 |
| FCF's John Suarez debates Robert Miller of the Cuba Solidarity Campaign |
Please share with friends and encourage them to comment. Mr. Miller claims that a majority of Americans and Cuban Americans favor the former Obama Administration's Cuba policy.
Wednesday, October 11, 2017
FCF Coordinator debates "Have Obama's Cuba gains unravelled?" on TRT World's The Newsmakers
"There are genuinely few times that I can say I debated an unapologetic supporter of the Castro regime. This is one of them." - John Suarez
On Monday October 9, 2017 The Newsmakers, the "flagship current affairs programme, featuring in-depth reports and
interviews with the drivers of the biggest stories of the week" for TRT World taped a program on the ongoing diplomatic crisis in Cuba. The two guests were John Suarez, of the Free Cuba Foundation and Robert Miller, of the Cuba Solidarity Campaign. The Cuba Solidarity Campaign's unapologetic claims that Cuba is a democracy are even more troubling when one takes into account that Jeremy Corbyn is a long time member. Following the debate John shared the following observation: "There are genuinely few times that I can say I debated an unapologetic supporter of the Castro regime. This is one of them."
Please share with friends and encourage them to comment. Mr. Miller claims that a majority of Americans and Cuban Americans favor the former Obama Administration's Cuba policy.
Please share with friends and encourage them to comment. Mr. Miller claims that a majority of Americans and Cuban Americans favor the former Obama Administration's Cuba policy.
Sunday, October 8, 2017
Remembering Omar Pernet Hernández: Interview on medical mistreatment that he suffered in Cuba
Omar Pernet Hernández passed away in Louisville, Kentucky on October 7, 2017. In 2009 the Free Cuba Foundation interviewed this former Amnesty International prisoner of conscience at his apartment in Madrid, Spain. Below is a transcript of the interview provided by HopeforAmerika.
"Then, they realized I would never submit. The times I was incarcerated they were never able to make me submit. They hit me, punishment in solitary confinement, I went on hunger strikes." - Omar Pernet Hernández, 2009
Interview with Omar Pernet Hernández in February of 2009 in Madrid, Spain.
Omar Pernet: Look, the meaning of this, is that this type of boot that you see here....I will show it to you again. This boot was fitted for me in Cuba and it began to damage my hips because one, the left, is longer than the right. Then, one hip went like this 0:30 (shows the way hip is going up). Then, here in Spain, they said I couldn't go on wearing those boots, and they asked me to cut them down, and told me to make the ones I'm wearing. These I'm wearing now are stabilizing my hips.
INT: "How is it possible, since the Cuban doctors are so excellent normally, at least that's what the Cubans say, and promote throughout the world. That they should be so wrong? And hurt you so much? How many months did you stay that way in Cuba?"
OP: Well, in 2005, on the 5th of April, I began to wear these boots until the 17-18. I stayed like that until the 3rd of March of 2008 using those boots. These I'm wearing now are different, from Spain. " Stands up, 2:06, shows. "The only thing they did was to slap a cast on. They had me on a cast from the tips of my toes up to my neck for 18 months. The doctors here [in Spain] say they don't find any logic to it. That it was intolerable, the amount of time I spent in those conditions. The cast was removed twice, and each time it was to break my leg again." "I always said I didn't want to do it, because it was gambling with health to demand health, so I gambled with my health, risked my life. Including 2006-2007. I had to go on hunger strikes several times to demand medical attention, for my leg and collar bone. 8:01. Look at my collar bone. Look at the way it is."
INT: "What's it like? We see it, but what does it mean?"
OP: "That was broken in the accident as well."
INT: "It didn't heal properly."
OP: "No. It's crossed over like this 2:20"
OP: "Then, they realized I would never submit. The times I was incarcerated they were never able to make me submit. They hit me, punishment in solitary confinement, I went on hunger strikes."
INT: "Why the hunger strikes? People ask themselves what that's about."
OP: "Look, whenever I went on a hunger strike, it was to defend the rights of another prisoner, or to defend my own rights. To demand respect for my own rights. They didn't, and I went on hunger strikes."
OP: "He broke my leg twice again."
INT: "Do you think the orders came from the higher-ups? Or from the doctor himself?"
OP: "I think, in my opinion, independent orientation of the Cuban Security, maybe a little higher, the government. They were the ones who were trying to harm me."
INT: "The Cuban Security would be who? The Dept. of Interior?"
OP: "The Security of State, which is National Security, the one for crimes against the Security of the State, against political crimes."
INT: "What is your opinion about the mistake of the Cuban doctors? After all, they could see that your condition was getting worse."
OP: "Look, in regard to that question, I'm going to tell you that maybe I don't have anything against Cuban medicine. And that, that man, that doctor, he wanted to cause me harm. It's not that he is a bad specialist, because I can't say if he is good or bad. With me he was bad, because he tried to harm me, at all times. He did not operate me."
OP: "Don't you see? Now my hip is stabilized. Because it is the same length as my normal leg. That other boot was raising my hip. Like this." (3:51)
INT: "This was obviously causing harm."
OP: "Of course, Dr. Verduga, here in Madrid, was the one who did x-rays, and an MRI, and then they could see that my hip was losing position, that it was raising, and that my left leg was longer than the right. Then he forbid me to use those boots, gave me a prescription to use these I'm wearing."
OP: "See? They're different. This here is, you see, 2:16 (shows) here is my heel, and from there on, the work they did to stabilize my hips."
INT: "What was the impact on your hip, because we're talking 2, 3 yrs."
OP: "It's the accident. All this was because of the accident, but after the accident, I was not operated. They said my blood contained a virus, and that my blood could not touch my bone. That was Dr. Hector, Chief of Orthopedics of the Military Hospital in Marianao, in Cuba."
INT: "Is Hector his first, or last name?"
OP: "No, his first name, I don't remember his last name."
INT: "You say the cause was the accident. But this boot damaged your hip, right?"
OP: "Yes, he was the one who had the boots made."
INT: "What was the impact of that boot? And how are things after the change here in Spain? What's the difference between them?"
OP: "Well, with that boot I showed you in the newspaper it looked like this because 3:34 (shows newspaper) with that boot my hip rose."
 |
| Omar Pernet Hernández August 15, 1945 - October 7, 2017 |
"Then, they realized I would never submit. The times I was incarcerated they were never able to make me submit. They hit me, punishment in solitary confinement, I went on hunger strikes." - Omar Pernet Hernández, 2009
Interview with Omar Pernet Hernández in February of 2009 in Madrid, Spain.
Omar Pernet: Look, the meaning of this, is that this type of boot that you see here....I will show it to you again. This boot was fitted for me in Cuba and it began to damage my hips because one, the left, is longer than the right. Then, one hip went like this 0:30 (shows the way hip is going up). Then, here in Spain, they said I couldn't go on wearing those boots, and they asked me to cut them down, and told me to make the ones I'm wearing. These I'm wearing now are stabilizing my hips.
INT: "How is it possible, since the Cuban doctors are so excellent normally, at least that's what the Cubans say, and promote throughout the world. That they should be so wrong? And hurt you so much? How many months did you stay that way in Cuba?"
OP: Well, in 2005, on the 5th of April, I began to wear these boots until the 17-18. I stayed like that until the 3rd of March of 2008 using those boots. These I'm wearing now are different, from Spain. " Stands up, 2:06, shows. "The only thing they did was to slap a cast on. They had me on a cast from the tips of my toes up to my neck for 18 months. The doctors here [in Spain] say they don't find any logic to it. That it was intolerable, the amount of time I spent in those conditions. The cast was removed twice, and each time it was to break my leg again." "I always said I didn't want to do it, because it was gambling with health to demand health, so I gambled with my health, risked my life. Including 2006-2007. I had to go on hunger strikes several times to demand medical attention, for my leg and collar bone. 8:01. Look at my collar bone. Look at the way it is."
INT: "What's it like? We see it, but what does it mean?"
OP: "That was broken in the accident as well."
INT: "It didn't heal properly."
OP: "No. It's crossed over like this 2:20"
OP: "Then, they realized I would never submit. The times I was incarcerated they were never able to make me submit. They hit me, punishment in solitary confinement, I went on hunger strikes."
INT: "Why the hunger strikes? People ask themselves what that's about."
OP: "Look, whenever I went on a hunger strike, it was to defend the rights of another prisoner, or to defend my own rights. To demand respect for my own rights. They didn't, and I went on hunger strikes."
