Photo via the Embassy of Cuba in USA
Lianys Torres Rivera
Ambassador Lianys Torres Rivera of Cuba
Cuban Ambassador Lianys Torres Rivera visited Milwaukee on Tuesday, July 21, receiving a warm welcome at Turner Hall with a room full of peace, feminist and socialist activists. Torres Rivera, Cuba’s first woman ambassador to the U.S., came to speak about the ongoing humanitarian and economic crises in her country as a result of the fuel blockade imposed by President Trump in January with the intention to cripple its socialist government.
The free event was sponsored by the Wisconsin Coalition to Normalize Relations with Cuba and Peace Action Wisconsin with support from Freedom Road Socialist Organization (FRSO), Milwaukee Alliance Against Racist & Political Repression (MAARPR), Veterans for Peace MKE Chapter 102, United Nations Association MKE, Wisconsin Bail Out the People Movement, National Lawyers Guild, Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom MKE and Racine Coalition for Peace and Justice.
“This is a situation we’ve never had in Cuba,” Torres Rivera said. “It is really severe these days.” She explained that most Cubans have only been able to get electricity at home for a couple hours a day at most—sometimes not at all. This has led to widespread problems with water pumping, food distribution and medication production. “Every area of the economy and social living is affected,” she continued.
Human Suffering
Torres Rivera cited several horrific examples of human suffering as a result of the blockade, including that the infant mortality rate has gone up from 4 to 9.9 percent, the survival rate of children with cancer has dropped from 85 to 65 percent, and around 100,000 people are on a waiting list to receive critical surgeries, including some 12,000 children.
“The U.S. should authorize the oil shipment to Cuba,” Torres Rivera made clear. “That will be the first step. The second step would be to reverse the executive order to prevent people and companies from operating with Cuba with the purpose of disconnecting Cuba from the rest of the world.”
Wisconsin Rep. Mark Pocan recently traveled to Cuba’s capital Havana alongside New Mexico Rep. Teresa Leger Fernandez, Illinois Rep. Delia C. Ramirez and Oregon Rep. Maxine Dexter. In an article dated July 13, the officials noted that they observed electrical blackouts, food shortages, poor public transportation and trash everywhere. They called on Trump to lift the cruel sanctions on the Cuban people, stating, “The Trump administration has not provided any evidence that Cuba poses a pressing national security threat to the United States and our interests at home and abroad. We believe that any pretext used to launch an illegal, unauthorized, and unpopular military operation against the island would exacerbate a grave humanitarian catastrophe, put U.S. service members at unnecessary risk, and hurt the very people we claim to support.”
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Torres Rivera spoke highly of Milwaukee and the Wisconsin Coalition to Normalize Relations with Cuba, noting that several Milwaukee activists recently traveled to Cuba to help distribute aid across the country. “The Cuban people deeply appreciate the support that the American people have been sending. We in Cuba have been fighting our entire lives for independence and building a society that is fair and universal for everyone with education, healthcare and access to culture.”
