US: Cuban Government Becoming More Rigid

The U.S. State Department's top official for Latinfrankly we don't see any significant possibility of
America said Wednesday Cuba's government haschange of any kind until Fidel is gone."
become more hard-line since the ailing Fidel CastroShannon said the United States has no independent
transferred power to his brother Raul in late July.information on the condition of Fidel Castro, who
Assistant Secretary of State Thomas Shannon saysunderwent intestinal surgery in July, but he termed it
U.S. officials see no reformer in the current Cubansignificant that the Cuban leader was not able to
political lineup. VOA's David Gollust reports from themake an appearance at the birthday events early this
State Department.month.
Raul Castro made an overture for dialogue with theHe said if the past is any indicator, Raul Castro,
United States in a speech December 2 at a rallyknown as a brutal enforcer of communist rule, will
marking his brother's 80th birthday.not be an agent of change in Cuba and none of the
But the State Department's top diplomat for Latinother senior figures in the hierarchy have shown any
America says if anything, the communist governmentsigns of being reformers either.
in Havana has become more rigid and orthodox sinceShannon said after Fidel Castro passes from the
the transfer of power, and the Raul Castro gesturescene, Cuban leaders will have a strategic choice to
is not being viewed here as a real opportunity formake:
change."Once he goes, the successor government is going
In a talk with reporters, Assistant Secretary of Stateto have to chart out some kind of path into the
for Western Hemisphere Affairs Thomas Shannonfuture," he added. "The question is what kind of path
gave a bleak assessment of prospects for earlydoes it chart out? Does it chart out a path that only
change in U.S.-Cuban relations.deepens the repression and deepens the misery? Or
He said there is no doubt that responsibility fordoes it attempt to chart out a path that is one of
running day-to-day affairs in Cuba has been passedengagement with the world and an opening, both
to Raul Castro, the longtime defense minister, butpolitical and economic. But there are no clear signals
that there is no hint of change in the government'sabout what that path is going to be."
approach:Shannon said the Bush administration is comfortable
"With Fidel still alive, the regime has actually becomewith the terms of the 1996 Helms-Burton Act from
harder, more orthodox," he said. "And it's not in aCongress, which forbids U.S. recognition of any
position to signal in any meaningful way, whattransitional Cuban government that includes Raul
direction it will take post-Fidel. So we don't feel thatCastro.
we've lost an important moment, because quite