Evelina Lorentzon on Free Enterprise

Jarl Hjalmarson Foundation in cooperation with the Turkish think-tank Association for Liberal Thinking held a youth conference on the Principles for a Free Society, February 17-19. The seminar, arranged in Ankara, Turkey, was based on Prof. Nigel Ashfords book in which he describes the fundaments for an open and democratic society.

Thomas Gür, senior advisor to JHS, moderated the conference and also led a discussion on civil society. In addition, a handful of Turkish and Swedish scholars and politicians led the discussions, as Atilla Yayla on human rights, Tanel Demirel on democracy, Bilal Sambur on freedom, Bugra Kalkan on spontaneous order, Evelina Lorentzon on free enterprise, Magnus Nilsson on property rights and Adnan Kücük on rule of law.

Free information and a global electronic infrastructure constitute two crucial building blocks for increased freedom in the world. Through internet and cell phones, we enjoy immediate access to information from all over the world. There, oppression is exposed, as well as the abuse of power. At the same time, ideas and information spread on the web. The latter is crucial in promoting democracy and combat poverty and oppression.

However, the freedom of information is threatened.

According to Reporters without borders, more than 100 bloggers and netizens are currently held imprisoned for publishing their ideas on the internet. The list of Internet enemies include countries such as Saudi-Arabia, Burma, China, North Korea, Cuba, Egypt, Iran, Uzbekistan, Syria, Tunisia, Turkmenistan and Vietnam. In most of these countries, it is currently considered a crime to voice opinions on the web while the hunt for dissents continues to grow.

In 2010/2011, The Jarl Hjalmarson Foundation focuses on Internet Freedom.

Young politicians from Macedinia visiting the Commission in Brussels.

Macedonia is one of the current candidates for a future EU membership. More than 85 percent of the population supports a membership in both EU and NATO. But before entering either of the two organizations, the sensitive naming dispute with Greece must be resolved.

As part of the EU integration project in the Balkans, the Jarl Hjalmarson Foundation invited youth politicians from the party in power in Macedonia – VMRO-DPMNE – to a conference in Brussels, February 7-10, 2012.

The group of enthusiastic young politicians visited major EU Institutions such as the European Commission, the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union.

In the Parliament, they met with Anna-Maria Corazza Bildt, who described her work as a Member of Parliament. At the Commission, EU experts Willem Noë and Mark Corner summarized the history of the Union.

The participants’ key area of interest was, as is to be expected, the enlargement of the EU. The Macedonians were eager to receive information about when their country could become a member, but understandably no-one could give them anything but a general timetable for the process.

Moreover, discussions about membership were in focus during the meetings at the NATO headquarters. Due to security matters, Macedonia regards a NATO membership as even more important than a membership in the EU. In 2008 the country was ready to join the European/North American defense alliance, but was blocked by Greece.

“In our country, everyone discusses politics”, one of the participants said. 21 years have passed since declaring its independence and Macedonia is still in an extensive transition phase. However, one thing is clear: the wish to be part of Europe is one of the top priorities of the new generation.

Following the election Henrique Capriles was slandered by state media stating, among other things that “This is our enemy, the Zionism that Capriles today represents”. “Zionism, along with capitalism, are responsible for “90% of world poverty and imperialist wars.”

Henrique Capriles, a governor, former legislator and founder of the center-right Justice First party, February 12, 2012, won the nomination of a broad coalition of Venezuela’s opposition parties – called the Democratic Unity Panel. Mr. Capriles will face off in October elections against Hugo Chávez, since 13 years the authoritarian leader of Venezuela. “Analysts believe Venezuela’s oft-divided opposition, which for the moment has put its differences aside, has the best chance to oust the president at the polls— if it is able to stay united”, writes the Wall Street Journal.

Following the election Henrique Capriles was slandered by state media stating, among other things that “This is our enemy, the Zionism that Capriles today represents”. “Zionism, along with capitalism, are responsible for “90% of world poverty and imperialist wars.”

Read more in Wall Street Journal from February 13, 2012

Read more in Wall Street Journal from February 15, 2012

Read the entire declaration here

Participants fron Bosnian SDA and Klas Hjort in front of the European Parliament.

