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Canada condemns "severe sentences" against the protesters of 11J in Cuba

Canada condemns "severe sentences" against the protesters of 11J in Cuba

Canada has reacted to the sentences that the Cuban Justice is applying to the July 11 demonstrators. Through a message on the twitter account of its Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Government condemns the sentences and expresses its support for the opposition.

“Canada condemns the harsh sentences imposed for the July 11 protests. Canada strongly advocates freedom of expression and the right to peaceful assembly free from intimidation. We support the Cuban people in their democratic aspirations,” says the message.

Numerous people have responded to the tweet who appreciate the gesture but ask for more steps to support the statement.

For years, the Cuban community in exile, and particularly in Canada, has reproached the Government of Ottawa for the fact that the facts do not accompany the words. In 2009, Peter Kent, then foreign minister, said that there was a “dictatorship in Cuba, no matter how you turn it around.” Prime Minister Justin Trudeau himself, whose family had excellent relations with Fidel Castro, was asked in 2016 if the leader of the Revolution was a dictator and answered yes.

“Canada strongly advocates freedom of expression and the right to peaceful assembly free from intimidation. We support the Cuban people in their democratic aspirations”

Canada has also expressed itself in this regard in multilateral organizations or has issued recommendations on human rights. In the same demonstrations on July 11, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Marc Garneau, met with his Cuban counterpart to express his “profound Canada’s concern over the violent crackdown on demonstrations in Cuba.

However, bilateral relations remain cordial and there is both direct and indirect financial assistance. the canadian Sherritt International Corporation is the higher direct investor in Cuba and, in addition to nickel, produces a third of the oil extracted on the Island. Bilateral trade exceeds 1,000 million dollars a year and Canada has never imposed sanctions on the regime, unlike what it has done in other cases, such as the North Korean, Nicaraguan or even Venezuelan.

In addition, it is still the first country in issuing tourists to Cuba despite the fact that, with the pandemic, the number of Canadian visitors is at a minimum and has been surpassed by Russian travelers. This allows the entry of thousands of dollars into the coffers of the Cuban State and, although it is not a directly governmental decision, this flow of travelers has never been discouraged, quite the contrary.

Some diplomats assigned to the Canadian embassy in Havana suffered symptoms linked to “Havana syndrome”, several of whom warned that the Government had not dealt with their cases adequately or, at least, as the US Government had done. with their officials.

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