Cubans Will Be Able to Purchase Ladas

July 9, 2011


The following is a story from the Castro regime's state media on the upcoming "new regulations" for buying and selling houses and cars:

Buying and Selling Houses and Cars No Longer a Legal Hassle in Cuba by Year's End

On Friday, the Cuban government announced the first details of a highly anticipated new law meant to loosen rules on the buying and selling of homes and cars.

The law is still being drafted and will take effect by the end of the year. The new rules are meant to help ease a severe housing shortage and legalize unofficial title transfers.

According to a note published in Granma newspaper, individuals will still not be allowed to own more than one home, and the sales will be taxed. Bureaucratic hurdles will be eliminated, meaning transactions can be notarized and completed without having to seek prior authorization. Family members will be able to inherit property, even if they are not living at the address.

Individuals can own more than one car, regardless of the model year, ending a system under which only pre-1959 vehicles could be freely bought and sold.

The measures will not apply to foreigners unless they are permanent residents.

Fascinating how it reads almost verbatim (same spin) to the stories put out by foreign news bureaus.

But more importantly -- what does this really mean?

1. For cars -- it means that Cubans will be able to buy and sell those "highly-coveted" Russian Lada cars, as the pre-1959 cars have supposedly been "freely bought and sold" for years.

Now that's "reform"!

2. For houses -- the only potential news is that the regime -- 52 years later -- will supposedly not re-confiscate the homes of Cubans that leave the island. Instead, it will allow other family members to reside there. However, since Cubans can only reside in one house, then their other house will be re-confiscated in the process.

In other words, it's a hoax -- for Cubans have no money, they already reside in one house and any "transaction" must take place through Castro's own bank. Thus, the regime has, still and always will (as long as it exists) own the property.

Finally, the big picture -- like all things Castro, "the law is still being drafted," so the entire sham won't be fully revealed until sometime next year.

Yet, it'll provide months worth of press coverage.

It's called ruling by headlines.