1.
Central Planning Versus Markets Marxism:
The Cuban Communist Party Confronts
Crisis, Challenge and Change in its 7th
Congress
Larry Catá Backer
The Coalition for Peace & Ethics (http://thecpe.org)
Association for the Study of the Cuban Economy 26th Annual Meeting:
Cuba: Assessing the Reforms
July 28-July 30, 2016; Miami, Florida

2.
Context
• Cuban Communist Party
Congresses
• Context for implementation
• General focus of Vanguard Party and
ruling apparatus
• 6th PCC Congress
• “Reform and opening up” Cuban style
• 7th PCC Congress
• First Congress after normalization
with the U.S.
• First Congress after historic visit of
U.S. President Obama
• Moving forward on the Lineamientos
Project

3.
The 7th PCC Congress: “Sin Prisa Pero Sin Pausa”
• Return to earlier pattern of
operation
• Fidel Castro’s address
• Official analysis: "We are not rushing towards a
free market economy, nor is our government
taking us there. This is a gradual process of
transformation, economic diversification and
development of a nationalist private sector”
(Rafael Hernandez Temas)
• Continued necessity of the US as
the “Great Satan”
• 3½ Products
• Review of course of reform
• Adoption in Principle of (unavailable)
Conceptualización
• Development Plan to 2030
• Action Plan for PCC cadres
Raul Castro Opens 7th Congress of Cuban Communist
Party By:Prensa Latina News Agency. 16 April, 2016

4.
The Focus
• Central Questions:
• Does the 7th PCC Congress mark the return to traditional models of Cuban
Marxist Leninist macro-economics and politics?
• Does it suggest (Conceptualización) a development of a contemporary Central
Planning Marxism Model to suit the present historical stage of development
of Cuba?
• If so, is it different from or incompatible with the Chinese Markets Marxism
Model?
• Presentation
• Consider the 7th PCC Congress
• Analyze the substantive consequences of its sputtering reform trajectory
• Conceptualización del modelo económico y social Cubano de desarrollo socialista: Plan nacional
de desarrollo económico y social hasta 2030: Propuesta de vision de la nación, ejes y sectores
estratégicos
• Consider broader consequences

5.
7th Party Congress: “Fear and Loathing;” or Caution and
Incrementalism?
• Overall theme: The Shadow of . . .
• “Fear and Loathing”
• U.S.; markets; neo-liberalism; globalization
• Factionalism
• Caution and Incrementalism?
• In the shadow of the Lineamientos
• Explaining/excusing the slow pace of
reform and opening up
• Structural Consequences
• Uncertainty
• Delay (key documents unavailable)
• Transparency
• Signaling
• Fidel Castro and the Foreign Ministry
• Internal factions differences become
more acute
• Fewer individuals may participate in
consultation
• Key battle over the extent of reform and
the willingness to open up (and to whom)

6.
The New “Central Planning Marxism”
• Basis for the conceptualization of
reform
• The language that will be used to
understand “facts”
• Norms against which action is
assessed
• The framework for giving meaning
to concepts and structuring its
implementation
• Close alignment between
Conceptualización, and the 2030
development plan.

7.
Introducción: Ideological Framework
• Expone las bases teóricas y características esenciales del Modelo Económico y
Social Cuba no de Desarrollo Socialista (¶ 2)
• con el objetivo de avanzar hacia una sociedad superior (¶ 9).
• en función de avanzar hacia una sociedad socialista, próspera y sostenible (¶ 10).
• Specify foundational premises for the construction of Cuban socialism in this stage
in its development, its structures and strategic goals
• La sociedad cubana se encuentra en el proceso histórico de construcción del socialismo, como alternativa
viable para superar el capitalismo y, con ello, contribuir modestamente a la supervivencia de la Humanidad. (¶
8).
• y se ajusta a las nuevas condiciones internas y el contexto internacional contemporáneo (¶ 12).
• Essential basis is the concept of Revolution (2000) of Fidel Castro
• Grounded in a long entanglement with and development of strategies of opposition to the U.S. leading to the
reform and opening up of the Lineamientos (¶¶14- 35)
• From these were forged 7 basic principles para un desarrollo socia- lista próspero y
sostenible (¶ 36-43):
• (a) unity and independence of the Cuban people; (b) popular support of the leadership role of the PCC; (c) the
universality of social welfare services; (d) the strengthening of Cuban values; (e) active engagement of a
socialist civil society; (f) productive capacity to engage in global commerce in specified sectors; (g) augmented
international prestige and standing among the community of nations.

