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Cuba and the Mess of Political Parties

HAVANA TIMES – It began as a normal, everyday idea in many countries, but we already know that Cuba is not a normal country.

This week, opposition figure Amelia Calzadilla put forward the idea of creating the Cuban Orthodox Liberal Party, something completely illegal under Cuba’s current Constitution, but also a kind of signal to the United States government to show that there are indeed Cubans who want a different way of life.

From Madrid, where she has lived since last year after being forced into exile because of her critical stance toward the dictatorship, Calzadilla proposed a liberal, center-right organization inspired by Martí’s ideas and the free market, with the slogan: “A new path for Cuba. With principles. With freedom. With you.”

Although the 33-year-old clarified that this is not a party meant to govern right now, but rather in a free Cuba, and that the main points of its platform will be presented on May 19th, the reactions were immediate.

Almost instantly, she received a wave of massive support from Cubans both inside and outside the island, with membership requests and proposals for her to run as a presidential candidate—along with criticism from regime loyalists, of course.

Beyond the normal political disagreement that accompanies any public proposal, the truth is that after the farce of the government’s collection of “voluntary” signatures, this initiative unleashed a real avalanche of ideas about what might happen in a Cuba under normal conditions.

In a democracy, any citizen can create whatever organization they wish (which is why even terrorist ones exist), but when elections come, some will have only symbolic participation, while those with greater prestige, better proposals, and more credible leaders will be the ones that advance........

© Havana Times