Cuba celebrates a victory in its struggle against the U.S. blockade with overwhelming support in the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) against the U.S. economic embargo

The extraterritorial impact of the blockade harms the sovereignty of the countries of the United Nations, sanctions their businessmen and impedes access to their ports for third party ships that dock in Cuba

By Maby Martinez Rodriguez

Cuba celebrates Thursday a new victory in its struggle against the U.S. blockade, by achieving overwhelming support in the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) for a resolution approved by 185 votes in favor, two against and two abstentions.

The report presented for the thirtieth time states that only between August 2021 and February 2022 that unilateral policy caused Cuba losses in the order of 3,806.5 million dollars.  The figure is 49% higher than that reported between January and July 2021 and a record in just seven months.

At current prices, the accumulated damages during six decades of the blockade amount to 150,410.8 million dollars, with a great weight on sectors such as health and education, in addition to the damage to the national economy and the quality of life of Cuban families.

In the first 14 months of the Biden Administration alone, the losses caused by the blockade amounted to 6,364 million dollars, which is equivalent to an impact of more than 454 million dollars a month and more than 15 million dollars a day, according to the document.

The extraterritorial impact of the blockade harms the sovereignty of the countries of the United Nations, sanctions their businessmen and impedes access to their ports for third party ships that dock in Cuba.  It also prevents the importation into Cuba of articles produced in any country when they have 10% or more of U.S. components, the foreign minister denounced.

Source

Assembly of the Peoples of the Caribbean Calls for Caribbean Solidarity

The Caribbean Meeting of Solidarity with Cuba denounces the intensification of the blockade and the destabilizing actions of the United States against Cuba, as well as the ratification that the island has not been and is not alone in its struggle of more than 60 years

Cuba will never fail his brother peoples

Caribbean voices demanded the elimination of the U.S. blockade against the island

By Eduardo Palomares Calderón | palomares@granma.cu

Santiago de Cuba– The denunciation of the intensification of the blockade and the destabilizing actions of the United States against Cuba, as well as the ratification that the island has not been and is not alone in its struggle of more than 60 years, stand out in the final declaration of the Caribbean Meeting of Solidarity with Cuba, in the framework of the 9th Assembly of the Peoples of the Caribbean, which was held in this city.

The text proposes the formation of an anti-imperialist united front to respond quickly and forcefully to any action against Cuba or other peoples of the continent.

It also calls for a Caribbean solidarity event next year in Santiago de Cuba, in salute to the 70th anniversary of the Moncada heroic deed and the 50th anniversary of the constitution of Caricom.  It conveys its solidarity support to the Haitian people in the solution of its internal problems, and to the struggle of Puerto Rico for its full independence.

Danniel Sanó, in his message on behalf of Haiti, called for the development of concrete actions to prevent the imperium's attempts to asphyxiate the Island and assured that raising that flag for the Cuban Revolution is to raise, at the same time, the flag of hope of the oppressed peoples to be truly free, like Fidel's Cuba.

The Hero of the Republic of Cuba and president of the Cuban Institute of Friendship with the Peoples, Fernando Gonzalez Llort, thanked the support for the strengthening of the network of solidarity with Cuba, and affirmed that this island will never fail its brother peoples of the region.

Also present at the Salón de los Vitrales, in the Plaza Mayor General Antonio Maceo, was Ángel Arzuaga Reyes, vice chief and coordinator of the Department of International Relations of the Central Committee of the Party.

Source

The Cuban Revolutionary Government denounces the more than 60 years of the economic, commercial and financial blockade on Cuba - formally imposed by the U.S. on February 3, 1962

Sixty years ago today, a Presidential Proclamation formalized the criminal U.S. blockade against Cuba

....It is the practical expression of the Monroe Doctrine in the 21st century, which views Latin America and the Caribbean from the perspective of an owner, whether it be the "back or front yard."

Revolutionary Government Statement

Author: Granma | internet@granma.cu

february 3, 2022 10:02:47

The Revolutionary Government denounces the more than 60 years of the economic, commercial and financial blockade formally imposed by the U.S. on February 3, 1962. On this date, then President John F. Kennedy issued Proclamation 3447, which decreed a total "embargo" on trade with our country under section 620 (a) of the Foreign Assistance Act, thus formalizing the aggressive, unilateral economic actions taken against Cuba since the Revolution triumphed.

Since then, the policy of encirclement and economic asphyxiation has been consolidated as the central axis of a strategy meant to restrict the legitimate right of Cubans to defend our sovereignty and forge an emancipatory project, without imperialist domination.

The main justification used by the U.S. at the time, to support implementation of the measure, was Cuba's relationship with socialist countries, which allegedly violated "the principles of the inter-American system" and threatened U.S. and hemispheric security. Over time, the pretexts have varied, but the intent remains the same.

