Minnesota Cuba Committee 'informa'

Roque spoke on Wednesday during the UN General Assembly on the effectsof Washington's economic blockade on the Cuban people.

In his speech prior to the UN General Assembly vote on the CubanResolution entitled: "Necessity to End the Economic, Commercial andFinancial Blockade imposed by the United States of America againstCuba", the top Cuban diplomat stressed that seven out of every tenCubans have spent their entire lives under "this irrational anduseless policy which attempts, with no success, to bring our people totheir knees". Felipe added that Washington's blockade is older than"Barack Obama and everyone in my generation".

The Cuban Foreign Minister stressed that the UN vote is taking placein a very special circumstances, after the devastating passage ofHurricanes Gustav and Ike through the island, "when we are just sixdays away from the elections in the United States and in the scenarioof a profound international economic crisis to which none of ourcountries is immune."

He stressed that over 500 000 homes and thousands of schools andhealth institutions were affected, a third of the lands devastated andsevere destruction of the electrical and communicationsinfrastructure, among other damages are the result of two hurricanes.

The Cuban Foreign Minister thanked all those who in "one way oranother, demonstrated their solidarity with and support of Cuba inthis dramatic situation. To the present, we have received help from64 countries".

Felipe Perez Roque continued in his speech by saying "in contrast tothe ample solidarity received, the US government has responded withits customary cynicism and hypocrisy. While they refused to accede toour request to be allowed to buy food and essential materials for thereconstruction with private credits from American companies even forsix months, on the other hand they attempted to orchestrate a blatantpropaganda campaign with which they tried to accuse our government ofnot looking after its people".

The Cuban official reiterated that Cuba cannot accept allegedassistance from those who have intensified the economic blockade,sanctions and hostility against the Cuban people. He stressed thatif the United States was really concerned about the well being of theCuban people the only moral and ethical behavior would be to lift theeconomic blockade they have imposed on Cuba in violation of the mostelemental regulations of international law and the UN Charter.

Felipe Perez Roque said that conservative estimates reveal that directaccumulated damages caused by the blockade exceed 93 billion dollars,almost twice the island's GDP. At the current value of the dollar,said the Cuban official, this would "equal no less than 224 billiondollars".

The top Cuban diplomat said that every year the representatives of theUS government lies before the UN General Assembly when they say thatthe economic blockade does not exist and that their anti Cuba measuresare not the main causes of the shortages and suffering that the Cubanpeople have suffered, and suffer over the course of these years.

The blockade is not an exclusively bilateral matter, said Felipe PerezRoque. Extraterritorial application of the American laws and thepersecution against the legitimate interests of companies and citizensfrom third countries who try to invest and do business with Cuba is asubject which concerns all UN member states, said the Cuban ForeignMinister. He stressed that "the economic blockade impedes normalrelations between Cubans residing in the United States and theirrelatives on the island.

The Cuban representative before the UN General Assembly concludedreading his text by saying that "On behalf of the Cuban people, whotrust in the decision you must make, I ask that you vote in favour ofthe resolution proposal presented by Cuba under the title: "Necessityof ending the economic, commercial and financial blockade imposed bythe United States of America against Cuba".

The Cuban Foreign Minister added at the end of his speech by saying"we reject the words of the US representative. You should beembarrassed, you are alone, isolated, the world is in favour of thissmall rebel island. We are not anti American, we are antiimperialists. We do not hate the American people but Washington'spolicies against our nation. You have the force, we have truth. You(referring to the US) use lies, we use the truth".