OP: "He broke my leg twice again."
INT: "Do you think the orders came from the higher-ups? Or from the doctor himself?"
OP: "I think, in my opinion, independent orientation of the Cuban Security, maybe a little higher, the government. They were the ones who were trying to harm me."
INT: "The Cuban Security would be who? The Dept. of Interior?"
OP: "The Security of State, which is National Security, the one for crimes against the Security of the State, against political crimes."
INT: "What is your opinion about the mistake of the Cuban doctors? After all, they could see that your condition was getting worse."
OP: "Look, in regard to that question, I'm going to tell you that maybe I don't have anything against Cuban medicine. And that, that man, that doctor, he wanted to cause me harm. It's not that he is a bad specialist, because I can't say if he is good or bad. With me he was bad, because he tried to harm me, at all times. He did not operate me."
OP: "Don't you see? Now my hip is stabilized. Because it is the same length as my normal leg. That other boot was raising my hip. Like this." (3:51)
INT: "This was obviously causing harm."
OP: "Of course, Dr. Verduga, here in Madrid, was the one who did x-rays, and an MRI, and then they could see that my hip was losing position, that it was raising, and that my left leg was longer than the right. Then he forbid me to use those boots, gave me a prescription to use these I'm wearing."
OP: "See? They're different. This here is, you see, 2:16 (shows) here is my heel, and from there on, the work they did to stabilize my hips."
INT: "What was the impact on your hip, because we're talking 2, 3 yrs."
OP: "It's the accident. All this was because of the accident, but after the accident, I was not operated. They said my blood contained a virus, and that my blood could not touch my bone. That was Dr. Hector, Chief of Orthopedics of the Military Hospital in Marianao, in Cuba."
INT: "Is Hector his first, or last name?"
OP: "No, his first name, I don't remember his last name."
INT: "You say the cause was the accident. But this boot damaged your hip, right?"
OP: "Yes, he was the one who had the boots made."
INT: "What was the impact of that boot? And how are things after the change here in Spain? What's the difference between them?"
OP: "Well, with that boot I showed you in the newspaper it looked like this because 3:34 (shows newspaper) with that boot my hip rose."
Wednesday, October 4, 2017
FCF co-founder addresses travel industry's reckless disregard for tourists visiting Cuba
Same travel industry that flew tourists into Cuba, while it was under Hurricane Watch for Irma (a deadly category five storm), now wish to disregard a State Department warning on travel to Cuba.
The Cuba travel industry insists travel to Cuba is safe and dismisses the travel warning issued on Sept. 29 by the State Department that described how "numerous U.S. Embassy Havana employees have been targeted in specific attacks. These employees have suffered significant injuries as a consequence of these attacks."
Press accounts report "mild traumatic brain injuries, hearing loss, severe headaches, cognitive disruption, and brain swelling." Over the past 10 months they have not been able to identify the source of the attacks but did report that the attacks occurred both at "U.S. diplomatic residences and hotels frequented by U.S. citizens." At least 21 Americans have been harmed.
The travel industry's claim that "Cuba is a safe destination" should be placed in context. Earlier in September when Hurricane Irma, a deadly category five storm with 180 mile per hour winds was bearing down on Cuba and a hurricane watch issued, tourists were still being flown into the island by British and Canadian travel agencies.
The British travel agency "Thomas Cook has defended itself saying the company followed the Cuban government's emergency instructions to the letter," BBC News reported. Cayo Coco suffered the full impact of Hurricane Irma and was destroyed by the storm. They were flying tourists into Cuba to Cayo Coco a day prior to the storm's arrival, as reported by The Independent (United Kingdom).
CBC News (Toronto) reported that Canadian tour operator Sunwing had elderly tourists flying into Cuba 24 hours before the deadly Category 5 storm, Hurricane Irma, smashed into Cuba , forcing them to flee for their lives. Hundreds of foreign tourists didn't make it and were left stranded to face a hurricane that according to official Cuban government figures claimed ten lives and injured many more, but these travel agencies were just following regime orders.
Now this same travel industry tells tourists Cuba is safe and to ignore "targeted attacks" that took place at hotels frequented by tourists that can cause serious harm. This is an outrage.
John Suarez, coordinator, Free Cuba Foundation in Miami
Copyright © 2017, Sun Sentinel
24 hrs before Hurricane Irma hit Cuba, travel agencies were still flying tourists in.
Sun Sentinel, October 4, 2017
Don't rush to call Cuba 'a safe destination' | Letters
On Sept. 29, news organizations published the article "Travel industry sticking with trips to Cuba from U.S." In the article Greg Geronemus, CEO of SmarTours says, "We continue to believe that Cuba is a safe destination for our travelers, and we will be running our tours until our assessment changes."The Cuba travel industry insists travel to Cuba is safe and dismisses the travel warning issued on Sept. 29 by the State Department that described how "numerous U.S. Embassy Havana employees have been targeted in specific attacks. These employees have suffered significant injuries as a consequence of these attacks."
Press accounts report "mild traumatic brain injuries, hearing loss, severe headaches, cognitive disruption, and brain swelling." Over the past 10 months they have not been able to identify the source of the attacks but did report that the attacks occurred both at "U.S. diplomatic residences and hotels frequented by U.S. citizens." At least 21 Americans have been harmed.
The travel industry's claim that "Cuba is a safe destination" should be placed in context. Earlier in September when Hurricane Irma, a deadly category five storm with 180 mile per hour winds was bearing down on Cuba and a hurricane watch issued, tourists were still being flown into the island by British and Canadian travel agencies.
The British travel agency "Thomas Cook has defended itself saying the company followed the Cuban government's emergency instructions to the letter," BBC News reported. Cayo Coco suffered the full impact of Hurricane Irma and was destroyed by the storm. They were flying tourists into Cuba to Cayo Coco a day prior to the storm's arrival, as reported by The Independent (United Kingdom).
CBC News (Toronto) reported that Canadian tour operator Sunwing had elderly tourists flying into Cuba 24 hours before the deadly Category 5 storm, Hurricane Irma, smashed into Cuba , forcing them to flee for their lives. Hundreds of foreign tourists didn't make it and were left stranded to face a hurricane that according to official Cuban government figures claimed ten lives and injured many more, but these travel agencies were just following regime orders.
Now this same travel industry tells tourists Cuba is safe and to ignore "targeted attacks" that took place at hotels frequented by tourists that can cause serious harm. This is an outrage.
John Suarez, coordinator, Free Cuba Foundation in Miami
Copyright © 2017, Sun Sentinel
Thursday, September 21, 2017
FCF co-founder addresses attack on U.S. diplomats in Cuba in The Miami Herald
"The types of injuries suffered by diplomats
since November 2016 are new but Cuba’s outlaw behavior towards them is not." - John Suarez
Letter to the Editor published today in the Miami Herald on page 16A
CUBA LIES
The Miami Herald’s September 19,
2017 editorial “Unless Cuba comes clean about the embassy attacks on U.S.
diplomats, it will put renewed ties at risk” offers an overview of the “strange
case” of American diplomats and their dependents harmed in Cuba.
But three points should be considered.
First, Raul Castro lies, and there are
two recent examples. Castro on March 21, 2016 in the joint press conference
with President Obama said that there were no political prisoners in Cuba, and if
any were identified they would be released immediately. A list of current Cuban political prisoners
was provided, but they were not freed. In July 2013, Cuban officials were
caught trying to smuggle war planes, missiles and technology related to
ballistic missile programs hidden under 220,000 bags of sugar to North Korea
and lied about it. This was in violation of U.N. sanctions.
Second, Obama did not achieve an end to the Cold War with Cuba. On
Jan. 2, 2017 Cuban troops marched in a parade over which Castro presided chanting that they would repeatedly shoot the first African American President
in the head so many times that they would make a “hat of lead to the head.” Considering that American diplomats in
Havana were already suffering brain trauma since November 2016 perhaps this should
be looked at in a new light.
Third, the statement by the Cuban
embassy in Washington on September 19, 2017 that "Cuba strictly observes its
obligations to protect foreign diplomats on its soil" is not true. There is
a decades old pattern of hostility.
The types of injuries suffered by diplomats
since November 2016 are new but Cuba’s outlaw behavior towards them is not.