The most precise definition of the true objectives of U.S. policy toward Cuba policy had been stated previously, in a memorandum from Under Secretary of State Lester D. Mallory, dated April 6, 1960, which recommended fomenting, "disenchantment and disaffection based on economic dissatisfaction and hardship… denying money and supplies to Cuba, to decrease monetary and real wages, to bring about hunger, desperation and overthrow of government."

The blockade has evolved to become the most complex, prolonged and inhumane act of economic warfare committed against any nation. Its impact has limited the possibilities of economic development, being designed to prevent trade relations with third countries, hinder banking and financial operations as much as possible, limit foreign investment and cut off all sources of income.

It is an essentially extraterritorial policy, in violation of international law, which seeks, through pressure, coercion and punitive measures, to isolate Cuba and punish those who establish any economic, commercial and financial relations with the country. It is the practical expression of the Monroe Doctrine in the 21st century, which views Latin America and the Caribbean from the perspective of an owner, whether it be the "back or front yard."

The blockade has never had the slightest trace of legitimacy or moral justification.  It constitutes a massive, flagrant and systematic violation of the human rights of all Cubans. It qualifies as an act of genocide under the 1948 Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide.

To justify the blockade, the U.S. government feels obliged to use lies and hide its criminal impact, promoting and financing a campaign intended to sell the idea that the effects of the blockade are not real, that they do not really harm the Cuban economy, that they are not a significant problem for our development or economic stability. This is a falsehood that is disseminated by powerful media at the service of imperialism and digital networks designed to influence the thinking of many, even that of some compatriots.

The accumulated damages over these six decades have surpassed 144,413,400,000 dollars at current prices.

Since 2019, coercive economic measures have become qualitatively more aggressive. Unconventional warfare methods are being utilized, inappropriate in peacetime, in an effort to deprive Cuba of fuel supplies.

In the context of the COVID-19 battle, the tightening of the blockade has reached unimaginable limits of cruelty, obstructing solidarity donations, attempting to hinder the development of Cuban vaccines and limit access to medicines and basic supplies. 

During the pandemic, and throughout these 60 years, the blockade has had an incalculable human cost and several generations have felt it in the flesh.

The strengths of the Cuban socialist system and the unity of our people have made this possible, in spite of the blockade, preventing the economic and social collapse it seeks, achieving outstanding human development, according to indices recognized by the United Nations, ensuring unquestionable progress in social justice and conducting a gradual transformation of our economic and productive structures in search of sustainable development. Given this reality, one might ask how many small, underdeveloped economies could have survived aggression of such proportions.

This policy of economic encirclement has met with practically unanimous and universal rejection. In addition to overwhelming support for the resolution passed every year by the United Nations General Assembly, individuals, organizations and institutions around the world make constant demands and organize actions to condemn the blockade, including within the United States itself.

Since 1959, thirteen Presidents have occupied the White House. In all cases, with some subtle differences, the permanent commitment has been maintained to provoke the economic collapse and the unsustainability of our revolutionary project, through the strict imposition of the blockade. It would seem that 60 years have not been enough for its promoters to understand that the objectives have not, and will not be attained.

The Revolutionary Government, on behalf of the Cuban people, emphatically and energetically demands, once again, the lifting of the economic, commercial and financial blockade imposed by the U.S. Our condemnation will remain firm and invariable, until this inhuman, illegal policy is ended, in its entirety.

Havana, February 3, 2022

Source

Only socialism will save the planet, affirms Chávez at the UN

UNITED NATIONS, September 24.—President Hugo Chávez of Venezuela affirmed here today that socialism is the only true way forward for the salvation of the planet. "Only with socialism will we achieve real changes, a new Indo-American, Martí, Bolivarian socialism," stated the Venezuelan leader, speaking at the 64th session of the UN General Assembly.
Prensa Latina notes that, in the context of that idea, the dignitary called on the world to accept that there is a revolution in Latin America of a geopolitical nature and with very profound roots.

"South of the border," he said in reference to the film of the same name by Oliver Stone, "there is a revolution and the world has to see that and take it on, a necessary revolution that is large and will continue growing, nobody can detain it."

Chávez urged his U.S. counterpart, Barack Obama, to take concrete action coherent with his political discourse, which is why he wondered if there were two Obamas.

"I prefer to believe in the Obama who stood here yesterday and said that he would fight for world peace. What he said was that no government should impose on any other nation. So, Obama, why don’t you act accordingly and abandon the savage blockade of Cuba?" he asked.

Referring to climate change, Chávez said that the cause of contamination is hyper-consumerism, noting that reserves of gas and oil are being exhausted and that some people seemed to think that this is a metaphysical preoccupation. He went on to quote various excerpts of Fidel Castro’s Reflection "An endangered species."

