CubaMinrex. Sitio del Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores de Cuba

Speech by the Vice President of Ghana

The chairperson, Your Excellencies, Distinguished Representative of friendly countries, Honorable Ministers and Members of Parliament, Comrades and Friends.

First, I wish to thank the organizer of the event for inviting me to participate in what I consider a duty of all internationalist and progressive forces around the world. It is a duty to small island state a few kilometres from the United States of America wish has made significant contributions of the development of human kind. Cuba actively supported the national liberation movements in Africa, Asia and Latin America. Many of her citizens lost their lives in wars of liberation from the clutches of imperialism and classical colonialism. The truth is that apartheid South Africa finally gave up the ghost of its inhuman and oppressive socio-economic system crafted on the altar of racism, after the defeat suffered at the hands of Cuban internationalist forces in the battle of Cuito Cuanavale.

Today, Cuba is continuing to support the development efforts of newly emergent countries across the globe, it has medical brigades in Latin America, Africa and Asia providing for the health needs of the people in Ghana alone, 200 Cuban doctors are working in health posts, clinic, and hospital in all the regions especially in rural communities.

Cuba has also offered scholarships for the studies institutions, medicine, engineering, information technology and agriculture and is providing technical support for the projects such as malaria eradication in West Africa.

Comrades and friends, it is significant that Cuba is making all these contributions to the development of the underprivileged and exploited parts of the world, even in the face of a 50 year old economic blockade impose on her by the United States of America. All of us can imagine for the moment what Cuba could have done for the upliftment of the World, if she did not have to battle with this blockade.

The blockade is unjustifiable and inhuman. It has undermined the Cuban Economy and denied the Cuban people access to essential health supplies. It has affected the development of agriculture and industry in Cuba and subjected the Cuban people to extreme hardship.

It is my view that being this blockade is not and anti US enterprise, it is not an effort bash good old Uncle Sam all over again, it is an honourable duty of expressing solidarity wish Cuba wish more than deserves our sport. It is about affirming the rights of all sates big and small to determine their own destiny.

It is indeed for this reason that Government of Ghana has consistently voted with the majority of member state of the United Nations against the blockade in the General Assembly.

Our solidarity with Cuba must go beyond the campaign to the economic blockade imposed on it to include a vigorous campaign to the end terrorist attacks on Cuba, its leadership and citizen. As a fact there have been dozens of attempts to assassinate, Cuba’s legendary Comrade Fidel Castro.

Cuban territory has been invaded by hostile forces its agriculture has been sabotaged. Hotels have been bombed and Cuban aircraft have been blown up. Cuba has lost of US dollars as a direct result of the terrorist attacks.

As part of the effort to stem the tide of these terrorist attacks, five Cuban Patriotic infiltrate the terrorist gangs operating from the United States of America to gather relevant information for the fight against international terrorism. Even though all the information they gathered was with the US authorities, they were still arrested and serving various terms in prisons in the United States of America.

It has been proven beyond a shred of doubt that Antonio Guerrero, Fernandez, Gerardo Hernandez, Ramon Labañino and René Gonzalez did not in any way endanger the security of the United States of America. They only acted in defence of their country and its popular revolution.

The Chairperson, I have no hesitation in informally launching campaign for the lifting of the economic embargo on Cuba and for the Freedom of the Cuban Five This is our duty and we most do it. Let every person who upholds the national motto of freedom and justice join this campaign.

Thank you very much            

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