El Concejo Municipal de Richmond insta a poner fin al embargo de EE.UU. contra Cuba

Mike Aldax

10 months ago

The Richmond City Council passed a proclamation Tuesday urging the U.S. to remove Cuba from its list of state sponsors of terrorism and to lift the long-standing trade embargo with the island nation. The proclamation coincided with a visit from Cuban diplomats Yasser Ibarra and David Ramirez Alvarez, both secretaries at the Cuban Embassy in Washington, D.C. The two were honored by the City Council as part of Richmond’s ongoing sister-city relationship with Regla, Cuba. Richmond Mayor Eduardo Martinez, a member of the Richmond Progressive Alliance (RPA), introduced the resolution and cited decades of hardship imposed by the U.S. embargo, which cost Cuba over $164 billion since its inception, according to the city proclamation. “Cuba is a social experiment in creating a society where everyone is cared for. Having these guarantees is also a form of freedom," the mayor said. "The embargo creates obstacles. When in Havana last year, I saw a magnificent city in disrepair—a city that could rival many other cities if it only had the capital to make those repairs." Martinez pointed out the U.S. and Israel are the only nations imposing the embargo on Cuba. "Like the Zionists in Israel, our nation is punishing the people of Cuba for a wrong they did not commit," the Richmond mayor said said. "It’s time to end this embargo." Cuban First Secretary Ibarra said Richmond's action Tuesday "represents that another path is possible." "You know, and all of you know that on the other side of the Caribbean Sea there is a country — there are people — that want to engage with the American people, that want to create bridges of love," Ibarra said. Second Secretary Ramirez Alvarez added, "...at the end of the day, it’s about human beings. It’s about friendship. It’s about peace." Tuesday's ceremony also featured the formal presentation of artwork from Regla to the City of Richmond, celebrating the cultural and artistic ties fostered through their sister-city partnership. The U.S. embargo on Cuba began in 1960 after the Cuban Revolution, when the U.S. imposed trade restrictions in response to the Cuban government's nationalization of American-owned properties without compensation, according to the National Security Archive. It was expanded into a full economic embargo in 1962 under President John F. Kennedy and has remained largely in place, restricting trade, travel, and financial transactions, despite periodic calls for its repeal. The embargo is codified in U.S. law and can only be fully lifted by congressional action.

A principios de junio, el Concejo Municipal de Richmond aprobó una proclamación instando a Estados Unidos a levantar su embargo comercial de larga data contra Cuba y a eliminar al país de su lista de patrocinadores estatales del terrorismo. La medida coincidió con una visita de los diplomáticos cubanos Yasser Ibarra y David Ramírez Álvarez, y destacó la relación de ciudades hermanas entre Richmond y Regla, Cuba.

El alcalde Eduardo Martínez, quien presentó la resolución, criticó el embargo por causar décadas de dificultades en Cuba.

“Cuba es un experimento social en la creación de una sociedad donde todos son cuidados. Tener estas garantías también es una forma de libertad”, dijo el alcalde. “El embargo crea obstáculos. Cuando estuve en La Habana el año pasado, vi una ciudad magnífica en mal estado — una ciudad que podría competir con muchas otras si solo tuviera el capital para hacer esas reparaciones”.

Martínez comparó las sanciones de EE.UU. con el trato de Israel hacia los palestinos, diciendo que ambas castigan a civiles inocentes. El Primer Secretario cubano Ibarra elogió la postura de Richmond, calificándola como un paso hacia la construcción de “puentes de amor” entre ambas naciones.