KEY ADDRESS BY ARMY GENERAL
RAUL CASTRO RUZ, PRESIDENT OF THE
Comrades all:
We are coming to the end of a year when our country
has taken up difficult challenges. A world economy marked by the upheavals of a
sustained decline has been aggravated by increasingly devastating and
unpredictable natural phenomena.
But, again, millions of Cubans have shown the spirit
of those who never back away from challenges, regardless of how insurmountable
they may seem. The fact remains that when we work united in solidarity and with
adequate organization the resources invested and the results of our efforts
multiply.
In general, recovery from the damages caused by the
last three hurricanes is steadily advancing. We can already see the first
fruits of the steady recovery of the farming productions. Likewise, major
investments have been made to equip the brigades that will substantially
increase the capacity for housing construction. By now, we have in the country
the first four large brigades that will be working in the ground movement
required by the new housing development.
On the other hand, the equipment and material have
been bought to be used in the construction of roads and railways and in the
repairs of the power and communication grids. This has been achieved in a
shorter period than on previous occasions even if the damages were greater.
These are but a few examples of what has been done in the past few months.
Nevertheless, we should be aware of the magnitude of
this endeavor, particularly, the recovery of the houses, since this year’s
hurricanes affected over 500 thousand of
them in 35 municipalities, while in 12 other of these 70 thousand remain
affected by meteorological events that hit on previous years. From the total
sum, 77% are still pending repairs or full construction.
I have been given assurances that this work can be
concluded within three years, but let’s be realistic and not delude ourselves,
for even with a continued effort we might need from three to six years.
However, while the majority was working and making
sacrifices, some tried to profit from the needs of their compatriots, but these
were confronted by the firm action of the law enforcement forces, the
Prosecution and the Courts of Law acting with the support of the population
through the mass organizations.
It must be clear that not a step backward shall be
taken in our purpose to strengthen institutionalization, discipline and order
in every field since without these it is simply not possible to advance.
The economic results achieved this year have been
discussed both in this plenary session and in previous days.
Actually, the adverse economic reality during
practically the entire year 2008, combined with the great number of hours that
the country’s leadership had to dedicate to looking for the best alternatives
to ensure food, healthcare, education and the other basic necessities of our
people, despite all difficulties, forced us to postpone the study and adoption
of decisions on equally important issues.
It has been possible to advance in other areas such as
the distribution of idle land among those who can and are willing to make them
produce. This is a decisive area; therefore, we should be alert in case of any
delay or violation of the established rules.
There has also been progress in the collection and
local distribution of milk and other food that can be possibly grown in the country;
in the rationalization of transportation and its improvement wherever possible;
in the construction of major water facilities, aqueducts and sewage systems or
the restoration of those existing in various cities; the sustained growth of
tourism and a modest increase in imports replacement, just to mention some of
the most important tasks.
This has enabled us to be in a better position to face
the increasing expenses associated to the losses caused by the powerful
meteorological phenomena and what’s more by the enormous increase in the prices
of practically everything we need to import, except for some specific
fluctuations.
For example, concerning food, the country paid this
year 907 million dollars more than in 2007, and of these, close to 840 million
were due to price increase. These prices have been decreasing in the past few
weeks, but the prices of our main export items have decreased even more.
In 2008, the average price of nickel was 41% lower
than in 2007 and 80% lower than that year’s record. Also the prices of sugar
and seafood, among other export items, have sustained a decrease.
The financial crisis that broke out in the United
States has quickly evolved to become the global economic crisis that comrade
Fidel forecast no less than ten years ago; the most severe crisis in almost 80
years.
The truth is that no Nobel Laureate in Economics, no
school of economic thought or international body can ascertain how long and how
far this crisis will go.
Therefore, next year will be one of great uncertainty
in world economy and we should be prepared to take up that serious challenge
which has been affecting us considerably.
Despite all of these difficulties our economy
registered some growth, even if less than had been planned, basically, as I have
already said, due to the damages caused by the hurricanes amounting to almost
10 billion dollars, that is, close to 20% of this year’s gross domestic
product.
Given its importance, I must insist on an idea I have
expressed before: no one, neither a person nor a country, can afford to
endlessly spend more than it receives from the sale of its productions or the
services it renders.