On January 23-26 the Jarl Hjalmarson Foundation organized a study visit of young politicians from Bosnia and the party SDA, to Brussels and the EU. The first daybegan with a much appreciated visit to the European Parliament. The participants met, among others, with Christina Lutz, Head of staff of the Moderate Party in Parliament. They also visited MEP Anna Maria Corazza Bildt who shared her experiences from the Balkans and the issues currently being discussed within the EU, including the financial crisis and family rights.The visit ended with a tour of Parliament led by Klas Hjort who works for MEP Christofer Fjellner of the Moderate Party. After an interesting morning in Parliament the afternoon was spent at the Commission, lerning about its role within the EU family.

On the second day’s morning, the Bosnian participants meet with the Bosnian Ambassador to the EU, Osman Topčagić, followed by a bus trip to NATO. Three meetings were planned at the NATO, the last one with Ambassador Branimir Jukic, who is Bosnia-Herzegovina’s ambassador to the NATO. The participants were highly interested in NATO and its activities. In the morning of the last day – before leaving Brussels in the afternoon – participants visited the Council of Europe and met Maria Sevdali who talked about how the Council operates, key policy issues and how it is to work with a rotating presidency.

Suzana Grubješić, Deputy Chaiman G17Plus, talking about the European Union.

On January 20 to 22 the Jarl Hjalmarson Foundation organized a conference in cooperation with G17 Plus in Serbia. The theme was ”Political branding and EU integration”. The location of the conference was the city of Nis, about three hours’ journey from Belgrade. This was the last conference in a series of three parts.

The first day started with Klas Hjort, who works for Christopher Fjellner European Parliament, talking about how the EU works, how to influence and why Europe matters. In the afternoon of the first day Suzana Grubješić, who is deputy leader of G17Plus, paid a visit to the conference. She spoke about European integration from a Serbian perspective.

Jörn Hauköyfrom Norwegian Höyre was the first speaker on the second day. He talked about how to build a brand. Both from a political and a personal perspective. Following this lecture the participants were part of a workshop on the same topic. The conference was concluded by Tomislav Damnjanović, Campaign manager of the G17 Plus.

Rarely has it been so difficult to predict global political developments. The developments in Europe are uncertain. And the U.S. economy encompasses many problems including a deficit that weakens the role in the world that the United States is willing and able to play. At the same time the Chinese economy is rapidly up-and-coming providing increased strength to this totalitarian dictatorship. In addition, a number of emerging economies have a growing influence in the global economy and numerous political forces are competing for regions and countries’ future developments. In this respect China has an active agenda trying to gain influence. Russia has an energy policy that seeks by pressure other countries to closer cooperation. In the Middle East, we see a trend where countries like Iran aggressively want to set a new agenda. This policy is combined with an Islamic agendas vying for political power in those North African countries that are opening up to the possibilities of democracy.

We can’t take the changes for granted in neither North Africa nor the Middle East. Though, we know that this work in progress can’t be stopped.

Where the future is uncertain, there are great possibilities and need to influence. This is true for Europe and the EU that in these parts of the world should act as a model – combining an open society with personal freedom, democracy and prosperity. We also need to strengthen the democratic forces that work for the individual’s rights and dignity. In that way we can support a development strengthening market economy and growth, as well as secular societies built on the rule of law and democracy. All these efforts contribute to an advanced society, but also to a more peaceful and stable environment.

The Arab spring has shown that the fundamental rights and freedoms are not a uniquely Western phenomenon. A way of thinking only in the rich parts of the world. Instead it is what many of us – but not all – have always maintained, common to all mankind. The citizens in the U.S. and Europe are not the only ones wanting to express ourselves freely, choose who should govern our country and permitting us to set up a market stall without getting it confiscated.

The will to freedom and a decent life is as strong in the Arab world as in our. Questions are many where the Arab world is heading. Two different scenarios are conceivable, though to the extreme both might be useful as reference points.

In the first scenario al-Assad in Syria succeed in staying in power by using unrestrained violence against its own citizens. Russia and China continue to block a UN resolution and international action. As the death toll reaches even higher numbers than already today, the people give up and buckle under the brutal violence. During this time Europe looks silently at the tyrant’s oppression. The Arab socialism under the Baath Party remains.

Al-Assad’s victory has effect on the rest of the region. The success of using violence and oppression strengthens the audacity of those who would rather see brutal violence than give up their power. Iran becomes stronger. The Arab spring might turn into winter without any democratic progress.

