Eight former Heads of State from seven Caricom countries appealed to the U.S. in a Feb. 19 statement to avert “further human destruction” from being inflicted on Cuba by its “fatal pernicious fuel tourniquet that stifles the Cuban economy and suffocates human lives there.” Describing President Donald Trump’s January 29 Executive Order forbidding any country from supplying oil to Cuba as an “inhumane weapon of mass destruction,” as well as “a violation of international law,” these prominent Caribbean leaders urge it be rescinded immediately.
The fierce statement was covered broadly in the Caribbean region, reflecting a generalized sentiment. Issued from the Office of P.J. Patterson, Jamaica’s longest-serving Prime Minister (1992-2006), it was signed as well by fellow former Jamaican Prime Minister Bruce Golding, Guyana’s former President Donald Ramotar; and the former Prime Ministers of: Barbados, Fruendel Stuart; Dominica, Edison James; St. Lucia, Dr. Kenny Anthony; and Trinidad & Tobago, Dr. Keith Rowley.
The US Executive Order “inflicts unconscionable suffering upon the Cuban people. The universal principle of dialogue to resolve conflicts and disputes cannot be abandoned on the altar of the mighty powerful waging political vendettas against smaller nations by economic warfare.”
“The consequences of this horrific fuel blockade are catastrophic and constitute cruel punishment of the 11 million civilians and the strangulation of Cuba’s vital requirements for energy, food, medication education and basic livelihood,” they assert. Cuba has stood by the Caribbean countries for over five decades, providing “medical brigades, educational scholarships, sports and disaster relief freely given assistance in times of our greatest need and devoid of any request by them for reciprocal support of any kind… The foundation of the Caribbean Community rests on the right of each sovereign state to promote regional solidarity and advance comprehensive cooperation between all.” This tradition must be upheld.