The adverse scenario of the world economy and our own
difficulties demand that we maximize the possibilities offered by the mutually
advantageous relations that we have been developing with friendly nations in
every continent, particularly with the sister Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela,
personally encouraged by its President, comrade Hugo Chavez Frias.
Our primary duty is to adjust our foreign currency
spending to the amounts we can bring in. The victory in this battle shall
depend on the steady increase of productions either marked for exports or that
can efficiently replace imports or bring about savings, and on ensuring a
greater and better offer of services to people from other countries, since
tourism as well as healthcare bring in considerable incomes.
This is not only an imperative necessity but also our
basic duty to future generations. It would not be ethical to increase the non
productive expenditures at the expense of contracting debts to be paid for by
our children and grandchildren.
Consequently, it has been decided, among other
measures, to reduce by 50% the expenses contemplated by the state institutions
for foreign traveling and the same has been decided with respect to the
business sector. The objective is not to reduce necessary tasks or negotiations
but rather to act more rationally.
Far from changing the economic strategy adopted, we
are being totally consistent with it. We have not set aside any of the issues I
have addressed lately. Rather, we have proceeded to take the partial measures
allowed by the circumstances and we shall advance --avoiding undue speed or an
excess of idealism-- depending on the availability of resources and the
conclusion of the necessary studies.
In the same token, we should be aware that in order to
gradually solve the distortions affecting our wage system, we need to work for the
removal of undue gratuitousness and excessive subsidies; otherwise, we cannot
make ends meet. Two plus two will always make four; never five. We must be realistic and adjust all of our
dreams to real possibilities. This means to apply the socialist principle of
everyone receiving according to their work.
We should be limiting gratuitousness strictly to
ensuring every citizen such crucial services as education, healthcare and
social security, which together with culture and sports --just to keep their current
levels—will demand higher productions and an increase in the budget incomes,
since the expenses keep growing from one year to the next. This is no simple
task and it requires that everyone understands it and supports it.
An example of
this is what the Council of Ministers analyzed and broadly informed you about yesterday regarding the
elimination of the practice to guarantee holiday packages, gastronomic offers
and others at highly subsidized prices to cadres, outstanding workers and other
segments of the population which accounted for an annual spending in hard
currency of almost 60 million dollars. Perhaps a little more, if we add that
the subsidies received by the camping program exceed 60 million dollars a year.
This is the only country in the world doing that.
Let this be clearly understood: we are not questioning
whether those who have enjoyed this possibility deserved it or not, nor are we
limiting the right to go to these places. We are questioning the rationality of
such a costly incentive, under the present circumstances or any other.
It is a known fact that most people do not have a
clear perception of what they receive for free or of the generally high
subsidies which are part of their payment and feel that this comes only from
their salary.
As I have said, this issue was thoroughly discussed
yesterday. It really has many other angles from which we shall continue to
analyze it; and we say without hesitation that they must all be examined and
gradually removed as we advance in the process of giving the salary its real
worth. There is no other solution.
The priority accorded to other issues prevented us
from concluding the necessary studies and presenting to this Assembly session
the new composition of the government. Therefore, we are requesting from you to
put off that decision, even if, as we have done so far, we shall continue to
introduce other changes in the course of the year 2009.
These issues are very closely linked to the structural
and conceptual transformation that shall be submitted to discussion to and
approval by the Sixth Party Congress.
For example, great progress has been made in the study
towards the establishment of the office of General Comptroller of the Republic.
This will be a hierarchical higher body of the central administration of the
State directly subordinated to the State Council.
It is our purpose to introduce our proposal to the
next session of the National Assembly.
The draft proposal sets forth that this new body would
take up the work of the existing ministry of Auditing and Control in addition
to other tasks. It is assumed that this new body will have more
responsibilities than it usually does in other countries where it is
essentially limited to controlling the pubic funds.
In short, we hope it will decisively contribute to
strengthening the demand that every leadership structure discharges its duty
strictly, while avoiding doing the job of a minister or of any other official.
Even in those cases where it detects the absence of rules or regulations, it
shall promote their elaboration and presentation to the corresponding
authorities. Such a situation is present both at the level of enterprises and
even the nation.
Where are your duties spelled out, and your
guidelines, those that must guide your work and on whose basis you should
demand from everyone the fulfillment of their duty, as many delegates said here
referring to very concrete subjects? There is an absolute absence of rules or
regulations.
