Letter to President Ali

Dear Editor,

President Irfaan Ali attended the Shield of the Americas Summit on March 7th, hosted by US President Donald Trump and a hand-picked group of South American and Caribbean leaders, selected because they openly support Trump’s fascist and genocidal agenda. President Ali was one of only two Caribbean leaders invited to the Summit of Fascists as it is being called by various commentators, the other being Trinidad’s Kamla Persad-Bissessar. As if his presence there was not shameful enough, he posed for a group photo with the other Caribbean and South American vassals, with Trump at the centre, grinning from ear to ear, while Sinead O’Connor’s hit, Nothing Compares to You played loudly in the background. I kid you not, there is video footage. But that was not enough for President Ali, as if to embarrass Guyana even more, he appeared on Fox News where he told the interviewer that there must be change in Cuba to bring about “freedom and democracy”.

Referring to Cuba, Ali told the Fox News interviewer that, “We all agree that the status quo cannot remain, and we agree that there must be an attempt to have the status quo changed and we all are aware that will take time to be implemented.” We who?

According to President Ali, this status quo change will allow the Cubans 

to “benefit from prosperity and democracy”. As a Guyanese citizen and patriot, the interview was embarrassing to watch, as Ali went on to exclaim that these changes “must lead to better conditions for the people of Cuba, must lead to a society in which the rule of law, in which democracy, in which freedom is celebrated.”

Really? And being the brilliant political analyst that he is, he simply failed to mention that 60 plus years of an illegal economic blockade imposed by the US on this Caribbean nation is the reason for the hardships faced by the Cuban people.

President Ali, I am curious as to what freedom, democracy and prosperity, what change of status quo you are prescribing for Cuba? Is it like the freedom, democracy, prosperity and status quo we have in Guyana, where despite oil wealth, 58% of the people live in poverty, and 16 families, a small group of elites, control most of the land and wealth? Is it the kind of prosperity where the elderly are found begging on the streets because they are hungry and can’t afford medication? Or should they look forward to their life expectancy, infant mortality and literacy rates going from amongst the highest not only in the region, but in the world, to amongst the lowest in the region, like in Guyana, and please do not refer us to fake statistics – we live here and know the difference between fact and fiction.

Maybe you want the people of Cuba to look forward to the kind of prosperity that our security guards, domestic workers, retail and fast food chain workers, supermarket check-out staff, gas pump attendants and so many Guyanese workers enjoy on the minimum wage, taking home $15,000 a week for a 5 or 6 day working week. Maybe the people of Cuba are waiting with bated breath to be as under-nourished as so many of the poor masses in Guyana, who survive for weeks on tennis roll and tea.

And I am sure President Ali wants the workers in Cuba to enjoy the freedom our workers in Guyana enjoy. Raise your voice in Guyana about the exploitative working conditions and starvation wages and the freedom is such that you will lose your job immediately, with no consequences for your private sector employer. You can go and lay a complaint with the Ministry of Labour, although most workers steer clear of that, because somehow “mysteriously” employers get a call and you are free all right – free all day because you are unemployed. It’s called repression.

Cuba has one of the lowest student-teacher ratios in the region and one of the highest literacy rates in the world. Not only are there no tuition costs but textbooks are free for all students at all levels. All schools in Cuba are equipped and subsidized the same way – there are no “bad schools”. Maybe President Ali would like Cuban children to enjoy what primary school students in Guyana enjoy – a draconian hierarchical school system where there are so-called “good schools” and “bad schools”, a system that ensures an elitist, plantation culture can continue to flourish. I bet that Cuban children cannot wait to enjoy the same benefits that Guyanese children enjoy – poorly equipped schools, often lacking even sufficient basic furniture such as desks and chairs, and lacking teachers in many subjects, no textbooks because they cannot afford to purchase them  – ahh the prosperity and freedom that we enjoy in a neo-liberal capitalist, so-called democratic country.

President Ali, you mentioned “rule of law”. Are you wishing for the people of Cuba the same rule of law we have in Guyana, where the rich literally get away with murder, while the poor are imprisoned for stealing textbooks, a few food items for their children or a few grams of marijuana?

Democracy is a contested term, President Ali. Please tell us – the people of Guyana if you believe that the USA is a democracy and if you do, please tell us in what year did the USA become a democracy? Is Trump a democrat, if so then I suppose you believe that genocide is a component of democracy?  Is Trump and Rubio telling you what you must do, democracy? If what you dare to publicly prescribe for the people of Cuba the freedom, prosperity and democracy that I imagine you think exists in the USA and here in Guyana, then all I can say is God help them.

Sincerely,

Gerald A. Perreira
Organization for the Victory of the People (OVP)