Wales-Cuba solidarity

Maia Jones and Sel Williams argue from a Marxist perspective to explain the link between Welsh nationalism and international solidarity with Cuba.

Summary

This article explores international solidarity with Cuba and the reasons for support for Cuba in Wales, in the light of recent research that indicates a correlation and complementarity between Welsh nationalist concern and international solidarity with Cuba. An attempt is made to explain the nature and implications of this nationalist-internationalist dynamic by applying nationalism theory to the specific and contrasting cases of Cuba and Wales. The nature of national identity, imperialism, nationalism and internationalism in the two countries are compared. The effect of changes to the economic base at the global, regional and national levels on the relationship between nationalism and internationalism are discussed in the context of the dialogue between nationalism and socialism.

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Cymru Cuba (Wales Cuba) is the main Cuba solidarity organisation in Wales and is part of the British Cuba Solidarity Campaign (CSC). A recent analysis (Jones 2008) of the political activities and literature produced by Cymru Cuba demonstrates that the organisation, particularly in north Wales, has drawn its motivation from Welsh national consciousness.

Cymru Cuba was set up on International Labour Day 1982 and described itself as a solidarity and friendship society, which disseminated information about the development of Cuba since the 1959 Revolution. Its early work included forging strong links with the Cuban Embassy in Britain, setting up public meetings and day schools and publishing the first of its occasional magazine, entitled Cwlwm Cymru Cuba (translated as Wales Cuba Link).

A letter from Dafydd Elis Thomas, then Member of Parliament for Meirionydd is indicative of how, from the start, Cymru Cuba saw the political link between the Cuban revolution and the struggle in Wales:

"The revolutionary context of Central and South American politics may appear very different from the context of Western European politics. But we can only take that short-sighted view if we forget our own history, and are not serious about the nature of our own struggles. The goals of national liberation and self determination free from capitalist exploitation, and free also from an oppressive state apparatus is a common world-wide struggle." (Thomas 1982)

Five years after the creation of Cymru Cuba an editorial, under the heading 'Our (Other) Links with Cuba', indicates the currents underlying Welsh solidarity with Cuba:

"Cymru Cuba's members see the internationalism inherent in Guevara's views as highly relevant to the Welsh situation today. The enemy of Guevara's revolution was the economic and cultural imperialism which was laying waste Cuba. Cymru Cuba identifies with the same imperialism as the force which, in the view of the Left in Wales, is destroying the economy and culture here. As Guevara never regarded his struggle as confined to one island, nor one continent, so Cymru Cuba's members see the aims of the Cuban government and the Welsh Left as ultimately inter-related. An example of this is Cymdeithas yr Iaith Gymraeg's (Welsh Language Society) membership of Cymru Cuba. The Society believes its capitalist adversary should be tackled not merely in Wales, but on an international front…" (Cwlwm Cymru Cuba 1987)

The article goes on to discuss Welsh internationalism of the 1930s and Welsh volunteering as members of the International Brigade during the civil war in Spain.

"Of course, the social conditions in which that brand of internationalism thrived are long gone, and the modern solidarity movement operates in a very different world. Information is the main weapon of political progress now for groups like Cymru Cuba. Inspiration, too, is a vital agent of political change, and that is what Cymru Cuba seeks to inject into Wales. It hopes the achievements of the Cuban revolution will provide a spur to activity here. Cymru Cuba's members can take pride in the fact that during its first five years, the Wales Cuba link has earned a place on the Welsh political scene." (op.cit.)

Other particularly relevant literature and activities include an article by Jan Morris (Cwlwm Cymru Cuba, 1985) which points out similarities between Cuba and Wales. She highlights how both possess an ancient and distinctive culture, both come under the domination of a more powerful neighbour and both have fought bravely to protect their identities (although she argues that Cuba has been more successful).

Examples of internationalism in the 1980s include public meetings and support work pertaining to Nicaragua, Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador as well as Vietnam. The identification of Wales with Cuba featured prominently in the Che Guevara Freedom Festival in 1987. A paper on 'The National Question of Wales', (Gareth Miles 1987) outlined a materialist interpretation of Welsh history, giving particular attention to class structures and economic changes. It analysed the relationship between Welsh nationalism and the working class and concluded by arguing that socialists need to use Welsh national consciousness as a weapon for liberating the working class in Wales and elsewhere. The paper ends by giving reasons for including the defence and development of Welsh national distinctiveness in a Marxist-Leninist programme for a socialist Britain, arguing that the protection and promotion of the Welsh language and culture will help the development of socialism.

