Secretary's Speech

U.S. Commerce Secretary Carlos M. Gutierrez Remarks to Cuba Transition to Democracy Summit
Miami, Florida

We are here today at a critical moment in time for Cuba. So many of you here from around the world and Eastern Europe in particular, have experienced the kind of oppression and tyranny Castro has inflicted on the Cuban people for nearly half a century.

This summit comes at a time when Cuba is poised for change. Despite Cuban government claims to the contrary, Fidel's health is deteriorating and he is not coming back to power.

Transitions to Democracy
As Cuba enters this time of uncertainty -- and opportunity -- it is important to remember what we seek: the right of the Cuban people to participate fully and freely in the governance and economy of their country.

The Cuban people must be the ones to define the path to their democratic destiny. Fortunately for them, within the past three decades, across the globe there are specific transition examples from which Cuba can draw.

As President Bush has said, "History proves from Poland to South Africa, that patience and courage and resolve can eventually cause oppressive governments to fear and then to fall."

Today's event gives us significant insights into how it worked in Hungary.

In another case, that of Poland, that country's transition came in the form of a labor movement, the Solidarity Trade Union. Wide-scale workers' strikes ultimately forced the government to the negotiating table, which led to the establishment of a democratic government.

In Czechoslovakia, anti-communist dissent manifested itself through plays, music, and poetry. Vaclav Havel's human rights manifesto, "Charter 77," became the catalyst for change, bringing together a broad range of political activists who negotiated the peaceful transition of power during the velvet revolution in 1989.

In South Africa, we saw an example of how international pressure can trigger democratic change. The democratic system is now fully entrenched in South Africa with the country approaching its fourth election in 2009.

There are other paths to democracy as well.

Last month I gave a speech here in Miami in which I called on the Cuban government to let the Cuban people decide the fate of their country. I used the example of the referendum in Chile, in which the Chilean people were given the opportunity to express their preference for democracy.

My point in reviewing the transitions in Poland, Czechoslovakia, South Africa, and Chile is straightforward and relatively simple: It is to highlight that the Cuban people deserve the very same opportunity to organize to express their preference as to how they are governed and who governs them.

The principal avenue for Cuba's return to the community of democracies is through free, multiparty elections. Those elections require an environment that must include:

• Guaranteeing the rights of free speech, freedom of the press and freedom of worship;
• Legalizing all peaceful political activity and releasing all political prisoners;
• Establishing an independent judiciary and ensuring the right to private property;
• Allowing for the creation of independent trade unions and associations;
• Organizing free and fair elections;
• Guaranteeing fundamental human rights and an end to the climate of fear and repression; and
• Removing both Fidel and Raul Castro from power, or anyone else hand-selected by the current regime.

That is why we remain firm in our commitment to oppose the Cuban dictatorship and to help the Cuban people hasten the day of democratic change. That is the President's policy.

Doing Business with a Dictatorship
The international community should know what's going on in Cuba:

• According to Article 103 of the Cuban Criminal Code, writing or speaking against the Revolution will land you in jail for 1-8 years. For a university student, simply questioning in a classroom can lead to expulsion or even prison. Recently at the University of Havana, students were reportedly expelled for using the Internet and questioning the Regime's strict control of the Internet.
• One of the harshest restrictions on freedom of expression is Law 88. It is known as the 'Gag Law" and it states that Cubans who speak out against the "economic state" of the Regime face up to 20 years in prison.
• On March 18th, 2003, the Cuban Regime coordinated a crackdown of the pro-democracy movement. In the end, 75 peaceful pro-democracy and human rights activists were arrested and sentenced to harsh prison terms of up to 28 years.

So, in order to survive, the Regime has criminalized one of the most basic human rights -- freedom of expression.

Although the Cuban Regime offers subsidized food rations, the Cuban people cannot survive off these rations alone. Cuban ration stores sell out quickly and what little stock they do have is appalling. However, as just mentioned, anyone who complains can get up to 20 years in jail.

According to the monthly rations book, Cubans are only eligible to buy five pounds of rice. That's five pounds of rice for a grown adult to last 30 days. They are only allowed to buy 20 ounces of beans per person per month. Proteins like eggs, meat, chicken or fish are luxuries only for the wealthy.

In order to resolve or "make do," many Cubans are forced to resort to selling or buying food in the informal markets. But this, too, is highly criminalized, and the Cuban Regime is cracking down.

• Recently, two elderly women in Placetas were arrested for selling fried fish sticks on the street.
• Last year, 40 national police officers and 10 armed soldiers coordinated surprise raids of "illegal" pizzerias and small restaurants throughout Santa Clara.
• Countless street vendors and small restaurant owners have been detained, fined or arrested across the Island.

But sellers haven't been the only ones to suffer -- buyers, too, face large fines or prison terms for buying on the black market. Cuban pro-democracy youth leader Rolando Rodriguez Lobaina was sentenced to seven years in prison for buying red meat.

For many Cubans, all they have ever known are the harsh sacrifices and suffering of the Revolution. And the youth have suffered the most.

The majority of Cuban rafters who throw themselves to the open waters in the hope of freedom are under the age of 30.

In 1986, the Cuban Regime reported that the suicide rate reached 24 per thousand -- double the average of Latin America. Suicide was the primary cause of death for Cubans ages 15-48.

At that point, the Cuban Regime stopped publishing these statistics -- saying they were "state secrets." Cuba is thought to have the highest suicide rate of Latin America.

Now that the Fidel era is coming to an end, we ask all freedom-loving societies to stand with the people of Cuba. It would be an historical shame if Raul were supported in his quest to retain power.

Hope for the Future
But in the midst of all this despair, there is hope and real courage. The Cuban people continue to hunger for freedom. With many of their pro-democracy leaders behind bars, it's the families of political prisoners who are taking up the cause of their loved ones and making it their own.

The wives, mothers, daughters and sisters of political prisoners across the Island have become the voices of the voiceless.

Today we are here to launch the "Friends of a Democratic Cuba" to support a transition to democracy. By highlighting the experiences of Central and Eastern Europe, we can help the Cuban people exchange ideas and accelerate democratic change.

Many of you have lived through dictatorship and repression, and you survived to help form democratic governments. I salute your initiative and courage to push for transition in Cuba. You have our full respect and admiration, and most of all, the gratitude of the Cuban people.

Once again, as we made clear in the Compact, the future will be decided by Cubans.

The greatest threat against Castro is not the U.S. government. It is the entrepreneurial spirit of the Cuban people -- their ability to invent, to express, to dream, to create. As we've stated in our Compact with the People of Cuba, "Cubans who want democratic change should count on our friendship and support." We share the dream of a better tomorrow for them and their families.

Today is a call to action for all nations to take part in making that dream a reality. Do not let Cuban men, women and children suffer any longer. The world must step forward and take a stand on the side of freedom, democracy and human dignity. Thank you for standing with the Cuban people.