{"id":19402,"date":"2021-07-17T13:29:36","date_gmt":"2021-07-17T20:29:36","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/?p=19402"},"modified":"2021-07-17T13:29:38","modified_gmt":"2021-07-17T20:29:38","slug":"cuba-wants-to-be-free-not-from-communism-but-from-us-sanctions-cuba-quiere-ser-libre-no-del-comunismo-sino-de-las-sanciones-de-us","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/2021\/07\/17\/cuba-wants-to-be-free-not-from-communism-but-from-us-sanctions-cuba-quiere-ser-libre-no-del-comunismo-sino-de-las-sanciones-de-us\/","title":{"rendered":"CUBA WANTS TO BE FREE\u2014NOT FROM COMMUNISM, BUT FROM US SANCTIONS [CUBA QUIERE SER LIBRE\u2014NO DEL COMUNISMO, SINO DE LAS SANCIONES DE US]"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

WED, 7\/14\/2021 – BY\u00a0CARL GIBSON<\/a>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0(Occupy.com)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Una versi\u00f3n Espa\u00f1ol de este art\u00edculo aparece debajo de la versi\u00f3n original. (A Spanish language version of this article appears below the original version.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Traducci\u00f3n Espa\u00f1ol de Lola Ellis. (Spanish translation by Lola Ellis.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For several days, thousands of Cubans have been marching in the streets of Havana, protesting a lack of food and medicine and the rapid spread of Covid-19 throughout the island. Readers of US-based, corporate-owned media outlets might think the protests are against \u201cthe communist regime<\/a>,\u201d and President Joe Biden has attributed<\/a> the protests to \u201cdecades of repression and economic suffering\u201d brought on by \u201cCuba\u2019s authoritarian regime.\u201d While Cuba\u2019s suffering is very real and the Cuban people are right to protest, the island nation\u2019s economic and health crises can actually be directly attributed to the strict, 60-year-old trade embargo the US has continued to impose on Cuba.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The embargo<\/a> first put in place by President John F. Kennedy in 1962, and the terrorist designation imposed by President Ronald Reagan in 1982, were both lifted by President Barack Obama in 2015, only to be re-established by President Donald Trump not long after he took office in 2017. As of this writing, President Biden still has not lifted Trump-era restrictions on Cuba, even in spite of all but nine members of the United Nations<\/a> voting to condemn the embargo in June. The continued sanctions have made buying food particularly costly, leading to the food shortages that have spurred the recent wave of protests.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Given the US\u2019 close proximity to Cuba, the Caribbean island nation depends on the United States for its food. In 2020 alone, the Congressional Research Service estimated that Cuba imported more than $150 million<\/a> worth of agricultural products from the US. According to Cuban President Miguel D\u00ecaz-Canel, approximately two million foreign exchange earnings<\/a> are needed to buy food, which makes it cost-prohibitive to feed the island\u2019s inhabitants with US-based imports. The US government began requiring pre-payments for food shipments to Cuba in 2005<\/a>, which farming groups said at the time were \u201ccontrary to the norms of international trade.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cuba\u2019s Covid-19 surge is also a byproduct of the US trade blockade, not the government-run healthcare system. Despite the embargo, the communist nation\u2019s healthcare system was lauded<\/a> in 2015 by The Lancet, one of the world\u2019s most prestigious medical journals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAlthough the embargo has had severe consequences for many sectors of Cuban life, such as infrastructures and technologies, health has been a success,\u201d The Lancet wrote. \u201cCuba\u2019s health system has been able to solve some issues other countries have not. The Cuban health system, which is free and firmly anchored in disease prevention and primary care, provides good health outcomes at a cost within the reach of most middle-income countries.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cuba also established itself as a leader in the global response to the Covid-19 pandemic. In addition to producing its own vaccine<\/a>, Cuba also dispatched dozens of its doctors in 2020 to approximately 40 different countries on five continents<\/a> to help under-developed populations contain the spread of the virus. