Opposition Leader Jose Daniel Ferrer Tells Pres. Trump to Get Tough on Cuba

Open letter to Mr. Donald Trump, President of the United States of America

General coordinator of the Patriotic Union of Cuba (UNPACU).

Santiago de Cuba, June 6, 2017.

Distinguished gentleman,

You receive. And respectable family our sincere and warm greetings.

Mr. President, at a time when many expect the announcement of the policy towards Cuba continue his administration, I turn to you. As head of the largest opposition movement in Cuba and as a citizen concerned about the future of my country, which sees EE .S. the best friend of the Cuban people and the chief defender of freedom and democracy on the planet.

When politics than his predecessor, Barack Obama, had decided to follow regarding Cuba, our organization, the Patriotic Union of Cuba was announced in December 2014, after a thorough analysis, it decided to support the process of rapprochement. For various reasons we believed and continue to believe that at that time it was a clever idea that deserved to be developed. In the worst case, the new stance of the US administration would shed light on what should be the next and most effective steps.

Important goodwill gestures Mr. Obama would destroy the old and false justification of the Castro regime that the US It is primarily responsible for the profound misery in which our people live. also we thought that the dictator Raúl Castro could have chosen to act with a minimum of sanity, and by their desire to deepen relations with US and the European Union, seeking economic benefits, would reduce its repression against peaceful dissidents and independent journalists in our country. But the reality has been different. Castro's tyranny has been benefiting from the goodwill of the American government without giving an inch in its repressive attitude. In the absence of actual pressure from the US and the EU,

During the last year it has tripled the number of political prisoners. Our prisoners are subjected to beatings and torture at a higher suffered in the last fourteen years degree. In 2016 and 2017 significantly increased persecution, arbitrary arrests, beatings, raids and theft of the "enforcement" in foster peaceful opponents. To make matters worse, restrictions and harassment to "self-employment" throw the optimism of those who waited at least greater economic freedom by land.

In the current circumstances, the struggle for the democratization of Cuba is very difficult without the strong support US Some naively believe that you can move towards democracy by participating in the "electoral process" imposed by the regime. But who can think, when they raid your home, you get hit, steal food from your children and you imprison and torture just for trying to develop and recreational training for children activity, the regime will allow the true democrats obtain quotas reals of their totalitarian political power in half?

For over half a century our nation has suffered a totalitarian Stalinist regime character. We all know that does not leave such a regime unless the heirs to abandon control and repression, and that the democratic world strongly support those who fight for freedom.

Politics, like medicine requires effective treatments. Castro-communism is a dangerous germ that causes severe infection, which must be fought with effective "antibiotics". Against Castroism treatments to prevent its spread to other nations need -Venezuela and Nicaragua, to cite two examples Cuba: and conducive to their complete elimination in the nation which has caused more harm -.

We recognize that the primary responsibility in the fight against Castroism is we Cubans, being those who most suffer. But in a world where tyrants support each other, we need help from democratic countries to end the dictatorship. A moral and practical matter, those who love freedom and democracy around the world should support every effort to fight against totalitarianism.

Some are concerned about the millions of dollars and thousands of jobs they say would lose US . If you reverse the actions of Mr. Obama. However, few recognize that government intervention of Castro-communism in Cuba, Venezuela and other countries brings very costly economic consequences for the US Few mention the huge sums of money US She has had to spend and you must continue to spend to defend democracy and human rights, always threatened by castro-communism in the Americas and outside.

Some argue that to reverse policies of former President Obama's successor Raúl Castro will entrench in stagnation rather than progress towards greater openness. We believe that regardless of US policy Keep toward Cuba, Raúl Castro and his possible successor in 2018. Whoever he is - not going to cede effective control of the country for fear of losing what has been stolen by Castro 's elite to the Cuban people, and especially fear of facing justice.

In view of criminal behavior that Castroism is committed to maintaining the Cuban people, their support for Chavez repression against the Venezuelan people, its close relations with other regimes that trample the rights of its citizens - such as Syria, Korea Iran and North - its hostile rhetoric against US and lack of cooperation on issues such as extradition of fugitives from US justice, we believe it is time to reverse the most of policies that only benefit the Castro regime and little or nothing the oppressed people. It is time to impose heavy sanctions on the regime of Raúl Castro, as well as of Nicolás Maduro. For its outstanding position in the free world, USA It should not remain indifferent to the crimes committed against their regimes both peoples.

USA You should remain the first defender of those without rights and freedoms in the world. It is the free world who must isolate and punish unrepentant dictatorships. Not the alleged isolation, according to The New York Times, would produce US reverse the policy toward Cuba to what his Administration should fear. Its administration, its people and the planet Democrats what we have to fear is to a world where the excesses of the tyrants were not punished.

Castroism has never stopped being one of the main enemies of the US, as has also been and is the main enemy of the Cuban people. So I'm sure you will agree that criminals who do not improve their behavior they should be punished and not rewarded. When these criminals are in charge of a country, its punishment is a high moral duty and an unavoidable political necessity.