LPP SPECIAL ISSUE - SEPTEMBER 2021
Biden administration imposes new Cuba sanctions over human rights abuses
The Biden administration announced new sanctions Thursday against a Cuban official and a government special brigade that it says was involved in human rights abuses during a government crackdown on protests on the island earlier this month.
“I unequivocally condemn the mass detentions and sham trials that are unjustly sentencing to prison those who dared to speak out in an effort to intimidate and threaten the Cuban people into silence,” President Joe Biden said in a statement. “The Cuban people have the same right to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly as all people.”
The Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control listed Alvaro Lopez Miera, a Cuban military and political leader, and the Brigada Especial Nacional del Ministerio del Interior, or Interior Ministry Special Brigade, as among those who will face the latest sanctions.
Treasury said in a statement that Lopez Miera “has played an integral role in the repression of ongoing protests in Cuba.” Cuba’s Ministry of the Revolutionary Armed Forces, which is led to by Lopez Miera, and other Cuban government’s security services have attacked protesters and arrested or disappeared over 100 protesters in an attempt to suppress these protests, according to Treasury.
The regime led by Miguel Diaz-Canel moved quickly, and violently, to stem the protests. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the actions by Cuban authorities, and violent mobs it mobilized, “lay bare the regime’s fear of its own people and unwillingness to meet their basic needs and aspirations.”
The Interior Ministry Special Brigade was already sanctioned in January by the Trump administration, which targeted the entire ministry and Interior Minister Lazaro Alberto Alvarez Casas under the Global Magnitsky Act.
"This is just the beginning," Biden warned. "The United States will continue to sanction individuals responsible for oppression of the Cuban people."
The move comes after the White House earlier this week announced that Biden had ordered his administration to take several steps to raise pressure on the communist regime after thousands of Cubans took to the streets of Havana and other cities across the island earlier this month to protest food shortages and high prices during the coronavirus crisis.
Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez immediately took to Twitter to call the sanctions “baseless and slanderous” and suggested that Biden apply the sanctions on himself “for acts of everyday repression and police brutality” in the United States.
The Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control had been tasked with exploring sanctioning Cuban officials who committed human rights violations against peaceful protesters in Cuba.
“The Cuban people are protesting for the fundamental and universal rights they deserve from their government,” said Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen. “Treasury will continue to enforce its Cuba-related sanctions, including those imposed today, to support the people of Cuba in their quest for democracy and relief from the Cuban regime.”
The president also expressed "unwavering" support for the Cuban people.
"We are working with civil society organizations and the private sector to provide internet access to the Cuban people that circumvents the regime’s censorship efforts," Biden said. "We are reviewing our remittance policy to determine how we can maximize support to the Cuban people."
"Advancing human dignity and freedom is a top priority for my Administration, and we will work closely with our partners throughout the region, including the Organization of American States, to pressure the regime to immediately release wrongfully detained political prisoners, restore internet access, and allow the Cuban people to enjoy their fundamental rights," the president added.
Biden has also called for the State Department to launch a working group to review U.S. remittance policy to ensure that money that Cuban Americans send home makes it directly into the hands of their families without the regime taking a cut.
Biden also ordered a review of the viability of increasing staff at the U.S. Embassy in Havana. Biden wrote in his statement that "we are committed to restaffing our embassy in Havana to provide consular services to Cubans and enhance our ability to engage with civil society, while ensuring the safety of U.S. diplomats serving in Cuba.
The White House is hopeful that a boost in staffing could help it better facilitate civil society engagement following one of Cuba’s biggest antigovernment demonstrations in recent memory.
“We’ve made clear over the last week that addressing this moment was a priority for the administration and for President Biden,” White House press secretary Jen Psaki said.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Biden administration imposes new Cuba sanctions over human rights abuses
Demonstrators shout their solidarity with the Cuban people against the communist government during a rally outside the White House in Washington, Saturday, July 17, 2021.(AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)
The Biden administration announced new sanctions Thursday against a Cuban official and a government special brigade that it says was involved in human rights abuses during a government crackdown on protests on the island earlier this month.
The Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control listed Alvaro Lopez Miera, a Cuban military and political leader, and the Brigada Especial Nacional del Ministerio del Interior, or Interior Ministry Special Brigade, as among those who will face the latest sanctions.
Treasury said in a statement that Lopez Miera “has played an integral role in the repression of ongoing protests in Cuba.” Cuba’s Ministry of the Revolutionary Armed Forces, which is led to by Lopez Miera, and other Cuban government’s security services have attacked protesters and arrested or disappeared over 100 protesters in an attempt to suppress these protests, according to Treasury.
The regime led by Miguel Diaz-Canel moved quickly, and violently, to stem the protests. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the actions by Cuban authorities, and violent mobs it mobilized, “lay bare the regime’s fear of its own people and unwillingness to meet their basic needs and aspirations.”
The Interior Ministry Special Brigade was already sanctioned in January by the Trump administration, which targeted the entire ministry and Interior Minister Lazaro Alberto Alvarez Casas under the Global Magnitsky Act.
“I unequivocally condemn the mass detentions and sham trials that are unjustly sentencing to prison those who dared to speak out in an effort to intimidate and threaten the Cuban people into silence,” President Joe Biden said in a statement. “The Cuban people have the same right to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly as all people.”
The move comes after the White House earlier this week announced that Biden had ordered his administration to take several steps to raise pressure on the communist regime after thousands of Cubans took to the streets of Havana and other cities across the island earlier this month to protest food shortages and high prices during the coronavirus crisis.
Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez immediately took to Twitter to call the sanctions “baseless and slanderous” and suggested that Biden apply the sanctions on himself “for acts of everyday repression and police brutality” in the U.S.
The Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control had been tasked with exploring sanctioning Cuban officials who committed human rights violations against peaceful protesters in Cuba.
“The Cuban people are protesting for the fundamental and universal rights they deserve from their government,” said Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen. “Treasury will continue to enforce its Cuba-related sanctions, including those imposed today, to support the people of Cuba in their quest for democracy and relief from the Cuban regime.”
Biden has also called for the State Department to launch a working group to review U.S. remittance policy to ensure that money that Cuban Americans send home makes it directly into the hands of their families without the regime taking a cut.
Biden also ordered a review of the viability of increasing staff at the U.S. Embassy in Havana. The White House is hopeful that a boost in staffing could help it better facilitate civil society engagement following one of Cuba’s biggest antigovernment demonstrations in recent memory.
“We’ve made clear over the last week that addressing this moment was a priority for the administration and for President Biden,” White House press secretary Jen Psaki said.
US sanctions Cuban security chief and special forces over crackdown on protests
Biden moves to pressure government over alleged human rights abuses amid biggest demonstrations in decades
The US has imposed sanctions on a Cuban security minister and an interior ministry special forces unit for alleged human rights abuses in a crackdown on anti-government protests this month.
The move marked the first concrete steps by Joe Biden’s administration to apply pressure on Cuba’s Communist government as it faces calls from US lawmakers and the Cuban American community to show greater support for the biggest protests to hit the island in decades.
The speed with which the administration has crafted new sanctions further signals Biden is highly unlikely to soften the US approach to Cuba any time soon after his predecessor, Donald Trump, rolled back a historic Obama-era détente with Havana.
“This is just the beginning,” Biden said in a statement, expressing condemnation for “mass detentions and sham trials”.
“The United States will continue to sanction individuals responsible for oppression of the Cuban people,” he said.
The Cuban foreign minister, Bruno RodrÃguez, in a message on Twitter, rejected the sanctions as “unfounded and slanderous” and urged the US to apply such measures to its own record of “systematic repression and police brutality”.
The treasury department said the sanctions had been placed on an entire interior ministry security unit and on Gen Alvaro López Miera, minister of the Revolutionary Armed Forces, describing him as leader of an entity “whose members have engaged in serious human rights abuse”.
Thousands of Cubans staged protests a week ago to demonstrate against an economic crisis that has brought shortages of basic goods and power outages. They were also protesting against the government’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic and curbs on civil liberties. Hundreds of activists were detained.
Biden had promised during the 2020 campaign to reverse some of Trump’s Cuba policies, but Thursday’s announcement suggests little appetite for a return to rapprochement.
At the same time, the administration says it is still seeking ways to ease the humanitarian plight of the Cuban people.
The White House said on Tuesday that Biden would form a working group to examine remittances to Cuba in the wake of the protests. The aim is to determine how Cuban Americans can send money to families on the island while keeping the funds out of the hands of the Cuban government.
Trump had imposed tight restrictions on remittances, which are believed to have previously amounted to several billions of dollars annually.
The White House, in a statement, cautioned that the remittances issue was complex and “requires a measured and thoughtful approach in coordination with experts”.
Biden reiterated on Thursday that his administration was looking for ways to help ordinary Cubans regain internet access after Havana restricted access to social media and messaging platforms including Facebook and WhatsApp.
“We will work closely with our partners throughout the region, including the Organization of American States, to pressure the regime,” Biden said.
The Cuban government has blamed the protests mostly on what it calls US-financed “counter-revolutionaries” exploiting economic hardship caused by U.S. sanctions.
The sanctions were imposed under the Global Magnitsky Act, used to punish human rights violators with US asset freezes and bans on travel to the US.
But US officials have acknowledged that Cuban officials rarely have US financial dealings and seldom travel to the US, limiting the practical impact of such measures.
The unrest appears to have injected a new sense of urgency into Biden’s broad Cuba policy review, which began shortly after he took office in January. Until now, Cuba had not been treated as a top agenda item while the administration dealt with the economic recovery and coronavirus pandemic at home and challenges such as China, Russia and Iran abroad.
Biden backs Cuban protesters
Joe Raedle |
WASHINGTON – The Biden administration raised concerns Monday after anti-government protests in Cuba were forcibly disbanded under the leadership of Cuban President Miguel DÃaz-Canel Bermúdez.
Sunday’s protests, the largest the communist island has seen since the 1990s, come amid widespread frustration over a crippling economy, severe food shortages and a coronavirus pandemic pushing the health system to its limits. health of the nation.
“We support the Cuban people and their clamor for freedom and relief from the tragic control of the pandemic and the decades of repression and economic suffering to which they have been subjected by the authoritarian regime of Cuba,” said President Joe Biden in a release. Monday.
“The Cuban people are asserting fundamental and universal rights. Those rights, including the right to peaceful protest and the right to freely determine their own future, must be respected,” the president added.
Biden asked the Cuban regime to “listen to its people and attend to their needs in this vital moment.”
Police cars are seen overturned in the street as part of a demonstration against Cuban President Miguel DÃaz-Canel in Havana, on July 11, 2021.
President DÃaz-Canel Bermúdez said in a national speech Sunday that his regime was “prepared to do anything” to spark the protests. according to a report by The Washington Post. “We will be fighting in the streets,” he said, adding that the United States is partly to blame for the widespread discontent in Cuba.
On Monday, he appeared alongside members of his government and blamed US trade sanctions for hampering Cuba’s growth.
