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Saturday, December 06, 2014

A Millionaire in Guantanamo, Cuba

A Millionaire in Guantanamo, Cuba
December 5, 2014
Rosa Martinez

HAVANA TIMES — The city of Guantanamo has changed in recent times.
People from other provinces say the whole of Cuba is changing. I hope
that's true.

A short time ago I met a millionaire who was neither Italian, Spanish
nor American. He was born and raised in Guantanamo. In Cuba, anyone with
a bank account of at least one million Cuban pesos (40 thousand US
dollars) is considered a millionaire. This is the case with J (who
doesn't want people to know his real name, let alone see his face). In
addition to this sum, he owns two large houses and a ranch that could
fit at least 20 families. He also has a van, a truck and a car.

My acquaintance inherited a considerable part of his possessions from
his father, who in turn inherited these from his own father. They have
always owned those vehicles and been linked to Anchar, the private car
rental agency that existed in Cuba before the Special Period, when
getting around was the easiest and cheapest thing in the world. Even
then, they were earning a lot of money.

He obtained in a diploma in dentistry and worked as a dental technician
until his father became ill and he had to take over the family business.
He tells us his story below.

J: The first thing I did was change the truck driver and assistant,
because I didn't trust them. My dad complained about them every day but
never replaced them. With the new and old employees, I began to improve
the family economy little by little.

I didn't do anything my dad hadn't done before, save buy a spare engine
for each vehicle, such that, when a car broke down, we would replace the
entire system. The car could then continue to be used while we fixed the
problem.

I am demanding of my employees, but I pay well, more than the majority.
That's why my people work longer hours, which means more profits, of course.

Lastly, we take all of the trips to Havana that people want to hire us
for. Other car owners prefer not to drive their cars to distant
provinces, because their vehicles aren't in good technical condition.
That's not our case. We profit from those long trips. The pay is good
and we send two drivers and two assistants, like State buses do, to
avoid accidents caused by tiredness.

HT: Have you ever been questioned about the money you have in the bank?
My question comes out of recalling several "well-to-do" people whose
assets have been confiscated by the Cuban State.

J: The fact is that my family has always kept its savings in the bank.
Perhaps it's because we've always owned a ranch and cars, and because we
have family abroad that have helped us a lot financially.

HT: With so much money, have you never thought about going to another
country, starting life anew somewhere else?

J: I almost did that in the mid-90s. I was very young and the Special
Period was at its worst.

Our relatives abroad helped us financially, so we were never in as tight
a situation as other Cubans, but the Special Period made us change and
see things differently nonetheless. I wasn't able to secure a legal
means of leaving the country, and my parents made me swear I would never
attempt to do it any other way.

As of the year 2000, life in Cuba began to change. We started to improve
our lot little by little. Then, recently, the changes we'd been waiting
for decades for finally arrived. You can now sell or buy your house or
car, anyone who wants to travel and has the money for it can do so, you
can go to hotels…there are other economic measures that offer the
private sector, which my family has always belonged to, even back when
it was disreputable, many opportunities.

Believe it or not and whether we get a bigger or smaller slice of the
pie, Cuba is changing. I hope that these improvements will continue and
that our children, nephews and grandchildren don't have to dream of
leaving Cuba to lead a better life, that they are able to make their
dreams come true here, as I try to do so right now.

Source: A Millionaire in Guantanamo, Cuba - Havana Times.org -
http://www.havanatimes.org/?p=107757

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