188 Chapter 8
that it is constituted by the non-state sectors. However, in Cuba the
state sector is all-encompassing and hence civil society, according to
the classical definition, is particularly narrow and without a mass base.
As a consequence, one needs to redefine civil society in the Cuban
case in terms of which sectors of society, including those within the
state sector, are discharging the traditional functions of civil society.
In Cuba, the functions of civil society, that is, imposing demands
for services and accountability on the state are exercised largely by a
society incorporated into mass organizations which contain within
them sectors that sometimes generate alternative discourses to that of
the state, as well as help modify public policies and programs.^3 The all
encompassing mass organizations have increasingly lost their capacity
to impose orthodoxy on their members, as well as mobilize a civil
society that is rife with complaints about the incapacities of the state.
In addition, there are networks of individuals within the core state
apparatus that consult regularly concerning state policies and pro-
grams with those who are fully or partially outside. These networks
include some individuals who have been pushed out of the state sec-
tor due to their heterodoxy. Interestingly a fair number have ended up
in the research centers and universities that are part of the state appa-
ratus, but which allow for more divergence from the dominant ideol-
ogy of the state. Hence, one finds “on the state payroll” scholars and
other experts, together with filmmakers, painters, composers, and oth-
ers, who produce alternative discourses to that of the state. Young
people are emerging as an important civil society voice calling for
expanded government services and accountability. Most recently the
Damas de Blanco, relatives of prisoners, have assumed roles as icons
of the widespread dissidence in Cuba.
- Such redefinition has also been suggested by scholars studying civil society in China
including Jean-Philippe Béja in “The Changing Aspects of Civil Society in China,” social
research, 73:1 (Spring 2006): 53-74; Jude Howell, “Women’s Organizations and Civil
Society in China,” International Journal of Politics, 5:2 (July 2003): 191-215; Guobin Yang,
“The Internet and Civil Society in China: a preliminary assessment,” Journal of Contempo-
rary China, 12:36 (August 2003): 453-75.