June 21, 2021
photo: Bill Hackwell
“My sling is David’s” – José Martí
Sixty years ago, in 1960, the first US restrictive measures against the Cuban people began, and in February 1962 they already reached food and medicine: the blockade was unleashed. Far from ceasing, the arrogance of a decadent empire made itself felt more and more throughout the years against women, children, the elderly, against men, youth and adults, against a whole people determined not to bend and not to accept external mandates. David against Goliath, seems to be the story when that Marti’s phrase resounds.
On June 23, we hope that the United Nations will once again pronounce itself in favor of our brotherly people, voting once again against this infamous blockade. In this regard, in the world and here in Uruguay, many personalities of art, culture and science raised their voices, such as the singer-songwriter Diane Denoir and the actor and Director of the Galpón Theater Group Héctor Guido, or the University Professor Gregory Randall, or several economists such as Antonio Elías, Claudio Fernández, Gabriela Cultelli, Héctor Tajam and other colleagues. Ernesto Agazzi, for example, said “It is a shame that the world of capital has the “right” to impose its values, principles and interests on anyone it wants. Our civilization really should not allow one culture to crush another. With cannons one wins but does not convince. It is the only, and last argument of a system that has already given all it had and that we must replace with a more rational, fairer, and clearly superior socialist order for all humanity including workers and the American people”.
Pepe Mujica’s voice, published in the previous issue of Mate Amargo, traveled the world again and was broadcasted by Cuban television on more than one occasion. The message also came from Lucia Topolansky, Juan Castillo, Alejandro “Pacha” Sanchez, and more than a dozen fellow legislators and councilors of our political force, as well as a diversity of people from all areas, and workers organized in our Central Obrera. But this “virtual” caravan that participated in the world campaign building bridges of peace, was also present and with great enthusiasm, in the Montevideo promenade yesterday afternoon, taking advantage of the occasion to invite us all to collaborate with the campaign 100 thousand syringes for Cuba that the Frente Amplio, the PitCnt, the REDH and many other social organizations and through the Uruguayan Anti-imperialist Committee of Solidarity with Cuba and the Peoples of the World are carrying out, helping to break the blockade.
The frank words of Dr. Henry Engler could not be missing here, and with them we close this brief account of Uruguay’s solidarity: “It is time to put an end to an attitude that shames us as human beings. The only thing that this blockade against Cuba has achieved is to distribute the necessities among the entire population. Who can feel proud of indiscriminately distributing a reprisal that year after year has created basic shortages without contemplating positions or ideologies. Why punish a people in such a barbaric way? Because some who have the power to strangle do not like the Cuban government? Then, is it morally correct to punish the entire population? How long will excessive force continue to be exercised against an entire people? Why are the children and adolescents in Cuba to blame for what is happening? Why are they being punished by depriving them of elementary things? Is the blockade the way to bring about change? How long has this blockade lasted? And apart from the shortages of an entire people, what has it achieved?
I hope that those who vote at the UN think for a moment about their children, their siblings, their parents, their grandparents and imagine them in a situation of a brutal blockade. What would they vote for?”
Source: Mate Amargo, translation Resumen Latinoamericano – English