23 January 2007

Spanish Government Not Waiting on Fidel To Recover


The Spanish Secretary of State for Latin America, Trinidad Jiménez, is on a Central American tour which will take her to Costa Rica, Guatemala and Panama.

In an interview with Europa Press, Jiménez said that she is not waiting for Fidel Castro’s health to improve to visit the island.

She pointed out that Raúl Castro is the new leader of Cuba and that Span was waiting to see how things would evolve.

She added that with the succession, the power had been “delegated” and that it was up to the Cuban People to determine its own future.

Obviously if Fidel “delegates” his “omnipotence” to a group of his choosing, it is not the Cuban people who chose their ruler, but Fidel.

The Socialist Spanish government’s position is based more on the profits for Spanish firms that are heavily invested on the Island than by some ultraistic self-determination of Nations philosophy.

Late last year when the Spanish opposition Party , Partido Popular, introduced a resolution that would work towards supporting the democratization of Cuba. The Zapatero Government opposed it.

At the time Trinidad Jiménez said that the important thing in Cuba was to prevent “instability, clashes and insure the changes come about in the agreed manner”


She reiterated that Spanish firms had been doing business in Cuba for years and that if the new Cuban leader would open up the country to the outside , it would mean new business opportunities for these firms and others in the future.---PROFITS

3 comments:

Mambi_Watch said...

Your focus on PROFITS being the bottomline in Spanish foreign policy towards Cuba is justified.

But, on the other hand, profits and increased trade are synonymous with good foreign relations between any two nations.

You just may be stating the obvious.

I see this as a mistake in many who believe that nations that trade with Cuba are not concerned with the human rights situation in Cuba. this is false.

Many nations make lots of efforts to address the human rights violations on the island, but, unlike the US, they prefer to do it WITHOUT violating human rights themselves.

There are many nations that oppose the unilateral sanctions on Cuba and don't trade with Cuba. Yet, share the concern for human rights, but prefer a route similar to "constructive engagement".

Gusano said...

well, realistically, most democracies have concerns over human rights because the gvts have to answer to voters such as yourself who actually give a shit about whats right and wrong.

but sanctions or constructive engagement don't work with the likes of fidel.

once he's buried, you'll probably be pleased with washington's new direction.

i wont.

Gusano said...

oh i forgot to ask you...

don't you think its ironic that Cuba was a former colony to the US and Spain and the fight over influence continues?

full circle