Repression is preserved. No further dictatorships will fall. In countries where a revolt had already taken place the old oppressors will be replaced with new ones. The Islamists who present themselves as moderates – in Egypt and Tunisia – might be dominated by uncompromising forces. Women’s position will be weakened, democracy will be put out of action and the market economy will never be put to use to create wealth. Individual human rights and dignity will be lost in favor of a more or less totalitarian system.

The countries are turning away from the West, taking the inner road. The mobility will be limited both in terms of goods, services and capital as well as people and information. There is no intra-regional integration. The liberal forces never have time to unite and form a critical mass and disappear into the periphery and the underworld.

In the second scenario al-Assad will be defeated thanks to international pressure in combination with the Syrian people’s courage. Syria becomes the first major Arab country outside of North Africa where the Arab revolt led to drastic changes, creating surges of freedom in the region, where various regimes – for fear that the development will spread to their countries – will ease its repression.

The Arab Baath socialism will be relegated to the history as happened to socialism in Europe after the Berlin Wall came down. Iran loses its most important allies in the region. In Tunisia and Egypt the election-winning Islamists will be as moderate as they claim. These parties will move towards the Turkish AK party, rather than Sunni extremism. They become the Arab world’s equivalent of the Christian Democrats, developing stability, transparency, rule of law and market economy. Openness to the outside world becomes a key strategy, and the countries in the region are integrated among themselves, with the EU and its single market as a model.

A European perspective will create a new image, that of the renewal of the Arab society. Thanks to freedom of association and freedom of the press the Islamic-democratic parties are challenged by liberal movements that have managed to build a critical mass. Within a decade democratic elections have brought about change of power and no violence has occurred.

The two scenarios are, as I said, drawn to the extreme. There are lots of variations and nuances to be discussed. And it is important to remember that the choice made by the Arab world is important also to Europe. In Europe we have an obligation to do utmost to influence the region in the right direction. Although these countries are far from Sweden the region is a close neighbor to Europe. Our influence is considerable, and has the potential to be even greater.

In a world where America turns inward, because of its own domestic problems and that there is an aversion to a global involvement, it is important that the EU steps up and takes responsibility. It was mainly the British and French forces that maintained the no-fly zone over Libya. Today we have to show a different strength and power in terms of ideas that will constitute the basis for future developments in this part of the world.

Our policy must be designed to realize as much as possible of scenario two. This means free access to European markets, capacity building support for democratic forces and help to maintain transparency in different ways. This benefits both us and the Arab countries. The liberal forces in North Africa and the Middle East should know that they have a friend in the European Union.

To accomplish this is a task for the EU, governments and political parties. In support of democratic forces an infinite number of tasks will be realized as soon as we see the opportunities that exist.

Text: Gunnar Hökmark, MEP and Head of the EPP Group for Neighbourhood Policy

Read the newsletter

Cuba Libre! – In support of Democracy in Cuba

On February 27, a brand new book Baltisk Befrielse –  svenska insatser för friheten will be launched. The author Ambassador Krister Wahlbäck writes mainly about Sweden’simportance to the liberation of the Baltic countries’ . In a postscript Peeter Luksep tells the story behind the  Monday meetings held at Norrmalmstorg. At the  launch Krister Wahlbäck and Peeter Luksep talks about then and now and how it all came to happened.

This is the third and last part of a writers education organized by the Jarl Hjalmarson Foundation. Speakers on the Friday will be Robert Andrew, Deputy Polictical Counselor at the US Embassy in Stockholm hand his colleague Ian Bald, an expert on American presidential elections. On Saturday February 18 the participants will visit Svenska Dagbladet and editorial editor Claes Arvidsson.

The delegation visited the Swedish Parliament,  and met with MP:s Gustav Blix, Kristina Hulting and Christian Holm from the Moderate Party, Liselott Hagberg from the Liberal Party and Carin Runeson from the Social Democratic Party. The participants were particularly interested in the structure and the political division of the Swedish Parliament. They were also curious about the different procedures for decision-making.

Moreover, the group was invited to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs where a roundtable discussion was held with well known Swedish Central Asia experts – among them Malena Mård, Head of Department for Eastern Europe and Central Asia. The role of Kirgizstan as a relatively new state, the relationship with EU and the measures taken to fight corruption in order to attract foreign investments in the country were topics brought up.

Mr. Plenković, who used to be the State Secretary for European Affairs, was taking part in a round table Conference on the developments in the Balkans arranged by the Jarl Hjalmarson Foundation on February 2-4. As a member of the EU, he explains, Croatia will help – and not hinder – other Balkan countries from joining the European Union.

