By Alejandro Garcia on November 26, 2023 from Havana
photo: Bill Hackwell
Last week, Cuba hosted the IV Conference The Nation and Emigration, which brought together over 370 Cuban emigrants from different parts of the world, who shared their experiences and reflections on their identity and the rapprochement between Cubans inside and outside the island. It took place amid a complex local and international scenario, shaken by an economic crisis aggravated by the pandemic and hostile policies, and amid hate campaigns from the United States to divide the island between those Cubans who left the country and those who stayed.
The meeting renewed hope. There is now a real political will and movement to unite, illustrated by the immigration reforms that the country has passed in recent years to facilitate the departure and – above all – the return of Cubans, as well as their investment possibilities on the island so that they and their families can dream of a better future in Cuba.
Orlando Terré Camacho, Cuban educator living in Peru and president of the World Association of Special Education and the World Organisation for Education, Stimulation and Child Development (OMEDI), expressed how to him it was a privilege and honor to participate once again in these conferences.
According to the professor, in this fourth edition it is no longer possible to talk about Cubans from outside and inside the island, “but about the conquest of feeling all Cubans have”. For him, participating in this conference is a symbol of love for Cuba, an embrace of the island, of Cuban families, and of the history that makes them great.
Despite having left Cuba in 1991 after falling in love with a Peruvian woman and settling in Lima, Terré Camacho emphasized that he has always maintained his connection with the island.
He considers himself a disciple and son of the Revolution and has defended Cuban culture and principles. Among the issues he considers relevant in this conference, he mentioned the decolonization of thought and stressed that they are all Cubans, and the Cuban flag looks down proudly on all of them.
According to official figures, there were 864,019 departures from Cuba in 2022, and so far in 2023, there have been 904,568. The island will close in 2023 with almost nine million Cubans leaving the country over the last 10 years.
Given this reality, La Nación y la Emigración, from its first edition, laid the foundations of Cuba’s policy towards Cuban emigration. Until then, Cuba’s relationship with its emigrants was very complex, marked by confrontation and rejection. From that moment on, the foundations were laid for accepting this phenomenon as reality, and establishing dialogue and mechanisms to integrate emigrants into national life.
“The conflict factor is still present, especially because the majority of Cuban emigration resides in the United States, which gives a special contradiction to the case of Cuban migration. Cuban migrants go to the very country that has historically been the main enemy of the Cuban nation. It does not matter whether it is a majority position or not. What is important is that those Cubans who are there have the right to be heard, to be cared for, and to have relations with their country, and they also must contribute to their homeland and the Cuban nation without obstacles,” Cuba-based researcher Jesus Arboleya said.
Mariana Gastón, a Cuban resident in the United States, also shared her experience and reflections on the rapprochement between Cubans. She returned to Cuba many years ago with the desire to reconnect not only with her childhood but also with the changes that the Revolution was experiencing. Before the La Nación y la Emigración meetings, Mariana and other Cubans in the United States carried out activities to encourage rapprochement, even in difficult times.
Mariana recounted that they were daring young people who joined political movements in the United States, such as Martin Luther King’s anti-discrimination movement and the anti-Vietnam War movement. Through magazines, forums, and screenings of Cuban films, they attracted the attention of others and formed the Antonio Maceo Brigade.
The first return to Cuba was significant for them, not only on a personal level but also as part of a collective process that sought a possible future.
Mariana referred to the diversity of the Cuban community abroad and acknowledged the existence of a hostile sector, although she affirmed that it does not represent the majority. “The opening of family reunification in 1978 allowed hundreds of thousands of Cubans to return to Cuba, overcoming fear and existing pressures”.
For her, Cuban identity unites all Cubans around the world, beyond political differences, and allows them to recognize themselves as nationals and Cubans abroad. This fourth conference represents significant advancement in smoothing out the channels between all Cubans; on the island and in the diaspora.
Source: Resumen Latinoamericano – English