Castro Prepares Cuba for Transition at a Time of International Readjustments.
| Autor | Vazquez, Daniel |
Raul Castro, who is scheduled to retire as Cuba's president in April, is preparing his government for a transition along with working to name a successor and to help the country adapt to changing international dynamics.
Castro will not be retiring from government entirely, because he will continue to be first secretary of the Communist Party of Cuba (PCC), which is endorsed by the Cuban Constitution as the "organized vanguard of the Cuban nation," and "the highest leading force of society and of the state, which organizes and guides the common efforts towards the high ends of the construction of socialism and the advancement of the communist society." The PCC's next congress will be in 2021, when Castro will be 90 years old.
Castro took the reins of government in the summer of 2006, when his brother Fidel Castro, the former prime minister and president (1959-2008), suffered a health crisis that prevented him from reassuming his governing role. At first, Raul Castro's title was "acting president," but he has been president since 2008. For almost half a century, he had been the head of the Revolutionary Armed Forces (FAR), in control of strategic sectors such as tourism and telecommunications. Fidel Castro died in November 2016 (NotiCen, Jan. 26, 2017).
Although his initial date of retirement was to have been this February, on Dec. 21, Castro told the annual session of the unicameral National Assembly of People's Power that he would postpone his retirement until April, because of the setbacks caused by Hurricane Irma in September. The storm left 10 dead, and damage in towns, tourist facilities and agricultural areas in several provinces was estimated at US$13 billion. Numerous tourism facilities were closed for repairs for several weeks after the storm (NotiCen, Oct. 5. 2017).
The elections process
The authorities have called for general elections on March 11, when the provincial delegates and the deputies to the National Assembly will be finishing their current five-year terms. The process will end on April 19, when the new National Assembly is installed and the 31 members of the Council of State are selected. From this group, Castro's successor for president, a first vice president, and five vice presidents will be chosen.
Critics of the Cuban government believe that the electoral system overseen by the PCC, starting with last November's municipal elections, is not reliable because it creates obstacles for the nomination of dissidents and...
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