66 % of the Croats said yes to EU-membership. Though, it was reported that only 44 % of the electorate voted, Andrej Plenković clarified the issue of un-updated electoral lists. “We had a census in 2011 establishing the number of eligible voters in Croatia to 3,390.000. On January 22, the number of Croats in Croatia voting in the referendum for EU-membership was 1,958,000 (the diaspora turnout was expectedly very low). This means that actually about 58% of the electorate in Croatia voted. We need to update the list of voters.”

The negotiations leading up to Croatia being ready for EU membership by 1 July 2013, was an extensive undertaking. During almost six years of negotiations approximately 3.000 Croatian officials and experts were involved, in one or the other way, in the process. “It was important that as many people as possible were familiar with and understood the EU-oriented reforms”, said Andrej Plenković. Though, he added, no one had anticipated such a lengthy process.

Andrej Plenković is convinced that the “big bang” (at the same time ten new EU members joined the EU in 2004) as well as the membership of Romania and Bulgaria (in 2007) influenced the pace of Croatia’s process to join the Union. The discussion about the enlargement and the absorption capacity of the EU to welcome new members intensified in a number of EU-states during this period. The New consensus on enlargement was adopted in 2006, including the new methodology with benchmarks that had to be reached to open chapters for negotiations. Previously benchmarks had to be reached only to close chapters. Another novelty was that, as lessons learned from earlier experiences, the EU would not set in advance a date for when the negotiations should be concluded.

Croatia’s road to EU-membership has been seen as a model for the region. What will happen now?

“We are very clear that we want to help all our neighboring countries” said Andrej Plenković, adding that the entire body of EU acquis has been translated into Croatian (approximately 107.000 pages). This extensive job will be of great use to the neighboring states, whose languages are closely related to Croatian.  “We also have a network of bilateral agreements on EU co-operation with all the countries in the region. Technical assistance is ongoing. For example last year a delegation of 30 officials from Macedonia visited Zagreb to talk about the membership negotiations. They discussed all EU policy areas with their Croatian counterparts.”

What lesson has been learned from the border conflict with Slovenia?

The Croatian Parliament has consensually said that Croatia, as EU-member, believes that open bilateral issues should not be used to stall the EU integration process of neighboring countries.  This is the consequence of the lesson learned, said Andrej Plenković. He estimates that the dispute on delimitation of border at sea between Croatia and Slovenia, due to the Slovenian blockade prolonged Croatia’s accession talks for about 18-20 months. The Arbitration process that Slovenia and Croatia agreed to during the Swedish EU Presidency just recently began. Both countries have agreed to abide by the decision that will be pronounced.

Andrej Plenković is convinced that the successfully completed negotiations with the EU are excellent news for Croatia, but also for the attractiveness of the EU as a political project, and is a clear incentive for the countries of the region to continue with reforms. “It means that the EU enlargement is continuing”.

He concluded that after a clear “yes” at the referendum, Croatia’s EU agenda in the next 17 months, before accession, will be depicted by three interlinked processes.

First one is the ratification of the accession treaty in the parliaments of 27 EU member states, which requires a lot of political support and diplomatic activity.

Second one is the monitoring by the Commission of Croatia’s obligations undertaken in accession negotiations, in particular the follow-up of reforms in chapters regarding: Competition, Judiciary and fundamental rights as well as Justice, liberty and security.

Third one is the internal Croatian preparation for EU membership by for example strengthening the national EU coordination, including increased parliamentary scrutiny.

 Read more

Article by Aramis L. Perez, publiched by Heritage Foundation August 30 2011

As attention focuses on the Middle East and North Africa, where protesters have taken to the streets to demand political change, some wonder whether Cuba will follow suit. A closer look at the island, where freedom fighters wage a nonviolent struggle against a regime desperate to conceal the effectiveness such methods have met during the “Arab Spring,” reveals good news: a big story that cuts through the bleak reality of 52 years of totalitarian rule and the media noise fueled by pro-regime talking points. Continue reading…

For the first time in years, Cuban police used tear gas in a raid over the weekend. Women also accuse police of beating and sexually harassing them over.

Cuban police used tear gas in a weekend raid against dissidents in eastern Santiago province, where State Security agents also pummeled and made obscene gestures at dissident women, opposition activists reported Monday.

