02-02-2020 | Cs
José Ramón Bauzá reports that 'the Cuban dictatorship prevented the departure of 5 prominent activists from the island last night' who planned to participate in an event in the European Parliament on Tuesday
On February 4, an event is held in Brussels with prominent leaders and activists of the Cuban opposition invited by the Citizens MEP José Ramón Bauzá and the NGO Civil Rights Defenders. During the meeting, The “Letters from Cuba to the EU” report will be presented in which 30 civil society organizations share their views on the relations between Cuba and the European Union.
Bauzá has reported that "the Cuban dictatorship prevented the departure of 5 prominent activists from the island last night", in a clear attempt to prevent their participation in the meeting. Similarly, the office of José Ramón Bauzá had been alerted that people close to the regime intended to go to "burst" the act. For the MEP, "Díaz Canel fears that the EU will withdraw its support and be the end of its dictatorship" and stresses that "Europe cannot bleach Castroism while repressing its people and retaining Daniel Ferrer and so many others."
The executive director of the Civil Rights Defenders organization, Anders L. Pettersson, has stated that “This is another clear example of the continuing violations of Human Rights in Cuba” and has taken the opportunity to highlight that "the situation has worsened in recent years", which is why "the European Union must reformulate its foreign policy with respect to Cuba" and "denounce the flagrant attacks on the rights and freedoms committed by the Cuban authorities " The activist Rosa María Payá has reported on social networks that “The dictatorship already denies the right to leave the country to more than 200 opponents” to "now rage against the friends of civil society invited to the European Parliament by José Ramón Bauzá".
Renew Europe MEP has ensured that "Despite the boycott of the dictatorship, the event continues thanks to the collaboration of Civil Rights Defenders" and the presence of Rosa María Payá, Laritza Diversent, Adolfo Fernández Saínz.
Relations between the European Union and Cuba
Paralyzed for many years, Cuba and the EU resumed political dialogue in 2008, culminating in the signing in 2016 of the EU-Cuba Political Dialogue and Cooperation Agreement (PDCA), provisionally in force since 2017.
Although the Agreement includes dialogue on democracy and human rights, their situation on the island remains catastrophic. There are currently 125 internationally recognized political prisoners in Cuban prisons. The last case was the arrest on October 1, 2019 of the opposition leader José Daniel Ferrer, one of the 75 opponents imprisoned in 2003 during the so-called “Black Spring”, as well as several members of the Patriotic Union of Cuba (UNPACU) ) imputed to him facts that have been proven false. Ferrer's family has denounced his incommunicado situation and has reported his complicated state of health, aggravated by the alleged torture to which the regime is subjected.
The position of the Socialist Party on the Cuban regime
The European Parliament approved in November a resolution promoted by the liberal group that demanded the release of José Daniel Ferrer. The socialist group in Parliament voted against and, after the inauguration of Josep Borrell as the new High Representative for the EU's foreign policy, Bauzá demanded compliance with the resolution, transferring to the Cuban authorities the demand for the release of Ferrer
The Pedro Sánchez government has shown its repeated collusion with the dictatorship of Díaz Canel. The most flagrant case was the forced visit of the Kings to Cuba in November, in full resurgence of repression, which was harshly criticized by the democratic opposition on the island.
For Bauzá, "this support for the dictatorships of Cuba or Venezuela is just one more example of the ‘podemization 'of Spanish foreign policy as a result of Sánchez's pact with the communists."
