Cuba is the largest island in the Caribbean with a rural landscape of sugar plantations, forest swamp and rolling hillsides. Today, little remains of its original Indian population. Most Cubans are of mixed race: Creoles are Cubans born of European descent and Mullatos, a mixture of European and African. There is a large population of pure African descent - one in eight Cubans are black, descended mainly from West African slaves.

The island has endured a turbulent history and external influence dating back to its "discovery" by Columbus in 1492. For the next four hundred years, both Spain and the USA retained a strong colonial interest in Cuba, mainly for its sugar. The Spanish finally left in 1899 and self-rule of a kind was established, but in 1902 the Americans passed a law giving them the right to invade Cuba at any time to "preserve its independence". The naval base of Guantanamo was developed on a 99 year lease.

Under the corrupt dictatorship of Batista in the 1950's, Cuba became the playground of the American rich and famous with the US Mafia controlling gambling, prostitution and organised crime. However, government corruption, a pitiful standard of living, no health care or education led eventually to a popular revolt against the US backed government.

Fidel Castro and "Che" Guevara led the Cuban Revolution in 1959 and despite attempted invasions (most famously at the Bay of Pigs in 1961) and numerous assassination attempts on his life, Castro is still very much the leader and Cuba remains a one-party communist state.

The loss of the huge financial support from the Soviet Union following the collapse of communism in Europe and the ever increasingly tight US economic embargo (before the Revolution, 60% of Cuba's trade was with the US) has meant that life for the Cuban people has become much harder. Prostitution has returned to Havana and the main tourist areas.

Today, the government is trying its best to earn foreign currency (mainly US dollars) heavily promoting tourism, principally to the resorts of Veradero, Cayo Largo,and Cayo Coco. The recent influx of tourists has meant that a parallel economy has developed, allowing some Cubans with access to dollars to buy a small amount of goods from the special dollar shops rather than almost empty state shops.

With the creation by the US of the prison Camp X-Ray in Guantanamo Bay, where Taleban and al-Qaeda suspects are being held, the country continues to be in the news.

Cuba is now a country in transition.

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