Cuban Sovereignty 1898 1902
The history of Cuba is remarkable, for the duration of transitionsbetween periods of different political governance, and for the number ofpolitical transitions that have taken place on this small Caribbean island.Many people argue that this transitional history is due to its strategicposition within the Caribbean: so close to the USA, to the rest of theCaribbean islands, and also to Panama (the gateway across South America).With these assets, it is no wonder that Cuba has been occupied by otherpowers throughout its history: this provides rich ground for historians,who try to pick out the reasons behind political and social transitions. Cuba is the largest island in the Caribbean, and was one of the firstLatin American islands to be invaded by the Spanish: indeed, the islandremained under Spanish control until the war of 1898 (more of which later).The reason for continued Spanish inhabitance of this island, so late duringthis century, was the sugar industry, which - during the 19th century -revolutionized the economy of the island, from the 1790's, when slaverevolts in Haiti disrupted sugar production there (which had been the mostproductive of all the sugar plantations) (Wiliamson, 1992;
At this point,the protests from Cubans, against the Spanish, fell in to violence. The influx of so many black African slaves to the island, andespecially the echoes of the riots in Haiti, is thought to have fueled thebeginnings of dissent amongst the people living under colonial rule inCuba, who saw - for the first time - that it may be possible to overturnthe colonial power, and return Cuba to the Cubans. Cuba has therefore had a very long and troubled history, moving fromone occupation to the next, firstly by the Spanish, who essentially stolenatural resources and ran the country to the ground, in terms of itsindustry (only the USA would buy sugar from Cuba during the period at theend of Spanish rule, as other export markets refused to buy sugar from aslave-trading nation). The USAstill holds a piece of Cuban land (without permission through internationallaw) and so it's occupational legacy in the Caribbean is still felt,especially with recent events, with Guantanamo Bay being used as a militarybase, for holding prisoners (many people argue also illegally). This encouraged much revolutionary thinkingwithin Cuba, culminating in the USA joining with the ordinary Cubans'struggle, by themselves declaring war on Spain. That this happened at thistime in history is significant because the USA were already thinkingstrategically in the region at this time, with the USA not wanting to see apetty war in the Caribbean region, which could potentially threaten theirbid for Panama (a place of huge strategic interests for the USA, who werein the planning stages of the Panama Canal at this point in time). Cubans were therefore happy - for a while - in 1898, as historiansare keen to point out that the real aim of the USA (to gain a strategicpoint in the Caribbean) soon became clear: the USA, for example, excludedCuba from peace talks, and Cuba - although technically independent in 1898- was the victim of a power struggle, with its fate decided through talksbetween the USA and the old colonial power; ordinary Cubans, and Cubanpoliticians alike did not have say in the future of the newly liberatedcountry. In 1898, therefore, the USA explicitly declared war on Spain, inCuba, following the blowing up of the USA's ship Maine in a harbor in Cuba. In this sense, therefore, it is difficult to say whether Cuba wasentirely independent in 1898 - it was no longer a colonial territory, yes,but it did not have any say in its running, and so in this sense, Cuba in1898 was not a sovereign and independent state - indeed, the USA owned mostof the property and capital on the island (with the USA claiming ownershipof Guantanamo Bay in the process). In 1902, therefore, Cuba can be said to betruly independent: free of colonial rule, and free of the occupation of theUSA: it had its own President, its own constitution, and therefore its ownsay in what it wanted to do with its current level of economic development,for example, and social development. The issue of the sovereignty of Cuba is therefore complicated, butlogically followed, is the same as much of the history of much of LatinAmerica: stripping of the land, for the benefit of others, by a morepowerful occupier, and then years of political turbulence, due to a complexbattle between various forces, political and religious. Two main reasons stand out for this desire forannexation to the USA, following historical analysis of this time period:the fact that the USA was the main market for Cuba's sugar trade, andbecause the slave traders of Cuba viewed the USA as a partner, as manySouthern states of the USA used black African slaves at this time inhistory (as opposed to other colonial powers, for example, Britain, whowere, at this time, in vocal opposition against the slave trade). Thisrevolt in Haiti drove the French from Haiti, and pushed them in to Cuba,where the Spanish summarily lifted restrictions on the slavery of Africans,recognizing the huge economic potential of having a sugar trade on landsthey occupied, and developed the sugar industry on the island, in to alarge-scale economic production unit.
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