(Translation of the the article, published in Sovietskaya Rossia, October, 21, 2000)
As it is well know, the UN held the Millennium Summit in September. Apart from the main rostrum, where state leaders held their loud speeches, there were also "round tables" at the Summit. At one of those devoted to "The role of the United Nations in the 21st century" Fidel Castro, the leader of the country, which 48 years ago proclaimed the grand motto: "Motherland or death", took part. What was Fidel talking about, when president Chaves, presiding over round table # 3 gave him his scheduled 5 minutes?
... I remember the moment of establishing the Organization of United Nations: that was right after the war against nazism, during the course of which there emerged unexpected alliances among the forces of different ideological currents, in order to fight that terrible evil, posing threat to all the mankind.
That war cost 50 million lives. The group of main participating in the war victorious countries, together with others, less weighty ones, created that organization. Even Cuba was there; Cuba did not have any independence, it was a semi-colony, and, to tell you the truth, almost all the other Latin American countries were semi-colonies, and a considerable portion of the countries, present now here, did not achieve independence.
The present situation, in which we live, is totally different. In reality today it is impossible to speak about such system as "The United Nations Organization". The system does not exist ... What exists in reality is a system of subjection of almost all the countries of the world to a small group of powers, which, guided by the United States, the mightiest power of all, decide all he business of our world.
Yesterday I witnessed the picture of what the United Nations is now. At lunch there were many tables, and at one group of tables we, the plebes, were sitting, and at the other - I was watching that very carefully - power holding, those who rules this world. Say, those, who rules it in the political sense: at that table also a sub-group of those, who rules the world not only politically, but economically, were sitting. At the head of the table there was our glorious friend, the General Secretary of the UN, who was to hold a speech. Next to him there was the US president, that was also natural, to the left - our friend president of Mali, to insure some colorful picture. To the right of Clinton - president of France ... To the left of the Mali president there was the head of China - head of a great power, that economically does not rule the world, but has a truly large share of political power; to the left of him - the British prime-minister, and a little closer ... to me - president of Russia, which although is not a great economic power, but is a great political and especially military power. I draw a distinction between a superpower, that can destroy a great power 12 to 14 times, and a great power, that can destroy the first 6 - 7 times. So each of them has enough might to destroy each other.
There also are difficult problems, here we could discuss the consequences, produced to the world by the proposed nuclear shield. A little common sense is enough (and those, who heard the candidates to presidency - one is for a partial shield, the other - for a full one) to realize what consequences this insanity may represent to the third world, to the world, about the development of which we are speaking.
All right, such was the real picture of our United Nations Organization.
Someone said here: who has the right to decide, whether to keep or abolish the veto power? That is those, who may impose a veto on any resolution, passed by all of us ... The veto power is equal to a certain divine right, which the power of Louis XIV cannot match. And if that historical figure could say: "The state is me", any of those, who are the permanent members of the Security Council, might say: "The United Nations is I", and especially the most powerful in all respects superpower.
Such is the real state of things, although it does not necessarily mean, that it can be permanent. This cannot be, because the present economic and political order, reigning in the world, is just unstable and leads to a catastrophe.
This power is so tremendous, especially that of the superpower, since it has the biggest economic power power, the biggest political, military, technological, scientific power. When the president of Saint-Lucia said they have 2 Nobel prize winners, I almost asked him where they were. I have some data that during the past 10 years of 21 Nobel winners in physics 19 has been stolen, of 24 medicine winners - 17, of 22 in chemistry - 13. All the award-winning scientists have been pirated. They are being exported not only from the third world countries, but also from Europe. Since the foundation of the Inter-American bank of development 40 years ago, we, Latin Americans and Caribbeans have been stolen a million of specialists, the best minds. We have been deprived of the best talents. We have brought them up in our modest universities, and we are being rid of the smartest. A million!
In the United States - I once calculated - to train such a million would have approximately amounted to 200 billion dollars, not including elementary and high school studies. We have even been deprived of our minds...
I would like to say a few words about the economic situation, not only about social and human. I have one figure here: the developed countries control 97 % of patents. They possess all the money of the world, as a result of the system, created at the end of the last war. Everyone knows, what struggle went between the ideas of Englishman Keynes and those of American White, head of the American delegation at Breton-Woods. Some thought about a more logical economic system. At that time the United States possessed 80 % of the entire world gold. At Breton-Woods there emerged a currency system, which gave all the power over to the United States. Then the right of full and absolute veto in the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank ensued. That is another instrument of the US economic power, the only one having the right of veto. There was an economic system created, where this country rules everything new, that arises: WTO, the project of a multilateral investment agreement, that they wanted to ratify contraband, and many other organizations, that lead to utterly deprive us of prerogatives in all the spheres.