- John Suarez
Coordinator
Free Cuba Foundation
Thursday, August 17, 2017
Assembly of the Cuban Resistance issues new statement on ICCAS scandal at UM
"Keeping ICCAS at the University of Miami and maintaining the tradition
of critical inquiry established by Dr. Suchlicki in 1999 is sorely
needed in today's academic environment where academic freedom is under
assault." - John Suarez, FCF co-founder, August 15, 2017
STATEMENT OF THE ASSEMBLY OF THE CUBAN RESISTANCE ON UNIVERSITY OF MIAMI’S INSTITUTE OF CUBAN AND CUBAN AMERICAN STUDIES (ICCAS)
August 17, 2017
Throughout the years, the University of Miami has been an important part of our Cuban-American community and the Cuban American community has greatly supported the University of Miami. Many generations of Cuban-Americans whose families made Miami their home have pursued their higher education studies at the University of Miami. As our community grew, so did the University. We are as much a part of the University of Miami as the University is a part of us. Our community has made significant contributions to the University’s growth and current reputation throughout the world for its educational excellence. The Institute of Cuban and Cuban American Studies (ICCAS) has been a key component of this relationship, and it has objectively and factually reflected the truth about Cuba and our community since it was founded almost twenty years ago.
At a time when freedom of speech and academic freedom are challenged by the influence of both authoritarian and totalitarian regimes on campuses across the country, we must all remain vigilant about the Castro regime’s efforts to influence Cuban and Latin American studies at American universities. The issue of ICCAS has to do with our concern about hostile foreign government disinformation, and as the FBI has reported, the Castro regime’s recruitment efforts in the academic community in the United States.
A meeting has been scheduled for tomorrow by the President of the University of Miami with a limited number of members of our Cuban American community -as well as others- to discuss the controversy regarding ICCAS. Many prominent Cuban exile and Cuban American academics and intellectuals, as well as community leaders have been regrettably excluded from this meeting. The Assembly of the Cuban Resistance as a plural, inclusive and democratic institution of this community, stands together as one to express our concerns and reiterate that in order to safeguard ICCAS’ future as a truthful, balanced and objective institute for Cuban and Cuban American studies within the University of Miami, we recommend the following:
It is our sincere hope that our fellow Cuban Americans attending tomorrow’s meeting make the above recommendations their own. Institutional engagement between our beloved University of Miami and the murderous Castro Regime, and safeguarding the objectivity and integrity of ICCAS are essential concerns of our community.
ASSEMBLY OF THE CUBAN RESISTANCE
 |
| Press conference today at Brigade 2506 Museum and Library |
August 17, 2017
Throughout the years, the University of Miami has been an important part of our Cuban-American community and the Cuban American community has greatly supported the University of Miami. Many generations of Cuban-Americans whose families made Miami their home have pursued their higher education studies at the University of Miami. As our community grew, so did the University. We are as much a part of the University of Miami as the University is a part of us. Our community has made significant contributions to the University’s growth and current reputation throughout the world for its educational excellence. The Institute of Cuban and Cuban American Studies (ICCAS) has been a key component of this relationship, and it has objectively and factually reflected the truth about Cuba and our community since it was founded almost twenty years ago.
At a time when freedom of speech and academic freedom are challenged by the influence of both authoritarian and totalitarian regimes on campuses across the country, we must all remain vigilant about the Castro regime’s efforts to influence Cuban and Latin American studies at American universities. The issue of ICCAS has to do with our concern about hostile foreign government disinformation, and as the FBI has reported, the Castro regime’s recruitment efforts in the academic community in the United States.
A meeting has been scheduled for tomorrow by the President of the University of Miami with a limited number of members of our Cuban American community -as well as others- to discuss the controversy regarding ICCAS. Many prominent Cuban exile and Cuban American academics and intellectuals, as well as community leaders have been regrettably excluded from this meeting. The Assembly of the Cuban Resistance as a plural, inclusive and democratic institution of this community, stands together as one to express our concerns and reiterate that in order to safeguard ICCAS’ future as a truthful, balanced and objective institute for Cuban and Cuban American studies within the University of Miami, we recommend the following:
- That the University/Institute does not engage in any exchange with Cuban academic institutions because they are under the direct control of Cuba’s one-party totalitarian state. As has been amply demonstrated, academia is seen as a tool of intelligence gathering and influence peddling by the Castro dictatorship. We are steadfastly opposed to opening up the University of Miami to this poisonous exchange.
- That the University/Institute rescinds the appointment of Dr. Andy Gomez as ICCAS interim director. Dr. Gomez has been publicly recognized for promoting ventures with commercial enterprises that do business with Cuba under its totalitarian regime. Dr. Gomez’ as interim director will further divide the Cuban American community from the University of Miami, rather than bridging the divide that has been created.
- That the University/Institute formally include the Cuban American community in the search committee for the new interim director and the permanent director of ICCAS.
It is our sincere hope that our fellow Cuban Americans attending tomorrow’s meeting make the above recommendations their own. Institutional engagement between our beloved University of Miami and the murderous Castro Regime, and safeguarding the objectivity and integrity of ICCAS are essential concerns of our community.
ASSEMBLY OF THE CUBAN RESISTANCE
Saturday, August 5, 2017
Miami United for Liberty in Venezuela at the Torch of Friendship
Activists and community leaders gather in solidarity with free Venezuelans
Free Cuba Foundation members joined with dozens of activists and community leaders this morning at the Torch of Friendship to let Venezuelans know that they are not alone. Young Venezuelan musicians, Los Wizzards, played the Venezuelan national anthem and rapped their criticisms of the Maduro regime and calls for freedom. Unlike their compatriot, Wuilly Moisés Arteaga today imprisoned in Caracas, they did not have their musical instruments destroyed, were not shot in the face and not jailed when refusing to be silenced. Prayers for Venezuela opened and ended the activity that was organized and hosted by Nicholas David, Jaime Figueras, Jessica Fernandez, and Armando Ibarra.
 |
| Activists and community leaders praying for freedom in Venezuela |
Thursday, August 3, 2017
Miami Unites for Liberty in Venezuela at the Torch of Freedom
"There may be times when we are powerless to prevent injustice, but
there must never be a time when we fail to protest." - Elie Wiesel, Nobel Lecture 1986
This Saturday, August 5, 2017 at 11:00am at the Torch of Friendship located on 401 Biscayne Boulevard members of the Miami community will join together in support of freedom in Venezuela. The event is being organized through a Facebook campaign by Nicholas David, Jaime Figueras, Jessica Fernandez, and Armando Ibarra.
Regime
snipers shot young demonstrators in the head while regime agents raided the homes of opposition politicians in the dead of night to take them
away to parts unknown. Maduro regime snipers
were spotted this past Sunday, August 30th on roof tops shooting
peaceful protesters in the head. At 4:29pm Blanco tweeted: "Adrián
Rodríguez (13) was assassinated in Capacho, Táchira. Army sniper shot
him in the head from the roof of a school." At 8:18pm he tweeted: "Ender
Peña died (18), shot by bullet during protest in Táchira. Transferred
to a polyclinic, he didn't survive the operation." A few minutes later
at 8:36pm Blanco tweeted:
"Conflict escalation is very obvious. Weeks ago military fired tear gas
into the chest, now firing with rifles to the head."
Venezuela is on the brink of turning into a totalitarian communist regime. It has been a dictatorship since at least October 20, 2016
when the decision of Venezuelan voters to hold a recall referendum was
illegally blocked by Nicolas Maduro. However the vote this past Sunday (manipulated to inflate the number of participants
by the dictatorship) was to do away with the National Assembly and
opposition parties. If implemented this would turn Venezuela into
another Cuba.
Two weeks earlier on July 16, 2017 over seven million Venezuelans voted in a non-binding plebiscite rejecting the Constituent Assembly of the Maduro regime. A general strike was successfully carried out and despite regime violence and a prohibition to protest Venezuelans still took to the streets in anti-Maduro demonstrations.
The response of the Maduro regime and their Cuban advisors has been to escalate the violence and target nonviolent protesters. Consider the plight of Wuilly Moisés Arteaga, a young man playing the national anthem with his
violin at a protest, was told to shut up and was shot in the face last Saturday. From
his hospital bed he said that he would return to protest in the streets, and he did. He was arrested on Thursday, July 29th beaten up and tortured for protesting against the Maduro regime to the degree that he has lost hearing in his right ear and remains jailed. This is reminiscent of Cuba not a democracy.
For Cubans, August 5th is a special date when 23 years ago across Havana mass protests occurred calling for freedom and an end to the Castro regime. The response was a brutal crackdown and a mass exodus, but the desire to be free remains.