National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan condemned any threat of violence against peaceful protesters writing on Twitter: “The United States supports freedom of expression and assembly in Cuba, and would strongly condemn any violence or attack against peaceful protesters exercising their universal rights.”
Julie Chung, Acting Undersecretary of the State Department’s Office of Western Hemisphere Affairs, tweeted: “We are deeply concerned by the ‘calls to combat’ in #Cuba. We support the right of the Cuban people to a peaceful assembly. We call for calm and we condemn any violence. “
Discontent among Cubans sparked protests both in Miami and in Spain and Mexico.
Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador called on the Biden government to end the United States’ economic embargo on Cuba.
“The truth is that if you want to help Cuba, the first thing to do is suspend the blockade against Cuba, as most countries in the world are asking for,” López Obrador said at a press conference.
“That would be a truly humanitarian gesture,” he added. “No country in the world should be fenced off, blocked.”
Miami Cubans talk of boating to island to support protests
The Coast Guard in Miami is warning against efforts to cross the straits between Florida and Cuba in response to rare street protests on the island.
MIAMI — The United States Coast Guard in Miami is monitoring any activity aimed at increasing “unsafe and illegal” crossings between Florida and Cuba in response to rare street protests on the island.
Rear Adm. Eric C. Jones issued a warning statement Monday night as groups of Cuban immigrants said they planned to travel in boats filled with supplies to Cuba to show support for the Cuban protesters. South Florida has the country’s largest population of Cuban Americans.
In Miami, Cuban social media personalities posted Monday that they would make the 10-hour boat ride to Cuba to show support after rare street protests broke out over the weekend, the Miami Herald reported.
The influencers said they would bring aid — and guns — and urged people in Miami to offer up their boats.
#ThisJustIn – Please read Rear Admiral Eric C. Jones, Commander, @USCG Seventh District & Director, DHS Joint Task Force-Southeast statement on recent Cuban events. pic.twitter.com/hrs5eErWGC
— USCGSoutheast (@USCGSoutheast) July 12, 2021
One group gathered Monday night at Pelican Harbor Marina near Miami’s North Bay Village, and people brought cases of bottled water, flashlights and boxes of canned Chef Boyardee pasta, the newspaper reported.
“Water, food, medicine, whatever we can take to Cuba. Whatever we can take to help is good,” organizer Dennis Suayero told WSVN.
The group didn’t get very far on a rainy Monday night.
A message posted on organizer Santiago Rivera’s Instagram account early Tuesday said the Coast Guard stopped his group from crossing the Straits because of “problems with firearms.” He promised they would try again to leave Wednesday morning “with the permission of the authorities of this country.”
The Coast Guard statement suggested that such permission would not be forthcoming. It noted that the voyage is “dangerous and unforgiving,” with nearly 20 Cubans dying while trying to cross in recent weeks. It said the Coast Guard is working with state, local and federal partners to monitor “unpermitted vessel departures from Florida to Cuba.”
Rivera’s post thanked people supporting the mission and said Cubans are determining their destiny and losing their fear. “This isn’t politics, this is brotherhood, this is humanity and common sense, proud to be cuban for my land I give my life,” his post said.
Thousands of Cuban Americans also gathered in Little Havana over the weekend, expressing support
for the Cubans who joined street marches against high prices and food shortages on the island. Such unsanctioned protests are extremely rare, and Cuban police were out in force on Monday to control them.
The last such demonstrations in Havana happened nearly 30 years ago, in 1994. President Miguel DÃaz-Canel accusing Cuban Americans of using social media to egg them on.
Miami Mayor Francis Suarez, a Cuban American, tweeted that he has never “felt such raw emotion from the people of Miami desperate for intervention by the government and by themselves on behalf of Cuba.” He added that “this is the moment of freedom” for Cuba.
Cubans in New Jersey protest in support of reform back home
The truth about Cuba’s abuse of its citizens and why the people are now fighting back
Cubans holding mass protests was unthinkable in our community until right now. It’s something I was convinced I would not even see in my lifetime. But, citizens have lost their freedom, their loved ones and, now, their fear. All they have left are their lives.
The Washington Post via Getty Images
The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of any other agency, organization, employer or company.
As the world wakes up to hear the generational cries of the Cuban people, many are shocked to see what life is really like on the tropical oasis frozen in time. Beyond white hot sand and wide smiles, there is the devastating reality of how Cubans have been living for 62 years. And everyday, it seems to get a little worse. All the parts of our day that become simple routines for those of us blessed to live in freedom are obstacles for Cubans. They are not allowed the luxury of falling into a routine because there can’t be one when you decline further into extreme poverty as the days progress.
Waking up in Cuba everyday is waking up to the same question: What in the world am I going to have to do today to feed my family? You will hear a lot of propaganda circulating in baseless twitter threads, and subreddits written by people who’ve probably never met a Cuban — much less been to Cuba. They tell heroic fairy tales speak of how the revolution in the country has offered all citizens free food, healthcare, education, and housing. But, all of these promises have fallen short. The “free” food given to the people by the government is a monthly ration. In Cuba, it’s called “ la libreta.” Every year, less and less food is given to people. In theory, rations are in place to grant you the basic dietary needs for your family. In 2021, they include rice and sugar. You get five pounds of rice and five pounds of sugar to feed your family for 30 days. Often times, that’s not even available, but they’re the two things you can rely on arriving the most. Cubans are also granted one piece of bread a day. This obviously isn’t enough to keep the people alive and well nourished, so every morning, Cubans wake up and they do what they know best: improvise.