Abolish the tariffs, allow a Lilliputian to compete with Gulliver in the production, technology and other areas. For our countries there are no possibilities. It seems very assuring, that our countries are gradually realizing this. I think that it is necessary to speak clearly, form the consciousness. Any time, when we can disseminate ideas, we spread them by all means. Although they are the masters of the most important mass media, communication media in the world, we, the poor, have a possibility to spread our ideas by various means. We, fighting against the blockade and many other things, can transmit our messages by means of satellite connection to many universities of this country. And via the internet - to any corner on Earth ... But I think that the most important means to realize this all consists in our opinions, and today they have been expressed. And also crisis. I do not remember any single moment in history, when big problems were not decided by big crises, and the present order leads to a huge crisis.
Real economics does not exist anymore. There exists virtual economics. The world export amounts to slightly over 6 trillion dollars per year. But, as everybody knows, speculative currency operations amount to about 1,5 trillion daily, since the conversion of the dollar to gold disappeared ... Having about 30 billion in gold reserves, the US maintained stability, because it bought gold at the time, when it was in abundance, and sold it, when there was a shortage of it. Everyone knows that. But Nickson in 1971, having spent so many untaxed hundreds of billion dollars on the Viet Nam war, not taking into consideration other opinions, takes a unilateral decision and abolishes conversion of the dollar into gold. And since that time the instability of all currencies has begun. De Gaulle was against that, because he knew that would ensue. So speculation begins, and today speculative currency transactions equal to 1,5 trillion dollars a day, plus 1,5 trillion dollars of speculations in shares and other securities. That has nothing to do with real economics. For example, the value of some stock shares has in 8 months increased from 1000 to 800000; that is something created by imagination ... A virtual economy of a colossal size is created. A huge air balloon is swollen, that at some moment will burst, and that bubble will burst due to an inevitable law. Then it will initiate the biggest crisis, that, possible, will help us create a new political and economic world order.
Meanwhile, we can form the consciousness, deepen the understanding of those problems, spread such ideas, as all these expressed here. We cannot be pessimists. I am convinced that will happen in a certain period of time, even not a very long period. We know all the plans, devised to divide the world in the nearest future. Both candidates to presidency has said that Latin America will have "the Age of the United States". And hence arise contradictions not only with the 3d world countries, but with Europe on the ground of conflicting interests as well. Somebody today very wisely said that globalization had begun centuries ago with the division of the world. Before the 1st World war capital investment expanded abroad. Now a new type of globalization exists, which corresponds with different circumstances, basing on communication means, on all that is happening now.
So, I judge from the premise, that a crisis will erupt. Today a kind of revolt occurred. Here it was said ... at least, this Assembly and this meeting enabled us to freely express ourselves and speak what we think. And I am sure that more and more people will speak what they think, notwithstanding their dependence on the World Band and IMF, this or that loan. We exercise the privilege to speak with full liberty, because we are not dependent either on the IMF or the World Bank; we have resisted the double blockade during 10 years, after the collapse of the Soviet Union, we have found ourselves in a double blockade, and survived owing to the business, done by the Revolution in 30 years, because we have a country, a people, possessing political culture and great spirit of solidarity. Half a million Cubans have voluntarily accomplished their international missions. I was not exaggerating when I said we could muster 6 thousand doctors. We have reserves to summon 6 thousand doctors in several weeks on a voluntary basis, as has always done before. Thus, when today in the morning I spoke about our proposed program, when we talked about AIDS ... we said that we are able to help the UN ... and African peoples in fast creating of the infrastructure; all this could be done in a year. We cannot wait for the death of millions, while this grieve capable of exterminating a continent, to start working and do something. So we have this pending.
It seems to me, that this meeting will be very useful, because many people have gotten acquainted here, exchanged their ideas. I am certain, that here, at this "round table", we have expressed all that is the most painful. And I think, that you, Chaves as chairman, promoted those feelings to find their expression ... Here there has been no one in power, who gathered at the yesterday lunch table. We came here, as if the smallest, plebes, and some of us from large countries, such as India, that is those, who suffers, we have gathered here and spoken absolutely freely. And this seems to be extremely positive ... Possessing consciousness, we can struggle, exercise influence. It is impossible to ignore us, when we tell the truth, truth and truth. And, thus, when a crises breaks out, we will be ready for changes in those organizations and must be ready to change the political and economic order, reigning now in the world.
I am sorry I have somewhat extended my speech, but this will remain, this has been recorded, I have small tape-recorder to record everything I say. I am glad, this is recorded. I do not know, if I will be arrested for this, but I am fond of having everything on tape and ponder upon all that has been said.
It was worth coming to this meeting through small and big inconveniencies, that, due to apparent and known reasons, I usually encounter on my visit to New York; I think, that it was worth not only because of countless friends, whom I had an honor to greet, but also because of what I have heard at this "round table"
Many thanks.