Capitalism’s False Dawn in Cuba

To judge by the hype in Havana, capitalism is flourishing in the new Cuba. At this week’s Havana International Trade Fair, delegations from some 60 nations gathered to flaunt wonders from prime cigars and designer rum to Canadian chemicals. Not to mention the requisite jabs at the enduring U.S. economic embargo, which has dampened the enthusiasm by potential investors from El Norte.

Look beyond the fairgrounds, however, and the billboard isn’t so encouraging. Even as it expands, Cuba’s emerging private sector is struggling against red tape, monetary incontinence, official ambivalence over economic reforms, and ideological barricades left over from the Cold War. The innovation and enterprise the island so badly needs to spark economic recovery and rescue the revolution from itself are still wanting.