VZCZCXRO1484
PP RUEHAG RUEHDA RUEHDF RUEHFL RUEHIK RUEHKW RUEHLA RUEHLN RUEHLZ
RUEHROV RUEHSR RUEHVK RUEHYG
DE RUEHUB #9369/01 1231404
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 031404Z MAY 06 ZDK
FM USINT HAVANA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 6497
INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE
RUEHWH/WESTERN HEMISPHERIC AFFAIRS DIPL POSTS
RUCOWCV/CCGDSEVEN MIAMI FL
RUESDM/JTLO MIAMI FL
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC
RUMIAAA/USCINCSO MIAMI FL

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 HAVANA 009369 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ECON PGOV SOCI CU
SUBJECT: STATE TAXIS: A TEAMING, THIEVING MICROCOSM OF GOC 
CORRUPTION 
 
REF: HAVANA 8986 
 
HAVANA 00009369  001.5 OF 003 
 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary: State taxi drivers are expected to hand 
over their earnings to the GOC but do everything possible 
to avoid it.  They play various tricks on the meter, from 
turning off the ignition and coasting down the hills, to 
jimmying the odometer.  The GOC retaliates by installing 
sensors in the seats that automatically start the meter 
running when a passenger sits down.  Various other sharks 
prey on the proceeds of taxi drivers, including GOC 
inspectors, mechanics and police officers.  Some truly 
"revolutionary" cabbies refrain - or pretend to refrain - 
from dipping into the pot, but most have become skilled 
thieves.  Passengers collude in their efforts, preferring 
to put money into the hands of an individual rather than 
the bloated and unresponsive state.  End Summary. 
 
Fares Trickle Up 
---------------- 
 
¶2. (SBU) There are several modes of taxi-like 
transportation in Havana, but hard currency state taxis 
are the most tightly regulated.  These state taxis, which 
charge fares in Convertible Cuban Pesos (CUCs, or "kooks" 
- roughly equivalent to USD), earn a healthy income for 
the GOC.  At the same time, large amounts of cash cross 
the hands of an unsupervised Cuban all day long - a recipe 
for theft, given the culture of corruption among state 
employees (ref A).  By the time the cash filters through 
the various levels of cabbies, accountants, and managers, 
it is unlikely the Central Bank recoups more than a third 
of the fares taxi drivers collect.  The relationship, 
therefore, between high-level GOC officials and low-level 
GOC taxi drivers is one of constant "Measure, Counter 
Measure," as the state tries to recoup cash and taxi 
drivers come up with ingenious ways to get around the 
controls. 
 
Introducing Panataxi 
-------------------- 
 
¶3. (SBU) With several hundred drivers, Panataxi is the 
largest hard currency state taxi company in Havana. 
Panataxi serves a mix of clientele, but over half are 
Cubans.  (The other hard currency taxi companies, such as 
TaxiOK and Transtur work out of the luxury hotels and 
largely serve foreigners.)  Several dozen unwitting 
Panataxi drivers contributed to this report. 
 
¶4. (SBU) Panataxi drivers work 12 - 18 hour shifts, every 
other day.  They earn typical state salaries - the peso 
equivalent of 12 USD per month - but their real income 
comes from tips.  One cabby said he averaged 5 CUCs in 
tips per day (roughly 5 USD).  Another claimed to earn "3 
on a bad day, 10 on a good day."  At this rate, state taxi 
drivers can expect at least 70 CUCs per month on top of 
their negligible state salary, putting them in a 
privileged position financially compared to other Cubans 
in state jobs.  One Panataxi driver dreamed of quitting 
and becoming a gym teacher, but couldn't imagine living 
off a regular state salary. 
 
¶5. (SBU) Getting a job with Panataxi is not easy.  Several 
cabbies explained that starting out as a janitor, mechanic 
or dispatcher was a good way to break into the business, 
while others simply sighed and parroted the most common 
phrase in Cuba: "No es facil" (it's not easy).  Only one 
driver stated outright that Panataxi applicants commonly 
paid bribes to get their job. 
 
Meter Antics 
------------ 
 
¶6. (SBU) While 70 CUCs per month is a coveted income by 
Cuban standards, a head of household in Havana needs 
closer to 200 CUCs a month to live free of anxiety. 
Consequently, the state's roving, unsupervised cabbies are 
well situated to make up the difference between what they 
earn and what they need.  The GOC, unpleased with rampant 
theft among taxi drivers, quickly learned to track 
proceeds by linking taxi meters to the odometer.  As one 
cabbie put it, "If you went back to the office with a 
twenty kilometer trip that cost one CUC, then you had a 
problem." 
 
 
HAVANA 00009369  002.5 OF 003 
 
 
¶7. (SBU) Starting approximately four years ago, the GOC 
attempted to further stem the leak of cash by installing 
sensors in the back seats that automatically turn on the 
meters when clients sit down.  Savvy cabbies began seating 
clients in the front, until the GOC responded by wiring 
both front and back seats.  According to one cabbie, "even 
a little baby on that seat starts the meter running." 
 
