Opinion by: Helen Padilla
About the author: Helen is a Cuban-American Master's candidate at the George Washington University's Elliott School of International Affairs. Her degree is focused in International Economic Development as well as a regional specialization on Latin America and the Caribbean
Is there a place for civil society in Cuba? Authoritarian regimes have historically shown an incongruency with civil society. Only one can survive. In fact, the Cuban government's close monitoring of civil society participation seems to explain the regimes' stability and longevity. Furthermore, the essence of civil society—autonomy—has been severely limited.
On November 28, 2020, as many Americans were recovering from their Thanksgiving festivities, 90 miles south of Florida, 200 Cuban artists and intellectuals staged a public demonstration in front of the Ministry of Culture in Havana. The rare showing of public dissidence was to express Cuban citizen’s discontent with the government’s increased assault on civil liberties.
The protest was precipitated by a government raid on a group of artist, academics, and independent journalists who were gathered, some on a hunger strike, at the home of a local artist. The group was protesting the detention of one of its members, Denis Solis. Solis was improvised for allegedly insulting an officer during a verbal dispute. Of course, Cuban authorities overlooked the arbitrary arrest, instead choosing to stress that the activists were breaking quarantine rules.
The 14 activists were part of the broader San Isidro Movement. Founded in 2018, the movement comprises artists, musicians, journalists, and academics who contest the Cuban regime’s oppressive nature, specifically its monopoly on civil rights. However, up until the demonstration in front of the Ministry of Culture, the movement was thought of as a “loose collection of people.” What made the movement such a threat?
The raid and subsequent events communicated four key things. First, the Cuban government is highly threatened by freethinking activist and their use of social media. To this end, the government blocked access to the internet during the raid. Social media is a lifeline for nascent social movements. It plays a crucial role in amplifying a movement’s message, documenting real-life occurrences, and sustaining social movements across physical boundaries.
Social media platforms provide activists in highly repressive and closed off regimes a “space” for political debate. It is precisely because of its revolutionary power that the Cuban government has so tightly controlled access to the internet. In fact, only a small percentage of the Cuban population has access to the interest, and most websites remain blocked.
Secondly, the Cuban government is highly susceptible to public scrutiny. Despite its dismal and public human rights record, the Cuban government's PR machine works extra hard to ensure that the country is seen in a positive light. This is accomplished via two avenues. On the one hand, the government refuses to let independent NGOs from entering the country, politicizes the internet, heavily monitors public dissidence.
On the other hand, its "goodwill" engagements, such as its doctoral missions abroad and recent reforms to ameliorate LGBTI+ rights, have set forth a more complex image of the regime. Moreover, Cuba might be all the more sensitive to its appearance as it seeks a seat on the United Nations Human Rights Council for the 2021-2023 term. Although preposterous, the move signals its soft power considerations.
Third, the raid demonstrated the Cuban government is a creature of habit when it comes to civil society manipulation. A key tactic employed by the government is the use of “calculated concession” on a particular social issue to curb demands for regime change. In the demonstration mentioned above, the Cuban government publicly agreed to talk to activists and ensure that independent artists were not harassed in the future. Yet, much no one’s surprise the government reversed course once media attention subsided.
Another cornerstone of the Cuban government’s manipulation of civil society is blaming the U.S. for its dissidents. And that is precisely what happened. The government reversed its stance and branded the demonstration a “pawn” in U.S. interference on the island.
The concept of civil society has always stood on shaky ground within Cuba's political and academic circles, namely for its presumed incompatibility with Marxist principles. However, civil society mobilization became more continuous during the 1990s as the U.S. government began an aggressive campaign to foster civil society growth within Cuba through various avenues. The U.S. rationale being that a robust civil society would eventually depose the regime from within.
What does the future hold for Cuban activist? While the demonstration did not amount to much change it did plant a seed of hope. This is exactly why it was so threating to the government. And while the future is unclear one thing is curtain, Cuba is a resilient nation. Ultimately the country’s faith is in its citizen’s hand only they can set forth the wheels of change and winds of democracy. Cuban citizens can always find solace in their history.