A further indicative article appeared in Cwlwm Cymru Cuba in 1989 under the title 'Cymru a Chuba: Llwybrau Rhyddid' (Wales and Cuba: Paths to Freedom) outlining Cuba's successes and what Wales can learn from Cuba's example. Proletarian nationalism and internationalism are advocated as opposed to an inward narrow nationalism.

The International Social Forum, organised by Cymru Cuba in 2004, looked at the 'new imperialism' and its effects - not only on Cuba and the Middle East but across the world. The question 'What next in Wales?' was addressed by a panel of speakers representing a spectrum of left viewpoints together with a representative of the Scottish Socialist Party. Participants at the conference had an opportunity to question the panellists and contribute to this debate and to a conference declaration on the way forward for the left in Wales.

Thus Cymru Cuba has attempted throughout its history to relate solidarity with Cuba to the issues of socialism and the national question in Wales within a broad international context. It has acted in solidarity with socialist and national liberation movements across the developing world whilst providing a platform for the left in Wales. In the words of founder member David Jones (1) it has contributed to trying to "start the revolution in our own country".

At the National Eisteddfod of Wales in August 2007 a questionnaire was used to discern reasons for solidarity with Cuba and attitudes to the national question in Wales. It must be emphasised that a majority of the people drawn to this cultural event have particular forms of Welsh consciousness: hence, evidence from the sample cannot be regarded as representative of the population of Wales as a whole. However, Jones (2008) explains that respondents identified strongly with nationalist aspirations for Wales and that support for the Cuban revolution and self-government for Wales were highly correlated. Furthermore, for some people in Wales, support for Welsh self-government significantly motivated their solidarity with Cuba.

The survey results indicate that for a significant number of people there exists a Welsh nationalism that identifies strongly with Cuban self-determination - and which can be characterised as an outward internationalist socialist nationalism. The reasons behind this correlation are explored in the rest of this article.


Theoretical approaches to nationalism

The theoretical development of the relationship between Marxism and nationalism, which was described by Munck (1986) as the difficult dialogue, is traced here and then related to the specific national questions of Cuba and Wales. Marx did not produce a complete theoretical analysis of nationalism. He saw that, historically, the formation of nations, or rather nation-states, was a product of the world-wide expansion of capitalism. Marx's famous statement that the proletariat has no country is indicative of his view that nationality would be abolished because proletarians of all countries have the same interests and the true meaning is humanity as a whole. Furthermore, according to historical materialism, nations become redundant as the development of productive forces surpass those of the nation state leading to the establishment of communism on a world scale.

Marx's interpretation of the situations in Poland and Ireland provide the rudiments of a Marxist theory of self-determination. Firstly, the only way proletarians can unite against their common enemy, the capitalists, is for the oppressed nation to demand freedom from its oppressor. Secondly, through the oppression of a nation the ideology of the bourgeoisie is strengthened among the proletariat of that oppressor nation. Therefore, through the freedom of the oppressed nation the ideological hold of the ruling class over the proletariat of the oppressor nation is loosened. Engels held similar views to Marx but used a metaphysical ideology in his theory of 'non-historic nations' and included Wales in this static view of what constitutes a nation. Löwy (1976) points out that Bauer, in contrast to Engels, viewed national history as a process. Thus, a country without a history of independence could have an independent future.

Lenin (1974) emphasised the difference between nationalism of the oppressor and nationalism of the oppressed. Like Marx, he started his theory of nationalism with proletarian internationalism but Lenin made clear the dialectical relationship between proletarian internationalism and the right of nations to self-determination. He emphasised the political elements of the national question, which he regarded as semi-independent of the economic aspect. Thus the national question belonged to the political democratic sphere. Instead of regarding self-determination and proletarian revolution as conflicting issues, as had Rosa Luxemburg, Lenin understood that self-determination is fundamentally important to create international unity and therefore tends implicitly to exclude even the possibility of exceptions, that is of a contradiction between the interests of the proletariat and the democratic rights of nations. Lenin viewed nationalism as fundamental in the promotion of socialism as it was a democratic issue which had to be resolved in order to progress. Socialism for Lenin would remain a hollow phrase if it is not linked up with a revolutionary approach to all questions of democracy, including the national question.

