- Title: Pro-democracy Cuban-American protesters pressure Biden to do more for Cuba
- Date: 26th July 2021
- Summary: WASHINGTON, D.C., UNITED STATES (JULY 26, 2021) (REUTERS) CROWD OF CUBANS AND CUBAN-AMERICANS MARCHING FROM THE WHITE HOUSE TO THE CUBAN EMBASSY CHANTING (SPANISH:) 'FREEDOM' AND WAVING CUBAN FLAGS CROWD WALKING AS MAN CARRYING CUBAN FLAG RIDES ELECTRIC UNICYCLE THROUGH CROWD CROWD MARCHING AND WAVING U.S. AND CUBAN FLAGS YELLING (SPANISH:) 'FREEDOM!' CROWD MARCHING CHANTING 'FREEDOM FOR CUBA!' AND (IN SPANISH:) 'FATHERLAND AND LIFE' PEOPLE IN WINDOW HOLDING FLAG AND MAKING L FOR LIBERTY (FREEDOM) SIGN WITH HANDS CROWD STANDING IN FRONT OF CUBAN EMBASSY CHANTING (IN SPANISH:) 'DOWN WITH THE DICTATORS!' CROWD SINGING AND HOLDING FLAGS AND POSTERS IN FRONT OF CUBAN EMBASSY SIGN READING 'CUBAN LIVES MATTER / (IN SPANISH:) FATHERLAND AND LIFE' // (IN ENGLISH AND SPANISH:) 'CUBANS ARE ASKING FOR FREEDOM, NOT FOOD' SIGN READING 'END THE DICTATOR'S IMPUNITY' CROWD SINGING IN FRONT OF CUBAN EMBASSY CROWD DANCING, MAKING L FOR FREEDOM IN SPANISH AND YELLING 'FREE' / THEN CHEERING AND CHANTING (IN SPANISH:) 'FREEDOM!' CROWD IN FRONT OF CUBAN EMBASSY CHANTING 'IF THE CUBANS ARE ON THE STREETS, SO ARE WE' CROWD AT LAFAYETTE PARK IN FRONT OF WHITE HOUSE CHANTING (IN SPANISH:) FREEDOM WITH FINGERS MAKING L / PAN OF CROWD AS THEY CHANT 'FREEDOM FOR CUBA' (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) LUIS ENRIQUE FERRER, FORMER POLITICAL PRISONER, REPRESENTATIVE OF CUBA'S LARGEST PRO-DEMOCRACY DISSIDENT GROUP 'PATRIOTIC UNION OF CUBA' (UNPACU) AND BROTHER OF UNPACU FOUNDER JOSE DANIEL FERRER WHO WAS DETAINED ON JULY 11 AND HASN'T BEEN SEEN SINCE, SAYING: "Now is the time for the free world, the European Union, the United States government, international organizations like the Organization of American States, the United Nations, etcetera - the ones who are supposedly defending all that is good in the world, freedom and democracy - to get on the side of the Cuban people - a people who are barefoot, hungry and weaponless, and are on the streets asking for freedom. They're being arrested, beaten, tortured. More than 1,000 people have disappeared in Cuba, including my brother Jose Daniel Ferrer and (activists) Felix Navarro, Angel Moya along with others from the opposition including many from small towns whose names we don't even know and who are, right now, suffering in the hands of the dictatorship, being beaten and tortured, and we don't know what is going to happen to them. The free world must stand with those suffering people and tell the dictatorship, 'Enough!" WHITE FLASH (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) LUIS ENRIQUE FERRER, FORMER POLITICAL PRISONER, REPRESENTATIVE OF CUBA'S LARGEST PRO-DEMOCRACY DISSIDENT GROUP 'PATRIOTIC UNION OF CUBA' (UNPACU) AND BROTHER OF UNPACU FOUNDER JOSE DANIEL FERRER WHO WAS DETAINED ON JULY 11 AND HASN'T BEEN SEEN SINCE, SAYING: "Spain is the Mother Country of Cubans. Most Cubans have Spanish blood, but Spaniards have spent far too many years more concerned about their investments and how to make money in Cuba, from the blood and sweat of the Cuban people, than about supporting those people who are their brothers. Right now, the Spanish government, the administration of (Prime Minister Pedro) Sanchez, allied with Podemos and other leftists, haven't even said that there's a dictatorship in Cuba that's oppressing its people. They've put out some lukewarm statements that don't resolve anything. We're at a critical moment in which Spain should realize that Cuba's future will change, whether or not they want it, whether or not they support it. There will be freedom in Cuba. And