March 11, 2000
Dear Mitchell
I have recently written an article entitled: PLIGHT OF ELIAN GONZALEZ:
AMERICAN OBSESSION WITH CUBA. As you know this little six year old boy has
been essentially kidnapped by the United States and is being held hostage
merely as a result of American vicious policies against Cuba. Numerous
articles on this case are appearing and people everywhere have been invited
to send more articles on the website on this topic. Hence, I am sending it
to you here below, in the hope that you will put it on the website. Thank you.
Sincerely yours,
Charles Mercieca
PLIGHT OF ELIAN GONZALEZ:
AMERICAN OBSESSION WITH CUBA
Charles Mercieca, Ph.D.
President
International Association of Educators for World Peace
NGO, United Nations (ECOSOC) UNDPI, UNICEF, UNCED & UNESCO
Professor of History and Philosophy
Alabama A&M University
One of the leading stories at the close of the twentieth century and
the beginning of the new millennium, which hit the American news media
widely, dealt with a six year old Cuban boy whose name was Elian Gonzalez.
In order to comprehend the complications surrounding this case, one must
have a concept of American-Cuban relations during the second half of the
twentieth century.
Recent History in Perspective
More than forty years ago, Cuba was governed by a brutal military
regime headed by Fulgencio Batista who, in spite of being a wicked
dictator, was shrewd enough to have the full-fledged support of the United
States. People often asked: "Why would the United States, a nation of
democracy and freedom, align itself with such a ruthless dictator?" Batista
was so abominable that anyone suspected to be critical of him would be
jailed and even tortured without trial and at times even killed along with
the spouse and children.
Since this tyranny could not go on indefinitely, a group of courageous
and concerned Cubans, headed by a young lawyer whose name was Fidel Castro,
decided to draw the line and to bring Batista's tyranny to an abrupt end.
In due time, this group of Cuban freedom fighters succeeded to overthrow
Batista's regime. The first thing they did then was to eradicate all the
evil which was brought on the nation by Fulgencio Batista who was fully
supported by the United States. In return for the US support for the
Batista's regime, American businessmen were allowed to exploit the entire
Cuban nation mercilessly.
Under the Batista regime, the vast majority of Cubans were left
illiterate and many lived in abject poverty. When Fidel Castro took power
he made it clear to the whole world that Cuba belonged to the Cubans. He
would not let the American businessmen, along with their capitalistic
ambitions, to control and rule his nation. Needless to say, American
capitalists were not pleased with Cuba's change of government, even though
such a change was for the greater benefit of the Cuban people themselves.
Hence, the American industries, which had an invested interest in Cuba
and which financed the election of most US government officials, alerted
the US government officials who immediately came to their rescue. The US
government soon declared Fidel Castro to be a dangerous man for "the
security of the United States." Soon the US government took serious steps
against the government of Fidel Castro, which included the international
embargo. This was an unethical and immoral step which years later was
condemned by leading religious figures that included Mother Teresa of
Calcutta and Pope John Paul II.
Challenges of New Cuban Regime
It is absolutely not true that Fidel Castro threatened "the security
of the United States." He simply did not allow American industries to
control Cuba and to exploit its resources to the detriment of the Cuban
people. When the United States saw that this young Cuban lawyer, who just
took the helm of his nation, meant real business, a new policy toward Cuba
was adopted. This new policy was not one of reconciliation but rather one
of hostility. Under the circumstances, what could the new government of
Cuba do?
There were only two alternatives: (1) Either the new Cuban government
surrenders to the American business which was controlling Cuba, thus
leaving the poor and suffering people of Cuba in the same state they were
under Fulgencio Batista, or (2) the new Cuban government would simply align
itself with another world power which was then the Soviet Union. Cuba's
link with the Soviet Union was more a marriage of convenience than
otherwise.
