[News] Cuba's battle against the stubborn intransigence of the European Union

[News at freedomarchives.org]

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DECLARATION BY THE CUBAN REVOLUTIONARY GOVERNMENT



As everyone knows, since it has been given wide coverage in the press, a 
very hard battle was fought yesterday, Thursday 27 May, in the discussion 
of the final document in Guadalajara. It was a battle against the stubborn 
intransigence of the European Union, which obstinately opposed a paragraph 
that strongly denounced and condemned the monstrous murder and torture 
practiced against Iraqi prisoners.

Humanity had not seen such disturbing images since the dismal days of 
Hitler at the end of the Second World War. Billions of people were able to 
see these images on movies and television screens, on the Internet and in 
newspaper photos, and were particularly horrified by the ghoulish delight 
and brutal sadism with which these acts were carried out. The methods used 
showed contempt and disdain for the culture and feelings of the Islamic 
peoples of whom there are 1.2 billion that through the Old Testament share 
some ethical and historical roots with Christianity and Judaism.

The paragraph on this subject, initially proposed by Latin America and the 
Caribbean, read:

“We strongly condemn all forms of abuse, torture and other cruel, inhuman 
and degrading treatment used against prisoners of war or any prisoner or 
against any one, no matter where or by whom it is committed. We declare 
ourselves to be dismayed by the recently documented examples of this 
behaviour which are completely unacceptable and deserve our strongest 
condemnation. Such practices are and must remain forbidden at all times and 
in all places. In this context, we call on the governments concerned to 
impose all legal sanctions to all those responsible and call on them to 
ensure compliance with the ban on torture and other cruel, inhuman or 
degrading treatment in accordance with the UN Convention against Torture 
and with the Geneva conventions. Such practices constitute a serious 
violation of these international instruments”.

The European Union completely refused to mention the subject or to include 
it in the Final Declaration. Then, as it found itself obliged to give up 
some ground, it refused to mention the word “torture”, labelling what had 
happened “mistreatment”. Later, it refused to talk about the recent cases 
of torture of Iraqi prisoners using a non-specific formula to condemn them, 
and most carefully avoiding any mention of the governments responsible for 
this torture. The discussion between the president of the European Union 
and deputy foreign minister Bruno Rodríguez, the second head of the Cuban 
mission who was leading our delegation at that point, was very heated and 
controversial.
Resigned to defeat, they finally accepted the word “condemnation”, but in a 
general not concrete sense, in reference to recent events, which they 
called only “mistreatment” of prisoners.

The fact that the subject was addressed at all and that much of the initial 
paragraph was included is considered a huge moral defeat for the European 
Union.
Those who on this occasion were opposed to this condemnation represented 
countries which witnessed the Nazi concentration camps where millions of 
people died either because of their race or their religious beliefs. Now 
leaders of these countries yield to neo-Nazi methods, ideas and dangers 
which are a thousand times worse because of the almost infinite power of 
those who propound them, that is, the extreme right which is in control of 
the U.S. administration.
The second big battle took place in the afternoon of Thursday 27; this time 
between the Cuban delegation, headed by our foreign minister, Felipe Pérez 
Roque, and representatives of the European Union on the thorny issue for 
the Europeans of the Helms-Burton Act and the new, recently announced 
measures against Cuba.
The paragraph approved in the morning session yesterday Thursday 27 by the 
Latin American and Caribbean countries read:

“We reiterate our strong rejection of the use of unilateral, 
extraterritorial laws and measures that run contrary to international law, 
the freedom of the market, shipping and world trade. We agree that these 
measures represent a grave threat to multilateralism. We voice our profound 
concern about additional measures which reinforce and expand the scope of 
such policies and laws, for example, the Helms-Burton Act, and we therefore 
urge the government of the United States of America to cease using such 
laws and measures. We reject the use of coercive unilateral measures by any 
state whatsoever, since they jeopardize the sovereignty of other states and 
violate the principles and aims of the United Nations”.

The European Union, acting once again as the U.S. government’s ally and 
underling, responded to this clear and strong rejection of the United 
States government genocidal Cuba policy by presenting this timid, 
ridiculous proposal:

“We reiterate our firm rejection of all unilateral measures that run 
contrary to international law, including those which are extraterritorial 
in scope and run contrary to the commonly accepted rules of international 
trade. We agree that unilateral measures that run contrary to international 
law represent a serious threat to multilateralism”.

In another fierce debate in which our foreign minister hurled accusations 
at, argued against and rebutted the European Union representatives position 
they, demoralized and devoid of authority, prestige and arguments proposed 
a new formulation.
This is how it then read:

“We reiterate our firm rejection of all unilateral measures that run 
contrary to international law, including those (new measures) which are 
extraterritorial in scope and run contrary to the commonly accepted rules 
of international trade. We agree that unilateral measures that run contrary 
to international law represent a serious threat to multilateralism. We 
remind people of the stance taken in Resolution UNGA-58/7 of 18 November, 
2003”.

