| Abstrakt: |
Some Summary Comments Clearly some caution should be exercised in presenting some of these data. As anyone familiar with official sources in Cuba recognizes, figures are almost always presented in the most favorable light possible. This can be expected from virtually any governmental source and is not limited to efforts made by the Cuban government. As anyone who has traveled in Cuba realizes, secondary confirmation of much of the official data is often hard to come by. This is not necessarily because other sources might be contradictory and therefore not available, but that they just do not exist. Personal interviews, subjective observations and other resource people do help. But raw statistical data remain open to further critical review. However, any tendency by the various Cuban sources to inflate the numbers to their official advantages will have the likelihood of being counterproductive. In the future, current figures will have to serve as the base from which judgments about subsequent progress towards the goal of political equality will be measured. All things considered, the various sources of raw data concerning the political status of Cuban women seem reliable. Several conceptual challenges confront those who seek to assess relationships between gender and politics in a particular national setting. Included among the key questions are: (1) At what levels are gender and political linkages significant? (2) Are data available sufficient to make meaningful distinctions? and (3) What systematic explanations can be attributed to a particular national setting? Students of women and politics have a great deal to learn from the Cuban example since the Revolution. Not only did several women figure significantly in the struggle against the Batista regime, the emergence of the Cuban Federation of Women early in the Castro era gave credibility to the claim that the quest for political equality between the sexes was of more than token importance. Gaining official recognition in the new Cuban constitution as a mass organization is further evidence of the organization's ability to consolidate and support political gains for Cuban women. Additional concrete verification of political influence by women in Cuba can be found in formal organizations of the Cuban political system. The data included in this research note suggest rates of participation for contemporary Cuban women consistently above double-digit figures. This research note is offered as further food for thought in the important quest toward greater understanding and clarification of the 'revolution within a revolution.' [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] |
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