Congressmen Delia Ramirez, Pramyla Jayapal, Jonathan Jackson, and Rho Khana joined together in front of the Capitol Building to call for an end to the US blockade against Cuba. A policy they described as inexcusable and cruel.
The four Congressmen, all members of the House of Representatives. Reiterated their opposition to the current policies of the Donald Trump administration against the island nation. During a press conference titled “Demanding an End to the Blockade Against Cuba and International Medical Solidarity.”
“We are here to demand that we end the blockade against Cuba. That we end the sanctions, and that we end the siege against the Cuban people,” said Ramirez.
She recalled that, for more than 200 years, the United States has used the Monroe Doctrine. To justify a detrimental approach to relations “with our neighbors in Latin America and the Caribbean.”
“Through military interventions or sanctions…from Monroe to Trump. Our legacy throughout the Western Hemisphere has been one of pain, destruction, and mistrust,” the Illinois representative noted.
While Congress considers allocating another $1.15 trillion in additional funding for wars, death, and destruction.We stand united with healthcare workers and nurses, saying: people and peace over war, she stated.
For her part, Pramila Jayapal, representative for Seattle (Washington state). She denounced the terrible effects of the blockade and “the injustice of the policy the United States has maintained for decades toward Cuba.” Which has functioned as a “collective punishment.”
“This latest element of the fuel blockade is incredibly cruel, unjust, and illegal,” Jayapal insisted. Asserting that “it is, in effect, an economic bombardment of Cuban infrastructure.”
She commented on her recent trip to Cuba—her second—saying. “I was there about two years ago, when the situation was already difficult, but this represented another level of collective punishment.”
“Representative Jackson and I were there just days after the first oil tanker arrived in Cuba. Following three months of a complete lack of fuel,” Jayapal stated.
Also she recounted seeing “a room full of medical equipment completely unusable because power fluctuations had burned out its electrical components. And due to the sanctions and the blockade, Cuba cannot acquire the spare parts to repair them. “I have never witnessed anything so incredibly cruel,” she warned.
Jayapal stated that before this happened, and despite all the difficulties. Cuba had done admirable work in preventing maternal and neonatal mortality, cancer, and so many other areas. “In which we in the United States are still struggling to make progress.”
She lamented the effects of Washington’s unilateral blockade. “We are faced with a healthcare system in crisis due to the policies and actions of the United States,” she declared. Reiterating that “the only way out is diplomacy and a negotiated agreement that guarantees the freedom, dignity, and self-determination of the Cuban people to be fully masters of their own destiny.”
In turn, Jackson supported Jayapal. “What we saw was pure cruelty,” he added. Specifying that “this is not simply a “The blockade is an act of war. When you use the United States Navy to surround a nation and cut off its vital supplies, that constitutes an act of war.”
There are millions of people “suffering on that island, deprived of medical care, access to medicine, and medical equipment. We simply say: stop the cruelty, stop the war against the Cuban people.” Demanded the Illinois representative, son of the late civil rights leader, Reverend Jesse Jackson.
Meanwhile, Representative Ro Khanna of California acknowledged that Jayapal and Jackson “had the courage to travel to Cuba a couple of months ago to witness the suffering firsthand.”
Upon their return, he noted, “they shared the terrible humanitarian situation with many of us. Raising awareness of this issue in Congress.”
For Khanna, “this is not simply about a lack of humanity toward Cuba.” “We are blocking fuel, which is causing deaths, preventing people from receiving medical care, and cutting off access to basic services.”
The press conference was convened by National Nurses United, the largest registered nurses union in the United States. And joined by Global Health Partners, an organization working to supply the island with essential medical equipment and medicines. As the fuel shortage continues for another month and the consequences of Trump’s policies worsen.
Since assuming his second term in the White House on January 20th of last year, the Republican president has doubled down on his stance against Cuba. His administration’s unilateral coercive measures are cascading. While the danger of military action against the island nation persists.
With information from Prensa Latina
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