In the meantime, many Cubans, most of whom were admirers of Fulgencio
Batista, fled the country and went to take refuge in Miami. Here, in this
southernmost Florida city, the former followers of Fulgencio Batista formed
a stronghold against the regime of Fidel Castro. These Batista followers
aligned themselves with the US big industries and began to condemn Castro
as being a tyrannic dictator, which was far from the truth.
The Cubans of Miami mentioned nothing about the tyranny of Fulgencio
Batista who sold the soul of his nation to the greedy and selfish interest
of an American business elite. They took the opportunity to use their
harbored animosity against Castro as an evidence that Castro was a wicked
communist dictator. To make things even more distorted, the United States
said nothing about the atrocities of the Batista regime. Instead, the USA
began to blame Castro's regime, which saved the nation from the further
tyranny of Batista and of foreign capitalist domination, for all the
problems which were facing Cuba.
This attitude of the USA against Cuba was strange especially when one
considers how the United States, as a rule, always tended to support
governments which took power by coups or other illegitimate devices. Among
such countries we have the former Zaire, Chile, Argentina, Guatemala,
Paraguay, Nigeria, Liberia, Pakistan, Burma, and the list goes on and on.
Progress in Today's Cuba
Since Fidel Castro took power in Cuba, some forty years have passed.
In spite of the international embargo which the United States imposed,
there has been in Cuba phenomenal progress and the Cuban people are
infinitely better off now than they were under the previous regime. While
under the Batista regime the literacy rate was about 8%, under the Castro
regime the literacy rate rose to 92%. While under the Batista regime the
only health care Cubans had was that little which was provided by foreign
missionaries, under the Castro regime all Cubans have access to a free
health care system.
While under the Batista regime the teachers in higher education were
mostly foreigners, under the Castro regime almost all professors in higher
education are Cubans. While under the Batista regime the few physicians
Cuba had were mostly foreigners, under the Castro regime Cuba has produced
such an overwhelming number of physicians that quite a number of them go in
the poorest countries of Africa and Latin America to provide medical
assistance free-of-charge. While under the Batista regime a large number of
Cubans were homeless, under the Castro regime virtually all Cubans sleep
under some roof. These are tangible facts not opinions. And we know the
saying: "Actions speak louder than words."
What is ironic is the fact that, while the United States did not find
it difficult to help Batista who made the lives of quite a few millions of
Cubans miserable, this same American nation would take steps to penalize
the Castro regime for solving brilliantly most of the numerous problems
which were created by the previous regime.
The American politicians, most of whom know so little of history and
of the realities which surround them, continue to listen to the Cubans of
Miami. During the last forty years, the Cubans of Miami bore a lot of
children who grew up listening to their parents saying all kind of negative
stories against Fidel Castro. Surprisingly, such Cubans of Miami did not
seem to have anything to say negative about Fulgencio Batista! Now the
original Cubans of Miami are growing old and some of them have also passed
away.
However, their grand children are now being raised in Miami by their
parents. Such grand children who feel more American than Cuban, all they
care about is having good time with their friends. For them Cuba is just
another country and they are not really bothered about its history, or
about the attitude their parents have had toward it, same way as the rest
of the American children.
Reviewing American Foreign Policy
Also, most of the American politicians who were in government when
Fidel Castro took over, today they are either retired or they simply passed
away. The question which needs to be raised here is this: "Why should the
present United States government continue its aggressive policy against
Cuba which is viewed nowadays by the whole world as a peaceful nation?.....
perhaps one of the most peaceful nations on earth?" This is embarrassing to
say the least and disgusting to say the most.
We learn in philosophy that there is a reason behind every action that
takes place. The United States' continued embargo against Cuba reveals an
immature mentality. In fact, the United States has been characterized in
the world for its immature and poor foreign policy which reveals lack of
insight and foresight. A child, compared to an adult, is viewed as immature
because the child tends to look constantly backward relative to events that
take place while, at the same time, visualizing that the future ahead is
nothing but merely a repetition of the past. The United States immature
foreign policy is vindicated in its relationship with Cuba. This American
nation still views Cuba in that same mess it was under Fulgencio Batista
when Fidel Castro took power.
