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The Exile That Hurts

THE EXILE THAT HURTSThe Exile That Hurts

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One of the greatest lessons of humility is offered to us by reading the Holy Gospel according to John, chapter 3, verses 22 to 30.

In this biblical passage, there is an evident contrast between the weaknesses shown by the disciples of John the Baptist—among which we can appreciate the devaluation of the other, the questioning of their actions, and the desire for preeminence or leadership—and the attitude of the one who is pointed out in the New Testament as "the greatest of all the prophets."

The prophet's response to the questions of his disciples is blunt: "You yourselves know very well that I said, 'I am not the Messiah,' but I was sent before him. Someone has the bride and it is the groom, but the groom's best man is by his side and is happy just hearing the groom's voice. That is why my joy is perfect: it is necessary that he grow and that I decrease."

The words of John the Baptist demonstrate his extraordinary humility and accurate appreciation of his place in the time in which he lived. When many exalted him and even hinted at a supposed opposition between him and Jesus, John was able to locate them.

I am offered to relate the words of John the Baptist to the situation of our long-suffering homeland, to the disunity that exists in the Cuban exile and among the internal opposition itself.

I confess that it is very difficult for me to understand that during the sixty-six years of Castro's dictatorship leaders of that exile continue to repeat mistakes that only contribute to the ideological arsenal of the dictatorship. Among these errors are the repeated attacks of some leaders against others and the excessive struggle to try to position themselves as unique references, ignoring what others have done or exposing their criticisms publicly for the benefit of the dictatorship.

 

Social networks are another example of the reproduction of these errors. Many Cubans are fed up with dozens of "patriots" who, behind the comfort of a microphone, show us an intransigent animosity against everything and everyone, as if they were the owners of the absolute truth. and his ideas are the only useful ones. Among these shoddy fighters – not a few lacking in culture – there are many who stuff us with announcements of internal rebellions within the FAR or the MININT or with other false events that are constructed according to the saying of sources supposedly very close to the Castro leadership. With very rare exceptions, it can be said that for these people the homeland, its dead, prisoners, and sufferings are only a backdrop for the staging of their spurious interests. They are only interested in a "like", increasing the number of subscribers and their earnings.

In this struggle for the monopoly of truth and unscrupulous growth, the presumed political efficacy they boast of vanishes like sand in the sirocco.

All these facts are a very succinct example of the most accentuated weaknesses of our exile and it is part of what can explain why after more than six and a half decades of Castro's dictatorship it has not been possible to create a Cuban national assembly in exile or a party where all the political forces that oppose the dictatorship are integrated and that are projected to achieve very specific objectives.  among which cannot be missing the internal and external strategy of that resistance and the consensual projection of a set of principles on which the Cuban democratic future could be structured.

Most Cubans who have emigrated for political reasons, added to those who came for other reasons, have created fiefdoms corroded by personal interest where disunity and statism are prolonged. It hurts to see here so many disoriented Cubans, who instead of following the old Spanish teaching that assures: "Wherever you go, do as you see," they insist on reproducing unacceptable codes of conduct, instead of integrating only thinking of returning immediately to Cuba, no longer to visit their loved ones, but to flaunt to those who suffer extreme poverty a supposed status of wealth that they do not possess. Among them, there is no shortage of apologetics for the dictatorship.

In 1853 and 1926 Cuba registered the birth of two men who indelibly marked our history. One of them pursued the good and is the pride of the country; the other was born to boost his ego above all else and drag the country into an endless crisis. If there is one thing that the Cuban exile needs today as never before, it is someone who follows the example of José Martí and is capable of bringing together all the opposition forces in a single movement or party that would have – in addition to the previous functions – the inescapable obligation of educating the already numerous Cuban people in exile in the practices of respect and tolerance inherent to democracy. However, contrary to such a clear historical demand, it seems that the exile is also possessed by the diabolical spirit of the faker of Birán, such is the disunity and intrigue, so many utilitarian practices that disrespect human beings!

Indeed, we do not have a man similar to José Martí, but in that exile, there is abundant honor, love for the homeland, and an extraordinary amount of experience for him to begin to take safe and continuous steps toward the objectives indicated.

For the first time in a long time, 2025 presents the confluence of internal and external factors that, as never before, point towards the real possibility of the long-awaited change, or, at least, to begin to tread firmly on the road to that goal.

In this context, Cubans, lovers of justice, freedom, and democracy, have the urgent duty to divest themselves of their egos and differences in favor of unity. History has been charging them for these mistakes for more than six and a half decades. I believe that it is time to reflect and act effectively for the good of the country.

Like John the Baptist, we must have the courage to self-analyze, to know what we want, what our possibilities and limitations are, to have the humility to give way to those who are doing better, and to support what the struggle needs.

In other words, let us decrease so that the Homeland grows.

Roberto de Jesus Quinones HacesAuthor: Roberto de Jesús Quiñones Haces. He was born on September 20, 1957, in Cienfuegos, Cuba, where he completed his elementary studies. He graduated with a degree in Law in 1981 from the University of Havana. He practiced law until 1999 when State Security arrested him. He served four years and eight months in prison and was not allowed to practice law again. He was an independent journalist for Cubanet from May 2012 to 2024. He served one year in prison between 2019 and 2020 and was declared a prisoner of conscience by Amnesty International and the UN. Patmos Institute Award winner of the year 2019. Poet and narrator, he has resided since November 2021 in Harrisonburg, Virginia, USA.

Note: Translation made by Google.

 

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