“The riot squad came into the house like it was a commando movie, because that’s never been seen in Cuba,” said YulieCQ Valverde, whose husband was one of the 27 dissidents detained during the raid Sunday on their home in the town of Palma Soriano.

It was the first time in recent memory that Cuba was reported to have repressed political dissidents with tear gas and the riot squad, clad in black uniforms and carrying gas masks, shields, helmets, riot batons and tear gas launchers.

But Sunday’s raid was only the latest in a string of reports of unusually strong protests and violent police crackdowns in Cuba, where the communist government has long kept an iron grip on domestic security.

The latest reports came from dissidents and their relatives, and there was no way to independently confirm them. The government has not commented on the weekend incidents, and foreign journalists in Havana reported nothing about them.

Most of the recent incidents took place in Santiago, where members and supporters of the Ladies in White have tried to gather Sundays at the cathedral in the city of Santiago to attend mass and then stage street marches demanding the release of all political prisoners.

MIami Herald

The worst incident this weekend came in the town of Palma Soriano, 18 miles to the northwest, where 27 men had gathered Sunday at the home of Marino Antomarchit for a street march protesting the violence against the Ladies in White and other police abuses.

Before the men could hit the street, Valverde said, police sprayed tear gas through the front door and windows and riot squad members in gas masks rushed in, handcuffed the dissidents and took them away in a bus.

“It was like the end of the world,” she said, adding that police also broke up much of her home’s furniture, tore up bedding, seized documents, computers, cameras, cell phones, notebooks and some wallets and ripped up some of the men’s T-shirts, which displayed the word “Change.”

Valverde and José Daniel Ferrer, a dissident who said he watched part of the raid from a distance in order report on the event, told El Nuevo Herald that a fire truck was deployed during the raid, apparently to use its water hoses for crowd control if needed.

Ferrer said he also saw police drag away four or five neighbors who shouted “bullies” and “murderers” at police. Antomarchit’s asthmatic 2 ½ year old daughter, Stefhani, was overcome by the tear gas and evacuated from the house through a window, he added.

The dissidents remained in police detention as of Monday evening, Ferrer said, adding that he had also received reports that one of them, Ruben de Armas Adrouver, was beaten by police and received five stitches on his head.

Ladies in White supporter Caridad Caballero, meanwhile, alleged police pummeled and sexually abused her and Marta Díaz Rondón on Saturday when they tried to travel from their homes in Holguín to Santiago for Sunday mass.

Halfway into the 66-mile trip, police and State Security agents stopped their hired vehicle, dragged them out, shoved them into patrol cars and took them to a police station in nearby Bayamo, she reported.

The police “were shouting at us the whole time, hitting us and making signs and gestures with their fingers that were horrible, grabbing their crotches, something sick, gross,” Caballero told El Nuevo Herald by phone from her home in Holguín.

State Security agents urged the police in Bayamo to strip-search them, but the two women refused to take off their clothes, Caballero added. Police freed them Sunday and drove them back to Holguín.

Ferrer also noted that top State security officers have been contacting him with oddly mixed messages about his fellow Santiago dissidents.

“They told me to go slow, that I am losing some standing with people that support me,” he said, “but that they will jail as many people as needed to keep this from spinning out of their control.” He called the contacts “a trick to halt the protests.”

Also on Sunday, police allegedly beat and detained 13 members and supporters of the Ladies in White who had gathered in a separate Palma Soriano home for an attempt to travel to Santiago for mass at the cathedral.

The women were dragged into a bus that then dropped most of them off at several different locations, said Berta Soler, a spokeswoman for the Ladies in White. She was put on a bus back to her home in Havana, she told El Nuevo Herald before her cell phone went dead. Some remained late Monday in apparent detention.

Dissidents Guillermo Cobas Reyes and Agustin Magdariaga were also detained Sunday in their hometown of El Caney, about four miles from Santiago, according to reports from opposition activists in the province.

Jorge Luis Garcia Perez , a dissident in central Cuba also known as “Antunez,” also reported the weekend detentions of several opposition figures in the eastern province of Camaguey and the westernmost province of Pinar del Rio.

Seven of Cuba’s best-known dissidents, meanwhile, issued a joint statement Monday demanding an end to the violence against the Ladies in White, their supporters and other peaceful dissidents.

“Stop the punches and other abuses!” said the statement by Ferrer, Gisela Delgado Sablón, Guillermo Fariñas, René Gómez Manzano, Iván Hernández Carrillo, Héctor Palacios Ruiz and Elizardo Sánchez Santa Cruz.

