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C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 HAVANA 009343 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/28/2016 
TAGS: PGOV SOCI CU
SUBJECT: POLITBURO MEMBER GOES DOWN HARD 
 
REF: HAVANA 8986 
 
Classified By: MICHAEL E. PARMLY FOR REASONS 1.4 b/d 
 
¶1. (C) Summary: Politburo member Juan Carlos Robinson 
Agramonte was abruptly dismissed on April 28 for 
"arrogance, pretension, and behavior unbecoming of a 
communist."  The harsh language suggests that Robinson's 
misdeeds were seriously offensive to top-level regime 
officials.  He may also have been selected as a convenient 
- or deserving - scapegoat for Castro's anti-corruption 
campaign.  Finally, an internal power struggle (such as 
Robinson's rumored falling out with a Raul insider), could 
be responsible for the dismissal.  The GOC's promise of 
"legal consequences" leads us to believe there is more to 
come.  End Summary. 
 
A Hard Fall 
----------- 
 
¶2. (C) Today's April 28 front page of communist daily 
"Granma" announced the abrupt dismissal of Juan Carlos 
Robinson Agramonte, a member of the Politburo (the highest 
rung in the Communist Party hierarchy).  The "Granma" 
article describes Robinson as "haughty, arrogant, 
ostentatious, abusive of power, soft in his ethics, and 
dishonest."  He is accused of behaving in a manner 
"unbecoming of a communist and member of the Politburo." 
The article also asserts that Robinson was "criticized and 
exhorted" more than once to mend his ways, and that he 
only pretended to change his bad behavior.  In addition to 
his dismissal from the Politburo, Central Committee and 
Communist Party, Robinson was threatened with "legal 
consequences."  The language is exceptionally strong; the 
article states, in essence, that Robinson was an obnoxious 
loudmouth who didn't know how to behave, and now he is 
going to pay. 
 
A Typical Apparatchik 
--------------------- 
 
¶3. (C) The 49-year-old Robinson is an Habanero of Jamaican 
descent who threw himself into the Communist Party 
structure at an early age.  He went to Angola as a teacher 
and joined the leadership of the Federation of University 
Students (FEU).  He became a member of the Central 
Committee in 1986.  His career took off in the 1990s, most 
notably when he became First Secretary of the Communist 
Party in Guantanamo Province in 1994.  Shortly afterward, 
he replaced Esteban Lazo (another leading black official) 
as First Secretary of the Communist Party in Santiago 
Province.  Lazo is rumored to be something of a godfather 
to Robinson, and may have helped get him the Santiago 
position and subsequent promotion to the Politburo in 
¶1997.  According to Miami's Cuba Transition Project, 
Robinson's career corresponds to that of Robertico Robaina 
and Carlos Lage. 
 
¶4. (C) Robinson's ability to hold on to the Party 
leadership in Santiago for so many years was no small 
feat, but he reportedly did not develop a good reputation. 
A Cuban USINT staff member said Robinson made stupid 
missteps, such as installing a private generator and 
keeping his house ablaze in light while the rest of the 
city suffered blackouts.  This kind of ostentatious 
behavior would have come under greater scrutiny once he 
made it to the "big time" in Havana.  Certainly Robinson 
must have been exceptionally naughty to have received such 
a harsh dismissal.  One non-political Cuban commented to 
us, "Le cogio la rueda" (literally, "the wheel got him" - 
i.e., he was riding so high that his own momentum brought 
him back down.) 
 
What'd He Do? 
------------- 
 
¶5. (C) While "Granma" does not detail Robinson's bad 
behavior, words like "indiscretion" and "ostentation" are 
pseudonyms for typical misdeeds such as maintaining extra 
houses/women, pursuing shady business deals, developing 
close contacts with foreigners, or talking too much about 
Party business.  It is not that other Party officials shun 
these practices, but rather that Robinson may have been 
too reckless in his pursuit of them. 
 
¶6. (C) It is also possible that Robinson's mischief made 
him a convenient scapegoat for use in Castro's latest 
 
HAVANA 00009343  002 OF 002 
 
 
campaign:  Anti-corruption (reftel).  The GOC has gone 
after the "little guys" (gas station attendants, etc.) for 
the past six months, but the reluctance to extend the 
campaign to the highest levels is conspicuous. 
Furthermore, it is significant that the decision to 
dismiss Robinson appears in a note that includes an update 
of the anti-corruption drive. 
 
¶7. (C) Finally, Robinson's dismissal might come as little 
more than the typical denouement of an internal power 
struggle.  According to the Cuban Transition Project, 
Robinson had run afoul of Machado Ventura in the early 
2000s.  (Ventura is a fearsome figure close to Raul 
Castro, and making his black list is not a healthy career 
move.  No one but Raul or Fidel could have protected 
Robinson in this instance, and certainly not Esteban 
Lazo.)  Whether Ventura was involved or not, Politburo 
dismissals often come as the result of stepping on the 
wrong toes, or otherwise losing an internal power 
struggle. 
 
¶8. (C) As usual, Robinson's dismissal came as a surprise 
and we can only speculate about the reasons behind it. 
Details may eventually filter out through Cuba's "Radio 
Bemba" ("Mouth Radio," or rumor mill), but in the interim 
we await "Granma's" teaser that there is more to come. 
PARMLY