Now is the time to stand up and protest for freedom in Venezuela and to demonstrate our solidarity with Venezuelans. The folks organizing the protest at the Torch of Freedom put it succinctly:
For more information visit the Facebook event page.
This Saturday, August 5, 2017 at 11:00am at the Torch of Friendship located on 401 Biscayne Boulevard members of the Miami community will join together in support of freedom in Venezuela. The event is being organized through a Facebook campaign by Nicholas David, Jaime Figueras, Jessica Fernandez, and Armando Ibarra.
Two weeks earlier on July 16, 2017 over seven million Venezuelans voted in a non-binding plebiscite rejecting the Constituent Assembly of the Maduro regime. A general strike was successfully carried out and despite regime violence and a prohibition to protest Venezuelans still took to the streets in anti-Maduro demonstrations.
For Cubans, August 5th is a special date when 23 years ago across Havana mass protests occurred calling for freedom and an end to the Castro regime. The response was a brutal crackdown and a mass exodus, but the desire to be free remains.
Now is the time to stand up and protest for freedom in Venezuela and to demonstrate our solidarity with Venezuelans. The folks organizing the protest at the Torch of Freedom put it succinctly:
Dictator Nicholas Maduro stripped Venezuelan citizens of their freedoms, jailed and murdered innocent people, impoverished his whole nation, exiled hundreds of thousands, and extinguished democracy and rule of law. This is an atrocity.
We are ONE community of Venezuelan and Cuban exiles, Latinos, and Americans united in the fight for freedom and against socialism. We share the historical tragedy of losing a nation to despotism.
Please join us and thousands of friends united in solidarity with the Venezuelan people. We will be joined by elected officials, civic leaders, and opposition figures to show the world that we stand for freedom.
Saturday, August 5th, 2017
11am - 2pm
Bayfront Park - The Torch of Friendship
301 Biscayne Blvd., Miami, FL 33132
For more information visit the Facebook event page.
Monday, July 24, 2017
Did Google censor Rosa Maria Payá and Cuba Decide in Cuba to satisfy their partners in the dictatorship?
Google's evil collaboration with the Castro regime
Free Cuba Foundation has been warning that Google's engagement with the Castro regime would run afoul of their "Don't Be Evil" code of conduct. On September 13, 2016 we explained that the internet is not a panacea and that Google was making choices that would not help Cuban democrats. On December 12, 2016 Google signed an internet deal with the Castro regime placing the company's technology in the hands of the dictatorship's telecommunications monopoly ETECSA. Rosa Maria Payá tweeted on July 22, 2017 that CubaDecide was banned in Cuba, describing it as "the error with which google joins censorship in Cuba."
This led to a flurry of tweets about the question of censorship and Google in Cuba. Mary O'Grady tweeted the following the same day.
Michael Weissenstein of the Associated Press replied that it wasn't Cuba but U.S. regulations.
In 2006 Amnesty International released a report exposing the practices of American tech companies including Google titled "UNDERMINING FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION IN CHINA. THE ROLE OF YAHOO!, MICROSOFT AND GOOGLE." In the report Amnesty International stated that "Google has come closest to acknowledging publicly that its practices are at odds with its principles."
FCF is also concerned that like in the case of China which hacked and stole Google user data the same could happen to Cubans that speak out against the regime. Having servers in Cuban territory gives intelligence agencies unfettered access to servers, methods and technology they can now steal, making this bad for shareholders and U.S. interests.
Sadly eleven years later history may be repeating itself.
Free Cuba Foundation has been warning that Google's engagement with the Castro regime would run afoul of their "Don't Be Evil" code of conduct. On September 13, 2016 we explained that the internet is not a panacea and that Google was making choices that would not help Cuban democrats. On December 12, 2016 Google signed an internet deal with the Castro regime placing the company's technology in the hands of the dictatorship's telecommunications monopoly ETECSA. Rosa Maria Payá tweeted on July 22, 2017 that CubaDecide was banned in Cuba, describing it as "the error with which google joins censorship in Cuba."
This led to a flurry of tweets about the question of censorship and Google in Cuba. Mary O'Grady tweeted the following the same day.
Google bows to Cuban censorship. https://t.co/PqucAWJv2u— MaryAnastasiaO'Grady (@MaryAnastasiaOG) July 22, 2017
Michael Weissenstein of the Associated Press replied that it wasn't Cuba but U.S. regulations.
BrettPerlmutter of Google quoted the Weissenstein tweet and doubled down.This happens to several sites including AP's in Cuba and far as we've determined it's the sites' ISPs blocking Cuba due to US regulation https://t.co/9Z4AL7Og5W— Michael Weissenstein (@mweissenstein) July 23, 2017
Former Bush Administration official Jose Cardenas contested Weissenstein's claim.This kind of error is generated by the Chrome browser often when a site is blocked due to compliance w US embargo. Nothing to do w Google. https://t.co/9mB9iW1Ee1— Brett Perlmutter (@BrettPerlmutter) July 23, 2017
Marta Dhanis, a news correspondent, who visited Cuba in January of 2017 to see first hand if there has been an improvement in internet access found that it continues to be "extremely limited." She talked to Cubans inside the island and in the article titled "Google entering Cuba is 'Trojan Horse' that could reinforce regime, residents say" quoted an academic who pointed out some of the drawbacks:That is simply NOT true. No US regs block websites in #Cuba. It is - to the surprise of only people born yesterday - regime CENSORSHIP... https://t.co/qNl4JmWGz5— Jose Cardenas (@JoseCardenasUSA) July 23, 2017
“We call the internet a ‘Trojan Horse.’ The success of this government has been possible thanks to the people’s lack of information,” said a 57-year-old retired professor who requested anonymity for fear of retribution by the communist regime. “I would have a patrol car at my door tomorrow to monitor my life,” he said. On the other hand, he and others contend, this Trojan Horse is also providing the communist regime with technology that will empower the secret police with detailed reports of the users’ searches and profiles, right down to their location.Google in Cuba has collaborated with the Cuban intelligence services and the Castro regime's tech monopoly ETESCA is blocking the e-mails of the Ladies in White. This led a coalition of Cubans to condemn Google at a gathering in Puerto Rico in 2016, But what is feared with this deepening of relations between Google and the Cuban dictatorship is a scenario that has already been played out in China where dissidents were rounded up, some jailed, and some tortured with the aid of American technology companies like Yahoo.
In 2006 Amnesty International released a report exposing the practices of American tech companies including Google titled "UNDERMINING FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION IN CHINA. THE ROLE OF YAHOO!, MICROSOFT AND GOOGLE." In the report Amnesty International stated that "Google has come closest to acknowledging publicly that its practices are at odds with its principles."
FCF is also concerned that like in the case of China which hacked and stole Google user data the same could happen to Cubans that speak out against the regime. Having servers in Cuban territory gives intelligence agencies unfettered access to servers, methods and technology they can now steal, making this bad for shareholders and U.S. interests.
Sadly eleven years later history may be repeating itself.
Friday, July 14, 2017
13 minute silent vigil for July's Cuban martyrs on July 13 at FIU's main fountain at 12 noon
Remembering two terrible days in July in Cuba
 |
| Free Cuba Foundation members together with Sirley Avila Leon hold vigil at FIU |
2017 marks 23 years since the massacre of 37 Cubans on July 13, 1994 when they tried to flee the island on board the Cuban tugboat "13 de marzo" by agents of the Castro regime. The crime was well documented by international human rights organizations and institutions.
July also marks five years since Oswaldo Payá Sardiñas, and Harold Cepero were killed by Cuban state security agents on July 22, 2012.
We gathered in silent protest for 13 minutes at the main fountain at Florida International University demanding justice for the victims of the "13 de Marzo" tugboat massacre and for martyrs Oswaldo Payá and Harold Cepero.
The event concluded with reading out the names of Oswaldo and Harold killed on July 22, 2012 and the 37 victims of the July 13, 1994 attack.
