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Cuba’s emerging private sector.
Throughout its history the FMC
has been focused on raising the
level and status of women’s em-
ployment in the Cuban economy.
At the time of the revolution, only
25% of Cuban women were em-
ployed outside the home. After
the revolution, women who
worked went into the service sec-
tor, including teaching and child
care. With the literacy campaign
that began in 1959, which brought
near universal literacy to the Cu-
ban population, and a focus on
free and universal education for
all Cuban children, far more wom-
en became educated and trained
for a wide range of employment
opportunities. Today Cuba has
the one of the highest literacy
rates among countries in the
world.
Equal pay is the law in Cuba:
women and men are paid the
same wage for the same job. It
seems that law and government
have become professions of
choice for more recent genera-
tions of Cuban women. In 2016,
women make up 61% of all attor-
neys in Cuba; 49% of the judges;
and 47% of the Judges of the Su-
preme Court. Women hold 33%
of the positions of Minister
(among them: Education, Fi-
nance, Justice Water, and Food
Security), and 45% of the Council
of Ministers (which includes Vice
Ministers) of the Cuban govern-
ment. The level of participation of
Cuban women in the courts and in
government far exceeds the rates
in the U.S.
The FMC has been very active in
the legislative arena over the
years. It was very influential in
the revision of the Family Code
(the domestic relations law),
which since 1975 has provided
equal property and social rights to
Cuban women in their home and
at divorce; paid maternity leave;
and more recently equal maternity
and paternity leave.
In our discussions, the leaders of
the FMC acknowledged that sex-
ist behavior still manifests social-
ly. Cuba has a history of more
than 500 years of patriarchal rule
and conduct, including hundreds
of years of slavery. FMC is wag-
ing a campaign against violence
against women and recently es-
tablished two national telephone
complaint lines, monitored by staff
Cuba’s Attorney General, that
women may use to report inci-
dents of violence or threatening
behavior if their local police are
not responsive. The FMC also
works to sensitize families and
employers to issues of gender
inequality in an effort to “undo” the
pervasive cultural baggage of
“machismo.”
As a member of a women’s or-
ganization devoted to obtaining
equal justice for women in New
York, I was struck by the remarka-
ble level of gender equality in Cu-
ban law and policy. Cuban wom-
en are secure in the exercise of
legal and political rights that we in
the United States still struggle for
–
access to free reproductive
health care, including contracep-
tion and abortion; free govern-
ment sponsored health care gen-
erally; universal free education
offered equally to girls and boys
through graduate school; and
food security. Women lead major
ministries of the government at
significant, and growing, rates.
The FMC should receive enor-
mous credit for these accomplish-
ments on behalf of women in Cu-
ba.
PAGE 14
While Cuba is emerging as a
tourist destination, it still has
problems providing enough
food to its people while cater-
ing to its rapidly increasing
number of visitors.
During our visit in October,
our group could see that food
was in short supply for many
Cubans. The government
provides a small monthly ra-
tion of the most basic nutri-
tional necessities, and some
food is available for purchase
in a nascent “free market”
economy.
As tourists, our meals were
ample. But in general, the
food was not the highlight of
the trip.
We started our tour in Va-
radero, a resort town about
two hours from Havana. The
hotel Melia had many options
for dining, including a 24
-
hour
café, but the food didn’t seem
authentically Cuban. It was
built to cater to large groups
and many of the meals were
served “cafeteria” style. The
Cuban coffee served in the
morning was excellent, as
were the omelets. Unfortu-
nately, other offerings, includ-
ing the pancakes, breads,
and meats, were mediocre.
On the other hand, we had a
wide array of options for din-
ner, some in beautiful settings
overlooking the ocean. It’s
hard to beat their outside bar
with a margarita or Cuban
beer in hand.
THE RESTAURANT
SCENE IN CUBA
By Sandra Schpoont