Antonio López Istúriz: “When I talk with many of my Cuban friends, one can feel something is stirring in Cuba. The Cubans are more aware than ever of their rights, citizens are mobilising themselves more and more each day in peaceful activities to support dissidents, there’s less fear to be defined as opposed to the regime’s official stance. And like any tyranny, the lesser the fear of the population, the greater the regime’s is ” Continue reading…

Fidel Castro’s socialist revolution promised to satisfy the basic needs of the Cuban people, but the price demanded was the surrender of freedoms. The unthinking enthusiasm that greeted the beginning of the revolution helped pave the way for the disappearance of civil, political, and economic rights within a short period of time. Instead of a brighter future, misery in Cuba is widespread and the individual is vilified.

With the help of Soviet subsidies, state paternalism stripped citizens of their individual and community responsibilities, and established a sort of barter system between freedom and privileges. The state gave out job promotions, electrical appliances, housing, vacations, and other material goods and perks as rewards for obedience and in recognition of support of the government’s priorities— including participation in political rallies, membership in the Communist Party, adherence to atheism, and so on. Cuban socialism has produced frustrated idealists and opportunists who support the system only out of a search for personal gain.

Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, the government has been buying time with the introduction in the 1990s of limited and short-lived reforms, whose reversals accelerated with the help of the Venezuelan government of Hugo Chávez. Raúl Castro, who replaced his brother Fidel as president, has only introduced cosmetic reform. An increasing number of Cubans are disillusioned with socialism and are demanding change. One of the tools that Cubans are now using to recover their freedom of expression and association is the Internet, which has quickly given rise to a community of cyber-dissidents, despite the Cuban government’s efforts to make Internet use difficult. Now that the state is out of money and there are no more rights to exchange for benefits, the demand for freedom is on the rise. Read the report…

Yoani Sánchez is an independent blogger in Cuba, where she writes her blog, Generación Y.

The 6th Party Congress of the Cuban Communist Party had Raúl Castro’s signature all over it. Debates on the economy were the order of the day, which is hardly surprising, given the Caribbean island’s disastrous supply situation. Raúl’s brother Fidel, who will be 85 in August, has handed his last official state position over to his 79-year-old younger brother. The old guard still dominates the leadership structure. The release of political prisoners and the beginnings of dialogue with the church are signs of a change in policies, but the question is how far these changes can and should go. However, once again there is no talk of political reform or more civil liberties.
The 6th Party Congress of the Cuban Communist Party (PCC) has been long overdue as the last one was in 1997 and original intention was to hold it every five years. It finally took place from April 16 to 19 in Havana, attended by 997 delegates, exactly 50 years after the failed U.S. Bay of Pigs operation, which was once again marked with a big military parade. Once again the communist leadership displayed their penchant for symbolism. One of the honoured guests was Margot Honecker, widow since 1994 of the long-time head of state and party leader of the GDR, who celebrated her 84th birthday during the Congress. Read the report at KAS.de

“In September 2010, Cuban president Raul Castro announced the beginning of sweeping economic reforms, including the elimination of a million public sector jobs, the easing of restrictions on private enterprise, and the first Communist Party Congress since 1997. To explore what Cubans think about the announced reforms, Freedom House conducted in-depth interviews with 120 people in six provinces from December 2010 to January 2011. These interviews also assessed access to information and technology on the island, and explored Cubans’ values and beliefs, which Freedom House compared with the findings from other countries in the World Values Survey study.
The results of this study indicate that despite hopes that the reforms will benefit Cuba, many do not believe they will personally benefit. Cubans continue to struggle to survive on a daily basis and are preoccupied by the need to feed their families, pay debts, and find work. When asked to describe their economic situation, the most common adjective used was “apretado” (tight). Cubans want to see economic reforms that will increase wages, lower prices, and make basic goods and services more available. Many younger Cubans would like to start a family but are unable to afford to live on their own, let alone raise children. As a young salesperson in Havana said, “If I don’t have enough to support just myself, what will it be like if I have a family?” The poor state of Cuba’s transportation system further isolates Cubans, particularly those in rural areas. …read the report

“Through solidarity, established democracies can come closer to fulfilling their potential. Struggling democracies can find the help they need to deliver on freedom’s promise. And future democracies can draw inspiration in their quest for social progress and political change. This was the Geremek formula for building and preserving democracy. And it is the basis for the 2010Bronislaw Geremek award.