Flier held up by demonstrators during the protest
July 22, 2012 Extrajudicial Killings
Oswaldo José Payá Sardiñas. Age: 60
Harold Cepero Escalante. Age: 32
July 13, 1994 "13 de Marzo" Tugboat Massacre Victims
Hellen Martínez Enriquez. Age: 5 Months
Xicdy Rodríguez Fernández. Age: 2
Angel René Abreu Ruíz. Age: 3
José Carlos Niclas Anaya. Age: 3
Giselle Borges Alvarez. Age: 4
Caridad Leyva Tacoronte. Age: 5
Juan Mario Gutiérrez García. Age: 10
Yousell Eugenio Pérez Tacoronte. Age: 11
Yasser Perodín Almanza. Age: 11
Eliécer Suárez Plasencia. Age: 12
Mayulis Méndez Tacoronte. Age: 17
Miladys Sanabria Leal. Age: 19
Joel García Suárez. Age: 20
Odalys Muñoz García. Age: 21
Yalta Mila Anaya Carrasco. Age: 22
Luliana Enríquez Carrazana. Age: 22
Jorge Gregorio Balmaseda Castillo. Age: 24
Lissett María Alvarez Guerra. Age: 24
Ernesto Alfonso Loureiro. Age: 25
María Miralis Fernández Rodríguez. Age: 27
Leonardo Notario Góngora. Age: 28
Jorge Arquímedes Levrígido Flores. Age: 28
Pilar Almanza Romero. Age: 31
Rigoberto Feu González. Age: 31
Omar Rodríguez Suárez. Age: 33
Lázaro Enrique Borges Briel. Age: 34
Julia Caridad Ruíz Blanco. Age: 35
Martha Caridad Tacoronte Vega. Age: 35
Eduardo Suárez Esquivel. Age: 38
Martha Mirella Carrasco Sanabria. Age: 45
Augusto Guillermo Guerra Martínez. Age: 45
Rosa María Alcalde Puig. Age: 47
Estrella Suárez Esquivel. Age: 48
Reynaldo Joaquín Marrero Alamo. Age: 48
Amado González Raices. Age: 50
Fidencio Ramel Prieto Hernández. Age: 51
Manuel Cayol. Age: 56
Monday, July 10, 2017
Free Cardet poster flashed on to giant screens at Metallica concert in Miami
Shout out for Cuban dissidents during Metallica concert
Metallica's World Wired Tour stopped in Miami this past Friday opening with Hardwired, the song of their new album Hardwired ... to Self Destruct. The band posted their setlist for the night on Twitter.
This is what the human rights organization Amnesty International has to say about Eduardo Cardet:
The concert was amazing and the band ended the night with a video thank you to Miami.
 |
| Poster that was flashed up on the big screen during the Metallica concert in Miami |
— Metallica (@Metallica) July 8, 2017On several occasions images flashed up on the giant screen that left heavy metal fans scratching their heads. FREE CARDET was seen several times on the giant screen broadcast to tens of thousands of fans during the concert in the Hard Rock Stadium. Who is Cardet? many fans asked. He is a medical doctor, husband and father of two imprisoned since November 30, 2016 following a brutal beating in front of his family for criticizing the legacy of Fidel Castro.
Dr. Eduardo Cardet Concepción, leader of the Christian Liberation Movement (Movimiento Cristiano Liberación, MCL) since 2014 was sentenced to three years in prison on 20 March. He was arrested in Holguín on 30 November 2016, five days after the death of the former leader of Cuba, Fidel Castro. He has since been held in the provisional prison (prisión provisional) of Holguín and will remain there while he carries out the appeals.Below is a picture of Eduardo Cardet and an excerpt of the statement he made following the death of the Cuban dictator that led to his unjust prison sentence and his status as an Amnesty International prisoner of conscience.
The concert was amazing and the band ended the night with a video thank you to Miami.
Friday, July 7, 2017
13 minute silent vigil for July's Cuban martyrs on July 13 at FIU's main fountain at 12 noon
Remembering two terrible days in July in Cuba
2017 marks 23 years since the massacre of 37 Cubans on July 13, 1994 when they tried to flee the island on board the Cuban tugboat "13 de marzo" by agents of the Castro regime. The crime was well documented by international human rights organizations and institutions.July will mark five years since Oswaldo Payá Sardiñas, and Harold Cepero were killed by Cuban state security agents on July 22, 2012.
We will gather in silent protest at the main fountain at Florida International University and demand justice for the victims of the "13 de Marzo" tugboat massacre and for martyrs Oswaldo Payá and Harold Cepero.
Rosa Maria Payá Acevedo, Oswaldo's daughter, protesting in front of the Cuban Interests Section on July 10, 2014 observed a profound truth: "State crimes are never an issue exclusive to the families of the victims." In 2016 she accompanied Free Cuba Foundation members at Florida International University in a 13 minute moment of silence for July's Cuban martyrs.
Holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel explained in his 1986 Nobel Lecture why it is important to remember: "To forget the victims means to kill them a second time. So I couldn't prevent the first death. I surely must be capable of saving them from a second death." ... "There may be times when we are powerless to prevent injustice, but there must never be a time when we fail to protest." This is why we protest.
What: 13 Minute Silent Vigil
When: Thursday, July 13 at 12 noon
Where: Main Fountain at Florida International University
[Between Library, and Charles Perry (PC) building]
Why: Remember and Demand Justice for the Dead
July 22, 2012 Extrajudicial Killings
Oswaldo José Payá Sardiñas. Age: 60
Harold Cepero Escalante. Age: 32
July 13, 1994 "13 de Marzo" Tugboat Massacre Victims
Hellen Martínez Enriquez. Age: 5 Months
Xicdy Rodríguez Fernández. Age: 2
Angel René Abreu Ruíz. Age: 3
José Carlos Niclas Anaya. Age: 3
Giselle Borges Alvarez. Age: 4
Caridad Leyva Tacoronte. Age: 5
Juan Mario Gutiérrez García. Age: 10
Yousell Eugenio Pérez Tacoronte. Age: 11
Yasser Perodín Almanza. Age: 11
Eliécer Suárez Plasencia. Age: 12
Mayulis Méndez Tacoronte. Age: 17
Miladys Sanabria Leal. Age: 19
Joel García Suárez. Age: 20
Odalys Muñoz García. Age: 21
Yalta Mila Anaya Carrasco. Age: 22
Luliana Enríquez Carrazana. Age: 22
Jorge Gregorio Balmaseda Castillo. Age: 24
Lissett María Alvarez Guerra. Age: 24
Ernesto Alfonso Loureiro. Age: 25
María Miralis Fernández Rodríguez. Age: 27
Leonardo Notario Góngora. Age: 28
Jorge Arquímedes Levrígido Flores. Age: 28
Pilar Almanza Romero. Age: 31
Rigoberto Feu González. Age: 31
Omar Rodríguez Suárez. Age: 33
Lázaro Enrique Borges Briel. Age: 34
Julia Caridad Ruíz Blanco. Age: 35
Martha Caridad Tacoronte Vega. Age: 35
Eduardo Suárez Esquivel. Age: 38
Martha Mirella Carrasco Sanabria. Age: 45
Augusto Guillermo Guerra Martínez. Age: 45
Rosa María Alcalde Puig. Age: 47
Estrella Suárez Esquivel. Age: 48
Reynaldo Joaquín Marrero Alamo. Age: 48
Amado González Raices. Age: 50
Fidencio Ramel Prieto Hernández. Age: 51
Manuel Cayol. Age: 56
These crimes are not isolated but part of a pattern of extreme cruelty by the Castro regime. For those who advocate forgiveness and reconciliation in Cuba, the Free Cuba Foundation agrees with you, but we leave an important caveat first stated by Lewis B. Smedes, a theologian: When you give up vengeance, make sure you are not giving up on justice.
We will gather in silent protest at the main fountain at Florida International University and demand justice for the victims of the "13 de Marzo" tugboat massacre and for martyrs Oswaldo Payá and Harold Cepero.
 |
| Free Cuba Foundation members together with Rosa Maria Payá hold vigil at FIU |
Holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel explained in his 1986 Nobel Lecture why it is important to remember: "To forget the victims means to kill them a second time. So I couldn't prevent the first death. I surely must be capable of saving them from a second death." ... "There may be times when we are powerless to prevent injustice, but there must never be a time when we fail to protest." This is why we protest.
