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The lesser-known fate of Jewish refugees in Cuba
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- Created on Friday, 02 November 2012 00:00
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The lesser-known fate of Jewish refugees in Cuba
Ursula Krechel's prize-winning novel "District Court" illuminates a previously little-known chapter in 20th-century history: The exile of Jewish refugees in Cuba. DW talked to Michael Zeuske, an expert on Latin America.
DW: It is estimated that around 75,000 German-Jews immigrated to Latin America between 1933 and 1945. The largest group went to Argentina. But Cuba was also a destination for refugees. What was Cuba like at that time? It was long before Fidel Castro!
{sidebar id=11 align=right}Michael Zeuske: Back then, Cuban society was already very progressive, especially in the mid-Batista period. Fulgencio Batista came to the fore in the revolution of 1930-33, and was then - carefully formulated - the gravedigger of the revolution of which he was a part. From 1936, he was the one pulling the strings behind every president. It was a starkly Americanized, urban society that reflected American modernity - you can still see that today in Cuban cities. Until the mid-1960s, these cities were more modern than any German city.
From 1936-7, Batista then, with the anti-Hitler coalition, shifted to constitutional and socially relatively progressive positions. That meant, he involved the Communists, devised a new constitution, brought schools and medical care to the country, brought wage conflicts under control, there was an advanced workforce and middle-class in the cities. In addition there was even American modernity, probably the most modern of the modern, that existed in large cities outside of the USA.
How did people in Cuba deal with the immigrants from Germany?
Not especially well. It is very well described and reflected upon in Ursula Krechel's book. Cuba was an "adjacent territory," so to speak, an additional part of the USA. As such refugees believed that they would get preferential treatment for a visa for the United States if they moved to Cuba. And maybe people tried to use that. But later it became harder in two ways. Firstly, they tried to keep the masses, especially Jewish refugees from Germany, at bay. That was the problem with the ship "St. Louis," which was sent back.
Secondly, it was a very corrupt society, especially in the late-Batista phase at the end of the 1940s and then in the 1950s, and people - as is described in the book - had to pay a lot of money. Jewish refugees often chose Cuba because it was a waiting room for the USA and other places such as Mexico or Colombia. But there was a large number of Jewish émigrés for whom it wasn't just "Hotel Cuba" - there's a book about that with that very title - but who actually then settled there.
The case of the "St. Louis" was spectacular: It set sail from Hamburg for the US with over 900 Jewish refugees on board in the direction. It wasn't allowed to dock in Cuba. In the end, the ship was forced to return to Europe. Was there collaboration between the Cuban and Nazi authorities? Were Nazis a visible presence on the island?
I don't know if you could say that. I've researched the files on German-Cuban relations at the German Foreign Ministry. Of course there were negotiations. Batista tried to increase his room to maneuver with regards to the USA through deals with the German Reich. There were deals done on sugar deliveries. So, one can assume that there was contact or some sort of schemes.
It wasn't just persecuted Jews who fled to Cuba, but also refugees fleeing political persecution, communists for example. What kind of experience did they have?
Germans were first of all interned - and this is described very well in the book. That became even more extreme because of the situation in the USA, where there were blacklists. They were interned on the Isla de Pinos [editor's note: today the Isla de la Juventud], the second largest Cuban island. And then they would also be released, especially if they could pay money. Then they could live a normal life, to a certain extent, in Havana society.
So you have someone - like Krechel's protagonist Richard Kornitzer - a Berlin lawyer, threatened and persecuted by the Nazis, who arrives in a completely alien culture in Cuba.
Yes. Urban culture was heavily influenced by the Andalusia, Spain, even more so among freelance professionals. Cuba had always emphasized Spanish as a pillar of its culture. That's partly still true today, especially among middle-class professionals like lawyers. Then there was the Americanized part of society, relatively wealthy, with a high per-capita income, very technologically advanced with telephones, houses, cars, TVs, a high concentration of doctors - all American standards.
How is the fate of refugees from Nazi Germany in Cuba remembered?
First and foremost, it is the Ashkenazi Jews who joined the Communist Party and played a significant role there, who are remembered. Even today, they are distinguished from the Batista era, the era of dictatorship and corruption.
A German author writes a novel in which Batista-era Cuba plays a significant role - how do you feel about that?
I think it's amazing. And unusual. Naturally, we should know a lot about Cuba in Germany, that's in my own interest. But Cuba in the 20th century has an extremely interesting history, because its society is so heavily affected by trans-culturation. That is by European influences that combine with African influences, new forms of music, new forms of socialization, American modernity with Spanish roots, with émigrés, who as whites came into a society in which 70 percent of people were mixed-race or black, which was a very racist society - that doesn't really come through so strongly in the book, because it is situated in an urban, white, upper-middle class environment.
You lived in Cuba with your family at the beginning of the 1960s, a year after the Cuban Crisis, the 50th anniversary of which is taking place as we speak. What personal memories do you have of Cuba?