The US government as a whole, like a toddler, cannot see the realities
which exist beyond its nose. When it comes to foreign policy the United
States is myopic. For the USA there was nothing wrong in supporting such
tyrants as Mobutu of former Zaire, Abacha of Nigeria, Suharto of Indonesia
and several others who were devils when compared to Castro. Like a little
boy who wants to get after you for having displeased him, the United States
wants still to get after Castro for having developed polices not pleasing
to the USA.
In view of what has been stated in this brief historical sketch of
Cuba of the past forty years or so, we are now in a position to understand
the situation which involved the young little Cuban boy Elian Gonzalez.
This episode will make us realize how dangerous it is for the world to have
a country, such as the USA, which is characterized by immaturity, to
possess the largest arsenal of weapons of destruction in the world.
When we consider that the United States sells such weapons of
destruction to any country that would give the right price, friend and foe
alike, we begin to realize the danger the world faces. The immaturity of
the American foreign policy, which views weapons of destruction merely as
toys that could be sold for profit, same way as Toys R Us, the episode
which needs to be raised is this: If a vote were to be taken by all the
nations of the world relative as to which is the more dangerous country
between the USA and Cuba, we would surely know the answer with absolute
certainty way before the vote is taken.
Advent of Elian Gonzalez
Toward the end of 1999, a young divorced mother left Cuba on a boat
with her boy friend and her six year old son to join some of her relatives
living in Miami, Florida. Unfortunately, the boat capsized and both the
mother and her boy friend got drowned. Little six year old Elian Gonzalez
was later spotted by either American coast guards or fishermen. They saw
him hanging on a floating tube and surrounded by dolphins to protect him
from possible attacks by sharks. Needless to say, Elian was picked up and
was taken to safety to Miami where he met with some of his relatives there
for the first time.
When Elian's father in Cuba, who is now remarried, heard of his son's
safety, he was elated and asked for his return to Cuba. His father is known
of being good and kind. His love of his son is as great as it could be. The
vast majority of the American people, as well as numerous church-related
organizations wanted to see the boy reunited with his father. For a child
of six to lose a parent is already a great loss, but for the same child to
lose both parents it would be literally a devastating loss. It is in
accordance with the natural law that the little ones grow closely to their
parents. This natural law applies to all living beings, people and animals
alike.
The United States showed hesitation. It wanted to see how it could use
this episode to get, once more, after the Castro regime to make it look
bad. This way it wanted to justly its continued embargo against Cuba, even
though it was being condemned by numerous respectable sources from around
the world. Confronted with this hesitation, the Cuban people rallied around
Elian Gonzalez to protect his natural human right to be with his father.
Such a sacrosanct right cannot be violated by any civic law which is a
man-made law. The natural law is superior and needs to be upheld by all
means. At the same time, the Cuban President, who firmly believes in the
unity of the family, intervened and demanded that Elian Gonzalez be
returned to Cuba to be reunited with his father and brother. Unfortunately,
the USA chose the way to defiance.
What is peculiar is the fact that the US politicians, republicans and
democrats alike, stress the importance of family unity. They underline that
children belong to the home. Leading American psychologists recognize that
children need their parents very badly especially in their early years of
upbringing. Yet, all this did not seem to apply to little six year old
Elian Gonzalez!
Youngest Hostage in History
American politicians soon became divided on the issue. The democrats
believed that Elian Gonzales belongs to his father and should be returned
to him, while the republicans believed that this little Cuban boy should
not be returned to Cuba because the United States was a better place for
him to be raised in. Some republicans even advocated that the United States
should give him American citizenship without approval of the boy's father.
What was amazing was the fact that the reasons given for the little Cuban
boy to be raised in the United States, against the will of his immediate
family in Cuba, were deceitful. In brief, Elian Gonzalez soon became one of
the youngest hostages in the entire world in recent history.