The post-modern debate raises broader concepts such as Benedict Anderson's "imagined nations". Anderson (1991) rejects reductionism and emphasises that factors such as language, literature and the media are key elements in the imagining of what is called a nation. He criticises the Eurocentric nature of many of the contributions to the Marxist debate on the national question. Such a restrictive perspective fails to see how Third World nationalisms, including Islamism, are distinctly different and are not reflections of European themes.

In the past women were often written out of the history of nationalist struggles. Munck (2000) suggests that through the development of the idea of liminality the complex relationship between gender, the nation and politics can be explored. In a liminal perspective identities are seen as uncertain, changing and plural. Therefore, points of difference and diversity are seen as crucial to the understanding of gender and the nation. The post-modern contribution moves the debate beyond reductionism by taking account of the complexity and dialectical contradictions of nationalism. It provides a multi-stranded approach which can be gender focused and aware of the postcolonial dimension as well as other aspects such as race and ethnicity.

History has shown that the processes of breaking up and of forming nations have continued. The issue of nationalism continued to be an important phenomenon throughout the twentieth century, sometimes used as a reactionary force and other times as a radical or revolutionary weapon. Generalisations about nationalism are of limited value as each national case is specific and different. Crucially what constitutes a nation cannot be determined solely by objective criteria as, for example, Stalin, amongst others, suggested. Only the community itself can determine whether it constitutes a nation or not.

Cuba and Wales could hardly be more dissimilar, geographically, historically, economically, socially and culturally. National identity has been instrumental in the history of both but its manifestation has been very different.

In Cuba in the nineteenth century the pursuit of independence and Cuba Libre emerged accompanied by Cubanidad or Cuban identity. Competing visions of Cubanidad have shaped Cuban history and nationalism ever since. The main versions were liberal patriotism and a more radical nationalism. Peréz (2006) argues that these values were primarily derived from North America and that change in Cuba always involved the United States. Peréz (1999) states that Cuba Libre represented a promise of integration of the Afro-Cubans and that nationality itself offered a means of mobilization. Crucially being Cuban implied equality and racelessness. The success of Cuba Libre depended on it being a representation of the nation as a whole.

The revolution identified with many aspects which had featured in Cuba's history giving it a clear sense of continuity. It echoed Martí, had a distinct moral dimension with its roots in self-sacrifice and idealism, spoke of agrarianism, communal action and identity. The origins of the revolutionary process were middle-class, nationalistic, reformist and democratic. This changed radically when Castro declared in 1961 that the government was based on Marxism-Leninism. However, it can be seen that the revolution was not new in the sense that, as Perez (2006) says, its antecedents reached deep and ran wide, back to the very sources of Cuban nationality. Mobilisation in the name of equality, liberty or justice is a theme in Cuban history and the revolution represented a culmination of centuries of struggle for the full realisation of these aspirations.

According to Gott (2004) the Bay of Pigs in 1961 signalled Cuba's transition to being irrevocably independent. Castro had harnessed his revolutionary chariot to the powerful forces of a renewed Cuban nationalism and was beyond challengeimported by the socilaist f Cuba'ion grew closer and closer.ting with liberals and the United S. Defence of the nation became fused with defence of the revolution. Gott (op.cit) reckoned Cuba under Castro became a socialist country where nationalism was more important than socialism, where Martí was more important than Marx. However, Castro's skill was to keep the two streams, socialism and nationalism, flowing together and enhancing each other. Castro's bold statement, "Socialism or Death", following the crisis in the early 1990s, can be interpreted as a central theme in Cuban history. The call is not only to defend socialism but to defend the nation's independence. This demonstrates how intertwined socialism and nationalism have become in Cuba. The other option "death" means to revert back to being a neo-colony of the United States and to abandon socialism. The revolution has become an emblem of self-determination.

