Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
08HAVANA169
2008-02-21 22:39:00
CONFIDENTIAL
US Interests Section Havana
Cable title:  

CUBA AFTER FIDEL'S RESIGNATION: DAY TWO

Tags:  PGOV CU 
pdf how-to read a cable
VZCZCXYZ4103
RR RUEHWEB

DE RUEHUB #0169 0522239
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
R 212239Z FEB 08 (CCY-ADX611630-WSC8688-45)
FM USINT HAVANA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 2898
INFO RUEHSW/AMEMBASSY BERN 0182
RUEHCV/AMEMBASSY CARACAS 0074
RUMIAAA/USCINCSO MIAMI FL
C O N F I D E N T I A L HAVANA 000169 

SIPDIS

(C O R R E C T E D COPY PGOV TAG ADDED)

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR ARA/CCA; ARA/PDD;

E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/19/2028
TAGS: PGOV CU
SUBJECT: CUBA AFTER FIDEL'S RESIGNATION: DAY TWO


Classified By: COM Michael E. Parmly, reasons 1.2 (b) AND (d)
C O N F I D E N T I A L HAVANA 000169

SIPDIS

(C O R R E C T E D COPY PGOV TAG ADDED)

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR ARA/CCA; ARA/PDD;

E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/19/2028
TAGS: PGOV CU
SUBJECT: CUBA AFTER FIDEL'S RESIGNATION: DAY TWO


Classified By: COM Michael E. Parmly, reasons 1.2 (b) AND (d)

1.(C) Summary. Cuba remains calm two days after Fidel
Castro,s announcement that he would step down as President
and Commander-in-Chief in the wake of this Sunday's (2/24)
election. Yet throughout the country there is a sense of
expectation, if not outright excitement, that was kicked
off by Fidel,s surprise announcement, aided and abetted by
the long-anticipated visit of Vatican Secretary of State
Cardinal Bertone, and fueled by rampant rumor and speculation
at all levels of Cuban society. People here are aware that
the eyes of the world are on Cuba, and as a result many are
analyzing every scrap of information and debating every piece
of news, not for what they actually say, but for what they
might mean in the larger scheme of things. The U.S.
Interests Section is not immune to this quiet fervor, and
offers the following modest anecdotes and observations for
the mix. End summary.


2. (C) COM Michael Parmly met with Newsweek reporter Joe
Contreras 2/20 for an off-the-record session at his
residence. Contreras remarked that whereas in the past he
had experienced considerable difficulty entering the country
"They really do hate me here", this time he sailed
through passport check and customs unchallenged. True, he
had come as anonymously as possible from his home base in
Mexico since he was not "street-legal," as he put it,
leaving his blue blazer, press credentials, laptop computer,
and even spiral notebooks and pens at home. He had learned
this technique on previous trips when blazered and
laptop-bearing colleagues were turned away at the airport
while he was admitted under the guise of rumpled history
professor or free-lance book author. This time, however, it
may not have made any difference; properly attired and
equipped reporters from other countries were also allowed
into Cuba with little or no questioning. This experience
stood in stark contrast to the GOC,s attitude after Raul
Castro,s &proclama8 of July 31, 2006, when droves of
reporters were turned away at the border and the
down-dressing Contreras still managed to get in.


3. (C) BusinessWeek reporter Geri Smith arrived in Havana
Sunday 2/17 for her first visit to Cuba in eight years.
Asked whether she was here to cover the election, she replied
"I am now." It turns out the GOC had finally granted her a
visa after a 14-month wait. It could well be that the timing
of her visa was coincidental, but her experience, coupled
with that of Newsweek,s Contreras, could lead one to
conclude that Cuban government officials are anything but
reluctant to have the international press cover Sunday's
historic event.


4. (C) A member of a prominent youth organization in Santiago
de Cuba, Juan Carlos Hernandez Hernandez, who is well known
to USINT,s human rights officer, was in the Cathedral Plaza
yesterday (2/20) where Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal
Tarcisio Bertone will hold a mass later today. Like many
other Cubans, he hopes to hand some documents over to the
Cardinal. He said he noticed an increased presence of police
he personally recognized as being from the provinces of
Holguin, Oriente, and Santiago de Cuba. He was stopped by the
police, had his CAMBIO bracelet removed, was questioned about
what he was doing in Havana, and ordered to return to
Santiago. Subsequently he spoke by telephone with his family
in Santiago and was told that a security official had dropped
by and warned family members to stop his activities. Asked
about Fidel,s resignation, Hernandez said that no one in
Santiago expected major changes. He said that Raul will
probably make gestures to the international community by
releasing more political prisoners while continuing his
repressive campaign against youth, which may in fact worsen.


5. (C) On the other hand, human rights lawyer Rene Gomez
Manzano told PolOff 2/21 that he is very optimistic (while
acknowledging most opposition figures disagree),saying he
believes that the GOC will proceed with economic reforms that
make owning a small business and engaging in private
agriculture easier. He also believes Raul will retain some
title for himself, but not all three (first secretary of the
communist party, head of the council of ministers, and head
of the council of state),effectively bringing more people
into government by spreading out the titles more widely.
Finally, he believes there will be a quote, "sizeable"
release of political prisoners in the near future.
PARMLY