By CARLOS M. DE LA CRUZ AND CARLOS A. SALADRIGAS Carlos M. de la Cruz is chairman of Eagle Brands. Carlos A. Saladrigas is CEO of ADP Total source. De la Cruz and Saladrigas was a member of the negotiating team that was left "hanging" when the house of the Gonzalez family was stormed.

(I've spoken to many individuals outside of Miami that don't understand "what the big deal is" about he Elian situation.  Hopefully this enlightens some of you to the complicated relations of Cuba and America.  It is very easy to simply say that "father and son should be together" period. This happens if you are ignorant to these past political problems, especially if your only relationship to them is from SoundBits on the news.  When you've lost your family, home and life to a dictator that is akin to Mussolini and Hitler things are never that simple again.)
 
Nothing arouses more anger than the feeling that justice hasn't been served. We have seen it in our history many times, from the Boston Tea Party to modern-day riots and demonstrations. In all of life, pent-up anger can swell into violent outburst. Yet in the four decades that Cubans have been in South Florida, there has not been an instance where our collective anger and frustrations have resulted in violent outbursts. We have never seen the Cuban-American community explode into riots, nor even into Seattle-style demonstrations or looting. There have been minor instances of violence and traffic disruption, but byand large, the community has shown restraint. Yet when we protest against Cuban government propagandists, we are  accused of intolerance. By contrast, when people try to block the Klan from marching or object to a Nation of Islam adherent from speaking, it's considered free speech.

What has happened to make Cuban-American bashing so politically correct? Since the exodus began, the Cuban-American community has been a major force behind the growth and development of South Florida. We have done our part in converting Miami from a tourist town into a major metropolis. We have created thousands of jobs, schools,  community institutions and businesses. We have helped build a large and  better South Florida. Yet the Elian Gonzalez affair has brought out the worst of the xenophobes. We don't want sympathy, but we deserve understanding.  As all immigrant groups that preceded us, we have much to grow in political maturity. The Cuban-exile community is diverse and
pluralistic. There is plenty of room for many points of view. But the one thing that brings this community together like nothing else is our desire for all Cubans to enjoy those rights guaranteed to every American:  freedom and democracy. The exile community supplies what Cuba needs most-a political opposition. We have the highest moral obligation to raise our voices against tyranny and oppression.

We are appalled at the callousness demonstrated by those who proffer easy and simple solutions to the saga of Elian Gonzalez, when, in reality, this case presents an enormous moral and ethical dilemma. First, no  one went to Cuba to snatch Elian from his family. He was brought to freedom  by his mother, who, in the process, paid the ultimate price. She also was the party that had been entrusted with Elian's custody. How can we ignore her sacrifice?
 
The United States has amply documented that there are consistent human-rights violations and rigid state control over children's education in Cuba. Just
last month, a father in Camaguey province was sentenced to seven months in prison for not allowing his son to participate in Communist youth brigades. Human Rights Watch has berated Cuba for the military conscription of minors, and it has chastised Cuba for the consistent abuse of minors in detention centers.  The Committee to Protect Journalists and the InterAmerican Press Association consistently condemn Cuba as the worst violator of free speech in the hemisphere.  Is it morally justified to send a child back to such a
system?

The rights of the father to claim custody and return the child to Cuba add to the ethical dilemma. We believe that Castro himself has been coordinating every step of the father's reaction. Judge for yourself how free from coercion this father is when Granma, Cuba's official newspaper, publishes literal texts of phone conversations between Juan Miguel Gonzalez and the Miami family. How can anyone say that Juan Miguel was free to talk? Castro's forced parades and the newly constructed and expensive stadium to receive Elian, clearly bespeak of the intense manipulation and indoctrination that awaits Elian.

There is no simple right or wrong answer to this case. However, complex ethical and moral dilemmas merit abundant debate and careful examination of the facts. This is why the exile community believes justice can only be served by a family court.  The attitude of Attorney General Janet Reno and the Clinton administration has left us bewildered and angered. They have spun the story in a way that portrays the exile community as challenging the law, when in reality it is not the law that requires Elian to be returned to his father in Cuba, but the attorney general's discretion within the law.  Ms. Reno may have acted within the
full spectrum of her legal authority, but, in our view, well outside the moral scope of her office.

If the authorities truly believe that the standard to apply is the best interests of the child, let the court of greatest competency handle it. Why allow the Immigration and Naturalization Service and the Justice Department handle a problem that family courts routinely deal with competently? Meanwhile, as a community and as individuals, we hurt. We hope and believe that the exile community will continue to express its anger and its pain in a peaceful and law-abiding way. Yet the pain is real. Perhaps only those who share our experience can comprehend our pain and the depth of the horror that afflicts the land of our fathers, where it is still a crime to speak your mind, to choose your own way and to leave the country. Those of us who, years ago, were suddenly sent away, alone, to a strange but free land, empathize with Elian on a very personal basis. The wound of this community still is
open, and the one man that has sown division, hatred and ruin on our nation is still in charge. Let us take advantage of the notoriety of the case to continually bring attention to the real issue, which is the kind of government that causes hundreds of thousands to flee and some to perish in a search for freedom.