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The recent surge in new Covid-19 cases<\/a> is almost certainly exacerbated by a syringe shortage resulting from the US trade embargo. Even though two million of the island\u2019s 11 million citizens have already been vaccinated, a lack of syringes is making it impossible for the Cuban government to inoculate the remainder of the population. Global Health Partners estimates that Cuba needs 30 million syringes<\/a> to finish the job, though the country is still roughly 20 million syringes short of that goal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Given that lifting the trade embargo would seemingly solve the issues behind the wave of protests in Cuba, the US\u2019 apparent lack of interest in doing so could be attributed to its decades-long goal of destabilizing the communist government in order to foment regime change through hardship and suffering. In 1960, US State Department official Lester Mallory wrote<\/a> that \u201cevery possible means should be undertaken promptly to weaken the economic life of Cuba.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIf such a policy is adopted, it should be the result of a positive decision which would call forth a line of action which, while as adroit and inconspicuous as possible, makes the greatest inroads in denying money and supplies to Cuba, to decrease monetary and real wages, to bring about hunger, desperation, and overthrow of government,\u201d Mallory wrote.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This anti-Cuba mindset continues today, with bipartisan support. State Department appropriations bills from both 2019<\/a> and 2020<\/a> allocated tens of millions of dollars to \u201cdemocracy programs\u201d in Cuba. Notably, Section 7007 of the 2020 legislation expressly stated that \u201cnone of the funds appropriated or otherwise made available\u201d will go to the Cuban government, including \u201cdirect loans, credits, insurance and guarantees of the Export-Import Bank or its agents.\u201d This suggests that Congress specifically allocated these funds to support efforts to destabilize Cuba.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The United States\u2019 contribution to Cuba\u2019s suffering has not gone unnoticed by its neighbors. Mexican President Andr\u00e9s Manuel L\u00f3pez Obrador recently<\/a> called on the Biden administration to lift US sanctions on Cuba and end the blockade.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cNo country of the world should be under siege, blockaded. That is the most contrary thing you can do against human rights,\u201d Obrador said. \u201cYou cannot create a siege to isolate an entire people, not for political reasons or any other reason. No one can, no one has the right to take those decisions that affect the people.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Even though former President Trump reinstated the trade embargo, President Biden controls the State Department, and his party controls both chambers of Congress. The 243 separate measures the Trump administration imposed on Cuba still remain in place<\/a> nearly six months after Biden took office. The only thing that currently stands in the way of help for the Cuban people is political will.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Carl Gibson is a freelance journalist and columnist whose work has been published in CNN, The Guardian, The Washington Post, The Houston Chronicle, Barron\u2019s, Business Insider, The Independent, and NPR, among others. Follow him on Twitter @crgibs<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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CUBA QUIERE SER LIBRE\u2014NO DEL COMUNISMO, SINO DE LAS SANCIONES DE US<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Por varios d\u00edas, miles de cubanos han estado marchando en las calles de Habana, protestando por la falta de comida y medicina y la acelerada transmisi\u00f3n de COVID-19 alrededor de la isla. Lectores de las noticias basadas en los estados unidos, que son a lo grande controlados y pose\u00eddas por corporaciones, puede que piensen que las protestas son contra “el r\u00e9gimen comunista,<\/a>” y el presidente Joe Biden ha atribuido<\/a> las protestas a “d\u00e9cadas de represi\u00f3n y sufrimiento econ\u00f3mico” por causa del “r\u00e9gimen autoritario de Cuba.” Mientras el sufrimiento de Cuba es muy real y la gente de Cuba tiene raz\u00f3n en sus protestas, las crisis econ\u00f3micas y de salud que est\u00e1n ocurriendo en la naci\u00f3n isla en actualidad pueden ser directamente atribuidas a el estricto embargo de hace 60 a\u00f1os que los Estados Unidos ha continuado a imponer a Cuba. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