Many times, they find something extra to bring home on the streets. This is done by trading on the black market. Whatever people can get their hands on is then traded for more food. They’ll trade anything from tobacco to ice cream. And many times, these items used for trading, which in Cuba is called “Resolver,” are sourced from people’s own jobs. The people who work in a cigar factory will take X amount of cigars home everyday to trade. Same goes for the ones who work with rum and any other tradable good. This also isn’t done behind anyone’s back, but the government’s. Employers are fully aware of this and actually let you know what it is that you are allowed to take on the daily. Salaries are so low that letting the people essentially steal from the work place is the only incentive for people to actually show up and do the job. It’s all an internal operation with a system. It’s the people’s way of all looking for each other and their families. And don’t think just anybody can get one of these jobs. You’re hired through connections. Many people opt for becoming police officers because they actually receive food and some US dollars.
Sounds a little strange, right? People in a communist country being paid in US dollars? What’s even more strange is that while there’s barely food for the people, there are supermarkets on the island with decent amounts of food. But, the catch is they only accept American money while the people who work on the island get paid in Cuban pesos. The government does this because the Cuban currency is devalued and practically worthless. But, the regime knows that a lot of Cubans, especially in major cities, have family members in the US. Exiled Cubans can only send their families money as they wait and hope to someday be reunited. The regime preys on this. They understand Cubans in the diaspora aren’t going to let their loved ones starve. So, even if the Cuban government inflates the price of food immensely and decides to only accept American dollars, the people don’t have a choice. And they do this to ensure a flow of valuable currency right into their pockets. Especially when tourism on the island becomes scarce.
And while a lot of the food in Cuba is imported, the countryside also does some farming. But, you can’t just independently start growing crops. That’s a crime against the state. It’s all monitored by the government, and they decide what and when you can grow. All harvested crops are collected by the government and, in theory, are supposed to be redistributed to the people. But, they just go to the families of government officials. And sometimes, the government doesn’t show up in time to collect the crops, so the Cuban people can only sit and watch them go bad as their families go hungry at home. Because if they were to collect them on their own, they would be immediately sent to jail.
Another issue Cubans face everyday is their commute work. There is no fuel for public transportation. Walking and biking to work in the Caribbean becomes excruciating especially when you’re malnourished. There is also no fuel for homes. That’s why, at this point, every day the government shuts the power off on the island for 10 to 12 hours. And it goes beyond a scarcity for fuel. The power plants on the island are falling apart and there’s no replacement pieces to repair them. To make matters worse, the buildings are in terrible condition. Not too long ago, three girls ages 11 and 12 died because a balcony fell on top of them. These same vintage buildings that tourists love to pose in front of are crumbling on the people they’re supposed to house.
The incredible free education granted to the Cuban people has also declined immensely since the beginning of the revolution 60 years ago. For generations now, many classrooms don’t even have teachers to begin with. Teachers are so underpaid that no one want to fill those positions anymore. Many classes consist of students and a tv screen that transmits the lesson.
To touch on probably the most catastrophic failure of the regime on the island as of late — and what played a great role in triggering the countrywide protests that are flooding your feeds right now — the Cuban health care system, another part of the revolution that has been celebrated internationally. The healthcare system has been deplorable since before I was born. The condition hospitals are in brings tears to my eyes. If a person needs to go to the hospital, they should first figure out their transportation there. Due to the lack of fuel, an ambulance won’t be easy to find and many die just waiting for them to arrive. They also must make sure to pack sheets and food, as there are neither in these hospitals. Also, while they’re at it, they should consider packing medicine since medications have become harder and harder to find. Maybe just skip the hospital altogether and go buy overpriced aspirin in the black market because it’s the only place you will find it. And since Cuba’s going through a surge of COVID-19 cases right now, the chances of actually getting medical attention are critically low. Hospitals are packed and sometimes understaffed. Disturbing images of people waiting for medical care while lying in the hallways of the hospitals float on social media. Many have died because they were not able to seek medical attention in time and as my people drop like flies, the regime denies foreign aid.
So, when the Cuban people have no food, no power, and no medicine in the middle of a pandemic, is it a surprise to anyone that these protests are going on? For many years, Cubans have been scared to openly oppose the government as this is incredibly illegal. The people on the island holding mass protests was unthinkable in our community until right now. It’s something I was convinced I would not even see in my lifetime. But, citizens have lost their freedom, their loved ones and, now, their fear. All they have left are their lives. And what would they have to gain? A country. From the Spanish colonizers to Batista to the Castros, they’ve never tasted freedom. But today, it sits heavy in the air, and it’s sweet like sugarcane.
North Hudson rallies for Cuban freedom
Marchers advocated for the island nation's liberation from its communist dictatorship
Amid anti-regime protests in Cuba, North Hudson residents have taken to the streets in solidarity.
Hundreds, even thousands, of marchers assembled at Braddock Park on 79th Street and Bergenline Ave. on July 13 to support Cuban protesters. The area is home to many Cuban immigrants and Cuban-Americans.
In Cuba, throngs have taken to the streets against the current administration of President Miguel DÃaz-Canel. The country has been hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic, and residents are protesting the Communist regime’s handling of the crisis as the Cuban economy collapses.
As marchers paraded down Bergenline from Braddock Park in North Bergen to Town Hall in West New York, various chants rang out from “Cuba Libre,” to “Si se puede” or “Free Cuba” and “yes we can” in Spanish. Many attendees were adorned with Cuban flags or signs calling for freedom for Cubans.
