George Yeo in Cuba

1. I arrived in Havana three days before the start of the Non-Aligned Ministerial Meeting for a bilateral visit to Cuba. The city looks better than I expected. Old Havana has been spruced up with old buildings restored and re-painted in colourful pastels. There are some nice
restaurants including a few frequented by Ernest Hemingway like the Floridita.

2. When the Soviet Union collapsed, Cuba lost its sugar market. From 17 million tons a year, Cuba now produces only about 2 million. For a few years in the early 90's, the economy was in deep trouble. The country was forced to diversify and is in a better state now. Tourism has become an important sector.

3. But the US embargo continues to bite hard. Among many other measures, it is a crime for a US citizen to visit Cuba and no ship calling in Cuba can sail to a US port for six months. Cubans living in the United States can only remit up to US$100 a month and only to a next-of-kin. However, I am not
sure how much all this has weakened the sense of nationalism. Cubans are proud of their achievements like the elimination of illiteracy and pretty good healthcare. The country devotes an incredible amount of resources on medical services and the biomedical sciences. For a population of 11 million people, they have 70,000 doctors and another 30,000 or so working overseas including over 20,000 in Chavez's Venezuela. I had a long chat with the Cuban Health Minister yesterday. He explained to me the government's philosophy. He was a medical student during the Revolution. Although it was a long time ago, the romance lingers. We agreed that Cuba and Singapore should cooperate on malaria and dengue fever. We can learn from their experiences and they might find ours interesting.

4. Cuba's conflict with the US has its roots in the past. It became very acute during the Cold War with the Bay of Pigs and the Missile Crisis. The end of the Cold War has not helped because the Cubans who fled to the US as a result of the Revolution are politically influential and want to topple Castro's government. When Castro fell ill recently, they celebrated. One day, there will be reconciliation and the million plus Cubans who live in the US will be a big asset to the country. But it may take some time before policies change in both the US and Cuba.

George Yeo

Comments

[Masindi]

Mr Yeo,

I am a close friend of Constance See, one of your staff in Wash DC.

I just my Cuban visa a few days ago from the Cuban embassy in Jakarta. Our plan is to visit various places in Cuba in December.

As Singapore PR, I agree with you that Singapore and Cuba should work together in healtcare as they have one of the most effective public healthcare system in the world.

I look forward to reading more of your entries on Cuba.

PS: Is Ambassador Leon in Havana with you?