Archbishop Bruno Musarò, Apostolic Nuncio to Castrogonia, blasted the island’s rulers recently, and a handful of news organizations are reporting on his comments.
Not surprisingly, the news reports thus far are only available in Italian, Spanish, and Polish. Nothing at all in English. No word from the AP or Reuters, or CNN, etc..
If the nuncio had denounced the “blockade” rather than the Castro regime, his comments would be getting a hell of a lot more attention, of course.
The nuncio’s remarks were first quoted by LecceNews24 in Italy, in an article entitled: “‘In Cuba you die’: Salentine bishop sounds the alarm.” You can find that full report HERE.
TV Marti picked up the story, and you can find their report HERE (includes video). El Mundo in Boliva also ran the story. Go HERE for that. And if you can read Polish, go HERE for that report.
The comments were made after he celebrated mass in the Italian town of Vignacastrisi. (Ha! VignaCASTRIsi: Who says God lacks a sense of humor?)
Among his observations, the following stand out:
“In Cuba you die.” (A Cuba si muore).
“In Cuba eating is a luxury.”
“The Cuban people live in conditions of absolute poverty and degradation without human or civil rights. They are the victims of a socialist dictatorship that has kept them enslaved for fifty-six years.”
“Only freedom can give hope to the Cuban people.”
“The only hope Cubans can have for a better life is to leave their island.”
“Italians who complain about many things in Italy should know that in Cuba a physician only earns 25 euros per month and that in order to live with dignity many Cuban professionals have to work as waiters at night.”
“In Cuba everything is controlled by the government, even milk and meat. Beef is a luxury and anyone who dares to slaughter a cow in order to eat it is arrested and sent to prison.”
“After more than half a century, praise is still being heaped on this Revolution, but, in the meantime, the Cuban people don’t have proper work and don’t have a way of feeding their own children.”
“I’m grateful that the pope sent me to that island, and I hope to be there when the socialist regime comes to an end.”
Apostolic nuncios serve as the pope’s ambassadors to the world’s nations. Archbishop Musarò was appointed as nuncio to Castrogonia by Pope Benedict XVI in August 2011. Before that he had been serving as nuncio to Peru. Previous appointments have taken him to Spain, Korea, Panama, Guatemala, The Central African Republic, Bangladesh, Madagascar, The Seychelles, and several other remote locations in the so-called Third World.
Needless to say, the archbishop is supremely well-qualified to judge conditions in Castrogonia relative to conditions elsewhere around the globe.
And –needless to say — the thugs in Havana are now going to press the Vatican for his dismissal.
Well, this is a far cry from Cardinal Bertone, who looked like a maniacal smiling loon during his Cuba visit and whose star appears to have dimmed, thankfully. The Vatican doesn’t need its own Moratinos; Spain can always be relied upon to provide that sort of creature.
Yes, but why does he call it “socialist” rather than what it really is: communist?
He should have called it totalitarian dictatorship, but what he said is better than “socialist regime.”