Cuba Libre is a concept which has gone through several transitions. Cuba's history can be seen as a continuous struggle for 'true' independence which began with the 1868-1878 Ten Years War, followed by the Independence War, the 1933 revolution, and finally the 1959 revolution. Cubanidad similarly has been through many changes. However, it's important to stress that the revolution does not mean that Cuban nationalism has been transformed to a homogenous, unified nationalism. Issues still persist, as for example, amongst marginalised groups such as Afro-Cubans, women and gays and lesbians. Their place in the Cuban nation and the meaning of Cubanidad and the realisation of Cuba Libre continues to be contested.

In contrast, the foundation of Welsh national consciousness in the nineteenth century was largely the persistence of the Welsh language and culture. Crucially the class interests of Welsh capitalists resided with the British state and Empire. In the twentieth century growth in working class consciousness shifted allegiances toward a British identity and solidarity with the working class across Britain. Since the 1960s there has been resurgence in Welsh national identity. Initially this focussed mainly on language and culture but increasingly became associated with radical economic policies and social justice leading to some realignment of national and class identities. This evolving consciousness manifested itself in the devolution process leading to the establishment of a Welsh Assembly at the end of the century. Current surveys of public opinion indicate gradually increasing support for a full law-making parliament. Desire for full political independence within the European Union has grown very slowly with fewer than 20% taking this view at present.

To sum up, in Cuba and Wales nationalism has been a continually developing process. Cuba's national identity tended to be focused on the present and the future, concerned with progress, civilisation and modernity, looking for the true expression of Cuba Libre, a genuine independence. In contrast Welsh nationality focused on language and culture but since the 1960s Welsh nationalism has become more modern with a broader appeal and a more European and international perspective. In the same period the main currents within Welsh nationalism have moved towards a more socialist analysis and political programme.

Latin America is often used to support generalisations about other postcolonial nations and theories explaining the exploitative relationship between the centre and the periphery. Goebel (2007) sees the state as an agent of modernity which serves as an axis around which forms of nationalism revolve. Gramsci (1971)recognised the state as being a variable in capitalist development and identified some states as peripheral. These peripheral states had many features evident in Cuba and the rest of Latin America. These include a heavy dependence on foreign capital leading to a limited autonomy and the lack of a capitalist class. Another characteristic was late national unification, which was often incomplete, and a liberal constitution decreed from above. These features, most of which can be identified in Cuba, are central to Gunder Frank's dependency theory (1967). Although this is a theory of general applicability to many countries it does provide a broad framework for perceiving the exploitative relationship between the U.S. and Cuba and understanding Cuban nationalism.

Goebel (2007) argues that nationalism and the left seem like natural allies in Latin America as the capitalist order served the interests of colonialism and imperialism, meaning that progressive forces and national liberation movements tended to coalesce. Thus national consciousness was seen as a pivotal component of an emancipatory ideal that would lead to the abolition of externally imposed exploitation. Goebel's central theme highlights the argument that the fusion between the left and nationalism is far more fragile and contingent than many advocates of national liberation claimed after 1959. He points to many failures of left wing nationalism in the region and argues that the fusion between the left and nationalism in Cuba was set in a specific context and its success lay in the fact that earlier, more conservative strands of nationalism were refashioned.

Hechter (1975), in an extension of Frank's theory of the uneven development of capitalism, focuses on the British Isles in a study of new nationalisms and the persistence of the politics of ethnicity. The resurgence of separatist sentiments in an industrial society like Britain questions the assumption that as industrialisation develops ethnic attachments within a society become less important. Although industrialisation led to a decline in regional linguistic differences it did not result in the cultural assimilation of the Celtic areas of Britain and industrialisation also failed to achieve regional economic equality.

Hechter suggests that as the systematic disadvantages of the periphery have persisted and become institutionalised they have the effect of discriminating against the Celtic periphery in a manner which he describes as institutionalized racism.

Adamson (1991) argues that the extent to which Hechter claims that Wales was exploited is overstated as the speed and degree of industrial development in nineteenth century Wales is indicative of its central place within the British economy. Adamson refutes Hechter's claims of institutionalized racism as many social classes received comparative benefits from Wales' economic relations with England. However, according to Miles and Griffiths (1979) aspects of discrimination and exploitation which feature in Hechter's work are apparent in Wales. They argue that the industrialisation of Wales was a source of mobile labour for the British state's metropolitan core fulfilling one of Wales' functions as an internal colony. They point to the fact that three quarters of Wales' private industry is owned from the outside. In times of prosperity and depression Welsh unemployment is about double that of England and average living standards are significantly lower.