Dozens of elected officials spoke in support of the Cuban people, including State Senator and North Bergen Mayor Nicholas Sacco, State Senator and Union City Mayor Brian Stack, State Assemblyman Pedro Mejia, State Assemblywoman Angelica Jimenez, West New York Mayor Gabriel Rodriguez, Guttenberg Mayor Wayne Zitt, Hudson County Commissioner Chairman Anthony Vainieri, Hudson County Sheriff Frank Schilliari, among others.
Calls for U.S. military intervention
Both Sacco and Stack called for U.S. military intervention.
“Years ago, when I was in school, Castro took over Cuba, and people had to escape,” Sacco said. “Those who came here built our country. They made the United States, New Jersey, and Hudson County great. No army is stronger than an idea whose time has come. The idea now is freedom. Cuba Libre. God bless us all. Let’s take back Cuba.”
“The United States must get involved,” Stack said. “It must get involved with military action. All the words from the president on down are great, but we need to see action. We need to see military action. It should have happened 60 years ago. That’s what we need to do. We need to take the dictatorship out of Cuba.”
Rodriguez, addressing the crowd in Spanish, reiterated his support for the Cuban people. Zitt gave a short speech, echoing calls for democracy on the island nation.
“We stand in solidarity with everyone who is suffering in Cuba,” Zitt said. “It’s gone on long enough, and today starts the spark. Everyone deserves democracy and freedom.”
Other officials in support
U.S. Senator Robert Menendez did not attend but has been vocal in support of the Cuban people. Menendez, former Mayor of Union City, was born to Cuban immigrants.
“For decades, Cuba’s dictatorship has used violence and repression to silence its people, rather than permit the free exercise of democracy and their basic social rights,” Menendez said in a statement. “This must end. The world’s eyes are on Cuba tonight, and the dictatorship must understand we will not tolerate the use of brute force to silence the aspirations of the Cuban people.”
U.S. Congressman Albio Sires could not attend the rally but held a press conference with Rodriguez and other Cuban elected officials earlier in the week.
“Having been born in Bejucal, Cuba, and fled the Communist regime at age 11, I feel a deep connection to those who courageously took to the streets,” Sires said in a statement. “Like so many Cubans, I have never given up hope in believing that one day the Cuban people will finally break free from the chains of a six-decade dictatorship. I am deeply inspired by the tremendous courage I witnessed yesterday, and I will continue to do everything I can in Congress to promote the democratic aspirations of the Cuban people.”
Political drama?
While the event was organized by the Hudson County Democratic Organization, Republicans attended. Assemblyman Jack Ciattarelli, who is running against Gov. Phil Murphy, led a group of Republican marchers in support of the Cuban people. Murphy has not taken a stance on the matter yet.
In response, Menendez, Sires, Sacco, Stack, Mejia, Jimenez, Rodriguez, Zitt and Vainieri issued a statement condemning Ciattarelli for making the event political.
“Assemblyman Ciattarelli has run a campaign of division — division along urban or suburban lines, division across income lines, and division across racial and ethnic lines,” they said in a joint statement. “After supporting the rhetoric and bigotry of the Trump administration, Assemblyman Ciattarelli is now attempting to use our vibrant Cuban community as a pawn for his own political purposes. We wholeheartedly reject this opportunistic way of thinking, and won’t allow a politician with a self-serving agenda to weaponize the Cuban people’s suffering and drag us back to the days when our diverse communities were put into silos and left behind.”
Ciattarelli did not respond to the statement, but on social media, he thanked those who attended the rally.
“Our sisters and brothers in Cuba are being denied basic human rights,” Ciattarelli said. “I was honored to stand by hundreds of New Jersey Cuban Americans today at the Cuban Liberation Rally in North Bergen. We must stand united as Cuba continues to fight for freedom and democracy.”
For updates on this and other stories, check www.hudsonreporter.com and follow us on Twitter @hudson_reporter. Daniel Israel can be reached at disrael@hudsonreporter.com.
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'The oppression is high': Cuban police break up protest ahead of Obama's visit
Confrontation highlights what is likely to be one of the most contentious issues of the US president’s visit: human rights and pro-democracy reforms
Last modified on Tue 28 Nov 2017 19.38 EST
Cuban police forcibly broke up a pro-democracy demonstration and arrested several dozen activists on Sunday, just hours before Barack Obama was to arrive in Havana as the first US president to visit Cuba in almost 90 years.
The protesters, from the Damas de Blanco (Ladies in White) and other opposition groups, were bundled into buses and police vans after a shouting match with pro-Castro supporters during their usual weekly demonstration near the Santa Rita church.
“My son and his wife are in jail now. They all are. The police were very violent,” Glavys Fernández, the mother of leading opposition figure Antonio Rodiles, told the Guardian. “It’s the same every week. The oppression is very high.”
Earlier in the day, her son, who helped form the Todos Marchamos (“We all march”) campaign, predicted what was to come as he addressed journalists before the protest.
“I have been arrested more than 50 times in the past year,” Rodiles said. “The police have broken my nose and my eardrum. There are many of them surrounding us again today. But we want to send a clear message to Obama. We need to show the reality we are living in.”
The protesters carried banners, proclaiming: “Obama’s trip to Cuba isn’t for fun. No to violations of human rights.” Others chanted, “Obama, we have a dream: a Cuba without Castros.”
“I’ve been detained and beaten countless times,” said Eralidis Frómeta Polanco, an activist who turned up in the all-white clothes of the demonstrators, who march silently along 5th Avenue each week in protest at the lack of freedom of expression. “I have no hope at all of progress as a result of Obama’s visit. He doesn’t know what it is like to live in a dictatorship.”