He stated that the U.S. president, who advocated the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons, should begin that process in his own powerful nation: "destroy your arms," he affirmed.

Applauded at various points of his speech to the Assembly, Chávez also condemned the coup d’état in Honduras.

He made particular reference to the repression unleashed on the Honduran people by the coup government and the harassment of the Brazilian embassy in Tegucigalpa, where the constitutional president, Manuel Zelaya has been staying for three days. He called on Honduran soldiers, the sons of Morazán, to stop repressing the people, a people with 90 days on the streets resisting, he stressed.

Chávez criticized the United States for still failing to recognize the existence of a military coup in Honduras and for the contradictory actions of the White House in response to that grave political situation.

He explained that it has become evident that there is a battle between the State Department and the Pentagon, which latter institution wants to dominate the world and is behind the coup. "We ask for the UN resolutions on the reestablishment of constitutional order in Honduras to be fulfilled," Chávez underlined.

He likewise called on Washington to withdraw the 4th Fleet from Latin America and the Caribbean, as well as to abandon the seven military bases in Colombia, given that they constitute a serious and real threat to regional peace.

According to ABN, referring to the U.S. president’s speech, Chávez commented that it didn’t smell of sulfur, recalling the expression he used three years ago in that same scenario in relation to George W. Bush. "It smells more of hope and we have to give heart to hope." He added that he is of the opinion that, just like Kennedy, the current president is intelligent. "God spare Obama from the bullets that killed Kennedy."

MORE VOICES AGAINST THE BLOCKADE

South African President Jacob Zuma urged a fundamental reform of the international financial institutions and the United Nations, and added, "We also urge the lifting of the economic, commercial and financial blockade of Cuba."

For his part, the president of Sao Tome and Principe, Fradique Bandeira Melo de Menezes, noted that his country is disappointed at the little progress made in relation to the blockade of Cuba. "We hope that the new president of the United States will bring this matter to an end," he stated.

Translated by Granma International

granma.cu

Bahamas Blog Bahamas

Calls at UN for anti-Cuba blockade to be lifted

• Leaders speak in
favor of reforming the organization

NEW YORK, September 23.— Brazilian President Luiz
Inácio Lula da Silva stated that without a political
will, obsolete measures such as the U.S. blockade of
Cuba will continue to exist. The dignitary was the
first speaker at the 64th Session of the UN General
Assembly, which took place today.

For his part, Uruguayan President Tabaré Vázquez,
stated that as Americans, "we feel the ethical duty
and political responsibility of likewise reiterating
in this international forum that we will persevere
in our efforts toward American integration without
exclusions, exceptions, or blockades like the one
affecting Cuba."

Likewise, Bolivian leader Evo Morales stated that
in order to change the world, "we will first have to
change the UN and end the blockade of Cuba."

Meanwhile, during yesterday’s session, U.S.
President Barack Obama called for a "new era of
commitment" to the world and promised to work
alongside other nations while defending his own
country’s interests.

"The time has come for the world to move in a new
direction. We must embrace a new era of engagement
based on mutual interest and mutual respect," said
Obama during his speech before the Assembly.

Meanwhile, French President Nicolas Sarkozy
proposed reaching an agreement on a provisional
reform of the Security Council before the end of the
year. "The crisis is forcing us to demonstrate
imagination and boldness," he said, stating that,
"in politics, the economy and environmental policy,
the need for global government is imperative," EFE
reports.

Libyan leader Muammer Gaddafi also called for a
reform of the UN, by transforming the General
Assembly into its central apparatus and transferring
the prerogatives of the Security Council to that
authority.

He also commented that, according to the UN
Charter, all countries are equal, irrespective of
their size, but the vast majority of them are not
represented on the Council.

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and Libyan
diplomat Ali Treki, General Assembly president for
the next period, both called for a reinforcement of
multilateralism.

For the former, this is the time to act with a
spirit of renewed multilateralism, to create "a
United Nations of genuine collective action".

Among the most important issues facing the
international organization, Ban mentioned nuclear
disarmament and the battle against poverty and
climate change.

Meanwhile, Treki alerted delegates to current
challenges related to peace and international
security. He identified the challenges of conflicts
among states, civil wars, weapons of mass
destruction, terrorism, organized crime, the
deterioration of the environment, extreme poverty
and the spread of infectious diseases.

The Libyan diplomat called on members to work for
the revitalization of the General Assembly and "a
more representative and reformed Security Council."
He also reaffirmed a commitment to the environment
and a non-selective approach to the issue of human
rights.

Translated by Granma International

granma.cu

Bahamas Caribbean Blog International