What: 13 Minute Silent Vigil
When: Thursday, July 13 at 12 noon
Where: Main Fountain at Florida International University
[Between Library, and Charles Perry (PC) building]
Why: Remember and Demand Justice for the Dead
July 22, 2012 Extrajudicial Killings
Oswaldo José Payá Sardiñas. Age: 60
Harold Cepero Escalante. Age: 32
July 13, 1994 "13 de Marzo" Tugboat Massacre Victims
Hellen Martínez Enriquez. Age: 5 Months
Xicdy Rodríguez Fernández. Age: 2
Angel René Abreu Ruíz. Age: 3
José Carlos Niclas Anaya. Age: 3
Giselle Borges Alvarez. Age: 4
Caridad Leyva Tacoronte. Age: 5
Juan Mario Gutiérrez García. Age: 10
Yousell Eugenio Pérez Tacoronte. Age: 11
Yasser Perodín Almanza. Age: 11
Eliécer Suárez Plasencia. Age: 12
Mayulis Méndez Tacoronte. Age: 17
Miladys Sanabria Leal. Age: 19
Joel García Suárez. Age: 20
Odalys Muñoz García. Age: 21
Yalta Mila Anaya Carrasco. Age: 22
Luliana Enríquez Carrazana. Age: 22
Jorge Gregorio Balmaseda Castillo. Age: 24
Lissett María Alvarez Guerra. Age: 24
Ernesto Alfonso Loureiro. Age: 25
María Miralis Fernández Rodríguez. Age: 27
Leonardo Notario Góngora. Age: 28
Jorge Arquímedes Levrígido Flores. Age: 28
Pilar Almanza Romero. Age: 31
Rigoberto Feu González. Age: 31
Omar Rodríguez Suárez. Age: 33
Lázaro Enrique Borges Briel. Age: 34
Julia Caridad Ruíz Blanco. Age: 35
Martha Caridad Tacoronte Vega. Age: 35
Eduardo Suárez Esquivel. Age: 38
Martha Mirella Carrasco Sanabria. Age: 45
Augusto Guillermo Guerra Martínez. Age: 45
Rosa María Alcalde Puig. Age: 47
Estrella Suárez Esquivel. Age: 48
Reynaldo Joaquín Marrero Alamo. Age: 48
Amado González Raices. Age: 50
Fidencio Ramel Prieto Hernández. Age: 51
Manuel Cayol. Age: 56
These crimes are not isolated but part of a pattern of extreme cruelty by the Castro regime. For those who advocate forgiveness and reconciliation in Cuba, the Free Cuba Foundation agrees with you, but we leave an important caveat first stated by Lewis B. Smedes, a theologian: When you give up vengeance, make sure you are not giving up on justice.
Monday, June 12, 2017
You could learn a lot about indoctrination and misrepresentation from the Castro regime in Cuba
What they don't tell you about "education"in Cuba
Pete Mandrapa, a teacher in Eugene-area schools, a member of the Eugene Education Association and the Community Alliance
for Public Education has written an opinion piece for The Register Guard on education in Cuba concluding that the "treatment of its youth and the focus on education is exemplary." Mr. Mandrapa also added that "We have a lot to learn from Cuba and its people."
First we would advise him and other prospective visitors to Cuba to read Paul Hollander's Political Pilgrims: Western Intellectuals in Search of the Good Society that studies and catalogs the strategies and tactics that totalitarian governments such as the Castro regime in Cuba use to misrepresent themselves. What Mr. Mandrapa experienced on his visit to Cuba was a Potemkin Village that has demonstrated its effectiveness in controlling the narrative with visiting groups. However with a few facts this fictional construct can crumble.
There is no right to education in Cuba if you dissent from the official line. Fếlix Yuniel Llerena López, a 20 year-old religious freedom defender, was expelled from the Enrique José Varona Pedagogical University in Havana on May 8, 2017 following a visit to the United States. 18-year-old journalism student, Karla Pérez González, was expelled from Marta Abreu University of Santa Clara for “political reasons” on April 12, 2017 and her expulsion ratified three days later on April 15th. 24 year old David Mauri Cardoso was expelled from the University of Cienfuegos in February of 2017 after he honestly answered politically loaded questions in what was supposed to be a Spanish literature exam.
This is not a new tactic. Expelling students and denying them an education for their political orientation has a long and shameful history, too often ignored. Sayli Navarro was expelled from her university in Matanzas for her political views in 2009. On November 13, 2002 Harold Cepero Escalante and Yoan Columbié Rodriguez, students in their fourth year of Veterinary Medicine, were expelled from the University of Camagüey and subjected to an act of repudiation after having signed a legal petition for human rights reforms called the Varela Project. This practice is not new. Fidel Castro declared in June of 1961 that outside of the revolution there are no rights. The regime also declared that universities are for revolutionaries.
However the persecution does not end with an individual, but family can also be targeted. For example if you have a relative who is a dissident, although you are not, you can still be fired from your job. Professor Dalila Rodriguez from the University of Las Villas was expelled from her job on May 9, 2017 because her father, Leonardo Rodriguez is a dissident.
Nevertheless, some still buy into the Castro regime narrative repeating the same old cliches on the Cuban education system that are not backed up by the historical record. First, according to the 1953 Cuba census, out of 4,376,529 inhabitants 10 years of age or older 23.6% were illiterate, a percentage lower than all other Latin American countries except Argentina (13.6%), Chile (19.6%), and Costa Rica (20.6%). Factoring only the population 15 years of age or older, the rate is lowered to 22.1%” Other countries in Latin America were able to achieve similar literacy rates to those claimed by the Castro regime without sacrificing civil liberties. (1)
The Slovak-based People in Peril conducted a study between 2005 and 2006 that generated a 77 page analysis, "What is the future of education in Cuba?", and its conclusions were grim. According to Eliska Slavikova in an interview with El Nuevo Herald on October 23, 2007 observed ''Cuban education is destroyed, with grave problems like the deterioration of the schools, the predominance of ideology over teaching and the bad preparation of teachers.'' The study made the following findings:
 |
| Clockwise: Harold Cepero, Sayli Navarro, David Mauri, Fếlix Yuniel, Karla Pérez |
First we would advise him and other prospective visitors to Cuba to read Paul Hollander's Political Pilgrims: Western Intellectuals in Search of the Good Society that studies and catalogs the strategies and tactics that totalitarian governments such as the Castro regime in Cuba use to misrepresent themselves. What Mr. Mandrapa experienced on his visit to Cuba was a Potemkin Village that has demonstrated its effectiveness in controlling the narrative with visiting groups. However with a few facts this fictional construct can crumble.
There is no right to education in Cuba if you dissent from the official line. Fếlix Yuniel Llerena López, a 20 year-old religious freedom defender, was expelled from the Enrique José Varona Pedagogical University in Havana on May 8, 2017 following a visit to the United States. 18-year-old journalism student, Karla Pérez González, was expelled from Marta Abreu University of Santa Clara for “political reasons” on April 12, 2017 and her expulsion ratified three days later on April 15th. 24 year old David Mauri Cardoso was expelled from the University of Cienfuegos in February of 2017 after he honestly answered politically loaded questions in what was supposed to be a Spanish literature exam.
This is not a new tactic. Expelling students and denying them an education for their political orientation has a long and shameful history, too often ignored. Sayli Navarro was expelled from her university in Matanzas for her political views in 2009. On November 13, 2002 Harold Cepero Escalante and Yoan Columbié Rodriguez, students in their fourth year of Veterinary Medicine, were expelled from the University of Camagüey and subjected to an act of repudiation after having signed a legal petition for human rights reforms called the Varela Project. This practice is not new. Fidel Castro declared in June of 1961 that outside of the revolution there are no rights. The regime also declared that universities are for revolutionaries.
However the persecution does not end with an individual, but family can also be targeted. For example if you have a relative who is a dissident, although you are not, you can still be fired from your job. Professor Dalila Rodriguez from the University of Las Villas was expelled from her job on May 9, 2017 because her father, Leonardo Rodriguez is a dissident.
Nevertheless, some still buy into the Castro regime narrative repeating the same old cliches on the Cuban education system that are not backed up by the historical record. First, according to the 1953 Cuba census, out of 4,376,529 inhabitants 10 years of age or older 23.6% were illiterate, a percentage lower than all other Latin American countries except Argentina (13.6%), Chile (19.6%), and Costa Rica (20.6%). Factoring only the population 15 years of age or older, the rate is lowered to 22.1%” Other countries in Latin America were able to achieve similar literacy rates to those claimed by the Castro regime without sacrificing civil liberties. (1)
The Slovak-based People in Peril conducted a study between 2005 and 2006 that generated a 77 page analysis, "What is the future of education in Cuba?", and its conclusions were grim. According to Eliska Slavikova in an interview with El Nuevo Herald on October 23, 2007 observed ''Cuban education is destroyed, with grave problems like the deterioration of the schools, the predominance of ideology over teaching and the bad preparation of teachers.'' The study made the following findings:
• There's been a ''pronounced'' departure of teachers to other jobs because of low salaries and the lack of social recognition.More recent analyses of the Cuban educational system in 2014 and 2015 arrive at the same conclusions on lack of quality, resources and continued politicization of the curriculum. The idea that some American educators view Cuba as an example that needs to be replicated in the United States should be grounds for malpractice. Cuba does not have an education system but a politically conditioned indoctrination system, that although deteriorated and not serving most young Cubans adequately, still manages to treat those who dissent even worse, often barring them from higher education on the island.
