Not Different, Accomplices!

Not Different, Accomplices! / Miriam Celaya
Miriam Celaya, Translator: Norma Whiting

One of the most noticeable features of "Cubanness" is our ancestral
tendency to derive patterns from subjectivities. We like to imagine
ideal things, automatically assuming they are palpable realities. If
what we imagine coincides with our wishes, then you can count on the
legend overflowing beyond what is rationally allowed: a new "truth"
would have been born, based solely and exclusively in our childish
expectations.

Thus, among the more recent legends that are being constructed in the
imagination of dissenters is the alleged difference of positions between
the National Revolutionary Police (PNR) and the Political Police
regarding opponents, independent journalists and alternative civil
society activists. Some essential points on which such estimate is based
– whose truth or falseness this writer does not claim or deny,
therefore, I beg the readers to read with care where there are quotation
marks – are as follows:

The job of the PNR is to care for public order and prevent crimes,
while the Political Police aim to eliminate all political opposition to
the government.
The Political Police enjoy political patronage which the PNR does
not have, such as salary benefits, more favorable working conditions,
resort vacations, rich and varied fleet, personal care products and
clothing, footwear, etc., inserted in what they call "quality of life"
of its agents.
The Political Police are often dismissive or despotic towards
agents of the PNR, which are subordinated to it, though, by current law,
this should be exactly the opposite: Political Police agents should be
subordinate to the PNR.
The agents of the PNR are as exploited and humble as any other
Cuban, and go into its employ only in search of better wages, so they
tend to distance themselves from the repressive practices of the
Political Police.

I will limit myself to these elements, though there are other brush
strokes with which the very picturesque populace decorates this theme. I
confess that I too am tempted to yield to the illusion of this
PNR-dissidence affair. Bottom line is that an agent of the PNR has never
addressed me in a disrespectful manner, even the time when, not long
ago, by order of the Political Police, my friend Eugenio Leal and I were
driven in a patrol car, with the sole aim to get us away from the
activity in a public park in the capital. I remember that on that
occasion the officers of the PNR seemed downright upset, but not with
Eugenio and me. I don't know, maybe they were just self-conscious and
here I am, thinking that they are turned off at having to punish us. We
often hope for a wink of approval to help us get over the nightmare.
This democratic spirit can make us extremely romantic.

Believe me, I too would like to think that the hangmen of State
"security" (insecurity?) are "the bad guys" and the boys of the PNR are
"the good guys" but I have great reservations in that respect. After
all, there are more issues that link the two forces of repression to one
another than any alleged sympathies or consideration of the PNR to
police dissent. In any case, the dungeons of the PNR units are the
barricades of the Cuban democrats, and numerous are the clubs wielded by
those in blue uniforms that have beaten more than a few nonconformists,
and they too have been a direct part of or accessories to other abuses,
such as "citations," arrests and detentions.

I don't think it fit to, nor do I claim a "moral approval" between the
police of the PNR and any member of the opposition and independent civil
society. The PNR have been quick to handcuff us and drive us off in
their patrol cars, they are the same ones that routinely extort the
self-employed, the prostitutes, and any of the millions of Cubans who
are forced into crime to survive. The PNR is rotten with corruption to
its core. Its agents, trained in violence, threats and intimidation, are
the ones who close off the streets so the repudiation rallies can take
place, the ones that protect its members while leaving opponents in the
most profound helplessness. They are, in short, a part of the government
machinery stifling the freedom aspirations of Cubans. Make no mistake;
both the PNR and the Political Police are an essential part of the
dictatorship, though the latter may be only the last wretched link in
the chain.

As for me, I will believe in the legend of the "good guys" PNR on that
the imaginary day when the blue agents will refuse to follow orders from
the Political Police to beat up the peaceful opposition, or when they
will simply quit, en masse, an institution whose only reason for
existence is to repress and extort. In Cuban conditions, where survival
depends on thievery, to be a cop necessarily means to harass the people,
which is why one cannot be cop and a good guy at the same time.

And I hope some fool does not tell me that these are a "bunch of country
folk" trying to make it in the capital and other cities in Cuba, that
they are "too young" or a bunch of "ignorant poor babies" without clear
awareness of what they are doing and that they just "follow orders". It
doesn't sit right with me. Most of the country folk I know are hard
workers, honest and with a sense of honor, incapable of abusing other
Cubans. A sense of dignity is not exclusive to any age group, nor does
ignorance exonerate anyone of their civic responsibility. Perhaps
someday the PNR will have to answer for their actions in the same way
that State Security will. By then, we will see how many of these "good"
policemen will be able to show a record truly free of crime.

Translated by Norma Whiting

August 13 2012

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