8.
Capítulo 1: Los Principios Que Sustentan El Modelo
• Objective: build a total (an “all around”)Socialist Society: impulsar y consolidar la
construcción de una sociedad socialista próspera y sostenible (¶ 49)
• Sustainability is a function of development
• Development a function of the Lineamientos (¶¶ 50-51)
• Develop both material and social productive forces to produce rich and model state ¶ 52-53
• 1.1 Principios de nuestro socialismo que sustentan el Modelo ¶¶ 54-73
(Sustaining Principles)
• Principles: Synthesis of the continuation of the essential basis of Cuban socialism ¶ 57-73:
• Socialist human rights and moral values (¶58) (“Todo ello, en contraposición al egoísmo, el
individualismo y el consumismo enajenante y depredador.”); nondiscrimination (¶68); right to work,
health, education, etc. (¶ 69), to ensure social welfare (¶ 70-71)
• Leadership of the PCC as the Leninist vanguard party (¶59)
• The State as the guarantor and source of sovereign authority (¶60)
• Socialist democracy is exercised through the legislature under the leadership of the PCC (¶ 61)
• State as the source of popular rights and obligations (¶ 62).
• State control of the fundamental means of production (¶ 63) legitimating/democratizing (¶¶64-65)
• Highest objective: Preserving the state and Revolution (¶¶66; 72)
• Central Planning is the principal means of socialist development (¶67)
• Control of individuals as a means of social production; Individuals obligation to protect state property
and work hard (¶ 73)

9.
Capítulo 1: Los Principios . . .Y Sus Principales Transformaciones
• 1.2. Transformaciones principales del Modelo ¶¶ 74-115
• Se refieren a las transformaciones que caracterizan los nuevos fundamentos del Modelo a partir de las
condiciones internas y externas actuales (¶ 75)
• 1.2.1. Consolidación del papel primordial de la propiedad social sobre los medios
fundamentales de producción
• Necessary conditions for transformation: Creation of a revolutionary working class (¶80);
modernization of SOEs (organization, technology, innovation)(¶¶81-2); Application of Socialist
distribution to workers (wage markets) (¶83); SOE self financing for development and improvement
(¶¶84-85); Integrated SOE state ministry planning and direction (¶86); Unified currency (¶ 87)
• 1.2.2. Reconocimiento y diversificación de diferentes formas de propiedad y de gestión,
adecuadamente interrelacionadas (¶¶89-96)
• Enhanced “socialist foreign investment”
• Recognition of complementary role of private property over specifically designated means of
production which must be bent to the needs of perfecting the centrally planned economy (¶¶ 91-96)
• forma parte de los elementos que condicionan la necesidad objetiva del reconocimiento del mercado, en
el que interactúen bajo la planificación como vía principal de dirección de la economía (¶94)
• 1.2.3. Perfeccionamiento del Estado socialista, sus sistemas y órganos de dirección (¶¶97-
115)
• State responsible for development of social and economic order (¶ 99)
• Central planning of the economy must control both the state sector and private markets (¶101-104)
• Import substitution and export growth as basic policy (¶ 105)
• Judicial norms to be developed in aid of this system con orden y disciplina (echoing Raúl Castro))

10.
Capítulo 2: La Propiedad Sobre Los Medios De Producción
• 2.1. Principales formas de propiedad sobre los medios de producción
(¶¶119-191) (forms of state ownership of means of poduction)
• a) La propiedad socialista de todo el pueblo (¶¶121-157);
• 1. Las unidades presupuestadas (non-commercial enterprises)
• 2. las entidades empresariales de propiedad socialista de todo el pueblo (caracter mercantil).
• b) la propiedad cooperativa (¶¶ 158-167) (labor collectives);
• c) la propiedad mixta (¶¶158-167) (joint ventures);
• d) la propiedad privada (¶¶1673-186)
• (subject to rules restricting private accumulation of capital);
• e) la propiedad de organizaciones políticas, de masas, sociales y otras formas
asociativas (¶¶ 187-181) (mass organizations).
• 2.2. Sobre el sistema de entidades de carácter empresarial (¶¶192-202)
• Recaps the only permitted forms of economic organization (¶¶193-200)
• State controls juridical persons in all respects through law (¶201)
• State reserves to itself the assignment of the provision of goods and services by any
of these economic actors as it sees fit (¶201).

