CubaMinrex. Sitio del Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores de Cuba

Clinton and Her "Goodwill"

By Deisy Francis Mexidor

Elections do not mean democracy, said the head of US diplomacy, Hillary Clinton, during a brief speech at the 39th Conference of the Council of the Americas held Wednesday at the State Department, in Washington.

And I think she may even be correct in her assertion, especially when looking at her own country. The US elections —with all their fanfare, expenses and advertising— often do not represent the genuine will of the US people, employing a complicated electoral system that deprives most people of directly expressing their sovereign desire.

But Clinton was not referring to her country, but rather suggesting the continuity of a policy essential to the functioning of their empire: interference in the internal affairs of others in pursuit of its hegemonic fervour. The latest incarnation of this quest for domination has been disguised under the appearance of a "good will" policy that seeks to change the stick wielding image of eight years of unpopularity and mismanagement under George W. Bush.

The Secretary of State traveled through the map and, as was to be expected, stopped at Cuba. That irreverent Cuba, which refuses to kneel before the imperial designs!

Attempting to mix oil with water, she conditioned Cuba’s entering in the Organization of American States (OAS) on a supposed compliance with the Inter-American Democratic Charter, which "demands the holding of periodic elections," as reported by the news agencies.

"As president Obama said, we are eager to see the day when all countries of the Americas, including Cuba, can participate in these hemispheric alliances," she said.

Unfortunately, Washington still has not learned the lesson. Cuba neither has asked to nor wants to join the OAS —and certainly not under conditions set out by the US Secretary of State.

The sadly infamous history of the OAS is well known, as is the real motivation behind the "plural regime of political parties and organizations," as stipulated under article three of the Inter-American Charter.

We do not need to be taught lessons in democracy. Following this same old path, exactly what new beginnings are they talking about concerning a possible reestablishment of relations with Havana? Such a path only leads back to a consolidation of the spirit of the historic Protest of Baragua when, in 1878, General Arsenio Martínez Campos, representing Spain, proposed peace to the Cuban people without their independence.

That was when the strong voice of Antonio Maceo, the Bronze Titan as he was to be called, responded No!, that on such grounds there could never be understanding. His words seem to still be echoing through time. (Cubaminrex – Granma)

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