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| Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez Parrilla |
Mr. President;
Distinguished Permanent
Representatives;
Delegates;
The United Nations General
Assembly will consider today, for the twenty-third time, this issue which is so
important to the international community, because it is related to
international law, which protects all states, large and small, rich and poor,
and guarantees their independence and the exercise of national sovereignty,
which is the basis of sovereign equality.
It is also directly linked
to the enjoyment of human rights by all persons and by all peoples.
This matter concerns
freedom of trade and navigation, which protects the interests of states,
companies and individuals.
We are, however, gathered
here at a very specific international conjuncture, characterized by serious
threats to international peace and security, atrocious wars and terrorist
actions of extreme cruelty, the risks posed by the existence of huge nuclear
arsenals and outrageous military expenditures - useless to the solution of any
of the serious problems facing the world’s population, which is rapidly
approaching the eight billion.
This is a critical moment
in the impact of climate change which, among other catastrophic consequences,
can provoke unprecedented famine, generalized extreme poverty in entire
regions, and massive waves of migration.
We are living in an age
characterized by a systemic global crisis, affecting simultaneously all
economic, food, energy and water components.
In addition to poverty,
which takes a higher toll on human lives than war, there is an increased risk
posed by serious diseases like the Ebola virus, an epidemic which could become
one of the worst pandemics in history, if it is not stopped and resolved in the
affected sister nations of Western Africa, through the immediate, effective
cooperation of all countries.
As was recently stated by
President Raúl Castro Ruz, “Such a noble and urgent endeavor demands the
indispensable commitment and dedication of every nation in the world, in
accordance with the ability of each. We are of the opinion that this grave
problem should not be politicized, to avoid the risk of losing track of the
main objective, which is helping to confront the epidemic in Africa and prevent
its expansion to other regions.”
Thus created is an
unprecedented combination of problems, old and new, leading toward making human
life unsustainable. None of these can be resolved if there is no change in our
attitude, in the manner in which we confront and attempt to transform reality,
and establish genuine cooperation in the interest of humanity’s survival.
As was recently written by
compañero Fidel Castro, “Any conscious person knows that political decisions
which involve risks to highly qualified personnel imply a high level of
responsibility on the part of those who call upon them to fulfill a dangerous
task. It is even more difficult than sending soldiers, who have also done so as
their duty, to combat and die for a just political cause.
“The medical professionals
who travel to any location whatsoever to save lives, even at the risk of losing
their own, provide the greatest example of solidarity a human being can offer …”
Mr. President:
It is a fact that, in
recent times, the economic, commercial and financial blockade imposed by the
United States on Cuba has been tightened and that its extraterritorial
application in all regions of the world has been intensified, in particular
with the levying of huge, unprecedented fines of some 11 billion dollars
against 38 banks, among them the French bank BNP Paribas, for processing
transactions with Cuba and other countries.
The accumulated economic
damages, which are huge for a small economy like ours, amount to
1,112,534,000,000 dollars, estimated on the basis of the price of gold, which
is being manipulated by those who created the nefarious monetary system
currently in force, and is being affected by the impact of an insurmountable
crisis, and batters the poorest countries.
Human damages caused by the
blockade are on the rise. The number of Cubans who have been born under these
circumstances has already reached 77% of the population. The hardships families
face are incalculable. There are many international conventions which proscribe
the blockade, including the Geneva Convention of 1948 against genocide. The
exercise of human rights by an entire people is being impaired. The economic
development of the country is seriously hampered.
Although our health and
social care systems manage to prevent the loss of human life, no honest person,
whether in the United States or the world, could agree with the devastating
consequences caused by the blockade.
Despite all of this, our
national culture, our education and protection of equal rights and
opportunities, allow us to be a cultured and fraternal nation.
Mr. President:
On both sides of the
Florida Straits, the peoples of the United States and Cuba have always shared
close ties.
Despite the systematic,
slanderous campaigns launched against our country over half a century, the U.S.
people supported the return to his family of a Cuban child kidnapped in 1999.
Cuba offered all possible
assistance in the immediate aftermath of the terrible terrorist actions
occurred on September 11, 2001, when thousands of aircraft in flight were left
without a place to land, and, later on, to alleviate the deficit of
antibiotics, at the time of the anthrax attacks in the United States.
In 2005, truly concerned
about the damage caused by Hurricane Katrina, we offered our medical
cooperation to the people of New Orleans, a moment that led to the creation of
a medical contingent specialized in the management of disasters and epidemics -
which bears the name of Henry Reeve, a heroic young U.S. citizen who fought for
the independence of Cuba back in the 19th century - now being deployed in
Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea. This prestigious name identifies the brigade
which in 2005 assisted Pakistan in the aftermath of an earthquake there, and
continued to engage in productive cooperation with the U.S. military medical
personnel, which had already begun in El Salvador, after the earthquake of
2001, and later in Guatemala in the 2002 and 2003, to treat onchocerciasis,
known as “river blindness.”
