> Pope Scolds Capitalism in Cuba > > (January 25, AAS) > > HAVANA (AP) - This communist island is not exactly on the verge of a > free-market explosion, but there was Pope John Paul II, warning > against "capitalist neoliberalism" and "blind market forces." > > The pope - best-known as a critic of communism, but long wary of > unfettered capitalism - chose his final Mass in Cuba on Sunday to > issue one of his harshest attacks yet on Western market economies and > their influence worldwide. > > President Fidel Castro, who views the pope as sympathetic to the Cuban > revolution's socialist agenda, sat in the front row, just 20 yards > from the papal altar. > > Since arriving in Cuba, John Paul has prodded the Cuban government on > its human rights record, but has also cautioned Cubans against Western > lifestyles and consumer tastes, and issued a series of attacks on the > 36-year U.S. economic embargo and on Western aid policies. > > "From its centers of power, such neoliberalism often places unbearable > burdens upon less-favored countries," the pope said to ringing > applause. "Hence, at times, unsustainable economic programs are > imposed on nations as a condition for further assistance." > > The pope lamented that a small number of countries were growing > "exceedingly rich at the cost of the increasing impoverishment of a > great number of other countries." > > While Cuba has made a limited opening to private enterprise over the > past five years, permitting about 160,000 self-employed workers, > Castro has kept a tight leash on all private economic activity. > > Since the early days of his papacy, John Paul has warned against what > he has called "savage" capitalism and has lately expressed worry about > what globalization means to developing countries. > > He also has been prodding Western countries to help ease the debts of > poor nations. > > John Paul's attacks on the U.S. embargo have come as no surprise - he > fiercely opposes such methods on the grounds that they punish only the > poorest. > > President Clinton said this past week that Washington would maintain > the embargo, and it was up to Castro to open Cuban society before the > U.S. will change its stance. > > Clinton acknowledged that the issue divided the United States from > most other countries and said "only time will tell whether they were > right or we were." > > In welcoming the pope Wednesday, Castro said the pontiff's calls for > an equitable distribution of wealth were "so similar to what we > preach."