It was extremely interesting. A society that had come directly out of a revolution, that was extremely euphoric and very much on a high from the revolution. With political leaders, who were very young back then, Fidel Castro was 33 years old, Che Guevara was still in office as a minister. Then I came from the postwar society of the German Democratic Republic, where, in contrast to Cuba, one had very different concepts in mind - of coldness, ruins, deprivation, the absence of southern fruits. And all of that could be found in Cuba. Until the middle of the 1960s, Cuba was still a fully functioning, American consumer society. And then a young man from East Germany arrived, lived there, went to school - it was simply exciting!
Fidel Castro has withdrawn from politics - will he remain a legendary figure of the 20th century?
I think so. It wouldn't be fair to just see him as a dictator. I don't need to defend him, however: Fidel Castro is one of the great figures of the 20th century. He led his country through a 50-year blockade by the USA. In the 1970s he was the leader of the non-aligned states, he led the southern hemisphere in conflicts with northern industrial countries and played an extremely important role worldwide.
Things are now beginning to change in Cuba. There is the possibility to travel. Do you see a danger that the country could fall back into the role of a US colony?
I would only see that danger if there was an abrupt change of regime. That's the biggest difficulty for Cuba anyway - to implement economic reforms and strengthen participation without the system collapsing. I don't think anyone would wish for that, even in the US. Because then there would be a wave of refugees and similar developments. From an internal Cuban perspective there's no real danger, because the reforms, comparable to Vietnam, have encouraged very dynamic development. I hope that President Raoul Castro holds out for another three to four years, so that the reforms can become well anchored.
Michael Zeuske is a professor of history in the department of Iberian and Latin American History at the University of Cologne. His latest book, "Kuba im 21. Jahrhundert. Revolution und Reform auf der Insel der Extreme" is published in German by Rotbuch.
Date 29.10.2012
Author Interview: Cornelia Rabitz / hw
Editor Nancy Isenson
Source: Deutsche Welle
No commentsLecturer gives thumbs up to candidates; marks Ayariga down
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- Created on Wednesday, 31 October 2012 00:00
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Lecturer gives thumbs up to candidates; marks Ayariga down
{sidebar id=12 align=right}All the candidates who took part in the IEA Presidential Debate were said by many to have put up a creditable performance, except one who majority think failed to live up to the expectation.
Some Ghanaians who stayed up late to watch and listen to the four presidential hopeful debate on Tuesday felt the presidential candidate of the Peoples’ National Convention, Hassan Ayariga actually performed below par.
And Dr Bossman Asare, a political science lecturer at the University of Ghana, thinks views expressed about Mr Ayariga’s performance were fair.
“Almost all of them did their best with the exception of one candidate; the remaining three did very well,” he stressed.
When pushed for the name, Dr Bossman told Joy News: “Generally, I thought Dr Sakara and Nana Akufo-Addo were more aggressive although they were respectful, they appeared to be on top of the issues more than the others.
“But we must also understand that when you are the president you are the one in charge, you are always in the defensive mood because the others are going to put the pressure on you: they are going to set the agenda. So in spite of that the president too was able to hold onto [them]; at least what he was able to say was also sensible that he also did very well.
“But I thought Mr Hassan Ayariga did not do very well, the other three did very well.”
However, for his general impression about the whole exercise yesterday, Dr Bossman said the debate went on well as the participants showed their commitment to the development of the nation, and deserve a “thumps up”.
Dr Bossman was however concerned whether those he and many touted to have discharged themselves well would be able to transform their ideas into reality.
From:Isaac Essel/Myjoyonline.com
Akufo-Addo Exposes Prez Mahama
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- Created on Wednesday, 31 October 2012 00:00
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Akufo-Addo Exposes Prez Mahama
{sidebar id=10 align=right}The 2012 Presidential Candidate of the New Patriotic Party, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, yesterday, forced President Mahama to contradict his own sector Minister, as well as an August 18, 2011 cabinet memo, on the cost of training the 250 Ghanaian students in Cuba.
Nana Akufo-Addo, in outlining his policy initiatives for the health sector, yesterday at the IEA Presidential debate, stated that the lack of adequate health personnel in Ghana's Health Service was worrisome and his administration will ensure that the training of health workers locally to efficiently man hospitals, clinics and other health facilities would be a priority of his government.
Nana Addo cited the opaque scheme run by then Vice President Mahama, now President Mahama, when Ghana signed an agreement to train 250 Ghanaian students in Cuba at a total cost of GHc160 million.
This move by President Mahama, according to Nana Addo, translated into an average of GH¢105,000 per student per year. The NPP presidential candidate stated that these students could have been trained in Ghana for GH¢30,000, according to the Ghana Medical Association.
Nana Addo added that this amount spent by President Mahama could have been channeled intto the various medical schools in universities in Ghana to expand infrastructure, as well as train more doctors compared to the numbers sent to Cuba.
