The United States Government threatened the Cuban regime on Friday with applying new sanctions if it does not allow the demonstrations scheduled for this November 15 on the island.
The Assistant Secretary of State for the Office of Western Hemisphere Affairs, Emily Mendrala, assured in a telephone press conference from Washington that the US Administration is “actively monitoring” the political situation in Cuba and ready to react.
“We are attentive and again ready to identify and promote the accountability of those who violate human rights if necessary,” Mendrala repeated literally up to three times, who recalled the US sanctions after the July 11 protests, the largest in several decades.
He stressed that the US Government urges the Island Executive to “allow the protests” called for this Monday, despite the fact that the Cuban authorities have prohibited them. “We urge you to allow the Cuban people to demonstrate peacefully and express their demands,” he added.
In addition, he exhorted the Cuban government “not to use violence” against those who participate in the various acts called to demand a change in the country, unlike what happened in the July 11 protests.
Mendrala also took the opportunity to deny the accusations of external interference that Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez launched against the United States this week.
Washington also asked the Cuban government, which it accused of “abuses” and having “political prisoners”, to “respect human rights and fundamental freedoms.”
Mendrala stressed that supporting the Cuban people is “one of the main priorities of the Administration” of President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris and indicated that the United States “takes concerted measures to advance the cause of the Cuban people.”
He affirmed that Washington has already taken “concrete actions in support of the Cuban people” in recent months, adding that “these efforts” will continue in the future, extending across multiple spheres.
The Deputy Undersecretary of State of the Office of Western Hemisphere Affairs cited, among others, the export of “humanitarian articles” to the island, the improvement of Internet access for Cubans, the facilitation of remittances and the “rendering of accounts “from the Cuban authorities.
Mendrala also took the opportunity to deny the accusations of external interference that Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez launched against the United States this week: “It is an attempt to distract from what is going to happen on Monday, when the Cuban people want to go to protest peacefully “and make your voice heard on issues such as” human rights, fundamental freedoms and their basic needs. “
The Biden Executive had already ruled on the 15N on Thursday, when, at the General Assembly of the Organization of American States, Secretary of State Antony Blinken asked that every country on the continent send a clear message that everyone has the “right to peacefully assemble and express their opinions.”
Blinken recalled that there are still many detainees after the massive protests that occurred in July and that several people have been tried for crimes that carry sentences of dozens of years. “Including a 26-year-old girl named Yolanda Cruz who faces an eight-year prison sentence for filming a protest.”
Likewise, the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs, Josep Borrell, asked European Union diplomats, at the request of several MEPs, to observe on the ground and report on Monday’s march.
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