Father José Conrado Rodriguez is minister to a parish in the impoverished city of Santiago de Cuba. For decades, Father José has served his community as a healer and educator. He felt hope, as did I, when in 1998 Pope John Paul II visited Cuba, prompting memories of that same Pope’s visit here to Poland two decades earlier. In his arrival speech, His Holiness prayed: “May Cuba with all its magnificent potential, open itself to the world and may the world open itself to Cuba.”

Unfortunately, that process of opening has gone forward much more slowly than we had hoped. In 2005, Father José wrote a letter to President Fidel Castro urging the introduction of democratic mechanisms. Last year, he found it necessary to write again, this time to Raoul Castro, proposing that he respond to change with new approaches and new attitudes.

Father José’s eloquence and courage provide a number of lessons that are relevant to the community of democracies. First, they remind us that not every measure taken to support democracy yields the desired results. U.S. law should make democratic change in Cuba easier.

Second, Father Jose reminds us that democracy – at its best – is more than just another system of government. Real democracy is built on a moral foundation. It is based on respect for the rights and dignity of every human being, no matter how humble or how disadvantaged that person might be.

Democracy is grounded in a belief that the legitimate power of governance comes not from the barrel of a gun, or from the means to arrest and to brutalize prisoners, or from the capacity to punish those who dare to voice their discontent. Power, to be legitimate, must come from the people.

More than one hundred years ago, Jose Marti said that “it is my dream for every Cuban to engage in politics in an entirely free manner.” I think I speak for everyone associated with the Community of Democracies in expressing my faith that this dream will one day be realized, and that democracy and justice will indeed come to Cuba. When it does, it will be because of the quiet leadership of people such as Father José Conrado, who are showing every day that the real test of a democrat is to respect human dignity and to believe in one another.

That is the standard in which Bronislaw Geremek placed his faith. That is the core premise of the Community of Democracies. And it is why Father José Conrado is a most deserving recipient of this year’s Bronislaw Geremek award.”

Read the full speech

Today, as the communist system in Cuba is weakening, the natural question being asked is: what will come next? The people of Cuba are constantly being warned by the regime that the fall of communism and a transition to democracy and market economy would destroy Cuba by introducing poverty and inequality. Often the communist rulers’ proof that this could happen is based on the transitions that occurred in Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries, where transition was followed by harsh economic conditions and a rise in social problems. However, has the transition to democracy and free markets really brought misery to CEE countries? Has it really been failure or has the life of people in these countries improved?

The current situation in Cuba is similar in many ways to that of Central and Eastern Europe at the end of the 1980s. By that time, forty years of communism had destroyed the economies of the CEE countries and pushed the people into poverty when compared to the Developed World. Perhaps the Cuban people don’t understand the full extent of the misery and destruction that communism has caused them. This was largely the case in CEE countries. By 1989, there was an overwhelming hope that by simply removing the communist rulers from power, the liberated countries would attain a standard of living comparable with Western Europe. However, nobody actually understood how backward and undeveloped the communist economies really were at that point. Once the truth about our economic conditions was revealed, the path to reaching a ‘first world’ level of development proved to be more painful and difficult than anyone had predicted.  In the case of Cuba, it is interesting to note that Cubans had a higher standard of living than Spain in the years before the revolution, but this could hardly be said today.  The CEE countries and Cuba provide ample proof that the longer communism lasts, the wider the economic gap will be between their countries and the Developed World.

The transition experience in CEE countries may have been hard, but it has proven to be worth it. When a communist system collapses, the public is suddenly confronted by problems that were hidden from them for years. Infrastructure that has been neglected due to a lack of investment for decades will start to fall apart, inflation rates go up, a currency can quickly lose its value, productivity drops, and social problems deepen as social inequality rapidly rises. Meanwhile, the only people with foreign currencies are the ones who belong to the communist nomenclature that are in position to become rich. The experience of the CEE countries demonstrates that the drop in the economy will be smaller when the reforms are started more quickly. Therefore, my first suggestion is: finish with communism as soon as possible. Each additional year under communism will add years of misery.

The first democratic government is responsible for coming to terms with the heavy heritage of communism, by making the decisions necessary to lead their country out of crisis. Speed is one of the most important factors in this kind of situation. Countries need to take advantage of the short period of “extraordinary politics” to launch their radical economic program when the transition begins. If a country fails to do after the window of opportunity closes they will still face the challenge of making the transition to a market economy, but will have to do so under more difficult economic conditions. Countries that miss out on this chance are in danger of moving into a period of macroeconomic instability that is usually marked by chaotic state regulations and massive corruption.

