(May,20-National Day)
Country of the West Indies, the largest single island of the archipelago. Cuba
was claimed by Christopher Columbus in 1492. It is situated just south of the
Tropic of Cancer at the intersection of the Atlantic Ocean in the north and
east, the Gulf of Mexico in the west, and the Caribbean Sea in the south. Haiti,
the nearest neighboring country, is 48 miles to the east, across the Windward
Passage; Jamaica is 87 miles to the south; The Bahamas archipelago extends to
within 50 miles of the northern coast; and the United States is about 90 miles
to the north across the Straits of Florida. The country comprises an archipelago
of about 1,600 islands, islets, and cays. The island of Cuba itself is by far
the largest in the chain and constitutes one of the four islands of the Greater
Antilles. Groups of mountains and hills cover about one-fourth of the island of
Cuba. The plains covering about two-thirds of the main island have been used
extensively for sugarcane and tobacco cultivation and livestock raising. Cuban
rivers are generally short, of the nearly 600 rivers and streams, two-fifths
discharge to the north, the remainder to the south.
Life in contemporary Cuba is thus challenging, given the limited access to food,
transportation, electrical power, and other necessities. Even so, many Cubans
show a fierce pride in their society. Cuba is a largely urban nation, although
it has only one major city: Havana, the capital and commercial hub of the
country, on the northwestern coast, scenic waterfront and is surrounded by fine
beaches, an attraction for increasing numbers of visitors from abroad. Cuba's
other cities—including Santiago, Camagüey, Holguín, and, especially,
Trinidad—offer a rich legacy of colonial Spanish architecture to complement
contemporary buildings.
The annual mean temperature is 79 °F (26 °C), with little variation between
January, the coolest month, at 73 °F (23 °C) and August, the warmest month, at
82 °F (28 °C). The November–April dry season abruptly changes to the May–October
rainy season. Annual precipitation averages 54 inches (1,380 mm). From June to
November the country is often exposed to hurricanes, whose strong winds and
heavy rains can cause widespread damage and suffering.
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The Guanahatabey and Ciboney peoples were among the original hunter-gatherer
societies to inhabit Cuba by about 4000 BC, The Taino arrived later, probably
about AD 500, and spread throughout Cuba, the rest of the Greater Antilles, and
the Bahamas. They developed rudimentary agriculture and pottery and established
villages. By the time of the Spanish conquest, the Taino constituted nine-tenths
of Cuba's inhabitants. More than half of Cubans are mulattoes (of mixed European
and African lineage), and nearly two-fifths are descendants of white Europeans,
mainly from Spain. Cubans of Asian descent now account for only a tiny fraction
of the population and are largely concentrated in Havana's small Chinatown
district. Spanish is the principal language of Cuba. Although there are no local
dialects, the island's diverse ethnic groups have influenced speech
patterns.About two-fifths of Cubans are Roman Catholics, at least nominally;
although only a limited number actively practice the religion. An unspecified
number of Cubans are nonreligious. The total number of adherents to Santería—Cuba's
main religious movement—is also unknown but may include between half and
two-thirds of the population. The Santería religion includes many traditions of
West African (mainly Yoruba) origin, notably praying to orishas (divine
emissaries), many of which have been formally identified with Roman Catholic
saints. The Cuban government is not known to have placed extraordinary
restrictions on Santería, perhaps because of the religion's apolitical focus and
its organization in small groups rather than large congregations. The
constitution was amended in 1992 to remove references to scientific materialism,
to ban many forms of religious discrimination.
Cuba has a centrally planned economy with limited opportunities for
self-employed workers and foreign investment. The Cuban government rigidly
controls wages and prices and enforces quota systems. The main economic
institutions are the Central Planning Board, headed by the economics minister;
the ministries and national organizations that control the economic sectors and
basic activities. Cuba received substantial economic aid from the Soviet Union
prior to the latter's breakup in 1991, an event that had disastrous effects on
the island's economy. The Cuban economy has depended heavily on the sugarcane
crop since the 18th century. Sugar accounted for more than three-fourths of
export earnings—and the largest source of the government's currency
reserves—until the 1990s, when tourism began to grow in importance. Forests
cover about one-fourth of the surface area. Arable land covers nearly one-third
of Cuba. The soil is highly fertile, allowing up to two crops a year. Apart from
sugarcane, the chief crops are rice, it is also the main source of calories in
the traditional diet. Other crops are citrus fruits, potatoes, plantains,
bananas, cassava, tomatoes, and corn. Fruit trees include such citrus varieties
as lemon, orange, and grapefruit; some species of the genus Annona, including
the guanábana (soursop) and anón (sweetsop); and avocados and papayas. Tobacco,
traditionally the country's second most important export crop, Cattle, pigs, and
chickens are the main livestock. Domestic petroleum and natural gas deposits
supply a growing portion of the nation's needs, but the majority is met by
imports from Mexico and Venezuela.
Cuba is a unitary socialist republic. The government is totalitarian, exercising
direct control or influence over most facets of Cuban life. President Fidel
Castro was the chief of state, head of the government, the first secretary of
the Communist Party of Cuba, and commander in chief of the armed forces. The
country is governed under the constitution of 1976, which superseded
revolutionary legislation that was enacted after the constitution of 1940 had
been suspended. The 1976 constitution was slightly amended in 1992.
Under the constitution, legislative authority rests with the National Assembly
of People's Power, whose more than 600 members serve five-year terms. The number
of seats in the assembly has grown steadily, corresponding to the population of
the provinces and municipalities. The National Assembly in its brief,
twice-yearly sessions appoints a 31-member Council of State, which is headed by
President Castro. The Council of State remains in session throughout the year
and issues laws in the form of decrees. The president also appoints and presides
over a Council of Ministers (cabinet), which carries on the daily administration
of the country.
Cuba is divided into 14 provinces, and, within the 14 provinces, about 170
municipalities are there. Delegates to municipal assemblies are elected to terms
of two and one-half years by universal suffrage. They, in turn, select
representatives to the provincial assemblies, who also serve for two and
one-half years. The national government and the Communist Party heavily
influence municipal and provincial affairs. The justice system is subordinate to
the legislative and executive branches of government. It is headed by the
People's Supreme Court, which includes a president, vice president, and other
judges elected to terms of two and one-half years by the National Assembly.
Muslims in Cuba perform their prayers at home, because even in Havana there is
no mosque in which they could congregate for prayers, adding that the only
prayers that are performed in public are the Friday Prayers that are conducted
in a place known as The Arab House, into which Cubans are prevented from
entering. Makkah-based Muslim World League (MWL), has expressed the hope that
the government of Cuba would respond positively to a request for the
establishment of an Islamic organization that would take care of the affairs of
Cuba’s Muslim community. delegation from the MWL recently visited Cuba and
discussed the proposal with some senior officials here, and added that such a
move would strengthen the relations between Cuba and the Muslims peoples in the
world and would also consolidate the cultural relations between Cuba and Islamic
countries. However, Cuba’s Muslims say their prayers in their homes, since the
state does not allow the construction of mosques, and there is no Muslim
organization to protect the interests of Cuban Muslims. recently a Cuban woman
who had embraced Islam donated her house for the performance of prayers by the
Muslims, adding that there is no animosity against Muslims in Cuba and therefore
it is fertile ground for Da’awa activity.
Among the international Islamic organizations that are carrying out charitable
work among Cuba’s Muslims is the Qatari Charitable Society.
Aboudy concluded by saying that the MWL is prepared to help the Muslims of Cuba
learn more about their religion, by sending Da’awa workers and Islamic
literature, and the like.