11.
Capítulo 3: La Dirección Planificada De La Economía
• The essence of central planning; engaging with markets (¶¶203-264);
• Components:
• a) La planificación socialista (¶¶206);
• El desarrollo socialista se erige en función del ser humano considerando las dimensiones política,
económico-financiera, social, demográfica, territorial, científico-tecnológica, formativo-cultural, de
protección y conservación de los recursos y el medioambiente, entre otras. (¶220)
• b) la regulación (¶ 207)
• Means of market regulation (¶245 et seq): (1) regulate market access and induce rational
consumption; (2) identify areas suitable for market functioning (market ghettos); (3) establish
standards and regulate competition; (4) consumer protection; and (5) restrict monopoly
conditions contrary to societal interests.
• c) la gestión del Estado (¶208)
• Resource management and regional economic integration (shadow of ALBA)
• d) el control (¶ 209)
• Monitoring, surveillance, and regulatory structures to detect offenses and enforce planning.
• El sistema nacional de estadísticas da respuesta a las necesidades del nuevo escenario en que
interactúan diferentes formas de propiedad y gestión, utilizán- dose de manera combinada
métodos directos e indirectos de captación de in- formación, como registros administrati- vos
y contables, censos, encuestas y otros métodos de estimación. (¶ 264)

12.
Capítulo 4 La Política Social
• Ties together economic and social development (¶¶ 265-311)
• El ideal de prosperidad de los ciudadanos se sustenta en perspectivas alcanzables de
materialización de proyectos racionales de vida, individuales y colectivos, en
correspondencia con los valores de nuestra sociedad, sustentados principalmente en los
ingresos provenientes del trabajo, y los derechos constitucionales. (¶ 268)
• 4.1. Los derechos económicos y sociales (¶¶273-298)
• Welfare state principles
• Education and culture as a socialization tool (¶281-284)
• The cultivation of a taste for beauty (¶285)
• Managing free time (286)
• 4.2. El trabajo como fuente de bienestar y prosperidad (¶¶299-311)
• Wealth distribution and social justice tied together (¶300);
• basic principles (¶311)
• Accounting for wage differentials (¶¶301-302) and private property (¶306-7)
• Product markets must be managed to permit access to basic necessities
(¶¶308-310)

13.
Consideraciones Finales
• Model: “una necesidad para lograr la irreversibilidad y el desarrollo de la
construcción del socialismo en Cuba.” (¶312)
• The shadow of Raúl Castro:
• Es preciso asegurar más explicación al pueblo, más disciplina y exigencia y un mayor y más
cercano seguimiento al proceso de cambios. Hay que tener, como ya hemos dicho, los oídos y
los pies bien puestos sobre la tierra. (¶319)
• An exercise in perfecting the Revolutionary insights as it is applied to
changing conditions (¶322)
• para consolidar los logros de la Revolución e impulsar la construcción de nuestro socialismo
prós pero y sostenible. (¶329)
• Shadows
• The U.S.(¶328)
• Regional integration (ALBA) and multilateral (¶¶ 325-327)

14.
Consequences: Old Habits Die Hard
• How does one build a
revolutionary working class that
the state can exploit to perfect its
control of the economy?
• Fear of the United States
• Still the Great Satan
• Protection against driving the pace
and context of reform and opening up
• Fear of markets
• Fear of engagement
• Necessity for control at every level
• Conflation of Marxist Leninism with
state planning economic model
• Foundation for political legitimacy
• Control

15.
And What of the Asian “Markets Marxism” Model?
• Strong echoes of Chinese Communist
Party General Program but differences:
• Markets:
• Asian--as a means toward Socialist
Modernization v
• Cuban--as a marginal complement to State
Control and operation of Political
Economyln object
• Path versus perfeccionamiento
• Asian: the “Socialist Road” toward Marxist
society
• Cuban: Protecting the fruits of the
Revolution and the socialist society created
• Internally versus externally driven
• Asian: looking to internal condition
• Cuba: external enemies and regional
integration
• Management versus Control
• Productive forces
• Asian: Use (liberate) toward Leninist ends
• Cuban: Use is an ends in itself

16.
Conclusion
• 7th PCC Congress and its
Conceptualización suggests the
difficulty of theorizing the
normative basis of the state in
times of crisis
• Disconnect between elites and
masses
• Worldwide phenomenon
• Highlights a fundamental crisis in
theorizing state power
• Document remains complex and
remote; specialist text
• It does not speak to the masses
• Embedded with ambiguity

17.
Thanks!
• PowerPoints and Essay may be accessed online.