Can Cuba Afford to Pay?
Forbes Magazine used to list both Castro brothers on its list of the top 100 richest people in the world. Forbes later removed the Castro brothers from the “Top 100” after the Cuban government objected, indicating those Swiss bank accounts in both Fidel and Raul’s names are held by the Castro brothers on “behalf of the Cuban people.”
The Paris Club recently announced that they are entering into negotiations with the Cuban government to restructure the $15 billion debt arising for a 1986 default by Cuba. Financial experts have opined that the Paris Club creditors believe Cuba and the US may normalize trade relations and would give Cuba more revenue to start paying the Paris Club.
The World bank estimates that Cuba’s GDP, based on its population of 11.38 million people and the last reported Cuban government figures of 2013, is estimated to be $77.15 billion. According to these statistics, the per capita income of $5,880; however, we know that this money is kept by the state and the government officials who run the Cuban economy.
To these facts we need to add the biggest fact of all, the lifting of the US embargo on Cuba. We need to remember that the US embargo was first created because Cuba refused to pay for taking American property. To this day Cuba still represents the largest taking of American property in the world. The bi-lateral negotiations will most likely include the US agreeing to lift the embargo if Cuba agrees to pay these certified claims, among other conditions that the Congress will likely require of such an arrangement.
Once that embargo is lifted, economic activity and trade in Cuba will increase and Cuba will be in a much better position to pay its debts. That being the case, if Cuba were unable to come up with all of the money to pay, Cuba could finance the $8 billion it needs to settle the American certified claims before lifting the embargo.
Even with the devastated state of the Cuban economy resulting from decades of central planning, according to Forbes, Cuba is still able to generate $8 billion a year from its medical industries. Once Cuba is free, the economy will generate a great deal of income from tourism, medicine research development, and much more.
There is no good reason for the US to settle for anything less than the full payment of the certified claims, with interest, just as the United States did with American claims against Vietnam and Germany. There is no reason to give Cuba a free ride. The world needs to see that Cuba is ready to rejoin the global arena of trading nations and that it is prepared to pay its bills and will keep doing so.
We should remember also that for the majority of those American families in Cuba 1959, they lost everything, and were completely devastated. They have been waiting for 55 years for justice and to be paid for what was taken from them. It is crucial for the world to see that the US will look out for its own people otherwise we will have a repeat of Cuba.
UK NGO: Cuba Pastor Continues to Fight Property Expropriation
Chrisitan Solidarity Worldwide (CSW), a UK-based NGO with offices in the United States, published an update on an ongoing effort to help Cuban families stay in their homes and worship free from government intereference:
Two years after government orchestrated mobs to target his home, Reverend Yiorvis Bravo is renewing his call to the Cuban government to recognise his ownership of the property, which also serves as the headquarters of his denomination.
Reverend Bravo Denis has been fighting for two years for his right to be recognised as the legal owner of his home, which also acts as the national headquarters of the Apostolic Movement, a Protestant denomination which the government refuses to register. He and his family face the threat of eviction at any time. This week Reverend Bravo Denis told Christian Solidarity Worldwide that state security officers continue to harass his friends and members of the church because of their connection to him, while his family has expressed concern at recent unexplained damage to the front of the home.
The law firm Poblete Tamargo, which represents Reverend Bravo Denis, told CSW that they are concerned at the length of time the IAHRC is taking. “While our client’s rights continue to be trampled by the communist government of Cuba, the Commission is taking an unusually long time reviewing this case. Our client hopes that the Commission, and other interested parties in Washington DC, will be a little more proactive,” said lawyer Jason Poblete.
Read the entire CSW post here.
Cyber Security Month
Every business needs to be proactive and make sure that customer data is safe and secure when it is stored and used electronically. The preliminary steps in this process include:
- Assessing the type of information that you are storing;
- Developing a data privacy policy;
- Implementing the policy; and,
- Review.
Assessing the information that you are storing requires you to evaluate the following issues, but not limited to: the type of information that you are storing; who needs to have access, whether to use encryption or passwords, how long will you need to have this information, and how will you destroy the information when it is no longer needed.
Developing a data privacy policy for your company is the next step. Developing a data privacy policy is more than corporate rules that answer the questions from the previous step. It needs to reflect the needs of your company and the technology that your company is using. You would need to be familiar with the applicable state and/or federal data privacy statutes and regulations. Finally, the data privacy policy needs to include the procedures that the company will take in the event that your company is hacked.
The third step is the implementation of your policy. Implementation of your policy requires training. Also, a policy is of no use, if it is not followed.
The fourth and final step is reviewing your data privacy policy. Reviewing your data policy should be done at least twice a year. The reason for this is not only technologies changing nature, but as your company grows, your data privacy needs will change with it.
Although this may appear to be daunting, note that the average data breach costs a business $3.8 million dollars. Not only is it costly, but bad publicity does not help and can even generate reputational damage to a business.
Learn more today how you can secure your customer data as well as how we can help you with developing or assessing your data privacy policies and procedures.
Cuba Advocacy Efforts Increase on Capitol Hill
The Cuba Standard newsletter recently posted a story about an increase in lobbying efforts on Capitol Hill related to US-Cuba matters. The article details how the changing relationship between the United States and Cuba has prompted companies to add US-Cuba policy to their advocacy portfolios.
Mauricio Tamargo, attorney with Poblete Tamargo LLP, was interviewed by the Cuba Standard for the story on the question of claims pending against the government of Cuba:
“There is a game afoot,” Tamargo said. “For the first time in 55 years, the two countries are actually discussing claims.”
As a former Chairman of the Justice Departments’ Foreign Claims Settlement Commission, Tamargo explains that under the US law, claims should be resolved before US sanctions are eased.
The complete Cuba Standard article can be found here (subscription may be required).