Two other import lessons emerge from looking at the experience of CEE countries. One: take care of politics first before moving full stop into economic reforms. The second can be summed up by the well-known advertising slogan: “Just do it,” that is, be decisive when adopting reforms and stick with them in spite of the short-term pain they cause. Politics have to be dealt with first, because there must be a legitimately formed consensus for change to initiate and sustain radical reforms. This is only possible through a democratic system ready to develop public institutions that are accountable and to organize free and fair elections. Countries have to make a clear brake with the totalitarian past, including the structures and the people to be successful in the future.

Macroeconomic stability must be achieved immediately. Economic reforms, based on a strict monetary policy and balanced budgets, should be initiated to achieve these goals. These reforms are often the most painful ones, but they are essential. Making it from this first stage of reform to the second is one of the most decisive moments in an economic transition. The ‘shock therapy’ necessary for economic stabilization is likely to be a rude awakening for the people.  However, without a major readjustment of attitudes, the problems of the post-communist period could easily become a trap and the nation would never have moved forward to become a “normal” country with a free government, free markets and rule of law.

Under communism people were not used to thinking for themselves, taking the initiative or assuming risks. Many had to be shaken free of the illusion – common in post-communist countries – that somehow, somebody else would come along and solve their problems for them. It was necessary to energize people, to get them moving, to force them to make decisions and to take responsibility for themselves. In our case, the government declared that it could only help those who were prepared to do something for themselves. This principle proved to be unpopular, but it helped change attitudes.

Countries have to open themselves up to the rest of the world, including competition and foreign investments to do this. Lots of people are afraid of such openness, so the government must be ready to show the way. Openness provides several advantages for a smooth and rapid transition to a market economy. It establishes a rational set of market-determined processes for resource allocation, introduces more competition, and allows countries to specialize according to their comparative advantage so that the market, rather than the government, can determine who wins and who loses. The policy of openness also sets in place an environment of transparency, with clear market-based signals for producers. In the case of Estonia, it was the first of several CEE countries to introduce a simple low flax tax rate system, which helped to create good conditions for entrepreneurs and investments.

Radical economic reforms cannot be implemented without establishing the basic laws that regulate the economic sector. The rule of law is especially important in the fight against one of the worst diseases of transition economies – corruption.  Special attention must be given to the bank reform. Banks are the most important part of economy, and if organized crime takes them over, a mafia can quickly take over the whole country. The money laundering, dirty money and all other unclean operations must be removed from banking system as quickly as possible. The special attention must be given to property reform.  At the heart of a transition lies a change in ownership relations. Without this change, without change to private ownership, transition will no doubt fail. So Cuba must decide how they will or in which form return or compensate the property to legal owners and how to privatize state-owned enterprises.

Such reforms can look painful, but they bring success. Estonia has been one of most radical reformers among transition countries and thank to this it has achieved one of the fastest growth rates in the World. In 1992, the average GDP per capita in PPP in Estonia was 15 to 20% of the EU average, but by 2007 it had reached 72%. There is no doubt that in Estonia poverty and inequality are decreasing. In addition, Estonia has successfully passed several social reforms that deal with vital issues such as healthcare and pensions. But lastly, Estonia has never been richer throughout its history, which serves perhaps as the best example that radical reforms really are ground for success.

Mart Laar is a historian and statesman, who served twice as the Prime Minister of Estonia, founded the Foundation for the Investigation of Communist Crimes and is an active member of the International Committee for Democracy in Cuba.

Cubalog.eu

Thomas Carothers is vice-president for studies at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. He is the author or editor of many books on democracy promotion, including most recently Confronting the Weakest Link: Aiding Political Parties in New Democracies (2006).

As the field of international democracy assistance ages and to some extent matures, it is undergoing a process of diversification—in the actors involved, the range of countries where it operates, and the kinds of activities it comprises. Strategic differentiation is an important element of this diversification—democracy-aid providers are moving away from an early tendency to follow a one-size-fits-all strategy toward exploring varied strategies aimed at the increasingly diverse array of political contexts in the world. A defining feature of this process of differentiation is the emergence of two distinct overall approaches to assisting democracy: the political approach and the developmental approach….

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