a free and democratic government will look and remember well who were our allies and who allied themselves with tyranny." MAN WEARING CUBAN FLAG ON SHIRT, ON HEAD AND HOLDING CUBAN FLAG CHANTING 'DOWN WITH COMMUNISM!' (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) PEDRO RODRIGUEZ, 34-YEAR-OLD CUBAN-AMERICAN AND MIAMI RESIDENT, ORIGINALLY FROM HAVANA WHO EMIGRATED TO U.S. ABOUT 20 YEARS AGO, SAYING: "Right now, right now, we're not asking for medicine or food. We're not begging for any of that. The people hit the streets very clearly demanding freedom. That's what my people are demanding: freedom. No one is begging for anything. Right now, we are asking the Biden administration to urgently go there because at this moment, as we're talking to the media, there are people dying on the streets, who are being killed, who are being beaten, who are being tortured. And the prisons right now, the hallways of the prisons, are full of blood. And we want freedom for the 11 million political prisoners throughout the island, because it's everyone, that's an island prison. That large island is a prison and please, we want President Biden to intervene in Cuba already." HOLDING SIGN THAT READS (IN SPANISH AND ENGLISH) 'FREEDOM IS MY DREAM' (SOUNDBITE) (English) NATHAN BARROSO, COLUMBUS, 26-YEAR-OLD OHIO RESIDENT WHOSE MOTHER LEFT CUBA WHEN SHE WAS 4-YEARS-OLD AND WHOSE GRANDFATHER FOUGHT AGAINST FIDEL CASTRO, SAYING: "My grandfather has since passed away. So has my mother. So I'm definitely here in their honor and I'm here for every Cuban that's fallen. I'm here to bring awareness. I'm here for a free Cuba and I want everyone to know what's going on over there." (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) EFREM MARTINEZ, 45-YEAR-OLD CAPE CORAL, FLORIDA RESIDENT, ORIGINALLY FROM HAVANA AND EMIGRATED TO THE UNITED STATES ABOUT 8 YEARS AGO, SAYING: "My dream for my country is for my country to be just like this, just like this: for Cubans to have freedom, for Cubans to be able to express themselves, for Cubans to be able to work and earn money, be able to travel, be able to eat, be able to decide for himself what he wants to do." (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) MARIO DIAZ-BALART, REPUBLICAN CONGRESSMAN REPRESENTING FLORIDA, ORIGINALLY FROM CUBA, SAYING: "Make no mistake: make no mistake! We're not here to beg. This isn't about aspirin. This isn't about remittances. This is for the Cuban people's freedom!" (CROWD CHEERING FREEDOM!) CROWD AT LAFAYETTE PARK IN FRONT OF WHITE HOUSE CHANTING 'INTERVENTION!' CROWD LISTENING TO SPEAKERS DURING RALLY HOLDING CUBAN FLAGS AND SIGN THAT READS 'INTERVENTION / FREE CUBA' STATUE OF CUBA'S PATRON SAINT, THE VIRGIN OF CHARITY, IS HELD ABOVE CROWD HOLDING FLAGS AND SIGN READING 'UNITED NATIONS: STOP RUSSIAN INTERVENTION IN CUBA' (SOUNDBITE) (English) RICK SCOTT, U.S. SENATOR (REP-FL) AND FORMER FLORIDA GOVERNOR SAYING: "The Cuban dictatorship is illegitimate. They should not have an embassy in the United States of America." (CROWD CHEERING) CROWD AT RALLY WITH MAN HOLDING BANNER OF JOINED CUBAN AND U.S. FLAGS READING (IN SPANISH:) 'FREE CUBA / FATHERLAND AND LIFE' (SOUNDBITE) (English) DAN CRENSHAW, U.S. CONGRESSMAN (REP-TX), SAYING: "Over 30 years ago, Ronald Reagan demanded that Communists tear down this wall. And we need to hear that from (U.S. President) Joe Biden today: Tear down this wall! Tear down this wall of oppression. Tear down 60 years of abuse and torture and suppression of freedom. It must end now. It must be sent to the ash heap of history." CROWD CHANTING U-S-A! U-S-A! POLITICIANS ON STAGE HOLDING HANDS IN L AS SIGN OF FREEDOM AS CROWD CHANTS 'FREEDOM! FREEDOM!'
