Accra, Oct. 29, - The Government
of Cuba has appealed to the United Nations (UN) and the International Community
to intervene in the economic, commercial and financial blockade imposed on
Cubans by the United States of America (USA).
It said the policy which frowned
on the diplomatic relations between US and Cuba had retarded Cuba’s economic
development and led to increasing suffering of the people.
Mr Pedro Luis Despaigne Gonzalez,
the Cuban Ambassador to Ghana, addressing a press conference in Accra re-echoed
Cuba’s report on Resolution 71/5 of the United Nations General Assembly.
The report which is titled,
‘Necessity of ending the economic, commercial and financial blockade imposed by
the United States of America against Cuba’, seeks to address the negative
impacts of the blockade policy on Cuba.
It indicated that US President
Donald Trump on June 16, 2017, signed a national security presidential
memorandum on strengthening the policy of the United States towards Cuba and
that his directive according to the report would tighten the blockade and make
public health, food industry and agriculture, education, travelling and trade
very difficult for the people of Cuba.
He said the report stated that
President Trump had failed to adopt the derogated Presidential Policy Directive
‘United States-Cuba Normalisation’ issued by President Barack Obama on October
14, 2016, which recognised that the blockade was an obsolete policy which would
be lifted.
“The US Treasury Department on
March 15, 2016, stating that Cuba would be allowed to use US dollars in its
international transactions and that US banks would be allowed to grant credits
to Cuban importers for the purchase of authorised US products, so far Cuba has
not been able to carry out any significant international operation in this
currency,” the report said.
Mr. Gonzalez said the current US
President has increased coercive measures against Cuba adding that, “he has
modified the implementation of some aspects of the blockade in the areas of
travelling and trade”.
He said the blockade which was
imposed on them for more than 50 years constituted a massive, flagrant, and
systematic violation of the human rights of the Cuban people saying “it is
unjust and should be stopped immediately”.
The Cuba Ambassador further
stated that President Trump had proclaimed that US would oppose all demands in
favour of the lifting of the blockade at the United Nations and other
international fora, irrespective of the views expressed by the international
community and the public opinion of broad sectors of the US society.
He bemoaned that foreign
companies fear to have commercial relations with Cuba, stressing that the
blockade has become an obstacle to the implementation of the National Economic
and Social Development Plan of the country.
“The blockade generated greater
distrust and uncertainty among financial institutions and even among US
suppliers due to fears and a real risk of being penalised for having relations
with Cuba,” he said.
GNA
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