Cuba has come a long way since 1959 and its journey has not been an easy one, Even now, despite the considerable social, political and economic advances that have been made, there remain many problems. In the early days many mistakes were made, and the Cubans would be the first to admit this. In the first years of the revolution Cuba's political role was not entirely clear, but now with many developmental stages complete, many problems overcome and a radical agrarian reform carried out, a clear-cut political pattern has emerged. What we are witnessing is the creation of a genuine workers' state which has made international extension of the socialist revolution an essential part of Government policy. In this sense, Cuba's present position is of great historic importance,
Cuba's advances are all the more heartening when one considers the vulnerability of its position, With remarkable courage, the Cuban leadership has dared to take a political line independent of both Russia and China at the risk of pressure being put on it from both countries, This is especially so in the case of the Soviet Union, which is now Cuba's principal trading partner,
BUREAUCRACY AND THE PERMANENT REVOLUTION
The Cubans have obviously drawn lessons from China and Russia, In China it is witnessing a similar degeneracy into bureaucratism to what has occurred in Russia, Hence the great attention that the Cubans pay to questions of bureaucracy. The Cubans have also learnt the lesson of the defeats suffered in many countries through the theory of the revolution in stages, That is why they reject the idea that the national bourgeoisie can play a revolutionary role in Latin America and similar countries.
The Cuban revolution and its enormous achievements have inspired the world and put new hope into the liberation struggles of the Third World, This is the revolution that transformed barracks into schools, wiped out illiteracy, poverty and disease more quickly than any other workers' state, In some fields of education it is not far behind the most advanced countries in the development of new techniques. No less spectacular are the advances in medicine, the eradication of many diseases which plagued the country before the revolution, These steps, together with the development of advanced methods of treatment, have made Cuba one of the healthiest countries in the world,
STATE FARMS AND SMALL FARMERS
Seventy per cent. of the land is now state-owned and the remaining thirty per cent is owned by small farmers, who belong to the National Association of Small Farmers through which they obtain credits and regulate their relations with the State. (There were two excellent articles in INTERCONTINENTAL PRESS recently on this topic, Available from: Pioneer Book Service, 8, Toynbee St, London E.1. - ask for the April 19 and May 20 issues; they cost 2/= each, plus 6d postage.)
Since the great polemic in the first years between the "agricultural" sector and the "industrial" sector as to which should be the economic base for the country's advance, many industries have sprung up. The early ones being subsidiaries of agriculture, especially the manufacture of machinery which has greatly increased Cuba's sugar output,
Cuba has many economic problems and not the least is the economic pressure being brought [illegible] the USSR. This is hardly the sort of relationship one would expect from a fraternal state, but seen in the light of Russia's attitude towards the liberation movements of the Third World and its policy of "peaceful co-existence" (in part a reflection of its own internal weaknesses) it is not altogether surprising,
THE LEFT MUST SUPPORT REVOLUTIONARY CUBA
Under these circumstances, and in view of the American policy of laying seige to Cuba, it is imperative that all socialists give solidarity support to revolutionary Cuba, The record of the left in Britain is not very good in this respect and it is to be hoped that this will be soon be put right,
A victory for Cuba's present revolutionary policies would represent an enormous step forward for world progress, A defeat for them, on the other hand, would be a terrible blow to world socialism. it is up to all of us to make sure that the outcome is favourable,