Among the avalanche of executive orders that Republican Donald Trump signed in his first hours in the Oval Office was the one that immediately puts Cuba back on the “list of countries sponsoring terrorism.”
Hardly six days the agreement lasted, mediated by the Vatican, between the Biden administration and Havana with Washington removing Cuba from its ‘terrorist list’ in exchange for a mass release of prisoners on the island.
Among the avalanche of executive orders that Republican Donald Trump signed in his first hours in the Oval Office was the order immediately returning Cuba to the “list of countries sponsoring terrorism”a measure with serious financial consequences.
The decision was anticipated by the new Minister of Foreign Affairs, the Cuban-American Marco Rubiofavorable to the hard line against the Cuban government. In his Senate confirmation appearance, Rubio made the case that the Biden administration’s decisions were in no way related to those of the new Republican Cabinet.
For his part, the President of Cuba, Miguel Diaz Canelhas called the reversal of one of Democrat Joe Biden’s final decisions just six days later a “mockery.” According to him, this is an “act of arrogance” by Trump, who despises “the truth” and is only trying to “strengthen the brutal economic war against Cuba for the purpose of domination.”
So far and according to the human rights NGOs on the island that count prisoners for political reasons – Justicia 11J, the Cuban Observatory for Human Rights (OCDH) and Prisoners Defenders – about 150 prisoners had left out of jail until this Monday thanks to this trilateral agreement.
However, there are also an unspecified number of ordinary prisoners who have benefited from this measure.
Among those released from prison, recorded by NGOs, are the young men with no activist history rather, that they participated in the July 11, 2021 anti-government protests – the largest in decades – and were officially released on parole (without having their sentences revoked).
The beneficiaries also include historical opponents, such as Félix Navarro and José Daniel Ferrerand activists love it Pedro Albert Sánchez, Luis Robles and the lady in White Tania Echeverría.
Source: EITB
I’m Wayne Wickman, a professional journalist and author for Today Times Live. My specialty is covering global news and current events, offering readers a unique perspective on the world’s most pressing issues. I’m passionate about storytelling and helping people stay informed on the goings-on of our planet.
