Abandon all hope ye who enter here

Abandon all hope ye who enter here / Lilianne Ruíz
Posted on March 16, 2013

On March 5 Cuban TV aired the speech of Nicolas Maduro, the Venezuelan
vice-president, where he announced to the world the death of Hugo
Chavez; the perspective of Cubans turned toward the future, one that
many perceive as tragic with regards to the economy, and that others
perceive as hopeful from the political point of view.

The same thing is happening in Venezuela on a different scale. Cubans
today share the only equality Socialism can provide, which is
powerlessness against the Socialist State. In the Venezuelan case they
have not yet reached the point where it is difficult to reverse; they
are still going through the seductive chapter of the process.

In Maduro's speech he emphasized the word "peace" in the doubtful
context of the simultaneous announcement of the "deployment of the Armed
Forces and the 'Bolivarian' Police'" to "protect citizens and ensure
peace and respect," making ourselves into "vigilantes" (of peace). Again
Maduro reiterated the same word, inviting people to "channel the pain in
peace," calling for the mobilization: "we shall gather in the squares,
the people and the Armed Forces."

In Cuba, there was not a single statement of opposition to Chavism in
Venezuela to be seen. Despite the multi-state TV channel Telesur
transmitting 24 hours on the Educational Channel 2 on Cuban television.

The mention of the opposition is always associated with conflict. In the
broadcast of the March 7, in response to the question, "How is the
country's security?" a General answered, "On the alert, (the opposition)
will always be conspiring," adding, "all the people are in the street
defending the Revolution," and once more he spoke in terms of
"deployment" of the intelligence services and the military.

"The Chavista people are united," Diosdado Cabello said. While Elias
Jaua, the current Venezuelan Foreign Minister affirmed, "The people want
to continue constructing socialism."

Cristina Fernandez, Argentina's president, told Telesur: "This
extraordinary concentration ratifies the massive support for Chavez,"
referring to what the broadcaster defined as the "red tide" that
accompanied the presidential coffin to the Military Academy where his
wake is still being held, for 7 days.

More disconcerting still was the statement made by Nicolas Maduro about
Chavez's body, that "it will be embalmed, like Lenin's."

The propaganda of "21t century socialism" affirms that it intends to
empower the people, down to the very poorest. For Cubans this hasn't
meant anything other than giving up all human rights, in return for
receiving – as the crowning achievement of the utopia – a good ration of
food, education teaching you to read and write, but which doesn't favor
your learning to think with liberty of conscience, and medical services.

That is to say, social security – which should be the function of any
State whatever its political color – in exchange for liberty. Look at
the almost religious exaltation of the leader, the emotional link, the
comparison with "a father", which will guarantee on a long term basis
the complicated psychological phenomenon of a people submerged in slavery.

In the same way that in socialism (Leninist, Castroist, Chavista) the
right to political freedom ends up exterminated; the same applies to
economic freedom, because of their close relationship.

Using an allegory, the inclusion of what is called "21st century
socialism" there is nothing other than an opening the mouth of the bag
to the size necessary to take in more people and, eventually, the
majority of votes in the elections (only when the members of whatever
Socialist politburo feel obliged to organize free elections); after
which, when everybody is inside the bag, the State terror will start to
seal up its mouth and the end product will be comparable with the
inscription which appears at the entrance to Dante's "Inferno": "Abandon
hope all ye who enter here".

Venezuelans perhaps still can't understand that the cult of the leader,
alive or dead, establishes hideous social relations between those in
power and the public which has been shaped to believe, and to ensure
that all popular opinion believes, in a false idyll between the two
parties, which results in just one power – the State. They still can't
understand that peace is in conflict with surveillance. And that one day
they won't have the freedom to choose.

Translated by GH

15 March 2013

http://translatingcuba.com/abandon-all-hope-ye-who-enter-here-lilianne-ruz/