Dominica has reiterated a call for the United States to remove its decades-old trade and economic embargo against Cuba as a Cuban diplomat predicts “one day we will celebrate the end of the blockade.”
Foreign Affairs Minister Dr. Kenneth Darroux, addressing a weekend motorcade and rally organized by the Dominica-Cuba Friendship Association, said, “while we recognize the efforts of the U.S. government in recent days to increase flights to some cities in Cuba and also some headway in the remittances allowed to Cuba and now visas can be processed in Cuba, we are saying thanks…a lot more can be done.
“Cuba needs to have a seat at the table,” said Darroux, noting that most of the measures were being implemented unilaterally by Washington, insisting “Cuba needs to be there when Cuba is being discussed.
“We recognize and feel encouraged by these measures, but we are asking that much more need to be done, and we are asking that the U.S. remove, lift this unjust blockade against Cuba,” Darroux said.
The United States embargo against Cuba prevents American businesses and businesses organized under U.S. law or majority-owned by American citizens from conducting trade with Cuban interests. It is the most enduring trade embargo in modern history.
The U.S. first imposed an embargo on the sale of arms to Cuba on March 14, 1958, during the Fulgencio Batista regime, and on February 7, 1962, the embargo was extended to include almost all exports. The United Nations General Assembly has passed a resolution every year since 1992 demanding the end of the U.S. economic embargo on Cuba, with the U.S. and Israel being the only nations to consistently vote against the resolutions.
Darroux told the rally that it was also vexing that Washington should be described as terrorists, members of the Henry Reeve Brigade, the international contingent of doctors specializing in disasters and serious epidemics that was awarded the prestigious 2017 Dr. Lee Jong-Wook Memorial Prize for Public Health at a World Health Assembly (WHA).
“They have been labeled as state-sponsored terrorists by the U.S. government. Can you imagine that? People who leave their homes and families to assist countries like ours in times of need have been labeled by the U.S. government as state-sponsored terrorists. We are also asking that Cuba be removed from that list and be removed right now,” Darroux said.
Cuba’s Ambassador to Dominica, Ulises Aranz Fernandez, who also addressed the event, said the worldwide condemnation of the blockade has been increasing.
He said since 1992, the U.N. has approved a resolution calling for the end of the blockade. He said in the last vote at the U.N., 184 countries voted in favor of removing the trade and economic embargo while the U.S. and other countries voted against and three abstained.
He said last month, rallies and motorcades took place in 24 cities around the world, “including New York and Miami, calling for the removal of the blockade.
“Our people and our government will be eternally grateful to the people and government of Dominica for joining us in the battle to end the economic, financial, and commercial blockade by the U.S. government and for defending the sovereignty and independence of Cuba.
“One day, we will celebrate the end of the blockade because we are sure that the global battle to eliminate the blockade will bear fruits,” the diplomat said.
President of the Dominica-Cuba Friendship Association, Dr. Damien Dublin, said Cuba had played a significant role in the socio-economic development of the island, noting the impact of Cuban-trained local professionals operating there.
“We have graduates in all spheres, and the good thing about Cuban graduates, they return to contribute,” he told the rally, adding, “that’s why we stand resolute today in solidarity with Cuba.”
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