[Marxism] Pope's embergo stand angers some exiles

["Walter Lippmann" <walterlx@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

(Great news about discussion and debate among Cubans in
Miami which has been evoked following publication of the
news that the Pope has once again come out against the
US embargo of Cuba. [OK, it's a blockade, not an embargo,
but let's not harp on that when the Pope is basically on
the right side of this issue at this moment.]

(We've receive the transcript of the Pope's comments in
Spanish, and will post them in English as soon as we get
them. The issue is so important that the MIAMI HERALD got
involved, naturally on the wrong side of the issue. You
can read how this was mis- and dis-handled by the Herald
at Francisco Aruca's PROGRESO WEEKLY website this week:
<://www.progresoweekly.com/index.php?progreso=bs_detector&otherweek=11057688
00>
========================================================

January 12, 2005 

POPE'S STAND ON CUBA EMBARGO ANGERS EXILES
SOME CONSIDER MESSAGE TO BE SLAP IN THE FACE

By Madeline Baro Diaz and Vanessa Bauza 
Staff Writers\The Associated Press
contributed to this report
South Florida Sun-Sentinel

MIAMI

When Pope John Paul II speaks, millions of people around
the world pay close attention, but when he reiterated his
opposition to the U.S. embargo on Cuba over the weekend,
Cuban-Americans in South Florida were outraged.

This week, telephone lines for Spanish-language radio
programs lit up as upset callers aimed to vent their
frustration with the pope. They were angry that he
criticized the four-decades-old embargo during a Saturday
meeting with Raul Roa Kouri, Havana's new ambassador to the
Vatican.

"The Holy See wishes ardently that the obstacles that
currently impede free communication and exchange between
Cuba and the international community may be overcome as
soon as possible, thus consolidating, by means of a
respectful and open dialogue among all, the conditions
necessary for genuine development," the pope said.

For some observers, the statement came as no surprise. The
Vatican has repeatedly opposed economic embargoes designed
to achieve political purposes. But for some Cuban exiles,
many of them Catholic, the pontiff's message was a slap in
the face.

"It's nothing different than the same attitude that the
pope has had in regards to Cuba, which is really sad
because it's not the same attitude he had toward Poland or
toward communism [in other countries]," said Cuban exile
activist Ninoska Perez Castellon. "It's really
disappointing."

Alfredo Mesa, executive director of the Cuban-American
National Foundation, another staunch supporter of the
embargo, said his organization respectfully disagrees with
the pope's position.

However, Mesa said the pope has been helpful on Cuba. He
cited the pontiff's 1998 visit to Cuba, a trip that made
the Catholic Church on the island important for the
dissident movement, as an example.

"Ever since his visit, it has been a place where people
seek strength to seek liberty and to fight for the freedom
of Cuba," Mesa said.

In Havana, the Catholic Church has long advocated not only
a more open engagement between Cuba and the international
community, but also constructive dialogue between the Cuban
government and the internal opposition movement.

As the most powerful non-governmental organization in Cuba,
the Catholic Church has often been buffeted with criticism
from those who feel it does not do enough to foster
political change. Meanwhile the Cuban government has at
times accused it of overstepping its religious mission.

In Havana, Gisela Delgado is one of a small group of wives
of political prisoners who attend church every Sunday and
sometimes stage modest protests in support of their
husbands' freedom.

She interpreted the pope's statement as showing solidarity
with the Cuban people, not with one government over
another.

"What the church seeks is a dialogue, and I agree with
that," said Delgado, whose husband, Hector Palacios, is
serving a 25-year prison sentence. "The church does not
seek to place itself alongside one political [group] or
another ... but to defend human beings."

For some, the pope's message struck a chord. Silvia
Wilhelm, a Cuban-American anti-embargo activist in Miami,
said his comments were on target.

"I think, once again, the pope is looking at this issue
from a humanitarian perspective," Wilhelm said. "[The
embargo] is immoral."

But on Spanish-language radio in South Florida, the pope's
comments sparked a firestorm. Some callers had strong words
for the Catholic Church and some said they might stop
attending church altogether.

But Perez Castellon, who is Catholic, said quitting the
church is not the answer, a sentiment that she repeated to
a caller on her afternoon radio show on Radio Mambi, 710
AM.

Mesa, who is also a lifelong Catholic, also said the Pope's
opinion on the embargo will not shake his faith.

"I love my church, but on this issue the church doesn't
speak for me," he said. The Associated Press contributed to
this report.

Staff Writer Madeline Baro Diaz can be reached at
mbaro@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx or 305-810-5007.



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