Is Cuba the next U.S. target?
Cuba recently executed three people for hijacking a boat, and gave stiff sentences to seventy five people for subversion. Extreme sentences? Maybe not.
The U.S., under Bush, has steadily escalated their tactics against Cuba, to the point of having James Cason, their man in Havana, openly say he is recruiting people to topple the Cuban government.
Special ops by the Miami Cuban right, with the help of the U.S. government have killed many over the past years in Cuba – upwards of 3,000 by some counts.
Hijackings have increased greatly recently in Cuba. Helped by the Bush Administration who deliberately cut back the numbers of Cubans who could emigrate each year from 20,000 to less than 500.
So, with increasing violence, and a U.S. government official openly calling for overthowing the government, Cuba cracked down. Hard. Maybe too hard. But how many countries, faced with such serious threats would do otherwise?
And this battle is escalating:
The U.S. is expelling 7 Cuban diplomats, and on May 20, Bush will announce further restrictions against Cuba.
Excerpts from the ANSWER petition supporting Cuba.
“On April 7, James Cason, chief of the U.S. Interests Section in Havana and the top U.S. diplomat in Cuba, declared, “all of our allies agree that their policy goal in Cuba is, ultimately, the same as ours: the rapid and peaceful transition to a democratic government characterized by strong support for human rights and an open market economy.” He stated on the same day, “the Administration’s top priority is to promote a rapid, peaceful transition.”
Coming from a U.S. government representative, the meaning is clear: “transition” translates to overthrow.
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Over the past 43 years Cuba has suffered the loss of 3,478 of its citizens from numerous acts of terrorism, invasions, assassinations, assassination attempts, biological warfare and blockade. The government of one country has perpetrated these illegal acts against Cuba: the government of the United States (often through their proxies, the right wing Miami Cubans)
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Recently, a coordinated campaign of aggressions and foreign subversion against Cuba has been revealed, indicating the U.S. may be setting the stage for a renewed confrontation with Cuba.
The trial of the 75 Cuban individuals arrested in March uncovered the directing role of the U.S. Interests Section in guiding, financing, and organizing subversive actions against the Cuban government.
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Over the past seven months, a series of seven armed airplane and boat hijackings have occurred in Cuba — an exceptionally high number in such a short time. The hijackings have together endangered the lives of hundreds of people. Thus far, the Justice Department has failed to prosecute any of the hijackers who arrived in the U.S. Despite having committed the terrorist crime of air piracy, several have been released on bail.” (Not only did the U.S. not arrest the hijackers, they have refused to allow the hijacked planes to return to Cuba)
Did Cuba go too far? What do you think? And what could Cuba have done instead?