President Mahama, visibly rattled by Nana Addo's statement, said the cost of training one Ghanaian student in Cuba, as a doctor, is $5,000, and not GH¢105,000, as stated by Nana Addo and the then Minister of Health, Joseph Yieleh Chireh. This, according to the President’s facts, implies that the cost of training all 250 students in Cuba for 6 years is $7.5 million (GH¢12.45 million in 2011).
President Mahama's assertions elicited a swift rebuttal from Nana Addo, who stated that the figures he quoted were not his, but rather that of President Mahama’s own sector Minister and also evident in the documents President Mahama, himself, signed with the Cuban government, information which is available on the internet for Ghanaians to verify.
It is recalled that in August 2011, cabinet approved a deal, negotiated by President Mahama, amounting to GH¢160 million, for the training of the 250 Ghanaian students in Cuba. In the memo presented to cabinet, from former Health Minister, Joseph Yieleh Chireh, dated August 18, 2011, which was approved by Chief of Staff, John Henry Martey Newman, the Minister sought to justify the amount of GH¢160 million being spent on the training of 250 individuals.
Per President Mahama's "new" figures and that of his sector Minister's, there is therefore some GH¢147.5 million which has not been accounted for, and for which the Ghanaian taxpayer deserves answers to.
Source: Communications Directorate, NPP/ Ghana
Otabil's ‘Free SHS Tape’ Doctored
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- Created on Wednesday, 31 October 2012 00:00
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Otabil's ‘Free SHS Tape’ Doctored
{sidebar id=10 align=right}The General Overseer of the International Central Gospel Church, Pastor Mensah Otabil has stated that his voice being circulated in the media in which he is alleged to have condemned the New Patriotic Party’s free SHS policy is “a collection of thoughts edited from a message shared several years ago and pieced together to create the impression that he is taking a stand on the current political debate on the issue of education.”
In a press statement signed by a Senior Associate Minister of the church, Rev. Kofi Okyere stated that “Pastor Otabil has not made any recent comment on the current debate on various educational policy alternatives.”
Below is the full statement
Our attention has been drawn to a series of publications and a tape, which has been widely circulated as Pastor Mensa Otabil’s reaction to the ongoing debate about education. We wish to submit the following:
Pastor Otabil has not made any recent comment on the current debate on various educational policy alternatives. Neither has he expressed open support for any party’s position on the matter.
The tape being circulated is a collection of thoughts edited from a message shared by Pastor Otabil several years ago and pieced together to create the impression that he is taking a stand on the current political debate on the issue of education.
Pastor Otabil agrees with the constitutional provision that every Ghanaian child is entitled to and the state must provide Free Compulsory Basic Education beginning from preschool to the Senior High School level. However each parent must take responsibility for the academic growth and quality of education that their child receives.
Pastor Otabil hopes that all Ghanaians will be challenged to focus on the financial empowerment of the average citizen as a long-term solution to the pro-poor policies being espoused by the various stakeholders in sectors like education, health and housing.
Source: The Ghanaian Observer
Akufo-Addo needs a speech therapist - Tony Aidoo
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Akufo-Addo needs a speech therapist - Tony Aidoo
{sidebar id=10 align=right}The Director of Monitoring and Evaluation at the Presidency, Dr. Tony Aidoo has urged the flagbearer of the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP) to contract the services of a speech therapist for effective communication.
He said Nana Akufo-Addo's presentation at the Institute of Economic Affairs' (IEA's) organized presidential debate in Tamale was not audible.
All the four presidential candidates at the IEA Presidential Debate had the opportunity to elucidate their policies and programmes to enable voters make an informed choice ahead of the December 7 general elections.
The ruling National Democratic Congress candidate, John Dramani Mahama, NPP’s Nana Akufo-Addo, Dr. Abu Sakara of the Convention Peoples' Party (CPP) and the People's National Convention’s Hassan Ayariga performed creditably well-according to political pundits.
But speaking on Asempa FM’s Ekosii Sen programme Wednesday, Dr Tony Aidoo said apart from President Mahama, the three deviated from the core issues.
According to him, Nana Addo, Sakara and Ayariga were eager to rundown the NDC and thus used every given opportunity to attack the President rather than answering their questions.
Tony Aidoo said even though Nana Akufo-Addo was eloquent, his intonation made it difficult for people to hear him, and that of his body language was as if he was addressing a rally.
He indicated that Dr. Abu Sakara was impressive but his submission "lacked substance".
The Director of Monitoring and Evaluation at the Presidency added that the CPP candidate kept wobbling and deviated from all the questions asked.
He commended the President, John Mahama, for demonstrating maturity even when asked provocative questions, saying he was apt with his submission.
Dr. Aidoo claimed that President Mahama’s answers became the premise on which the other candidates based their arguments.
He was however not happy about the time allotted for the candidates and urged the organizers to do something about it in subsequent debates.
From:Adwoa Gyasiwaa/Myjoyonline.com