2:56am EST
By Esteban Israel
HAVANA (Reuters) - Cuba in future will be a country that promotes
foreign investment, expands the private sector and dutifully pays off
its debts, according to a proposal revealed on Monday by the ruling
Communist party.
But it will not renounce the socialist system installed half a century
ago after Fidel Castro took power in a 1959 revolution, according to the
32-page document that will guide debates at a Communist party congress
in April.
"The economic policy in the new phase will correspond with the principle
that only socialism is capable of overcoming difficulties and preserving
the gains of the revolution, and that in the updating of the economic
model, planning will be paramount, not the market." it said.
The document, entitled "Guidelines of Economic and Social Policy," is
the program of reforms President Raul Castro will place before the party
congress for its consideration.
They could be modified during extensive public discussions ahead of the
congress, which was announced by the president on Monday night and will
be the first since 1997.
The congress is where Cuba's only legal political party sets direction
for the country, supposedly for the next five years, although it will
have been 14 years since the last meeting.
The April gathering will be particularly important because, given the
age of current leadership, it will be the last for the generation that
fought the revolution and has held power since then, hewing hard to
communist ideology.
President Castro, 79, took office in 2008 after older brother Fidel
Castro, 84, ruled the island for 49 years and finally resigned due to
ill health.
He promised to improve the daily lives of Cubans and has focused on
economic improvement, including major reforms announced in September to
cut a million government jobs and expand the private sector by granting
250,000 new licenses for self-employment.
ONLY THE ECONOMY
He said Cuba's economy will be the only topic at the congress.
The guidelines include reforms already begun by Raul Castro -- among
them the reduction of the state's role in the society and the
decentralization of agricultural management.
They include a proposal to eliminate the monthly food ration Cubans
receive, symbol of decades of state paternalism and a particular target
of Raul Castro, who says handouts have discouraged productivity.
They also call for provisions for bank credits for the new self-employed
and wholesale stores to cut their costs, but also for them to pay taxes
to finance public spending.
In contrast to past policy, state-owned businesses that do not make
money will be completely liquidated.
And the authorities will look to improve the country's international
credibility "through the strict fulfillment of contract commitments."
Cuba's standing with the international business community has been
damaged the past two years as a cash crunch forced the freezing of Cuban
bank accounts held by foreign businesses and of payments to many of them.
The party also proposes "to continue encouraging the participation of
foreign capital in Cuba, complementing national investment in those
activities of interest to the country."
The document mentions, for example, the development of golf courses,
marinas and luxury condominiums to attract wealthier visitors to the
Caribbean island.
Raul Castro said that before being distributed, a copy of the guidelines
was submitted to Fidel Castro for his consideration. Even though he is
no longer president, he is still head of the Communist party.
(Editing by Jeff Franks and Mohammad Zargham)
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