Allied to the debate on England's exploitation of Wales is the question of imperialism. Wales benefited from the British Empire because external colonies underpinned rapid industrialisation and capitalist expansion in Wales. However, Ellis (1975) makes a clear distinction claiming that it was an 'English Empire', as opposed to a 'British Empire', and that only some individuals benefited not the Celtic regions as a whole.

Day (2002) argues that in the case of Wales capitalism was seen as imported and directed by foreigners. Therefore, this makes the 'natural' political outcome appear to be some sort of nationalistically tinged socialism. Ragin (1979) states that generally the structural conditions described by Hechter as conducive to ethnic solidarity parallel those described by Marx as conducive to class solidarity. Structural conditions such as substantial economic inequality combined with its perception and communication among members of the oppressed group leads to consciousness of class but also raises consciousness of nationality. These consciousnesses can coincide and produce ethnic-class (or national-class) solidarity. These conditions can spark mobilisation and can be seen in the disillusionment of the Welsh industrial workers with British working class organisations in the later part of the twentieth century.

Although industrialisation led to a decline in cultural distinctiveness, notably in the use of the Welsh language and erosion of Welsh culture, recent surveys of public opinion indicate that about 65% of the population consider themselves more Welsh than British. There are only slight variations between the more traditional north and industrial south which clearly show that Welsh ethnic identity or consciousness is far more widespread than the practice of Welsh traditionalisms. Therefore Welsh consciousness has always persisted and, as Hechter notes, the potential for ethnic mobilization may remain dormant for decades following industrialization, to be sparked only by specific political and economic factors.

The important distinction between nationalism and national identity or consciousness is marked in the case of Wales. Radcliffe and Westwood (1996) argue that national identity is broader and more multi-dimensional as national identity can exist within subjects, collectively or individually, without there being a process of mobilization around a specific goal. Welsh nationalism may not always be apparent in the course of Welsh history but this does not mean that a Welsh national identity does not exist. The key is the lack of mobilisation around a specific goal or lack of class interest in nationalism at any one time.

The lack of a strong confident bourgeoisie and identification with the British working class and the Labour Party show how strong identifications with Britain developed from very different interests, those of the bourgeoisie in the 16th, 17th, and 18th century and the working class in the 20th century. It is argued that the relationship between a Welsh and British identity exists and persists as a dialectical tension. This meant that for much of the twentieth century the working class in Wales failed to grow into a class conscious of its history and failed to demonstrate a strong determination to preserve national identity. Instead it gave its allegiance to the British Labour Party and Trades Union movement. Welsh consciousness nevertheless persisted and lay dormant until its subsequent growing expression from the 1960s onwards.

The duality and conflict characterising the relationship between Welsh nationality and imperialism needs to be understood in the context of British nationalism. Wales benefited from its assimilation and extremely close ties to what was once the most powerful empire on earth. In contrast, Cuba's anti-imperialism was closely linked to the nation's struggles for independence and instrumental in the development of Cuban nationalism.

A feature shared by both nations is a more powerful, dominating neighbour and dependence on that neighbour resulting in a dialectical tension between affinity and aversion for that neighbour. Assimilation by a dominating neighbour was a form of rejecting national identity. However, it also promoted nationalism as conflict with the powerful neighbour created a separate identity. In Cuba affinity with the U.S. facilitated a separate identity from the Spanish and aversion to the U.S. contributed to the radical nationalist road the country pursued. In Wales the relationship between affinity and disaffection with the British state changed according to how the dialectical tension between a British and Welsh identity interplayed at different times.

