Cuba censorship has crippled creative thought, says Tariq Ali

An interesting leftist perspective on Cuba censorship is offered by Tariq Ali in Counterpunch. While the thrust of his article is highly critical of President Bush and his announcement that Fidel Castro being succeeded by his brother Raul is not acceptable to the U.S., Ali also said:

"State censorship is not only deeply unpopular but has crippled creative thought on the island. The new opening has brought all the old contradictions to the fore. Cuban film-makers are publicly challenging the bureaucrats... That the Cuban system needs to be reformed is widely accepted in the country. I have been told often that the decision 'forced on us by the embargo' to follow the old Soviet model was 'not beneficial.' The choice now is Washington or Caracas. And while a tiny layer of the Cuban elite will be tempted by the dollars, most Cubans would prefer a different model. They will not wish to see an end to their health and education systems, but they do want more economic and political diversity, even though the model of the Big Neighbour under whose shadow they live does not exactly offer that choice."