The real reason behind the United States' refusal to return the boy to
his father, to his immediate family in Cuba was strictly political. It was
a way to try show to the world how bad Castro's regime was. Again, this is
another example of how the US foreign policy is based fundamentally on
child psychology. If this boy was from Haiti, Mexico, Guatemala or from
such far away countries as Senegal, Congo, or the Ivory Coast, he would
have been returned to his father and his immediate family by the very first
plane available.
To make things worse, the reasons given for the retention of Elian
Gonzalez in the United States were entirely faulty and hence unacceptable.
Among other reasons for detaining this child in the United States, the
following seven were the most emphasized to the extent that they seem to
have replaced the seven precepts of the Catholic Church relative to their
observance. Summarized briefly, they say that the retention of Elian
Gonzalez in the United States would be in the best interest of the boy
himself because in the USA:
1. He has a promising future: What do we mean by a promising future?
Considering that the USA is viewed as one of the most violent nations on
earth, the chances that Elian has to be killed by a gun shot, as compared
to living in Cuba, are very high. Such a risk is not worthed.
2. He enjoys genuine freedom: In a way this is true, especially when
considering that at any age in the USA he could purchase a gun to kill a
fellow class mate with the same ease as children in Cuba can purchase a
piece of candy. This kind of freedom is very dangerous.
3. He learns about true democracy: The USA is a nation of plutocracy
where everything is ruled by the rich and where the mafia tries to control
everything with iron fist at the grassroot level of society. We need to
keep in mind the Semitic proverb: "A jack ass dressed as a prince still
remains a jack ass."
4. He secures a better education: A former President of the University
of Michigan remarked: "What kind of education our schools in the USA are
providing when we consider that the most sophisticated crimes are committed
by our former students who graduated even summa cum laude?" That says it
all!
5. He serves as a living monument for his mother: At age six, the boy
had no choice but to follow his mother for the better or the worse. Both of
Elian's grandmothers attested that Elian's mother, whom they knew very
well, would rather see her son growing up united with his father and
brother in Cuba.
6. He needs his Cuban relatives in Miami: The most important relatives
for Elian, or any other child, are definitely his parents, brothers and
sisters. Elian's relatives in Miami are distant relatives who cannot be as
deeply attached to this boy emotionally as his father, brother, and
grandparents. This is obvious.
7. He likes his new friends in Florida: At age six every child enjoys
playing with toys and with little ones of same age anywhere in the world.
Still, these new friends in Florida are aliens compared to children of the
same age living in the neighborhood of his father's house in Cuba. This
argument sounds rather poor.
Suppose all of the above seven basic reasons given for the retention
of Elian Gonzalez in the USA were true. Then we need to ask: "Why is it
that the United States does not seem to care at all about children like
Elian Gonzalez who are starving to death in tens of millions all over the
word? Wouldn't be appropriate if the United States would send a fleet of
airplanes to gather all of such children from across Africa, Latin America,
and Central Asia and bring them all to the USA as well?...... and to give
them the same care and attention that has been given to Elian Gonzalez" The
question which needs to be raised here is this: "What has been the real
motive of the US stand against the boy's return to his father in Cuba?"
The United States has been trapped in hypocrisy and there seems to be
no way out of it. Elian Gonzalez has become the victim of vicious politics.
He is dearly loved in Cuba and this entire Caribbean nation wants him back
because, in essence, this boy has been kidnapped. Elian Gonzalez belongs to
Cuba and should be returned as soon as possible.
