Ian Vásquez and Marcos Falcone
The US indictment of Raúl Castro today raises hope for an end to the Castro tyranny, something that ideally would happen in a bloodless way. That end would be joyous for Cubans, who have endured one of the most brutal dictatorships in the world since 1959. The authoritarian rule of the Cuban Communist Party turned what was once one of Latin America’s most prosperous countries into one of the poorest, a situation that has severely worsened in recent years. Cubans today don’t just lack basic freedoms, they lack the most basic necessities like an adequate food supply, reliable access to water, gasoline, and electricity. As a result, some 1.7 million Cubans—about a quarter of its population—left the country between 2020 and 2024.
The harms that Cuba has inflicted on its own people for over six decades have also extended to other countries. Venezuela is the clearest, most recent example of a country with a Cuba-backed authoritarian regime. But the Castro dictatorship has routinely supported left-wing terrorism and authoritarianism across the region, ranging from the Che Guevara-led guerrillas in Bolivia in the 1960s to Nicaragua’s Daniel Ortega, who is still in power today. From a hemispheric perspective, the end of the Cuban dictatorship is long overdue.
Nicolás Maduro’s extraction from Venezuela, however, should serve as a note of caution: removing a dictator does not necessarily end the dictatorship. Despite having a well-organized, legitimate opposition ready to take over, Venezuelans are still waiting for a transition to democracy and liberty. A democratic transition in Cuba may be more challenging because the Communist Party has long repressed any opposition on the island and exiled many of its leaders over the decades. Still, prominent Cuban dissident Rosa María Payá is right when she says that Cuba does not need a Delcy Rodríguez, in reference to the current regime head in Venezuela with whom the US government is working. When and if the Cuban dictatorship finally collapses, it would be best to let Cubans themselves determine their return to freedom.