Achievements and challenges of Cuba Decide in the second quarter of 2020

Thanks to the efforts of many, our national and global initiative manages to grow despite these unprecedented conditions. As COVID-19 has forced a change in our lives, work dynamics and even shut the borders of countries around the world, the promoters of Cuba Decide have intensified our efforts to combat repression and injustice directed against the Cuban people at the hands of the regime. In the last quarter, we have adapted our work to be able to operate safely in the midst of this virus. Among our achievements in the past three months is the highly successful humanitarian aid campaign called “Solidaridad Entre Hermanos.” The campaign brought together tons of food and personal hygiene products that are being sent to the Island to be directly distributed to people, through the opposition, the Churches, and citizens of good will.

Moreover, in April, political prisoner Jose Daniel Ferrer, an activist whom Cuba Decide has been fighting for the freedom of, was released from prison and has been placed under unjust house arrest. As one of Cuba’s most prominent pro-democracy & human rights activists, he was awarded the Truman-Reagan Medal of Freedom by the Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation and his complete freedom continues to be demanded. 

Throughout the quarter, in support of Cuba Decide, the Fundacion para la Democracia Panamericana (FDP) has organized various virtual events, including a live conversation between María Corina Machado and Rosa María Payá, wherein they discussed the very serious human rights situation that Cuba and Venezuela are experiencing today under current dictatorships. They also brought to light other countries in the Americas that have already been subjected to or are under constant attack by the world’s anti-democratic forces. Another significant dialogue that transpired was the virtual panel “El Hemisferio Responde”, the virtual event brought together a group of experts to present and make a critical analysis of the first Country Report published by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights in 37 years.  The event included a live conversation between Rosa María Payá and Commissioner Stuardo Ralón Orellana, rapporteur for Cuba of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR), followed by a panel of international and Cuban specialists led by Juan Carlos Vargas, director of the Incident Report Center for the FDP. 

Along with these achievements, we continue to speak out against the repression imposed upon the Cuban people and advocate for those whose freedoms have been stripped from them by the regime.