The Cuban delegation opposed this maimed, ridiculous and cowardly 
proposition with all its might, since our country is today under threat 
from the murderous plans and the set of interventionist and genocidal 
measures announced by Mr. Bush last May 6

The European Union then agreed to mention the title of the resolution which 
Cuba introduces in the United Nations General Assembly and which reads: 
“The Necessity to Put an End to the Economic, Commercial and Financial 
Blockade Imposed on Cuba by the United States of America”.

The European Union representatives, seething with arrogance and irritation 
at the strong Cuban response, threw down an ultimatum: either this 
formulation was accepted or they would not allow the paragraph to be 
included. The Cuban foreign minister rejected this ultimatum with the 
utmost dignity and replied that Cuba held to its position that these 
measures must be specifically condemned and that if the paragraph were to 
appear as drafted by the European Union, Cuba would prefer that there be no 
reference at all to the subject in the Final Declaration, but that the 
European Union would have to take full responsibility for it not being 
included. Here we are omitting various details in order to be brief.
What Comrade Fidel said in point one of his Message to the Mexican People 
was fully confirmed:

“The European Union’s complicity with U.S. crimes and aggressions against 
Cuba as shown by its disgraceful, hypocritical behaviour in Geneva and its 
shameful understanding and connivance with the Helms-Burton Act whose 
unacceptable, ignominious extraterritorial nature make it unworthy of being 
taken seriously by our people.”

Another victory was to come later that evening and night. The European 
Union, giving all sorts of reasons, had already refused a week earlier to 
allow the principles of international law enshrined in the United Nations 
Charter to be included in the Final Declaration of this 3rd summit, 
although they had been cited and agreed to at the two previous summits. At 
small, secret meetings Europe’s representatives had explained that they 
could not put their signature to these principles because they were unable 
to acknowledge that the principle of non-intervention was still valid. 
There had been an earlier clash between Cuba and the European Union over 
this issue.

In fact, the most important discussions had been taking place around these 
essential principles for several days. The European Union consistently 
tried to offer to exchange our agreement to not mention these principles in 
the Final Declaration for other of our interests, including a reference to 
the Helms-Burton Act. They even went so far as to state this publicly. They 
had requested that this paragraph be the last one to be discussed. And that 
was agreed to. Yesterday, as the night was drawing to a close they were so 
demoralized after the debate over the Helms-Burton Act which lasted for 
hours that they lacked the strength to enter into a second debate with our 
country’s delegation which might have jeopardised the very existence of the 
whole document.

It was under these circumstances that the European Union, unexpectedly and 
just when it was the Cuban delegation’s turn to address this subject, 
requested permission to make an announcement: it was withdrawing its 
opposition to any reference to the abovementioned principles, which had 
already been accepted in the previous two summits.

It is the view of many delegations that this was the most important battle 
at this summit.
Our small country, which has been blockaded and attacked for 45 years, a 
victim of all the crimes of which the empire is capable —the same that 
rules the destinies of the world and consists of the most powerful state in 
history— did not hesitate to resolutely oppose it and its allies in the 
European Union. The latter have played a truly disgraceful and shameful 
role year after year, seconding the lies, invectives and perfidious 
resolutions the Empire uses in Geneva to justify the blockade and to 
destroy that which can never be destroyed: our Revolution.
It may be fair to indicate that not all the States that are members of this 
Union are the same. There are countries with a long history and influence, 
such as France and Germany, and other smaller states, such as Belgium and 
Luxembourg and several others who were the driving force behind a 
reasonable idea which was met with sympathy by the world: the idea of 
encouraging a union of European peoples after the terrible experiences they 
went through after the Fascist assault on humanity in 1939 that used 
methods and concepts which, by the way, differ very little from those 
proclaimed in the doctrine of being ready to launch surprise, pre-emptive 
attacks on 60 or more countries. There is nothing strange in the maniacal 
opposition to an international court empowered to judge war crimes nor in 
the terrifying, sadistic images of torture which recently shook humanity.
The United Kingdom was always reluctant to join this union and still is not 
part of the common currency; it tries to get all possible advantages and 
avoid any drawbacks. Today, it is the enthusiastic ally of the current U.S. 
administration and joins in its adventures and wars of conquest.


Others, like the government of Italy —and until very recently that of 
Spain— servilely put the empire’s plans before the true interests of the 
rest of Europe. Today, the United States allies, who are opposed to the 
group favouring greater independence, are getting reinforcements from new 
members like Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Latvia, 
Lithuania, Estonia and Slovenia that are now the staunchest allies of the 
very empire which has hegemony over the world and intends to subdue Europe 
completely to its political and economic interests.
The European Union is in fact much divided and the United States has a 
large majority there. The Union is still not a union. If this is not 
understood, it would be very difficult to explain how a group of 25 
nations, many of them with long-standing historical and cultural 
traditions, could act in Guadalajara like a flock of lambs under 
Washington’s thumb.

We sincerely wish all their peoples a better fate. In fact, countries like 
Cuba and other revolutionary third world countries that are prepared to die 
defending our sovereignty, our dignity and our liberty are also fighting 
for Europe’s union and its independence.

The future will have the last word.

28 May 2004





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