This office of the General Comptroller of the Republic
will also see after that, and I shall elaborate on this concept because it is
high time for many of us to start checking what should be regulated in our
respective areas of responsibility.
Everything requires a regulation as a guidance on
which our work must be based.
In order to call for action we need to educate, to
guide, to prevent and to demand the observation of what has been provided for,
but what should be done must be written down and not depend on what comes through
anyone’s mind. And, if the time comes to punish somebody we cannot limit
ourselves to those who directly committed the violation but we should also
include those who with their negligent actions propitiate or permit their
occurrence, that is, the so-called accessories, those who do not claim for a
responsible action.
For many years I have meditated on these matters,
first of all by critically analyzing my own work and the others’, and I have
reached the conclusion that one of our fundamental problems is that we are not
systematically demanding at all levels. Do observe and meditate, look at one
side and the other, and look inside yourselves, too.
We should always be willing to get involved in
discussions and to face misunderstandings. Being a leader is knowing first of
all how to call for action, from the rank and file to the top levels. It is not
possible to lead, control and be tolerant at the same time, I mean, be “a good
guy,” as people usually say. That’s why
those who really do what they are supposed to do are called names, generally
degrading names.
Likewise, it is not possible to be a good leader
without mastering the documents and provisions that rule our work. We are not
used to observe the ruling documents, and when a new one comes around, we
simply read the heading and put it on ice. Our work must be guided by the
ruling documents adopted at the corresponding levels, preferably after
democratic discussions, with the participation of everyone that should be
involved and of those who should enforce them.
There are few institutions in our country, very few,
where everything is regulated from the moment you join in up to the way you
should be buried if you die while working in that institution, and what to do
in every case. I’m giving you these two extreme examples. But, there are others
where nothing is regulated and you commonly find unconscious violations --that
occur naturally-- of official regulations and laws of the republic, passed by
this same Parliament, and nothing happens.
I was saying that it is impossible to be a leader
without mastering the provisions and the ruling documents concerning our work.
Unfortunately, not everyone is in the habit of
studying or consulting them as often as necessary, which is the only way to
adequately implement them.
The office of the Comptroller will not remove these
problems all by itself, since these stem from deeply rooted vices, as deeply
rooted as the plants of marabou, --but even the marabou can be
pulled out, the marabou can be burned, and in the that land which is today
protected at least by the marabou, useful plants can be grown and fruits
produced for the country-- however, it will contribute --I mean the
Comptroller’s office-- to the battle we are waging on them with the support of other
state institutions, especially the General Attorney of the Republic’s office,
the Party and other non state institutions which together stand for the entire
society. We shall give the maximum support to this effort and move ahead step
by step avoiding extremism but acting with energy and rigor. De meditate on
these matters I have just said and be watchful.
During the previous session of this Assembly we
concentrated on two main issues: the new Social Security Law and the necessity
to increase incorporation to the labor force, productivity and efficiency.
I agree with the views expressed here during this
session in the sense that we have adopted a fair Social Security Law, which
respects the workers’ interests while taking into account the country’s
economic and demographic realities.
As reported by our press outlets, the year 2008 is
coming to its end with a slight growth in the birth rate as compared to
previous years. This does not point, however, to a change in the sustained
trend of an increase in the number of citizens of older age with respect to the
younger resulting in a progressive decrease of the economically active
population.
These are unavoidable reasons that can hardly be
reversed and that impose the necessity to defer the retirement age. This has
been understood by the overwhelming majority of our workers after profound
discussions where everybody’s opinion was attentively listened to.
Last June an appeal was made to all teachers and
professors who had retired for several reasons to return to the classrooms, and
the response has proved our expectations to be right. We are happy to congratulate the seven
thousand educators who responded positively and who are today contributing
their experience and expertise to the different education levels, particularly,
in the primary, junior and high school education, where the major deficit of
educators is registered.
It has meant a major reinforcement for the
hard-working and irreplaceable detachment made up by our educators. A proof of this is the additional figure of
nine thousand educators who are beyond retirement age and still working. And
this task does not end here, mostly in the provinces with the lower results.
Something similar happened before with the over 1600 engineers,
middle level technicians and skilled workers already retired who have come back
to work with the Armed Forces, many of whom are taking part in the important
task of modernizing our armament and other means of defense, a subject I
addressed in the previous session of this Assembly; 1500 retirees have
returned.
