too. There are Cuban militaries commanding the Venezuelan army, more than 200,000 military cubans live in vzla. The so-called president of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro, was trainned in Cuba back in the… Read more »
You are correct Yacky. By giving oil to Venezuela the former President Chavez and current President Maduro have been robbing the Venezuelan people. The oil should have been sold to Cuba at world prices. Receiving free or subsidised oil provides no incentive for Cuba to develop economically. Actually it is very bad policy for both countries. I think it is very sad that Venezuela has the largest petroleum reserves in the world, yet many of its people are impoverished. Communism as an economic system has been the biggest failure of the 20th Century. Even China realises this in its rapid… Read more »
If the definition of insanity really is, “doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results,” we’ve being going crazy over Cuba for over half a century now. It’s probably time we try something new, it might even get us different results. and on the same theme. congratulations to Uruguay for being one of the first countries to move out of the temperance-like ‘war on drugs’. and legalise the production, sale, and consumption of in this case – marijuana. remarkable that this was a government sponsored bill too, would be interesting to know the political climate that… Read more »