This article gives the reader insight into Cuba's political process. As discussed in class, Cuba and North Korea are the only two nations in the world with a command economy. Cuba has been lenient economically recently, and with the country's political leaders gathering this weekend, it could mean that the leadership could loosen its economic grip on the country.
Raul Castro also introduced term limits on the presidency. If we use the Soviet Union as a case study, we may find that eventually future leaders will introduce economic and/or political policy that might lead to the collapse of the economic system. I believe this will happen after the death of Fidel and Raul Castro.
8 comments:
It will be interesting to see what happens to Cuba once Raul and Fidel Castro are gone; will the party come up with a party member that they can trust to carry out their socialist policies or will there be a revolt from citizens and a new party emerges?
It is surprising to know that almost 40% of Cuba's state general secretary are women.
I think the reform or revelution of Cuba is coming soon, since their top leader Fidel Castro is over 80 years old, and, according to this article, there are so many young leaders appearing in the party.
Cuba's economic situation is more related to politics than other countries. Its leadership changing and party issues will have huge influence on its economic system reform.
I agree that a reform of revolution will happen at some time relatively soon. The markets are already being opened up and even though they are being opened slowly, that is better than nothing.
Also, if Raul Castro holds to his proposal that public officials only serve for two five-year terms, it could cause change in Cuba, seeing as ten is such a large change considering Fidel Castro ruled for 47 years.
It will be interesting to see what happens.
I also agree that it is only a matter of time before these two command economies undergo a reform. I hope that reform will come to Cuba before the death of Castro, but I don't know if that will be possible.
I think that reform will come to Cuba as its political leadership begins to utilize more of the younger generations. The current generation of leaders were prevalent when the Soviet Union was promoting trade relations and economic alliances with Cuba and other communist nations in past decades. As the old leaders die out, I expect the youth will rise and demand change to a more market-driven economy.
Countries like Cuba and North Korea are very peculiar in our globalized world. People are looking at this two countries and expect them to change. In my opinion, Cuba will have a reform sooner than North Korea. There has been some rumor said that Kim Jong-un, who had been appointed as the supreme leader of North Korea after Kim Jong-il's death, had been controlled by some officials in the army. Rumor like this reflects people's worry of an unclear future of North Korea. However, Cuba may have a better chance to reform, as the article mentioned that they are taking some positive efforts.
I'd agree with Stephanie. I think that the younger generations of Cubans that are growing in number are necessary for potential reform or revolution. Fidel Castro has aged considerably and there has already been transitioning within the government. As witnessed in the Arab Spring, the communication available today can make a call for reform or revolution much easier to coordinate, but could also help the government better connect with the people and potentially maintain their position for a while longer.
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