• Many teachers also left their jobs because of the government's growing ideological pressures. The primary objective of education is the formation of future revolutionary communists.
• The great majority of schools lack the equipment and installations needed to provide a good education.
• High school graduates have been put to teach after only an eight-month special course. But much of the teaching now is done through educational TV channels.
Tuesday, March 14, 2017
Students and Activists Declare Their Commitment to Struggle for a Free Cuba on the 40th Anniversary of the 13 de Marzo
20 years later a look back to a youth gathering at Florida International University on March 13, 1997. Over the next twenty years the Free Cuba Foundation would host and members of the Cuban Democratic Directorate would gather on February 24th to remember the victims of the Brothers to the Rescue shootdown and on July 13th to remember the victims of the "13 de marzo" tugboat massacre at Florida International University in a nonviolent call to justice.
 |
Ana Carbonell of Alliance of Young Cubans recalls student activism |
On March 13, 1997 at Florida International University student activists who have been fighting for the cause of Cuba's freedom since 1968 came together to declare once again their commitment for a free Cuba. Members of Abdala, Cuban Committee for Human Rights, Directorio Revolucionario Democratico Cubano, Generation 90, and the FREE CUBA Foundation spoke of their experiences through the years and addressed current problems.
The event began with Janisset Rivero of the Directrorio Revolucionario Democratico Cubano introducing an 11 minute video produced by Dr. Juan Clark which described the rafter crisis and the events leading up to the shootdown of the two Brothers to the Rescue planes on February 24, 1996 between 3:20 and 3:28pm. Mario De La Peña was a member of the Directorio Revolucionario Democratico Cubano, and Armando Alejandre Jr was an FIU alumnus.John Suarez of the FREE CUBA Foundation introduced the speakers and explained the purpose of this event. According to Mr. Suarez, "March 13, 1957, July 13, 1994, and February 24, 1996 are three tragic dates in Cuban history tied together for two reasons: on all three dates youth were brutally murdered, and each date, in a cause and effect fashion, leads to the next. The massacre of Cuba's young democratic leadership on March 13 opened a vacuum filled by Fidel Castro. Fidel Castro made Cuba a living hell which has driven millions of Cubans to leave the island, and the regime has sought with violence to stop this flight to freedom. The July 13 massacre of men, women and children aboard the 13 de Marzo tugboat is just another barbaric example. The outrage of the July 13 massacre touched the Cuban nation profoundly. It led to the overflights of Havana one year later on July 13, 1995 which so outraged the Castro regime that they shot down the planes over international waters on February 24, 1996. This is why the 40th anniversary of the Assault on the Presidential Palace on March 13, 1957 should be a time to reflect on what is happened, and what is left to be done."
Lorenzo De Toro III of G-90 spoke of the internal opposition and their need for support from the exile. Citing the examples of the dissidents in Poland and Czechoslovakia he predicted that the future leaders of Cuba are in Cuba and need our active support. De Toro played a recording of support for this reunion by one of the internal opposition groups.
Sebastian Arcos Cazabon of the Cuban Committee for Human Rights spoke of the present plight of the political prisoners and their families inside of Cuba. He called on the community to support the families of these political prisoners. When you are arrested for opposing the regime you go to prison, your relatives are blackballed, and your immediate family is unemployable. Without outside assistance there is no internal opposition.
Juan Jose De Castro of the DRDC made the argument for the necessity of using non-violence as a tool to struggle against the Castro tyranny. He observed that the opposition to Castro does not have an army, and therefore making a war is impossible. Furthermore, that one of our main flaws as Cubans has been our embracing of a culture of violence.
Ana M. Carbonell of the Alliance of Young Cubans spoke of their battle to raise awareness in Canada. The Alliance had raised funds and bought billboards which read: Your Paradise...Their Hell. The billboards contrast the tourists paradise with the Hell the Cuban people are suffering under an oppressive tyranny.
Pedro Solares of Abdala spoke of the necessity to integrate the current generation into the struggle against tyranny and injustice. He spoke of the days when many believed that socialism was the future, and how Abdala stood up to this tide of popular belief, and said No! He spoke of chaining themselves to the Statue of Liberty and shutting it down when Pedro Luis Boitel, a student leader, died on hunger strike in a Cuban dungeon.
At the end of the presentations, and the questions and answers that followed a declaration was signed by the various organizations. The FIU Declaration declared it support for the principles set out by Concilio Cubano, and pledges to support the leadership of the internal opposition, increase awareness of the plight of the political prisoners, embrace the principle of non-violent resistance, and call on the exile community to educate the present generation on the ongoing tragedy in Cuba.
The event ended with Janisset Rivero reading a list of the fallen brothers from the 13 de Marzo, and February 24 massacres. After each name the audience cried out "Presente." The last four names read out were: Armando Alejandre Jr. , Carlos Costa, Mario De La Peña, and Pablo Morales. After each of their names was read the audience cried out the loudest "Presentes" of the evening.
 |
| Free Cuba Foundation and G-90 Freedom Movement |
Monday, March 13, 2017
The FIU Declaration 20 Years Later: A call to nonviolent action on 13 de Marzo palace assault anniversary
Twenty years ago on March 13, 1997 forty years to the day after students assaulted the
Presidential Palace in Havana and perished trying to assassinate
Fulgencio Batista leaving Castro in a better position later to seize
power. Every free Cuba organization in FIU's history sat down for an evening and analyzed
the consequences of their actions. We also explored what were our
responsibilities as students and activists. At the end of the evening
the following document was signed. 20 years later we remember this
important and tragic anniversary and renew our call to action.
We the Students of Florida International University recognizing that Cuban students have played a leading role in the history of Cuba, do hereby declare our support for the principles, and purposes enshrined in Concilio Cubano's founding statement in Havana, on October 10, 1995:
FIRST: The determination to work for a non-violent transition toward a democratic society under the rule of law, devoid of any vindictiveness, and equally comprising all Cubans.
SECOND: Obtaining unconditional amnesty for all political prisoners.
THIRD: Launching a series of legal transformations that will provide the necessary framework, within the law, to secure absolute respect for all universally recognized human rights, as well as equal participation by all Cubans in an opening process that will lead to economic independence.
FOURTH: The belief that, in order to harmonize the peaceful transition we are advocating the principle that Cuba is the fatherland and the home of each and every Cuban, it is essential to provide such conditions as will guarantee participation for all Cubans, with no exclusions whatsoever.
Concilio Cubano was designed to be a permanent forum where all participating organizations could fashion joint proposals while maintaining their own identity. We the students believe that the systematic denial of human rights and human dignity in Cuba cannot be tolerated. We believe that the moral and pragmatic solution is non-violent resistance to the intolerable situation in Cuba. To this end we pledge our lives and our freedom.
March 13, 1997 marks the 40th anniversary of the assault on the Presidential Palace. On that day the blood of Cuba's university students was spilled in the cause of freedom. On February 24, 1996 our generation of Cuban youth had its first four losses in this struggle. Mario De La Peña, Armando Alejandre, an FIU alumnus, Carlos Costa and Pablo Morales where of our generation.
Forty years after the 13 of March. One year after the massacre of February 24. We the students who live in exile, wish to join with our brothers and sisters inside of Cuba for the liberation of our nation and the re- establishment of democracy and the rule of law in Cuba.
To this end we seek to follow the lead of the internal opposition, embrace the principles of non-violent resistance, speak out on behalf of Cuba's political prisoners, and issue a call to educate the children of the Cuban exile about the history and reality of the ongoing tragedy in Cuba.
Signed on March 13, 1997
Sebastian Arcos Cazabon
Comite Cubano Pro Derechos Humanos
Pedro Solares
Abdala
Ana M. Carbonell
Alianza de Jovenes Cubanos
Lorenzo de Toro III
Generacion 90
John Suarez
FREE CUBA Foundation
Juan Jose de Castro
Directorio Revolucionario Democratico Cubano
En castellano:
Nosotros, estudiantes universitarios y activistas de la causa de la
libertad de Cuba reunidos esta noche reconocemos que los
jóvenes cubanos han tenido un papel protagónico en la
historia de Cuba, y por tanto declaramos nuestro apoyo a los
principios y propósitos de Concilio Cubano, asentados en la
Declaración de Principios de Concilio Cubano realizada en La
Habana el 10 de octubre de 1995.