In Cuba modernity was an integral part of the independence movement. In Wales modernity and industrialisation reinforced Wales' assimilation and perpetuated the notion that economically Wales needed to be tied to England. In the Cuban experience nationalism was very much about building an independent state but since nominal independence nationalism has continued to be a pivotal feature of Cuba's political discourse. Wales' state institutions, or lack of them, were dominated by a 'foreign' force. Although Cuba was very dependent on the U.S. and the U.S. intervened heavily in Cuban affairs, integration was far more encompassing in Wales. Until recently nationalism in Wales was largely from the bottom up, based on community rather than state constructs. In fact eradicating Welsh nationhood was, historically, a British state sponsored project. Whilst modernity initially promoted assimilation with England developments in Welsh nationalism since the 1960s reflect base changes as the economic union of the United Kingdom has been partly superseded by the economic union in Europe. The latter provides an alternative economic and political framework for smaller nations.

In Wales and Cuba nationalism has taken various forms, some exclusionary and others more progressive. Gwynfor Evans, a father figure of Welsh nationalism, held that nationalism varies so much from country to country that there are nearly as many nationalisms as there are nations, each one taking its character from the nation's history and circumstances (cited in Miles and Griffiths 1979:12). This study of Cuba and Wales illustrates that there are more nationalisms than nations or at least multiple and changing expressions of a nation's nationalism. Jones (2007) maintains that nationalism as an ideology on its own is relatively ineffective but that it is invariably present as an integral component in effective ideological combinations. Across the world nationalism is fused with conservatism, liberalism, social democracy, socialism as well as with more authoritarian creeds. In a different sense the idea of diverse expressions of nationalism runs parallel to post-modern ideas about multiculturalism and applies in both Cuba and Wales. The pursuit of an inclusive multi-cultural and multi-ethnic nation entails diversity and meaningful equality. In liminal nationalism people can have many different identities and many points of difference. In Cuba and Wales nationalism can be a hegemonic force unifying otherwise divergent groups. However, in Wales the ideological tension between British and Welsh nationalisms and a people's British and Welsh identities has often been a source of political conflict. Whether this conflict distracts from working class solidarity within Wales, across the U.K. and internationally or is to be seen as a creative conflict has been a long standing bone of contention between the 'British left' and 'Welsh left'. This study indicates that a significant section of Cymru Cuba supporters align with the latter tendency.

In the case of Wales nationalism often appeared weak and ineffective, but Welsh consciousness never went away. Its expression remained largely dormant for decades but was furthered by changes to the economic base and consequently the cultural superstructure. This disproves Engels' claim that Wales was a non historic nation. Despite the prediction of many scholars, including, to an extent, Marx, nationalism continues to be a force. Nationalism survives and resurfaces, partly at least, because of the will of the people. Its manifestation can range from violent struggle to simply consciousness of what Anderson described as imagined community. It can be seen more radically in Cuba with the island's history of insurrection, resulting in the fusion of socialism and nationalism in the aftermath of the revolution of 1959. In Wales, although less obvious, the country has not become a footnote in the pages of history and has survived as a recognised entity, with a gradually evolving degree of self-government. Williams (1979 and 1985)) argues that underlying this historical process is the fact that Wales exists because the Welsh say it does.

Anderson (2002) emphasises that both nationalism and internationalism have undergone a series of metamorphoses since their emergence in modern form, some two hundred and fifty years ago. For example, in the phase from 1945 to the mid sixties there was a sudden and spectacular exchange in the respective relations of capital and labour to nationalism and internationalism culminating in the United States led hegemonic version of 'international community'. The advantage of Anderson's historical and pragmatic approach is that it dispenses with preconceptions about the relationship between nationalism and internationalism and provides more systematic ways of inter-relating them.

The call by Marx - "workers of the world unite" - was a call to class consciousness and internationalism. In Cuba and Wales the forces of nationalism and internationalism interplayed differently. Cuba's anti-imperialism was integral to the nation's struggle for independence and instrumental in the development of nationalism. Subsequently Cuban nationalism has been adroitly crafted by the leadership to synchronise with internationalism, anti-imperialism and anti-capitalist globalisation. A national identity has been created which is in tune with other liberation struggles and an internationalist pursuit of socialist ideals. A distinguishing feature is Cuba's powerful internationalist role, including substantial and highly valued health aid to many parts of Latin America and beyond.

