Cuba's two-currency system adds up to a social divide

Those who earn the old peso in Cuba are seeing its purchasing power decline, writes Carol J. Williams. To them, powdered milk and sweet potatoes are luxuries.

Read the report here.

Photo: A woman receives a money order in a post office in Havana on April 3. Overpriced DVD players, flat -screen televisions, French cosmetics and Uruguayan steaks are now available to anyone who can afford them at the elite stores Cubans call "el shopping." Javier Galeano / Associated Press

Comments

[av2ts]

The Times should really be ashamed of itself here. Your reporter in Cuba seems to be further off base the longer she is there.

First off, there are 5 public TV channels in Cuba, not 3 as is repeated over and over. And the convertible peso (CUC) has been around for 14 years, not 4.

Second, one would think that it might be worthwhile (or at least basic journalism etiquette) to include the Cuban Government's perspective on the issues the article tries to address - the low buying power of Cuban wages. Just last week, the Cuban Govt raised the pensions for all Cubans by more than 20%. If this were to happen in the US, it would be a miracle. In Cuba, it is the second such rise in two years. The journalist might have also mentioned all the talk recently about joining the two pesos. In fact, the Cuban Central Bank released a report recommending gradually unifying the island's two parallel currencies.

But this would entail caring about the truth in Cuba and the US media has never cared for such a thing.