A passing cyclist, Josoa Gomez, who said he was a university professor, accused her and the other protesters of being liars, mercenaries and ingrates who failed to recognise the benefits of Cuban society, including free education and healthcare. The tensions escalated up until the arrests.
The confrontation highlights what is likely to be one of the most contentious issues of the US president’s visit: human rights and pro-democracy reforms.
Many Cuban opposition activists complain the rapprochement process that started in 17 December 2014 gives the Castro government legitimacy and greater access to international credit. They say releases of hundreds of prisoners, which have been hailed as the most tangible signs of change since then, are illusory, because convictions have not been pardoned and the activists remain under a legal cloud.
Human Rights Watch said the situation for civil rights activists has not improved since the rapprochement began between Obama and Raúl Castro. They noted that during Pope Francis’s visit to the island
last September, police detained between 100 and 150 dissidents. The
Cuban Commission for Human Rights and National Reconciliation reported
more than 8,500 cases of arbitrary detention in 2015, and more than
2,500 in the first two months of 2016.
Democracy activists in the one-party state are pushing for a range of reforms, including free elections, freedom of the press, freedom of assembly and an end to repression of activists. They want Obama to lobby on their behalf.
US officials say the president, who will meet civil rights activists and give a speech on Tuesday, is not in Havana to make demands, but to encourage reforms that have already begun, particularly in the area of economic liberalisation. However, they say he will talk candidly about human rights and the need for participation in decision making.
“The main message of his speech will be that Cuba’s future is for the Cuban people to decide. The goal is not to foster regime change,” said a state department official. “President Obama wants to show that the challenges Cubans face are not the result of US policy.”
No political conditions have been set for the visit and there is no expectation of a quid pro quo exchange from the Cubans for the US decision last week to relax currency and and travel restrictions. Change, if it comes at all, is more likely at next month’s Communist Party Congress.
One possibility is a referendum on the constitution that would allow Cuban voters to set the political direction for their country ahead of 2018, when Castro has said he plans to step down.
“There is the possibility of reform in April, but we must understand that the group in power for 57 years want to remain in power and keep their privileges,” said democracy campaigner Rosa MarÃa Payá, who has launched a petition calling for Obama to support the idea of a referendum during his visit to the island.
“He should ask for the specific tool of a plebiscite so that Cuban people can decide their future for the first time in 60 years,” she said. “I hope he will support the Cuban people and not just talk to the leaders and have his picture taken.”
Payá wants the US president to make a symbolic gesture against impunity by laying flowers at the grave of her father, a leading democracy campaigner who died in mysterious circumstances in 2012. Cuban authorities say Oswaldo Payá died in a car crash. His family contends that government agents were following him and may have forced him off the road. They believe he is a victim of terror tactics used by the communist government to maintain one-party rule.
“We Cubans know what to do but we can’t do it alone because the Cuban government has weapons, and they are willing to use them – as we saw with the murder of my father,” Payá said. “We need the support of the international community.”
Before his detention, Rodiles argued Obama should stress political freedom and insist that the government in Havana ratify the United Nations Covenant on Human Rights.
“Raúl Castro has said he will move aside in 2018 and this has created the expectation of elections. But the real transfer is taking place right now so by the time Castro steps down, power will have already switched,” he said. “How can there be a proper referendum without freedom of expression, without access to a free TV and a free press? They will never allow me to go on television and debate the issues.”
By Sara Matthis, Jim McCarthy and Mandy Miles
On July 11, thousands of protestors in Cuba took to the streets in at least five cities, and were joined by thousands more in South Florida on July 12. This is the largest protest in memory since 1956. The hashtag “#SOSCuba” is trending on Twitter and everyone from Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis to entertainers Gloria Estefan and Pitbull is voicing support for Cuban people.
“Up with liberty. This is the closest we’ve come to liberty in 62 years of dictatorship,” said Robert La Fe, from his cigar shop in Marathon. He said he urges the United States to intercede.
On July 13, peaceful supporters of their brothers and sisters in Cuba gathered in Marathon in front of Juice Paradise Cafe. In Key West, they rallied the night of July 11 at the Southernmost Point, only 90 miles from Havana, then again on Tuesday, July 13 at the historic San Carlos Institute on Duval Street. The institute was founded in 1871 “as the cradle of Cuban independence,” said its board president Rafael Penalver, a South Florida attorney whose family fled the Castro regime just before Penalver’s 10th birthday. “The San Carlos stands as a symbol of the Cuban people’s perseverance in their struggle for independence. In 1892, Jose Marti gave a speech at the San Carlos, calling it La Casa Cuba, where he united the Cuban exile community.”
As of presstime July 14, there were plans in the Upper Keys to gather at Denny’s Latin Cafe and drive south in a car parade.
In televised speeches, Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel has blamed the recent unrest on the United States. He took office three years ago, hand-picked by former President Raul Castro, brother of Fidel. Diaz-Canel said many of the Cuban protests have been manipulated by social media from the U.S. and called for Communist Party supporters to confront “provocations.”
Locals, many with immediate family members in Cuba, say the situation in the island nation has deteriorated. The pressures of COVID — as an illness rampant in Cuba, as well as the decline it prompted in the Cuban economy that relies on international tourism blocked by the pandemic — have resulted in very reduced medical care and food shortages in Cuba. And, while Cuba used to depend heavily on cheap gas from Venezuela to run utilities, that support has also ended, as that South American country is facing its own economic challenges. That has resulted in regular outages of electricity and water supply that predated the protests.
“There’s no milk for the kids,” said La Fe, who has three grandchildren and one sister living in Cuba, whom he left behind 30 years ago to come to the U.S.
