Cuba's leaders must be held accountable

DAY OF SOLIDARITY
Cuba's leaders must be held accountable
Posted on Thu, May. 22, 2008
BY CONDOLEEZZA RICE and CARLOS M. GUTIERREZ
www.state.gov

The great story of the Americas today is that more and more people are
becoming protagonists in the political, economic and social life of
their nations. Millions of men and women once confined to the margins of
their societies and excluded as passive spectators -- the poor, the
disadvantaged and indigenous peoples -- are now becoming active
democratic citizens. They are freely electing leaders who are governing
responsibly, reducing poverty, advancing social justice and expanding
regional security. This is the new defining reality in our hemisphere
today, and it is our abiding hope that the great people of Cuba will one
day soon join in this new Pan-American community of liberty.

This week, we mark a Day of Solidarity with the proud men and women of
Cuba. On this occasion, we highlight our shared aspiration that the
Cuban people will one day enjoy the benefits of a free and open society
in their own country. We seek to underscore for the hundreds of
political prisoners in Cuban jails that they are not alone, and that we
believe that no citizen on Earth should be imprisoned for the simple act
of disagreeing with his or her government. This is an occasion to say
that it is long past time for the rulers of Cuba to treat their people
as fellow citizens to be trusted and empowered, not as subjects to be
spied on, oppressed and jailed.

The Cuban people are rich in talent, and they deserve, no less than any
other people in the Americas, to choose their future freely, without
internal repression or outside interference. The vision of a democratic
transition in Cuba has been the goal of our administration, and it has
been the purpose that has motivated our regional and international
diplomacy. Indeed, there is now an emerging consensus in the Americas
and beyond that a democratic future for Cuba, freely charted by the
Cuban people alone, is the only responsible goal. It is this dream of
deliverance and political rebirth for Cuba's citizens that could now be
closer than ever with the prospect of near-term change in Havana.

The countries of the Americas, and many beyond it, are now watching
intently to see if the Cuban regime is open to a new relationship with
its people, and thus an opportunity for a new relationship with the
community of responsible nations.

The regime's minor recent reforms of economic and travel policy are to
be welcomed and encouraged, but let us not pretend that they are the
real changes that Cuba's citizens desire and deserve. If Cuba's rulers
are truly committed to beginning a meaningful process of change to
empower the Cuban people, they should start by taking actions that put
their country in step with the rest of the nations in the Americas
today: freeing political prisoners, beginning a truly open process of
national dialogue and reconciliation, protecting human rights through
the rule of law and holding free and fair elections.

Ultimately, any attempt to ease Cuba into the 21st century with
relatively small and highly controlled economic openings will not work.
The Cuban regime must show that it has the confidence in itself and in
its people to stop using the secret police to control the country's
political discourse. The regime should remove the fear factor from
Cuba's political life. The United States is eager to support Cuba and
its talented people in transforming their society. We want to engage
with Cuba -- but not until the Cuban government chooses to engage its
own people as free citizens, whose rights and dignity are nonnegotiable.

The real question about Cuba today is not what the United States is
prepared to do. Ultimately, this is not about us. It is about the better
future that the Cuban people deserve. Thus, the real question is for
Cuba's rulers to answer: Do they wish to reflect and advance the
democratic aspirations of their people? Or do they merely wish to
continue the old policies of the past, concealed by false promises of
real change, which serve only to further their own selfish interests and
their desire to hang onto power?

Free nations everywhere have a moral obligation to insist that the Cuban
people, after half a century of tragedy and lost time, now gain the
opportunity to become the democratic protagonists in their own national
life. We must not lose sight of this goal, and we must hold Cuba's
rulers to the same high standards of civility and decency to which we
hold ourselves. This is a promise that we pledge to keep.

Condoleezza Rice is U.S. secretary of state, and Carlos M. Gutierrez is
the secretary of commerce.

http://www.miamiherald.com/opinion/other_views/story/542834.html