Nearly 600 parliamentarians from 73 countries demanded this Friday that Cuba be excluded from the spurious list of countries sponsoring terrorism, drawn up by the United States Department of State.
Through a joint letter coordinated and published by the Progressive International (PI), the legislators called on their respective governments to take immediate measures to advocate for the elimination of Cuba from that list.
Cuba was removed from the list in 2015 during the administration of former President Barack Obama and was included again in 2021, during the last days of Donald Trump’s presidency. In addition to the Caribbean nation, Syria, since 1979, Iran, since 1984, and North Korea, since 2017, are also part of the illegitimate list.
The parliamentarians assure that Cuba must be removed from the list in the name of dignity, decency and the integrity of the Charter of the United Nations (UN).
According to UN experts, the inclusion of Cuba has weakened “fundamental human rights, including the right to food, the right to health, the right to education, economic and social rights, the right to life and the right to development.”
The inclusion of Cuba in the list of sponsors of terrorism brings with it atrocious consequences in spheres such as humanitarian aid, business, investment and trade, which severely harms Cuba and Cuban citizens.
Fearful of being accused of instigating terror and the high fines that come with having relations with Cuba, banks, financial institutions and international vendors have stopped facilitating trade.
It also hinders research, since in the United States the use of public funds for travel to or from countries that are included in the list of state sponsors of terrorism is prohibited, preventing research and support for Cuban academics.
Here is the full text of the letter
We, the undersigned parliamentarians from around the world, condemn the designation of Cuba as a “state sponsor of terrorism” and call on our respective governments to take immediate steps to advocate for its removal.
The designation of Cuba as a “state sponsor of terrorism” by the United States is cynical, cruel, and a clear violation of international law.
The designation, withdrawn in 2015 following a thorough assessment by the Obama administration, was reapplied to Cuba in the final days of the Trump presidency as the final act of his economic warfare campaign against the island.
As a candidate, Joe Biden promised to restore the diplomatic relationship fostered by his Democratic predecessor. But as president, Biden reneged—even after the Colombian government dropped extradition charges against members of its National Liberation Army (ELN)—on the original justification for Trump reapplying the “state sponsor” designation.
The designation is therefore cynical, because Cuba, far from sponsoring terrorism, has served as a key intermediary in peace talks between the Colombian government, the ELN and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC). The current talks mark a decade since Cuba called on CELAC member states to declare the region a Zone of Peace, “based on respect for the principles and norms of International Law.”
The designation is cruel because it is designed to maximize the suffering of the people of Cuba, stifling their economy, displacing their families and even restricting the flow of humanitarian aid. According to UN experts, the designation has weakened “fundamental human rights, including the right to food, the right to health, the right to education, economic and social rights, the right to life and the right to development.”
Finally, the designation is illegal because it weakens “the principle of sovereign equality of States, the prohibition of intervention in the internal affairs of States and the principle of peaceful settlement of international disputes,” according to experts.
