Fidel Castro Loses a Publlic Argument on Human Rights Conventions

Fhil Peters of the Lexington Institute offers an interpretation of the political evolution of Cuba in his invaluable Cuba Triangle blog.

On International Human Rights Day, Foreign Minister Perez Roque, formerly private secretary to Fidel Castro, announced Cuba would sign two UN human rights conventions. A few days later, Fidel Castro sent a message to the TV round table recalling why Cuba had not done so six years earlier.

http://cubantriangle.blogspot.com/2007/12/history-will-tell-who-is-right.html

The section on labor union rights would provide “a pretext for imperialism to try to divide and fragment workers, create artificial unions, and reduce their political and social power and influence,” Castro said in 2001.

A section on education would “open the doors to the privatization of teaching, which in the past allowed painful differences and irritating privileges and injustices, including racial discrimination.”

Subsequently the government reiterated it would sign the UN conventions.

Phil's comment:

Castro asked that the text of his 2001 statement be titled, “History will tell who is right.”

Maybe history will also tell us who is in charge.