Corruption in Cuba

Cuba has suffered from widespread and rampant corruption since the establishment of the Republic of Cuba in 1902. The book Corruption in Cuba states that public ownership resulted in "a lack of identifiable ownership and widespread misuse and theft of state resources... when given opportunity, few citizens hesitate to steal from the government."^[1] Furthermore, the complex relationship between governmental and economic institutions makes them especially "prone to corruption."^[2]

The question of what causes corruption in Cuba presently and historically continues to be discussed and debated by scholars. There is the traditional principles of governance it inherited from Spain which was known as a notoriously corrupt of regimes in its interactions in the new world.^[3] Jules R. Benjamin suggests that Cuba's corrupt politics were a product of the colonial heritage of Cuban politics and the financial aid provided by the United States that favoured international sugar prices in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.^[4] Following the Second World War, the level of corruption in Cuba, among many other Latin American and Caribbean countries, was said to have risen significantly.^[5] Some scholars, such as Eduardo Sáenz Rovner, attribute this to North America's increased involvement in Cuba after the First World War that isolated Cuban workers.^[5] Cubans were excluded from a large sector of the economy and unable to participate in managerial roles that were taken over by United States employers.^[5] Along similar lines, Louis A. Pérez has written that “World War Two created new opportunities for Cuban economic development, few of which, however, were fully realized. Funds were used irrationally. Corruption and graft increased and contributed in no small part to missed opportunities, but so did mismanagement and miscalculation.”^[6]

Transparency International's 2023 Corruption Perceptions Index gave Cuba a score of 42 on a scale from 0 ("highly corrupt") to 100 ("very clean"). When ranked by score, Cuba ranked 76th among the 180 countries in the Index, where the country ranked first is perceived to have the most honest public sector.^[7] For comparison with worldwide scores, the best score was 90 (ranked 1), the average score was 43, and the worst score was 11 (ranked 180).^[8] For comparison with regional scores, the highest score among the countries of the Americas^{[Note 1]} was 76, the average score was 43 and the lowest score was 13.^[9]

^ Diaz-Briquets, Sergio (2006). Corruption in Cuba : Castro and beyond. Pérez-López, Jorge F. (1st ed.). Austin: University of Texas Press. ISBN 9780292714823. OCLC 64098477.
^ Political corruption : concepts & contexts. Heidenheimer, Arnold J., Johnston, Michael, 1949- (3rd ed.). New Brunswick, N.J.: Transaction Publishers. 2002. ISBN 978-0765807618. OCLC 47738358.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
^ Rosenmüller, Christoph (2016). ""Corrupted by Ambition": Justice and Patronage in Imperial New Spain and Spain, 1650–1755". Hispanic American Historical Review. 96: 1–37. doi:10.1215/00182168-3423868.
^ Benjamin, Jules R. (1990). The United States and the origins of the Cuban Revolution : an empire of liberty in an age of national liberation. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press. ISBN 9780691025360. OCLC 19811341.
^ ^a ^b ^c Sáenz Rovner, Eduardo (2008). The Cuban connection : drug trafficking, smuggling, and gambling in Cuba from the 1920s to the Revolution. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press. ISBN 978-0807831755. OCLC 401386259.
^ Pérez, Louis A. (2003). Cuba and the United States : ties of singular intimacy (Third ed.). Athens, Ga.: University of Georgia Press. ISBN 9780820324838. OCLC 707926335.
^ "The ABCs of the CPI: How the Corruption Perceptions Index is calculated". Transparency.org. 20 December 2021. Retrieved 21 April 2024.
^ "Corruption Perceptions Index 2023: Cuba". Transparency.org. Retrieved 21 April 2024.
^ "Corruption Perceptions Index 2023: Americas". Transparency.org. CPI2023_Map_Americas_EN.pdf. Retrieved 21 April 2024.

Cite error: There are <ref group=Note> tags on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=Note}} template (see the help page).

[:5-1] Diaz-Briquets, Sergio (2006). Corruption in Cuba : Castro and beyond. Pérez-López, Jorge F. (1st ed.). Austin: University of Texas Press. ISBN 9780292714823. OCLC 64098477.

[2] Political corruption : concepts & contexts. Heidenheimer, Arnold J., Johnston, Michael, 1949- (3rd ed.). New Brunswick, N.J.: Transaction Publishers. 2002. ISBN 978-0765807618. OCLC 47738358.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link)

[3] Rosenmüller, Christoph (2016). ""Corrupted by Ambition": Justice and Patronage in Imperial New Spain and Spain, 1650–1755". Hispanic American Historical Review. 96: 1–37. doi:10.1215/00182168-3423868.

[4] Benjamin, Jules R. (1990). The United States and the origins of the Cuban Revolution : an empire of liberty in an age of national liberation. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press. ISBN 9780691025360. OCLC 19811341.

[:8-5] Sáenz Rovner, Eduardo (2008). The Cuban connection : drug trafficking, smuggling, and gambling in Cuba from the 1920s to the Revolution. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press. ISBN 978-0807831755. OCLC 401386259.

[6] Pérez, Louis A. (2003). Cuba and the United States : ties of singular intimacy (Third ed.). Athens, Ga.: University of Georgia Press. ISBN 9780820324838. OCLC 707926335.

[7] "The ABCs of the CPI: How the Corruption Perceptions Index is calculated". Transparency.org. 20 December 2021. Retrieved 21 April 2024.

[8] "Corruption Perceptions Index 2023: Cuba". Transparency.org. Retrieved 21 April 2024.

[10] "Corruption Perceptions Index 2023: Americas". Transparency.org. CPI2023_Map_Americas_EN.pdf. Retrieved 21 April 2024.

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