Whilst Cuba has attempted to build a socialist internationalist society Wales is an increasingly integrated part of European and global capitalism. Wales benefited in many ways from its assimilation and extremely close ties to what was once the most powerful empire on earth. The relationship between imperialism and the dual Welsh/ British identity has been complex and subject to continuing change. The same is true of the relationship between class and national identity in Wales. There is a history of workers in Wales linking their struggles to international proletarianism. Francis (1984) describes one well-known example, that of the socialist internationalism of the Welsh contingent that volunteered for the Republic during the Spanish Civil War.

Prior to the First World War major forces within the early international labour movement in Britain saw no conflict between socialism and home rule all round for the Celtic nations. From Keir Hardie's day to the present particular individuals as well as some organisations in Wales have attempted to promote a synthesis of socialism and nationalism, both in theory and practice. However, throughout most of the twentieth century the struggles of the mainstream labour movement and the movement for self-determination in Wales were largely separate. It is only latterly that some coming together has been evident.

Given that globalisation is about the dissolution of the nation state into transnational space under conditions determined by capital the nationalism of geographical space is becoming increasingly weakened. However, the continental regional economic context provides a different perspective on the relationship between national and international. Cuba and Wales' relationship with their respective continental regions has helped them lessen their dependency, on the US and on England respectively, and can further forms of nationalism and sovereignty in each country. Somewhat paradoxically the continental regional dimension can lessen old dependencies whilst creating spatially wider economic interdependence and the preconditions for continental socialist transformation. For Wales (and for England) the optimistic prospect is a post-British union of socialist nations of Europe, a version of which featured in Lenin's work. Parallel thoughts on Cuba's place in a socialist union of South America also indicate a way forward which is in accord with Lenin's distinction between interdependence at the economic level and the semi-autonomy of the political and democratic sphere. Nationalism can enhance internationalism in the sense that nationalism can become linked to internationalist goals and respect for other countries' right to self-determination. A nation's appreciation, through its own experience, of oppression and a shared sense of domination can enhance international solidarity. Lenin's enduring legacy on the national question was his ability to see that the two forces could be compatible and complementary. For optimistic socialists this is a central point about Wales and Cuba and the nature of nationalism and international solidarity.

Nationalism is a multi-headed beast. Often in the twentieth century socialism foundered on the rock of reactionary nationalism. However, the link between exploitation of the oppressed people and exploitation of the oppressed nation is where progressive nationalism, internationalism and socialism can reinforce one another and promote an united struggle for the emancipation of the working class, freedom for the nation and international solidarity with other oppressed nations. This study of the theory and practice of solidarity with Cuba in Wales reveals evidence of synthesis between nationalism and internationalism and some progress in the difficult dialogue between nationalism and socialism.

Maia Jones is a 2008 BA graduate in history and politics at Manchester Metropolitan University.

Selwyn Williams is a semi-retired Senior Lecturer at Bangor University, currently a tutor in the School of Lifelong Learning, and contributor of numerous articles for Cwlwm Cymru Cuba. Email: tcs028@bangor.ac.uk

(1) In Memoriam

This article is dedicated to the memory of David Jones who founded Cymru Cuba in 1982 and led the organisation until its 25th anniversary in October 2007. Unfortunately David died in 2008 and so was unable to participate in celebrations for the 50th anniversary of the Cuban revolution.

References

Adamson, D.L. (1991) Class, Ideology and the Nation, a Theory of Welsh Nationalism. Cardiff: University of Wales Press.

Anderson, B. (1991) Imagined communities: reflections on the origin and spread of nationalism. London: Verso.

Anderson, P. (2002) Internationalism: A Breviary. New Left Review, 14, March-April 2002.

Cymru Cuba (1983 to 2008) Cwlwm Cymru Cuba. Occasional magazine. Dinbych/Denbigh: Cymru Cuba.

Gramsci, A. (1971) in Hoare, Q. and Newell Smith, G. (eds and trans.) Selections from the Prison Notebooks, London: Lawrence and Wishart.

Hechter, M. (1975) Internal Colonialism, The Celtic Fringe in British National Development 1536-1966. London: Routledge and Kegan Paul.

Copyright

Copyright for this work is held jointly between Maia Jones and Selwyn Williams and the International Journal of Cuban Studies under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative 3.0 Licence http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/

IJCS Volume 2 Issue 1 June 2009