Cuba's Communist Party Still Resistant To Change

Cuba's First Vice-President Miguel Diaz-Canel and his wife Lis Cuesta stand in line before Diaz-Canel casts his vote during an election of candidates for the national and provincial assemblies, in Santa Clara Cuba March 11, 2018. REUTERS/Alejandro Ernesto/Pool

Reuters: Cuba's Communist Party admits errors, slowdown in reforms

HAVANA (Reuters) - Cuba’s Communist Party admitted a slowdown and errors in its implementation of Raul Castro’s market-style reforms, just weeks before he steps down from the presidency, but vowed to continue updating the Soviet-style command economy.

The party central committee held a plenary session to discuss the state of reforms undertaken during Castro’s 10-year presidential mandate to open up the ailing economy and give the private sector and foreign investment greater roles.

Castro, who steps down as president on April 19, presided over the plenary which took place this week. The 86-year old will remain head of the party, the country’s guiding political force, until 2021.

“Despite the errors and insufficiencies recognized in this plenary, the situation is more favorable than a few years ago,” Castro, 86, was quoted as saying by party newspaper Granma.

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WNU Editor: These central party committee members are a bunch of dinosaurs. Truth be told .... they are terrified of market reforms because it will create a class of people that will be completely independent from them and who may in teh future threaten their privileged status. This reminds me of the old debates in the former Soviet Union and in Russia after the break-up .... how much freedom should entrepreneurs be given to create their own enterprises. Fortunately .... the first Russian government threw out this bureaucracy. Unfortunately for today's Cuba .... these apparatchiks are still in control.