These examples show that our people always responds
well when a serious work is done, and when sound arguments are offered together
with a correct organization.
On that occasion I also made reference to the fact
that every province must ensure not only the professors it needs but also the
construction workers, the police agents and the rest of the working force they
are lacking today. Some progress has been made. In the first semester of this
year, 867 youths from the capital of the country joined the courses to train as
policemen, and the enrollment of those who shall start training on February
2009 is already complete. The provinces
of
Even if I do not address this issue during the next
session of the Assembly, I will publicly recall it so that we do not forget.
As far as the construction workers are concerned, I
must say that the response has been very, very poor in this key sector for the
development of the country in every area, even for the thousands of houses we
need to build. Let’s see what can be done.
These are only steps part of a number of measures we
shall continue to adopt until working becomes a crucial necessity to all. To put
it simple: the people must feel the need to work in order to cover their basic
needs, regardless of the conscience of every honest citizen about this primary
duty.
Let’s not deceive ourselves; if there is no pressure,
if the people do not need to work in order to cover their necessities, and if
we continue to give things for free here and there, we shall lose our voice
calling people to work. That’s my perception, and that’s why everything that I
am proposing is aimed at that objective. Let’s not deceive ourselves.
We share the concern of many compatriots with respect
to individuals who do not make any contribution to society, but we should be
aware that this problem cannot be solved with a resolution, not even with
legislation. This requires a comprehensive approach including political,
economic, legal and administrative action, but above all it requires what I
have just said: that they feel the necessity to work.
In the field of international relations the country
has been very successful. We have properly fulfilled our responsibility at the
head of the Movement of Non Aligned Countries, which is today more active and
united. The resolution against the blockade was adopted at the United Nations
for the seventeenth consecutive time. Just a few days ago, the
The nations of our sub-continent have moved from
making petitions for to demanding the cessation of aggressions against
An example of this transformation is the statement
against the blockade unanimously adopted at the
This year we continued striving restlessly for the
return to our homeland of our Five Heroes. Here, in the presence of their
relatives and the people, we restate our commitment to never lose heart in this
effort until they are all back home.
The swift and considerable assistance received after
being hit by the hurricanes, together with the countless messages of solidarity
and encouragement, are gestures much appreciated by our people, as they are
another tangible example of the respect and affection Cuba has earned with its
vertical and principled position in its relations with other countries, and its
fraternal and selfless cooperation in innumerable areas, specially in
healthcare and education.
We are living through a historic time radically
different, very different, from those years when the governments of Latin America,
except for few but honorable exceptions, submitted as a group to
This year which is about to end, we hosted various
important international meetings, the most recent being the Third Cuba-CARICOM
Summit, held this December in Santiago de Cuba with excellent results and which
was attended, for the first time, by every leader of the countries that make up
this community. Additionally, we have had the honor to welcome numerous heads
of State or Government, as well as outstanding personalities from all
continents in the areas of politics, economics, religion, science and culture.
Around these same days, fifty years ago, the Ejercito
Rebelde --in close coordination with the combatants of the underground
struggle-- obtained its great and decisive final victories throughout the
country. Hardly a week later, unable to resist the thrust of the revolution,
the tyranny collapsed, seven years after it had come to submerge the country
even deeper into tragedy.
The triumph of our latest War of Liberation came
exactly five years, five months and five days after the heroic attempt to “take
heaven by storm” in Santiago de Cuba and Bayamo, on July 26, 1953.
The victory of January 1st did not mark the
end of the struggle but rather the beginning of a new stage characterized by
the increasingly massive and conscious participation of our people without a
minute of truce in almost half a century. Such has also been our reality in the
particularly intensive and complex past 12 months that we have just
reviewed.
That is why I’d like to conclude wishing you and all
of our compatriots, good health and much energy for the year 2009. We shall
need them both, as I have said before; there is plenty of work to be done!
We, Cuban revolutionaries, can look back at the past
holding our heads high and into the future with the same confidence in our
strength and our capacity to resist.
Let’s congratulate ourselves on the 50th
anniversary of the victory of the Revolution, and first of all let’s
congratulate our Commander in Chief Fidel Castro Ruz who has been leading us,
--yesterday, today and always—from victory to victory!
Thank you, very much.