- Embargoed: 10th August 2021 00:41
- Keywords: Cuban-Americans U.S.-Cuba demonstration pro-democracy protests
- Location: WASHINGTON, D.C., UNITED STATES
- City: WASHINGTON, D.C., UNITED STATES
- Country: USA
- Topics: Fundamental Rights/Civil Liberties,Government/Politics,United States
- Reuters ID: LVA001ENHBGAV
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: Thousands of Cuban-Americans descended on the White House on Monday (July 26) to call on President Joe Biden to do more for Cuba saying the sanctions he imposed last week are not enough after the Communist government's recent crackdown on protesters.
Repeatedly, the crowd called for Biden to intervene in Cuba on humanitarian grounds and called on the international community to condemn the human rights abuses and support democracy.
Among those in the crowd were activists like Luis Enrique Ferrer, a former political prisoner who was imprisoned in 2003 during Cuba's Black Spring and exiled to Spain in 2010. His brother, Jose Daniel Ferrer, is the founder of Cuba's largest pro-democracy dissident group, The Patriotic Union of Cuba (UNPACU), and has been missing since he was detained on July 11, after the protests.
Ferrer said the situation on the island is critical and many protesters and dissidents have been detained and their whereabouts and fates are unknown to their families.
"Now is the time for the free world, the European Union, the United States government, international organizations like the Organization of American States, the United Nations, etcetera - the ones who are supposedly defending all that is good in the world, freedom and democracy - to get on the side of the Cuban people - a people who are barefoot, hungry and weaponless, and are on the streets asking for freedom. They're being arrested, beaten, tortured. More than 1,000 people have disappeared in Cuba, including my brother Jose Daniel Ferrer and (activists) Felix Navarro, Angel Moya along with others from the opposition including many from small towns whose names we don't even know and who are, right now, suffering in the hands of the dictatorship, being beaten and tortured, and we don't know what is going to happen to them. The free world must stand with those suffering people and tell the dictatorship, 'Enough!" he said.
Pedro Rodriguez, a 34-year-old Miami resident who is originally from Havana, said the time to act is now.
"The people hit the streets very clearly demanding freedom. That's what my people are demanding: freedom. No one is begging for anything. Right now, we are asking the Biden administration to urgently go there because at this moment, as we're talking to the media, there are people dying on the streets, who are being killed, who are being beaten, who are being tortured. And the prisons right now, the hallways of the prisons, are full of blood. And we want freedom for the 11 million political prisoners throughout the island, because it's everyone, that's an island prison. That large island is a prison and please, we want President Biden to intervene in Cuba already," he said.
U.S. politicians, several of whom are Cuban-American, spoke to the crowd. Among them was U.S. Senator Mario Diaz-Balart of Florida.
"Make no mistake: make no mistake! We're not here to beg. This isn't about aspirin. This isn't about remittances. This is for the Cuban people's freedom!" he said.
U.S. Congressman Dan Crenshaw (Rep-TX) called on Biden to be firm.
"Over 30 years ago, Ronald Reagan demanded that Communists tear down this wall. And we need to hear that from (U.S. President) Joe Biden today: Tear down this wall! Tear down this wall of oppression. Tear down 60 years of abuse and torture and suppression of freedom. It must end now. It must be sent to the ash heap of history," he said.
After the rally, thousands marched the 1.8 miles (2.9 kilometers) to the Cuban embassy, where they chanted, "Freedom!" and "Down with the dictators!"
Last week, the United States imposed sanctions on a Cuban security minister and an interior ministry special forces unit for alleged human rights abuses during a crackdown on anti-government protests earlier this month against an economic crisis, the government's handling of the coronavirus pandemic and recent curbs on civil rights.
At least one person died and hundreds of activists were detained. Some are missing and others have been sentenced to prison in speedy trials without legal representation, their families have said.
(Production: Arlene Eiras, Gershon Peaks and Julio Chavez) - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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