By Emily Rodríguez
Eastern Free Press Agency (
APLO)
SANTIAGO DE CUBA, January. When consulting a dictionary, we find that the word "phobia" means: aversion, repugnance, opposition to a determined phenomenon, object, animal or other. Such is the case with claustrophobia, photophobia, xenophobia, etc. But in Cuba there has now been for a while another type of aversion or repugnance: castrophobia. Which is the rejection of the person or countenance of Fidel Castro.
But, how is that aversion or repugnance manifested? Mainly, by refusing to watch and listen to his speeches and interviews, to the point of turning off both the radio and the T.V., as well as destroying magazines and newspapers showing his photos.
Was it always like this? No. He was a mystical character, an idol who came to take God's place in the Cuban nation, and, therefore, it can be said that there was never a social regime, that is, socialism, communism, but "fidelism," since the nation literally obeyed his mandates and whims, looking for the desired paradise on earth. But one can idolize as well as hate when we discover that an action has been deceitful; when we find lies, false promises, unrealistic goals. Like the Bible says, when we see those things, we know that we are in the presence of a false prophet.
Then the following occurs: we don't want to listen to the same speeches with warnings of death, not talk of progress; where the talk is always about war and not peace; where we can see hatred rather than love for our fellow man.
The nation is waking up from a nightmare and it blames Fidel Castro for its misfortune, strife, including within families, where he has planted discontent, suspicion, hatred.
Something significant took place a few days ago in the Zamorana subdivision of this city. Once again, there was no electric power to watch the soap opera. But it just so happens that a resident, the only one in the neighborhood, has managed to maintain a power source to operate his television set during blackout times.
The local Delegate to the Popular Power also paid this resident a visit, hoping to watch his favorite Brazilian soap opera, the only entertaining and pleasant space in Cuban television. But something happened, something typical in the broadcasting strategy of the political orientation media, which consists of broadcasting speeches during such periods of time, mainly those of the "Commander in Chief," and such was the case that day.
Now, according to an official evaluation, this individual does not enjoy a good political reputation, and the darkness that night was the ideal framework for those wanting to watch their soap opera to openly express themselves. And so they did, without noticing the presence of the delegate – an extremist in a doubtless official position – voicing the most dissimilar qualifiers, to the point that what happened that night could be described as a plebiscite rejecting the self-appointed boss. It all ended with the delegate leaving.
It was never known whether he left because of the emotions showed by the persons there, or because he too could not stand the entire speech.
Distributed by Cubanet