God's Mysterious Ways of Working
We learn in ascetics that God works in mysterious ways viewing people
as His instruments, including Elian Gonzalez. It is no wonder that many
have already concluded that God has a great mission prepared for this
little Cuban boy. Ascetics tell us that people go through a series of
obstacles and tribulations in life in proportion to the mission God has
prepared for them. The greater the mission, the greater the obstacles and
tribulations which are eventually experienced. Here are initial obstacles
and tribulations of Elian in preparation for some big mission God had
stored for him:
1. Shipped to a foreign land away from his beloved father:
Psychologists tell us that boys, by their very nature, try to identify with
their father. They need to grow up closely united with their father whom
they view as a role model. Elian in the USA is being deliberately deprived
of this vital need.
2. Saved from drowning protected by dolphins from sharks: The case of
Elian is very uncommon. It may happen once every one thousand years. He did
not know how to swim. The sharks were ready to tear him up to pieces. Yet,
God sent angels to protect him in form of dolphins who are God's creatures.
3. Kidnapped in Miami by distant relatives: It is quite obvious that
the boy's distant relatives in Miami were there because of a grudge they
had with Fidel Castro. They are intelligent enough to know that the boy
belongs to his immediate family..... his father, brother, and four
grandparents.
4. Refused to join his two grandmothers to take him back to Cuba: When
Elian's two grandmothers came to the United States, in the hope to return
the boy with them, there was nothing they could do except to talk with some
government officials to no avail.
5. Used as a pawn to irritate and aggravate the Cuban nation: The USA
is fully aware that its forty years of embargo against Cuba has been a
fiasco. Cuba has won the admiration of many nations and this US embargo has
been condemned by numerous organizations along with Pope John Paul II.
6. Deprived with arrogance of his human rights: This little Cuban boy
did not choose to come to the USA. He was dragged by his mother and her boy
friend, probably without the knowledge of his father and grandparents.
Elian has a sacrosanct human right to be nurtured in his mother land.
7. Drew the overwhelming sympathy of the whole world: There is hardly
one nation in the world which did not bring news about Elian Gonzalez.
Except for US republicans and a number of Cubans in Miami, everyone wants
to see Elian reuniting with his immediate family in Cuba.
Elian Gonzalez in Retrospect
In view of what has been stated, it is obvious that Elian Gonzalez
became a focus of attention and a center of controversy. This little boy
has certain exclusive rights given to him by both the divine positive law
and the natural law. These are higher and superior laws to both the
ecclesiastical law and the civic law as well. The US government cannot pass
any law that would keep this little Cuban boy away from the members of his
immediate family. If this were to happen, the USA would reveal itself to be
abusive and to have no respect whatsoever to higher laws. This goes
contrary to what the churches in the USA preach about the unity and
integrity of the family and family values.
We know from the study of morality that to err is human and to forgive
is divine. We also learn that to err is human but to persist in error is
diabolical. In prolonging Elian's stay in the United States, the American
government is doing a big mistake. When everything is taken into
consideration as things stand a parte rei, that is, in reality, we should
conclude that Elian, as a matter of fact, has a better and much safer life
in Cuba. We cannot allow such a little boy to become a victim of vicious
politics which, quite often, turn out to be very satanic. His father wants
him back and both the divine positive law and the natural law are on his
side. His four grandparents want him back to the extent that the two
grandmothers made a special trip to the USA begging US authorities to allow
him to return with them to Cuba. The ecclesiastical law advocates the
obligation parents have to raise children with love and affection.
No one can replace the genuine love and concern of a parent and
everybody in the world understands that very well. When good and evil
clash, initially evil takes the upper hand but in the long range good will
prevail. Elian will eventually lead a normal life as God meant it to be in
accordance with the principles of the natural law.
Dr. Charles Mercieca, President
International Association of Educators for World Peace
NGO, United Nations (ECOSOC), UNDPI, UNICEF, UNCED & UNESCO
P.O. Box 3282, Mastin Lake Station
Huntsville, Alabama 35810-0282, USA
Phone: 256-534-5501 / Fax: 256-536-1018
E-Mail: mercieca@hiwaay.net
Website: http://www.earthportals.com/Portal_Messenger/mercieca.html