Bill Goes to Senate to Lift Cuba Embargo
One of the longest holdovers from the Cold War is the nearly 50 year old embargo on travel and commerce with Cuba. Only in the last decade was the embargo loosened to allow farm sales, providing that Cuba paid for the goods in straight up cash. Now, it appears that some lawmakers, specifically Agriculture Committee Chairman Collin Peterson, will be supporting a bill that could finally end the embargo.
The bill is set to go through the committee and on to the Senate where it will face stiff opposition. The embargo was enacted during the Cold War, no doubt in response to the communist threat of nuclear attack. Since then, the human rights violations by the Cuban government justified keeping the embargo in place.
The main opposition to the bill will be facing the Cuban-American community who strongly support the embargo to hold in place as long as Cuba is under a communist government. To them, and generally rightfully so, only a switch to a democratic government is acceptable to consider free trade. However, the United States clearly already deals with communist countries (ahem, China) that have track records of oppressing the people.
Lifting the embargo and opening up free trade and tourism with Cuba could have the power to pull Cuba out of the third world and at least into the second world. The influx of tourism dollars, especially, could boost the economy in Cuba in such a way that the government would be more open to a switch to a democratic system. However, the skeptic in me highly doubts that.
However, there is no doubt that the money flowing into Cuba would boost the economy. But it should all come with a stipend. Opening up trade without addressing the blatant human rights issues is a political nightmare and a huge mistake.
So far, Cuba has been unreceptive to the announcement of this bill, most likely fully aware what kind of conditions would come with free trade with the United States.
Follow Technorati