PRIMERO: La determinación de trabajar por una transición hacia la democracia a través de la noviolencia, sin venganzas, en igualdad y con la participación de todos los cubanos.
SEGUNDO: Obtención de la Amnistí a para todos los prisioneros politicos.
TERCERO: Llevar adelante una serie de transformaciones legales que provean del marco necesario, para que dentro de la ley se respeten los derechos humanos y la participación de todos los cubanos en un proceso de apertura que nos lleve a la independencia económica.
CUARTO: Creemos que para armonizar una transición pacífica debemos basarnos en el principio de que Cuba es la patria de cada cubano, pues es importante que no existan exclusiones en este proceso.
Concilio Cubano fue diseñado para convertirse en un foro permanente de la oposición interna donde, con la participación de todas las organizaciones de oposició n interna que lo conforman, se realicen proyectos conjuntos sin perder la identidad de cada una de las organizaciones.
Nosotros creemos, que la violación sistemática de los derechos humanos en Cuba es intolerable. Creemos que la solución moral y práctica a esta crisis es la estrategia de la resistencia cívica noviolenta. A este propósito dedicamos nuestras vidas y nuestra libertad
El 13 de marzo de 1997 marca el 40 aniversario del Asalto al Palacio Presidencial. Este dí a la sangre de jóvenes cubanos, estudiantes universitarios, empresarios y trabajadores fue derramada en nombre de la libertad.
El 24 de febrero de 1996 nuestra generación de jóvenes cubanos crecidos en el exilio dio las primeras cuatro vidas a la causa de la libertad: Pablo Morales, Mario De La Peña, Carlos Costa, y Armando Alejandre, hijo, este último graduado de esta Universidad Internacional de la Florida. Cuarenta años después del 13 de marzo de 1957, un año después del 24 de febrero de 1996, nosotros, cubanos nacidos o crecidos en exilio, deseamos unirnos a nuestras hermanas y hermanos dentro de la isla para lograr la liberación de nuestra patria y el restablecimiento de la democracia, los derechos y la ley en Cuba.
Por ese ideal apoyamos la oposición interna, abrazamos los principios de la resistencia cívica noviolenta, respaldamos y damos a conocer la realidad de nuestros presos políticos y hacemos por este medio un llamado a todos los exiliados para educar a los nuevos cubanos en el exilio de su historia, sus tradiciones y también la tragedia que vive hoy nuestro pueblo.
Firmado el 13 de marzo de 1997
Sebastian Arcos Cazabon
Comite Cubano Pro Derechos Humanos
Pedro Solares
Abdala
Ana M. Carbonell
Alianza de Jovenes Cubanos
Lorenzo de Toro III
Generacion 90
John Suarez
FREE CUBA Foundation
Juan Jose de Castro
Directorio Revolucionario Democratico Cubano
 |
| Gathering at FIU on March 13, 1997 |
Florida International University Declaration
We the Students of Florida International University recognizing that Cuban students have played a leading role in the history of Cuba, do hereby declare our support for the principles, and purposes enshrined in Concilio Cubano's founding statement in Havana, on October 10, 1995:
FIRST: The determination to work for a non-violent transition toward a democratic society under the rule of law, devoid of any vindictiveness, and equally comprising all Cubans.
SECOND: Obtaining unconditional amnesty for all political prisoners.
THIRD: Launching a series of legal transformations that will provide the necessary framework, within the law, to secure absolute respect for all universally recognized human rights, as well as equal participation by all Cubans in an opening process that will lead to economic independence.
FOURTH: The belief that, in order to harmonize the peaceful transition we are advocating the principle that Cuba is the fatherland and the home of each and every Cuban, it is essential to provide such conditions as will guarantee participation for all Cubans, with no exclusions whatsoever.
Concilio Cubano was designed to be a permanent forum where all participating organizations could fashion joint proposals while maintaining their own identity. We the students believe that the systematic denial of human rights and human dignity in Cuba cannot be tolerated. We believe that the moral and pragmatic solution is non-violent resistance to the intolerable situation in Cuba. To this end we pledge our lives and our freedom.
March 13, 1997 marks the 40th anniversary of the assault on the Presidential Palace. On that day the blood of Cuba's university students was spilled in the cause of freedom. On February 24, 1996 our generation of Cuban youth had its first four losses in this struggle. Mario De La Peña, Armando Alejandre, an FIU alumnus, Carlos Costa and Pablo Morales where of our generation.
Forty years after the 13 of March. One year after the massacre of February 24. We the students who live in exile, wish to join with our brothers and sisters inside of Cuba for the liberation of our nation and the re- establishment of democracy and the rule of law in Cuba.
To this end we seek to follow the lead of the internal opposition, embrace the principles of non-violent resistance, speak out on behalf of Cuba's political prisoners, and issue a call to educate the children of the Cuban exile about the history and reality of the ongoing tragedy in Cuba.
Signed on March 13, 1997
Sebastian Arcos Cazabon
Comite Cubano Pro Derechos Humanos
Pedro Solares
Abdala
Ana M. Carbonell
Alianza de Jovenes Cubanos
Lorenzo de Toro III
Generacion 90
John Suarez
FREE CUBA Foundation
Juan Jose de Castro
Directorio Revolucionario Democratico Cubano
 |
| Gathering at FIU on March 13, 1997 |
En castellano:
Declaración De La Universidad Internacional De La Florida
PRIMERO: La determinación de trabajar por una transición hacia la democracia a través de la noviolencia, sin venganzas, en igualdad y con la participación de todos los cubanos.
SEGUNDO: Obtención de la Amnistí a para todos los prisioneros politicos.
TERCERO: Llevar adelante una serie de transformaciones legales que provean del marco necesario, para que dentro de la ley se respeten los derechos humanos y la participación de todos los cubanos en un proceso de apertura que nos lleve a la independencia económica.
CUARTO: Creemos que para armonizar una transición pacífica debemos basarnos en el principio de que Cuba es la patria de cada cubano, pues es importante que no existan exclusiones en este proceso.
Concilio Cubano fue diseñado para convertirse en un foro permanente de la oposición interna donde, con la participación de todas las organizaciones de oposició n interna que lo conforman, se realicen proyectos conjuntos sin perder la identidad de cada una de las organizaciones.
Nosotros creemos, que la violación sistemática de los derechos humanos en Cuba es intolerable. Creemos que la solución moral y práctica a esta crisis es la estrategia de la resistencia cívica noviolenta. A este propósito dedicamos nuestras vidas y nuestra libertad
El 13 de marzo de 1997 marca el 40 aniversario del Asalto al Palacio Presidencial. Este dí a la sangre de jóvenes cubanos, estudiantes universitarios, empresarios y trabajadores fue derramada en nombre de la libertad.
El 24 de febrero de 1996 nuestra generación de jóvenes cubanos crecidos en el exilio dio las primeras cuatro vidas a la causa de la libertad: Pablo Morales, Mario De La Peña, Carlos Costa, y Armando Alejandre, hijo, este último graduado de esta Universidad Internacional de la Florida. Cuarenta años después del 13 de marzo de 1957, un año después del 24 de febrero de 1996, nosotros, cubanos nacidos o crecidos en exilio, deseamos unirnos a nuestras hermanas y hermanos dentro de la isla para lograr la liberación de nuestra patria y el restablecimiento de la democracia, los derechos y la ley en Cuba.
Por ese ideal apoyamos la oposición interna, abrazamos los principios de la resistencia cívica noviolenta, respaldamos y damos a conocer la realidad de nuestros presos políticos y hacemos por este medio un llamado a todos los exiliados para educar a los nuevos cubanos en el exilio de su historia, sus tradiciones y también la tragedia que vive hoy nuestro pueblo.
Firmado el 13 de marzo de 1997
Sebastian Arcos Cazabon
Comite Cubano Pro Derechos Humanos
Pedro Solares
Abdala
Ana M. Carbonell
Alianza de Jovenes Cubanos
Lorenzo de Toro III
Generacion 90
John Suarez
FREE CUBA Foundation
Juan Jose de Castro
Directorio Revolucionario Democratico Cubano
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)