“Florida supports the people of Cuba as they take to the streets against the tyrannical regime in Havana. The Cuban dictatorship has repressed the people of Cuba for decades & is now trying to silence those who have the courage to speak out against its disastrous policies.”
— Florida Governor Ron DeSantis
Alexa Gonzalez, of Key Largo, received a phone call from her second cousin in Havana on the evening of July 12. Gonzalez’s family, which includes her mom, dad, little sister, grandparents, cousins and uncles, said her second cousin is the only family member in Cuba at the moment.
Gonzalez said the phone call lasted two minutes with her second cousin before it was cut off.
“She was freaking out,” Gonzalez said. “She said that they (the police) were throwing everyone onto the streets. They were walking around and they’ll come and attack you. If they find out you’re talking about the U.S., or anything, they’ll come and take your phone and take you to jail.”
Gonzalez also said that kids ages 16 to 19 are being forced to be part of the Cuban military. If they object, “they’re threatening to kill them for being a traitor to the motherland.”
With the call cut off, Gonzalez said she’s hoping to hear from her cousin again, and soon.
“I really hope that she doesn’t die because that’s how things are looking now,” she said.
Cuban American and Florida Lt. Gov. Jeanette Nuñez said the despotic Castro regime in Cuba has deprived its people of economic liberty and life for the past six decades. Nuñez, who’s a frequent visitor to the Keys with a home in Islamorada’s Executive Bay, said the message seen from across the island is an outcry of shortages of basic necessities.
“I stand in solidarity with the freedom-seeking people of Cuba calling for the end of communist dictatorship,” she said in a statement. “The Castros’ continued repression won’t keep the Cuban people from peacefully demanding their God-given rights.”
In Key West, Cuban-American business owner George Fernandez, whose family also fled the Castro regime, said, “It’s difficult to think that Cuba, our sister island, is only 90 miles away, but a world apart in ideology. The recent developments in Cuba are unfortunate in that peaceful demonstrations by the citizens have prompted the government to brutally suppress their voices. My thoughts and prayers are with all my Cuban brothers and sisters at this time, who stand together in their mission to bring their dreams of liberty, democracy and human rights once and for all to our sister island nation.”
Penalver called the protests “a pivotal, grass-roots movement from people crying out for an end to the Castro regime. These are people who have lost their fear. They don’t want aid or physical good, but basic freedoms and basic rights. Unequivocally, the United States should demand an end to the regime. The formula for the continuing Castro regime has been to hold onto power at any cost.
“The shortages we’re hearing about are symptoms of the illness that is the dictatorship and the lack of freedom,” Penalver said, adding that the recent uprising made him fearful for the Cuban people, but “hopeful that the world will finally see their plight.”
“I’ll never forget my classmate’s father, who was tried by the kangaroo courts, and then shot by firing squad,” Penalver said. “When I think of the life I’ve lived in this country, compared to the lives my friends lived in Cuba, there’s just no comparison. There’s just been too much bloodshed and oppression, all so one family could hold onto power.”
“The dark of night is when the regime in Cuba carries out the abduction of leaders of the opposition to the evil socialist dictatorship. But this is a leaderless, grassroots & nationwide movement. The anger has been building up for months & it’s just getting started.”
— U.S. Senator Marco Rubio
Monroe County Sheriff Rick Ramsay told the Keys Weekly that there was an emergency management meeting on July 12 for top law enforcement. Authorities are on alert that the number of chugs trying to cross the Straits, or U.S. residents trying to cross to Cuba on rescue missions, could increase. Ramsay said Homeland Security and the Border Patrol are monitoring the situation. “The crowds in the Keys are large, but peaceful. And they are staying out of the roadways, unlike what happened in Miami on the Palmetto Expressway,” he said, referring to protestors blocking the freeway, expressly forbidden under a law signed by Gov. Ron DeSantis in April, and adding that such actions can sometimes cost the movement support. “Here, in the Keys, they are staying off the roadway. Which we want, for their own safety,” he said.
Stories of what’s happening in Cuba bloomed on July 11, then suddenly disappeared on July 12 from the internet. One Cuban woman working at a grocery store in Marathon said, “They’ve cut the phones, they’ve cut the internet,” referring to Cuban authorities. Ramsay confirmed the situation. “We know that Cuba shut down internet and phones in an effort to suppress what’s really happening,” Ramsay said.
Broadwave’s Jordan Smith said Cuban authorities absolutely have the controls to cut internet access. Broadwave operates in the Florida Keys, offering high-bandwidth Internet access, advanced Wi-Fi capabilities and point-to-point private line services. Smith has visited Cuba and is familiar with the technological landscape.
“It’s 100% done (restricting phone and internet access),” said Smith. “I’ve seen it while I was visiting. They control the internet feed into Cuba and the filtering they do there is insane. They can shut down any sort of access they want — cell phone or WiFi. This is why you can be arrested for using a satellite phone in public. They want to control all forms of communication.”
On July 12, Cuban-Americans in the Keys and U.S. media outlets were reporting that in-country Cubans could no longer access Facebook or WhatsApp. However, as of midday on July 13, there were posts on Twitter that seemed to be recent. Searching #SOSCuba revealed one message that appeared to originate in Cuba asking for support and prayers, while elaborating they were able to get the message out by connecting to a virtual private network (VPN).
Yaimara Perez, also of Marathon, said she spoke to her sister in Cuba two days ago. Normally, she corresponds with her mother six or seven times a day via WhatsApp, but heard nothing on July 12. The following day, again, no communication.
