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| Europe |
| Italy moving against Cuba |
| 2003-04-30 |
| EFL Cuba's recent clampdown on dissidents is alienating Italy, a country historically close to the Caribbean island. On Tuesday, the Italian lower house approved a motion calling on the government to halt Italy's economic aid to Cuba if dissidents are not freed and executions are not stopped. The motion - sponsored by the centre-right ruling coalition but partially backed by the left as well - also urged the government to seek a EU-wide common position of pressure on Cuba. The move could be helped by Italy's forthcoming term of EU presidency, scheduled to start on 1 July. By acting against Cuba's one-party socialist state, Italy's conservative ruling coalition has come yet one step closer to the positions of US President George W Bush. More surprisingly, Italy's left is also condemning repression in Cuba: some of Fidel Castro's best friends can be found in the Italian left, which includes two explicitly communist parties. Fidel Castro's recent policies have prompted a serious soul-searching exercise in the Italian left, often accused by critics of supporting dictatorships. The left is increasingly critical of the Cuban leader, with the possible exception of the Party of Italian Communists, who mostly still support Mr Castro. Not only did the moderate left vote in favour of some sections of the centre-right's motion, but it also tabled its own motion condemning Cuba's clampdown and calling for the respect of human rights. The Party of Italian Communists and Communist Refoundation also presented motions urging the respect of human rights. Arguably, Italy has been Cuba's best friend in the West and Cuba seems to be losing this support. But Fidel Castro also risks losing the support of Pope John Paul II, who boosted the Cuban leader's international reputation by visiting the island in 1998. A Vatican statement released on Saturday expressed the Pope's deep regret at the executions and urged "a significant act of clemency" from the Cuban leader. Not that it's likely to happen. |
| Posted by:Steve |
| #11 Best line: "Fidel Castro's recent policies have prompted a serious soul-searching exercise in the Italian left, often accused by critics of supporting dictatorships" Not just the Italian left, the entire left. Kim Jong Il, Milosevic, Saddam, Arafat, Mugabe...all these monsters have been celebrated as heros by the Left. Jeezus how times change. In the old days, it was the right who was accused, often correctly, with supporting dictators...but that shoe is on the sinister foot now! |
| Posted by: R. McLeod 2003-05-01 01:47:25 |
| #10 I wonder how much the Chinese have their tongs into Fidelia land...... |
| Posted by: Alaska Paul 2003-04-30 20:32:09 |
| #9 "Castro has lost a lot of intellectual support he could normally bank on" I'm wondering if that is because, with Sammy dead and other terrorist money becoming as frozen as a cold day in hell,... well, ya just have to wonder if the checks that these enlightened souls could normally bank on for their anti-American brilliance, (think Galloway), just aren't clearing like they used to. |
| Posted by: Becky 2003-04-30 17:29:18 |
| #8 Raul will take over, but not for long, he has neither the "charisma" nor the sentimental support among the populace, and is also an old man. Would be nice if he and fidel took the trip to hell at the same time, no? |
| Posted by: Frank G 2003-04-30 15:10:36 |
| #7 Bah. Credit the change to Oriana Fallaci putting an iron rod up the Italian Left's backbone via its collective ass. |
| Posted by: Ptah 2003-04-30 13:10:21 |
| #6 The "somebody else" will be Raul Castro who is about the staunchest communist of Cuba (and a complete asshole) and leads the military. Egon Krenz was a lamb compared to Raul. |
| Posted by: True German Ally 2003-04-30 12:41:34 |
| #5 Cuba will change when Fidel dies of old age. The lefties may say bad things about him now and then, but they always come back because he's one of them, and yesterday's in the past. Job security, thy name is Fidel. When he's kicked it, somebody else will try and take over. Within a year or two the somebody else will be visiting with Egon Krenz. |
| Posted by: Fred 2003-04-30 11:50:48 |
| #4 Even French intellectuals haven't got much good to say about him these times and thats saying a lot. He's doomed, doomed I tell ya! How can Castro possibly go on without the support of French intellectuals? |
| Posted by: Steve White 2003-04-30 11:46:17 |
| #3 Recently Castro has lost a lot of intellectual support he could normally bank on (for reasons I never understood). Gabriel GarcÃÂa Márquez and José Saramago (two winners of the Novel Prize of Literature) have spoken out against him. They had supported him for decades before. Even French intellectuals haven't got much good to say about him these times and thats saying a lot. |
| Posted by: True German Ally 2003-04-30 11:01:07 |
| #2 Italy's left is just compelled to eat crow by the public opinion, there is no good faith in their positions. Have a look to their anti US demonstrations with thousands of paleostinians flags and some nice bin laden's big posters. They have helped Castro for tens of years. Don't give them any credit, it's just make up on a corpse. |
| Posted by: Poitiers 2003-04-30 10:36:23 |
| #1 Sounds to me that Italy's left is a bit more ethical than ours. |
| Posted by: TheMightyEmu 2003-04-30 10:28:15 |