March 3, 2010
Fernando Ravsberg
HAVANA TIMES, March 3 — To emigrate is a painful process in general, but
in the case of Cubans it also means taking a trip with no return. As if
they've committed a serious crime, the State robs them of all their
belongings.
It doesn't matter that these were legally acquired goods; everything
will be confiscated, from one's house and car to even the furniture. If
you refuse to turn them over, you will not receive your "Permiso de
Salida" (Exit Permit) from the all powerful Office of Immigration.
Therefore, there's no remedy other than "going through the hoops" and
giving them everything the family was able to accumulate over a working
life. The inspectors swoop down like birds of prey in search of
whatever can be taken – one part for the State, the rest for themselves.
No one escapes, not even children. From the grandmother of a
13-year-old teenager who traveled to meet his mother, they demanded all
of the titles of the home appliances, looking for anything in the name
of the boy in order to confiscate it.
A good friend —very revolutionary— who emigrated for family
reunification, explained to me indignantly how they snatched everything
from her. She had to give them the automobile that the family had
bought with a thousand sacrifices, as well as the television,
refrigerator and even their home.
When the inspection was completed, they sealed off the apartment and
left her and her daughter standing in the street waiting for the
airplane to take off… three days later. The corruption is so miserable
that, in front of their eyes, an inspector removed the door lock and hid
it in her handbag.
I spoke about this issue with an intellectual who had been forced to pay
for his own house after his parents left to live in Miami. They hid
behind a strange "law" that ignored the fact that the house had already
been purchased and that he had always lived there.
I will explain it slowly for non-Cubans. When someone emigrates and is
recorded on the title of a family home, those who remain in the property
must re-purchase it from the State, even if it had been previously paid
off. It is a well thought-out policy of punishment…against those who
choose to stay.
This intellectual didn't want to yield, but they explained to him
—politely— that if he didn't make the payments they would never put the
property in his name, which would make him run the risk of losing the
property to some corrupt official who might take the listing out of the
housing inventory so as to traffic it on the black market.
Of course the Cuban public is astute and has learned how to deal with
the "paternalistic State," which flies into rage every time one of its
children leaves home. The inspectors immediately collect the remains of
what cannot be given away or sold.
Months and even years ago, those who are leaving would indicate a
nominal new "resident" of the house, which could be legalized by faked
marriages and "proof" of family relationships. This person would still
have to re-purchase the house, but generally it was not possible for the
State to remove them.
When someone is forced to give up their property to the State,
automobiles lose all of their "sellable" parts before being turned over,
the Japanese television is changed for a Russian black and white one,
the Korean refrigerator for a Chinese one, the air conditioning unit
disappears and the hole is sealed without leaving a mark. Even the
mattresses vanish.
Undoubtedly this is noticed, but no one can prove it. Moreover, it's
sufficient to allow the inspectors to steal the spoils (a lock or a pair
of hinges) for them to sign the OK so the family can leave the country.
But all that is just a small act of revenge by the people.
In any case, it's a bitter hour. When they seal the entrance of the
person's home, it's as if they have "burnt their bridges," impeding any
return. At this point, nothing material is left on Cuban soil, not even
the possibility of return, because they'll never again be allowed to
reside in the country.
In fact to say "never again" is inexact. This "law" stipulates a single
macabre exception: it respects property rights over vaults at the
cemetery. The reason is simple, after dying those who have emigrated
recover their right to return, to be buried in the earth of their homeland.
An authorized translation by Havana Times (from the Spanish original)
published by BBC Mundo.
Cuba's Burnt Bridges - Havana Times.org (3 March 2010)
http://www.havanatimes.org/?p=20585
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