¶8. (SBU) Some cabbies trick their meters by turning off 
the ignition and coasting down the hills (though this 
practice leads to a rough ride and annoys the passengers). 
Another cabbie politely asked P/E Officer's permission to 
place a padded board across the front seat to avoid 
setting off the meter.  Yet another established a cheap 
fare before departing, then set his meter to charge only 
the "just waiting" rate -- much cheaper than the usual .50 
CUC per kilometer.  In response to the meter's sluggish 
tick he joked, "Oh, I guess it's just too hot for the 
meter today!" 
 
¶9. (SBU) With some difficulty, drivers can get under the 
seat and either manually disconnect the sensor or reduce 
its sensitivity.  (The operation is easier to perform on 
Russian Ladas than the newer Peugots, which come fully 
wired with the latest sensor technology.)  In one case of 
"sensor manipulation," a tourist agreed to sit 
uncomfortably with his feet up and head thrown back in 
order to pay only one CUC for a seven-CUC ride. 
 
¶10. (SBU) Some cabbies are unsatisfied by these 
approaches, and instead pay 200 CUCs per month to have 
their meters modified to switch off at the push of a 
button.  Ironically, Panataxi's meter repairmen are the 
same ones who take payment to modify the meters.  One 
cabbie said the modification was expensive, but well worth 
the price. 
 
¶11. (SBU) Before turning off the meter, polite cabbies 
feel out their clients first with a standard question: 
"So, how much does it usually cost to take you over 
there?"  They then offer a lower rate, and if accepted, 
turn off the meter.  Foreigners are less likely to be 
solicited than Cubans, and the question is not even raised 
with anyone appearing uptight, "revolutionary," or 
otherwise prone to tattling.  Cabbies describe their 
sporadic earnings with a Cuban refrain:  "Entre col y col, 
lechuga" (between each cabbage, a head of lettuce). 
 
Fares Trickle Down 
------------------ 
 
¶12. (SBU) In the game of "Measure, Counter Measure," the 
GOC attempts to reel in thieving cabbies.  Taxi inspectors 
flag down cabs unexpectedly and check to see if the fares 
collected are commensurate with the time on shift (in 
response, most cabbies pull their meter scams towards the 
end of their shifts).  Inspectors also check for tampering 
of sensors and meters.  Finally, plain-clothed inspectors 
sometimes masquerade as clients in an attempt to entrap a 
thieving cabbie.  One cabbie said he "lived in fear" that 
he would be caught by an inspector, but that he had no 
choice but to take the risk. 
 
¶13. (SBU) As it turns out, inspectors themselves are not 
above accepting bribes.  As one cabbie explained it, "We 
have needs ... and so do the inspectors."  Mechanics 
working for the Panataxi fleet also earn a cut in the 
profits; if a cabbie fails to pay a little extra on the 
side, his broken down taxi could sit on the blocks for 
weeks.  Finally, police officers enthusiastically pull 
over state taxis for minor or invented infractions, secure 
in the knowledge that a cabbie (unlike other Cubans) can 
easily come up with five CUCs for a payoff. 
 
The Righteous Cabbie 
-------------------- 
 
¶14. (SBU) Despite the constant drive to outwit the state, 
taxi fleets harbor a few "revolutionary" taxi drivers as 
well.  For example, P/E Officer asked one cabbie why the 
GOC prohibited Cubans from renting rooms in luxury hotels. 
The cabbie abruptly braked and delivered this terse send- 
off: "The state gave me everything.  The state gave me 
this car.  Don't YOU talk to me about the Revolution." 
 
 
HAVANA 00009369  003.5 OF 003 
 
 
¶15. (SBU) Revolutionary sentiment does not always preclude 
theft.  According to the Cuban tenet of "doble moral" 
(double morality), there is no contradiction between 
loving the Revolution and ripping it off to survive.  One 
taxi driver, an ardent "Fidelista" (Fidel-lover), readily 
turned off his meter, but then scolded P/E Officer for 
America's long history of racism, war-mongering and 
oppression. 
 
¶16. (SBU) Of the several dozen cabbies interviewed, only 
one said he wouldn't tamper with his sensors because this 
was "stealing from the state."  Nor did he pay for his 
job, but rather bombarded Panataxi with paperwork and 
personal visits until he finally entered as a mechanic. 
His brand of work ethic (appearing, as it did, free of 
revolutionary sentiment) is rarely witnessed in modern 
Cuba. 
 
¶17. (SBU) Less laudatory examples circulate at the other 
end of the spectrum.  For example, one cabbie picked up 
P/E officer, turned off his meter without asking, informed 
the dispatcher he was stuck "changing a tire," then drove 
recklessly to save time.  He subsequently short changed 
his passenger, thereby managing to rip off all involved 
parties in one go. 
 
Comment 
------- 
 
¶18. (SBU) Despite their reliance on stealing, most Cuban 
cabbies are also polite conversationalists, responsible 
drivers, and genuinely hard workers.  Passengers allow 
them to turn off their meters in recognition that life is 
hard in Cuba, and it is preferable to put money in the 
hands of an individual than an unresponsive state 
apparatus.  Upon boarding a cab, P/E Officer now invites 
cabbies to immediately turn off the meter.  The response 
is universal:  "Thank You, My Dear." 
LEE