“When I spoke to my sister two days ago she told me her feet were hurting. When I asked why, she told me she has to walk two miles each way to get water for the household. The water utility, the turbines operating them, completely shut down 15 days ago. She needs water for everything, including to brush her teeth,” said Perez, visibly upset.
Sources like the Washington Post and Wall Street Journal have blamed the shutdown of water plants and electric utilities in Cuba on the decreasing supply of cheap gas from Venezuela, a political ally facing its own economic crisis.
The food shortage is perhaps even worse. A local law-enforcement official who interacts with Cuban refugees who are interdicted while trying to reach U.S. shores said, simply, “They’re starving. That’s why they are coming.”
Recently, Acela Valdes spent $400 in U.S. dollars to deliver a 100-pound sack of rice, a 20-pound pork leg and 50 pounds of black beans to family in Cuba through a special export-import service. (The retail value of those items is about $245, the balance is for the delivery fee.) Valdes said the cost of one pound of rice at Cuban stores is about 70 pesos.
According to Reuters, Cuba traditionally imports by sea around 70% of the food it consumes.
Perez said Cubans are paid salaries in Cuban pesos, but the stores in Cuba only accept “convertibles” currency.
“You can only buy products with convertibles, but you are paid in pesos. How is that going to work?” she asked.
The Associated Press reported that one of its photographers was beaten by Cuban police earlier this week. On July 14, major news outlets in the U.S. reported that one protestor had been killed in Cuba. On July 13, a Twitter video shows a horse-drawn cart arriving in a mad dash at a Cuban hospital, allegedly carrying a protester who was shot by Cuban police. Another tweet, marked sensitive, shows a photo of a 13-year-old boy who was shot in the head, allegedly by Cuban police.
Post-COVID but pre-protest, Cuban Americans were gathering medical supplies for family members in Cuba who needed surgery or hospital care.
Acela Valdes, the Marathon woman who shipped food to family, said her nephew in Cuba recently required a simple surgery.
“When you go to the hospital in Cuba, you take your own bedsheets, your own pillow, even the light bulb for your room,” Valdes said. “Family brings the gauze and the syringe and even the medicine. It’s shameful.”
Throughout the pandemic, Cuban officials touted their altruism and ability to send medical professionals to areas of the world hard-hit by COVID-19. But according to a Wall Street Journal opinion piece, it’s all about profit where the benefitting countries pay Cuba for the service in dollars or Euros, with the state pocketing most of the receipts. Cuba was singled out in the annual State Department report on trafficking: “ … a government policy or government pattern to profit from labor export programs with strong indications of forced labor, particularly its foreign medical missions program … Cuba capitalized on the pandemic by increasing the number and size of medical missions and refused to improve the program’s transparency or address labor violations and trafficking crimes despite persistent allegations from observers, former participants, and foreign governments” of Cuban abuses.
Perez said she regularly sends anywhere from $200 to $850 a month to family in Cuba. The Trump administration changed the law on remittances — money sent from U.S. residents to family in Cuba — to $1,000 per quarter. Now, Perez buys Euros to send to Cuba. Still, she’s paying a higher fee per transaction, or searching for a trusted friend to deliver money from the U.S. to Cuba.
Gonzalez, the woman whose call to a cousin was cut short, said she’s never been to Cuba. She said she refuses to go and live like a tourist while families there are struggling.
“My hope is that the Cuban people take over and show them that they won’t back down, and that they’re sick and tired of it, and that somebody listens,” she said.
Desperate refugees
Since late May, some 21 Cubans have been declared dead or missing after capsizing near the Keys, trying to reach shore in two separate accidents; 21 of the passengers were plucked from the water and returned to Guantanamo. Although the Obama administration ended the “wet foot, dry foot” policy that would allow Cubans who reached U.S. soil to apply for U.S. citizenship, Cubans still try to make it here. Their hope is to arrive safely, and slip into South Florida unnoticed.
Since October, the Coast Guard has interdicted 554 Cubans and returned them to Cuba. The numbers are on the rise. That’s more than the number who were caught crossing the seas during the entire year of 2018 (259) and 2019 (313) and 10 times higher than those who crossed and were interdicted in 2020 (46). Unless the refugees require medical attention, they are kept aboard Coast Guard cutters and repatriated within days.
Yaimara Perez has been in the U.S. for more than five years and said she was desperate to leave Cuba. She said as soon as she arrived, she prioritized learning English to apply for citizenship, which she now has.
“Learning English was my best option in this county — I had to learn and learn and learn — so I could put in the papers to ask for my mom to immigrate here,” Perez said. “She is 66 years old.”
She continued, “We need to be free. We have to continue, we have to keep going. I don’t want this to just be about July 11. I want to see July 12 and July 13 and July 14 so that we can see change in Cuba.”
“As a humanitarian organization with a core mission of protecting lives at-sea, we echo the message of many U.S. leaders in support of the Cuban people exercising their fundamental right of freedom of expression and assembly, but also remind anyone considering a migrant voyage not to take to the sea. The transit is dangerous and unforgiving as nearly 20 lives were tragically lost in recent weeks as a result of these dangerous voyages.
The Coast Guard along with our local, state and federal partners are monitoring any activity that may indicate increases in unsafe and illegal maritime migration in the Florida straits, including unpermitted vessel departures from Florida to Cuba.”
— Rear Admiral Eric C. Jones, United States Coast Guard District 7
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Santiago Portal, who migrated from Cuba 50 years ago, displaying a sign supporting Donald Trump in Little Havana during the Calle Ocho Festival, Miami, last March. Photograph: Sean Drakes/Getty Images
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