In 2010, after the
earthquake in Haiti, the United States and Cuba also cooperated to assist that
long-suffering nation.
The Cuban Government has
invariably shared with the U.S. government reports on terrorist actions and
attacks against the United States being planned.
Despite the old tensions,
and the attempts by violent extremists and terrorist groups to inflame these,
there has been no war, no young U.S. soldier has died in Cuba. Cuba, despite
being slandered, has never been a threat to the national security of the United
States.
There is no hostility
between our peoples. Cuba hospitably welcomes the few U.S. citizens who are
allowed by their government to visit our country, or who face the legal risks
which may result from doing so, as well as those who come to offer humanitarian
assistance, such as members of “Pastors for Peace,” or to study Medicine.
Well known are opinion
polls showing increasing majority support from absolutely all sectors of U.S.
society for the lifting of the blockade, and normalization of bilateral
relations. Particularly noteworthy is the fact that this support is even more
marked in Florida, something also confirmed by voting trends observed during
the most recent Presidential elections.
Political figures from
diverse tendencies, as well as outstanding scholars, have recognized that this
policy has failed to meet its purpose, and has not served the national
interests of this powerful country. Suffice it to read the editorials published
by The New York Times in recent weeks.
Religious leaders have
cited legitimate and indisputable ethical and humanitarian reasons for a
change.
U.S. citizens are demanding
the freedom to travel to the only place on the planet where they are prohibited
from doing so, as well as for the right to receive direct, personal information
about Cuba’s reality.
Entrepreneurial
organizations and business people believe that the blockade harms their
economic interests. Majority public opinion is opposed to maintaining the
current state of affairs and is expressing this in an ever more critical way.
Cuban émigrés have been
affected by discriminatory measures, and must cope with numerous obstacles
hindering family reunification, travel in both directions, the excessive costs
imposed on them, political manipulation and even terrorist violence. But the
majority wishes peace and wellbeing for their relatives and their people, and a
normal relation with their nation of origin.
What’s the point of
encouraging the illegal use of information technologies instead of authorizing
mutually beneficial business in the area of telecommunications? What’s the
point of preventing Cuba’s connection to nearby underwater cables, thus
limiting and hindering our connectivity?
The blockade is harmful to
Cuba, but it is also harmful to the United States.
The absurd and ridiculous
inclusion of Cuba on the list of state sponsors of international terrorism,
which has been used to justify the imposition of additional financial
sanctions, only serves to discredit the United States.
The 16 years of unjust
imprisonment imposed by fraudulent means on the three Cuban anti-terrorist
fighters has not weakened them. Quite on the contrary, it made them heroes and
an example for future generations of Cubans, as well as a source of pride for
those whose sacrifices contribute to paving the way toward a new Cuba.
The decision to lift the
blockade will be welcomed on a global level, and will become a unifying influence
in the interest of peace and the peaceful resolution of conflicts and
differences.
After the limited but
positive measures of 2009 and 2011 regarding family visits, remittances sent by
Cubans settled in the U.S. and travel licenses for certain categories of U.S.
citizens to engage in exchanges of various sorts, the technical dialogue has
been expanded to include other aspects, and cooperation has increased in areas
such as the confrontation of drug trafficking, transnational crime, trafficking
in persons, oil spill prevention, search and rescue operations, air and
aviation safety, or in the event of any other specific occurrence.
The reaction on the part of
U.S. society and the international community to these modest advances has been
one of support and encouragement.
President Barack Obama has
the constitutional prerogative, with no Congressional support required, to
modify crucial aspects of the blockade and introduce a new, decisive dynamic in
our bilateral relations.
Mr. President:
We invite the government of
the United States to establish a mutually respectful relationship, based on
reciprocity, sovereign equality, the principles of international law and the UN
Charter.
We can attempt to find a
solution to our differences through respectful dialogue and cooperation in
areas of common interest. We can live and relate to each other in a civilized
manner, despite our differences.
Cuba will never renounce
its sovereignty, or the path freely chosen by its people to build a more just,
efficient, prosperous and sustainable socialism. It will never forego its quest
for a different international order, nor cease in its struggle for “the
equilibrium of the world.”
Mr. President;
Distinguished Permanent
Representatives and delegates;
At this difficult and
special conjuncture, I must ask you to vote in favor of draft Resolution
A/69/L.4 entitled “The necessity of ending the economic, commercial and
financial embargo imposed by the United States of America on Cuba,” to support
the idea that the current serious problems facing humanity require a change in
our way of relating to one another, to be able to resolve these problems, to
preserve peace and human life.
Thank you very much.
Source: Granma
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