Cubans rattled by anti-graft war

Cubans rattled by anti-graft war
Posted Thursday, September 3 2009 at 18:57
HAVANA, Thursday

A crackdown on corruption by President Raul Castro is causing
consternation among ordinary Cubans, who say it is biting into the
flourishing black market and reducing a prized source of cheaper food
and other items.

The complaints are tempered by the expectation that inventive Cubans,
driven by economic necessity and seasoned by years of filching from the
centralized socialist economy, will soon restore the pipeline of illicit
goods to full flow.

But not if President Castro has his way. Raul Castro, who took over the
presidency last year from ailing older brother Fidel, has vowed to shake
up the island's faltering economy.

Experts estimate that as much as 20 percent of goods are stolen as they
are distributed to state outlets around the country, a drain Raul Castro
has said must be stopped.

Official outcries against corruption are nothing new on the
communist-led island, but former defence minister Raul Castro is taking
tough action that includes putting many commercial establishments under
management of military-run businesses.

At present, despite a serious economic crunch caused by severe hurricane
damage last year and the global downturn, Cuban stores and markets
appear still reasonably stocked with goods. There was even toilet paper
that officials recently warned would be in short supply.

But Cubans say the offer of products on the black market, where goods
generally are much cheaper than in stores, has dropped off noticeably.
The average salary in Cuba is about $20 a month, so the black market
helps Cubans stretch their money or, if they are sellers, supplement
their income.

Powdered milk

"A lot of things you bought on the black market are nowhere to be seen.
For example, before, there was a lot of ham and cheese, now you can't
find it because something has changed," said a retired military officer,
who like others interviewed preferred not to give his name.

"Powdered milk, the yogurt the country people brought to Havana, the
people that sold detergent on the side. They've all disappeared," said a
Central Havana housewife.

Castro's transfer of many retail businesses to military control has
caused state employees who once routinely stole goods to stop, or at
least think twice. (Reuters)

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