El embargo<\/a> primeramente iniciado por el presidente John F. Kennedy en 1962, y la designaci\u00f3n de Cuba como un “Estado patrocinador del terrorismo” impuesto por el presidente Ronald Reagan en 1982, juntos fueron retirado por el presidente Barack Obama en 2015, solamente para ser reinstalados por el presidente Donald Trump en los inicios de su presidencia en 2017. Hasta el momento de lo escrito, el presidente Biden todav\u00eda no ha retirado las restricciones ante Cuba de la \u00e9poca de Trump, aun y a pesar de que todos menos nueve miembros de las Naciones Unidas<\/a> votaron a condemnar el embargo en Junio. Las sanciones continuas han hecho las compras de comida particularmente costosas, creando la escasez de comida que ha espoleado las recientes oleadas de protestas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tomando en cuenta la cercana proximidad de los Estados Unidos y Cuba, la naci\u00f3n isla caribe\u00f1a depende en los Estados Unidos por su comida. El servicio de investigaci\u00f3n del congreso de los Estados Unidos (Congressional Research Service), estim\u00f3 que solo en el a\u00f1o 2020, Cuba import\u00f3 productos agr\u00edcolas de los Estados Unidos valorados en m\u00e1s de $150 millones de d\u00f3lares<\/a>. Seg\u00fan el mandarario de Cuba Miguel D\u00edaz-Canel, se necesitan aproximadamente dos millones en ganancias del mercado de divisas<\/a> para adquirir comida, lo cual hace el costo prohibitivo para alimentar a los habitantes de la isla con importes de los Estados Unidos. El gobierno de los Estados Unidos empez\u00f3 a requerir prepagos para env\u00edos de comida a Cuba en 2005, los cuales grupos agr\u00edcolas dijeron que en esos tiempos eran “contrario a las normas del comercio internacional”. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

El surge de COVID-19 en Cuba tambi\u00e9n es derivado del bloqueo comercial de los Estados Unidos, y no el sistema de cuidado m\u00e9dico de Cuba. A pesar del embargo, el sistema de cuidado m\u00e9dico de la naci\u00f3n comunista fue alabado<\/a> en 2015 por una de las m\u00e1s prestigiosas revistas medicas, The Lancet.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Aunque el embargo ha tenido consecuencias severas para muchos sectores de vida Cubana, como infraestructura y tecnolog\u00edas, salud ha sido un \u00e9xito, escribi\u00f3 The Lancet. “El sistema de cuidado m\u00e9dico de Cuba ha podido resolver unos problemas que otros pa\u00edses no han logrado. El sistema de cuidado m\u00e9dico Cubano, el cual es gratuito y firmemente anclado en prevenci\u00f3n y cuidado primario, produce buenos resultados de salud a un costo al alcance de la mayor\u00eda de pa\u00edses de medio ingreso.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cuba tambi\u00e9n se ha establecido como l\u00edder en la coordinaci\u00f3n mundial para responder a la pandemia de COVID-19. Adem\u00e1s de producir su propia vacuna<\/a>, Cuba tambien envio a docenas de sus doctores en 2020 a aproximadamente 40 diferente pa\u00edses en cinco continentes<\/a> para ayudar a las poblaciones menos desarrolladas a contener el virus. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

El aumento reciente en nuevos casos de COVID-19 <\/a>es casi definitivamente exacerbado por la escasez de jeringuillas que es resultado del embargo de los Estados Unidos. Aunque dos millones de los 11 millones de ciudadanos de la isla han sido vacunados, la falta de jeringuillas hace imposible que el gobierno de Cuba pueda inocular al resto de la poblaci\u00f3n. Global Health Partners estima que Cuba necesita 30 millones de jeringuillas<\/a> para terminar con las inoculaciones aunque el pa\u00eds sigue 20 millones de jeringuillas debajo de ese objetivo. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dado que levantar el embargo, al parecer, resolver\u00eda los problemas detr\u00e1s de las protestas en Cuba, la aparente falta de inter\u00e9s de los Estados Unidos en hacerlo puede ser atribuido a su objetivo desde d\u00e9cadas de desestabilizar el gobierno comunista en orden de fomentar un cambio de r\u00e9gimen a trav\u00e9s de necesidad y sufrimiento. En 1960, el oficial del departamento de estado de los Estados Unidos, Lester Mallory escribi\u00f3<\/a> que: “Cada medio posible debe ser intentado con prontitud para debilitar la vida econ\u00f3mica de Cuba.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Escribi\u00f3 Mallory: “Si semejante pol\u00edtica fuera adoptada, deber\u00eda ser resultado de una decisi\u00f3n positiva cual llamar\u00eda al frente una l\u00ednea de acci\u00f3n que, mientras lo m\u00e1s h\u00e1bil y discreto que es posible, har\u00eda mayores avances en negar dinero y provisiones a Cuba, para disminuir el salario nominal y real, para producir hambre, desesperaci\u00f3n y derrocar al gobierno.”  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Esta mentalidad anti-Cuba sigue hoy en d\u00eda, con apoyo de los dos partidos pol\u00edticos. El Departamento de Estado de los Estados Unidos en 2019<\/a> y 2020<\/a>, a trav\u00e9s de leyes de Asignaciones, asign\u00f3 decenas de millones de d\u00f3lares a “programas democr\u00e1ticos” en Cuba. Notablemente, Secci\u00f3n 7007 de la legislaci\u00f3n de 2020 expresamente declara que “ningunos de los fondos apropiados o de otra manera h\u00e1gase disponible” ir\u00e1n al gobierno Cubano, incluyendo “pr\u00e9stamos directos, cr\u00e9ditos, seguros y garant\u00edas del banco de exportacion e importacion o de sus agentes.” Esto sugiere que el gobierno de los Estados Unidos precisamente asign\u00f3 los fondos para apoyar esfuerzos a desestabilizar a Cuba. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

La contribuci\u00f3n de los Estados Unidos al sufrimiento de Cuba no ha pasado sin ser notada por sus vecinos. El presidente Mexicano Andr\u00e9s Manuel L\u00f3pez Obrador recientemente<\/a> pidi\u00f3 a la administraci\u00f3n de Biden que levanten las sanciones contra Cuba y pongan fin al bloqueo.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Obrador dijo: “Ning\u00fan pa\u00eds del mundo debe ser cercado, bloqueado; eso es lo m\u00e1s contrario que puede haber a los derechos humanos.” Agreg\u00f3 Obrador: “No se puede crear un cerco, aislar a todo un pueblo por razones pol\u00edticas y por cualquier raz\u00f3n. Nadie puede, nadie tiene derecho de tomar esas decisiones que afectan a los pueblos.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Aunque el ex presidente Trump restableci\u00f3 el embargo comercial, el presidente Biden controla el Departamento de Estado, y su partido pol\u00edtico controla las dos c\u00e1maras del Congreso. Las 243 medidas separadas que la administraci\u00f3n de Trump impuso a Cuba siguen estando en su lugar<\/a> casi seis meses despu\u00e9s de que Biden asumi\u00f3 la presidencia. La \u00fanica cosa que actualmente se interpone en el camino de ayudar a la gente Cubana es la voluntad pol\u00edtica.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Carl Gibson es un periodista independiente y columnista publicado en CNN, The Guardian, The Washington Post, The Houston Chronicle, Barron’s, Business Insider, The Independent, y NPR, entre otros. Siguelo en Twitter <\/em>@crgibs<\/a><\/em>. <\/em><\/a><\/em><\/a><\/em><\/a><\/em><\/a><\/em>cuba<\/a>cuban protests<\/a>#soscuba<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

WED, 7\/14\/2021 – BY\u00a0CARL GIBSON\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0(Occupy.com) Una versi\u00f3n Espa\u00f1ol de este art\u00edculo aparece debajo de la versi\u00f3n original. (A Spanish language version of this article appears below the original version.) Traducci\u00f3n Espa\u00f1ol de Lola Ellis. (Spanish translation by Lola Ellis.) For several days, thousands of Cubans have been marching in the… Continue reading → <\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19402"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19402"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19402\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":19403,"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19402\/revisions\/19403"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19402"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19402"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/occupysf.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19402"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}