[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 295 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
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118th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. RES. 295
Expressing solidarity with the Cuban people in demanding freedom and
human rights, and commending their courage in the wake of the July 11,
2021, protests.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
July 13, 2023
Mr. Scott of Florida (for himself, Mr. Braun, and Mr. Rubio) submitted
the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on
Foreign Relations
_______________________________________________________________________
RESOLUTION
Expressing solidarity with the Cuban people in demanding freedom and
human rights, and commending their courage in the wake of the July 11,
2021, protests.
Whereas the communist dictatorship in Cuba has been responsible for numerous
atrocities including the extrajudicial assassinations of innocent
civilians and activists by firing squad and other brutal methods,
including the Tugboat Massacre of 1994 and the Brothers to the Rescue
Shoot-Down of 1996;
Whereas, in the notorious Black Spring of 2003, the Cuban regime engaged in
brutal violence against independent journalists, human rights activists,
and others who dared to expose the realities of totalitarian Cuba, which
was roundly condemned by international human rights groups;
Whereas human rights activists such as Pedro Luis Boitel, Juan Wilfredo Soto
Garcia, leader of the Ladies in White Laura Pollan, Orlando Zapata
Tamayo, Wilman Willar Mendoza, Oswaldo Paya, Harold Cepero, Armando Sosa
Fortuny, and Yosvany Arostegui Armenteros died under suspicious
circumstances, including while in state custody;
Whereas Report No. 83/23 published by the Inter-American Commission on Human
Rights on June 9, 2023, states that--
(1) ``there is serious and sufficient evidence to conclude that [agents
of the Cuban regime] participated in the death of Mr. Paya and Mr.
Cepero'';
(2) the Cuban regime ``is responsible for the violation of the right
established in Article I of the American Declaration to the detriment of
Oswaldo Paya and Harold Cepero'';
(3) ``there was a context of reprisals and human rights violations
against human rights defenders and persons who expressed dissent against
government policies'';
(4) Harold Cepero and Oswaldo Paya ``were subjected to various acts of
violence, harassment, threats, attempts on their lives, and finally, a car
crash that caused their deaths''; and
(5) ``this case was framed within the contextual elements of state
repression of human rights defenders in Cuba'';
Whereas the report entitled ``Cuba 2022 Human Rights Report'' published by the
Department of State notes that ``significant human rights issues [in
Cuba] included credible reports of''--
(1) unlawful or arbitrary killings, including extrajudicial killings,
by the government;
(2) torture and cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment of political
dissidents, detainees, and prisoners by security forces;
(3) harsh and life-threatening prison conditions;
(4) arbitrary arrests and detentions; political prisoners;
(5) transnational repression against individuals in another country;
(6) serious problems with the independence of the judiciary;
(7) arbitrary or unlawful interference with privacy;
(8) serious restrictions on freedom of expression and media, including
violence or threats of violence against journalists, censorship,
unjustified arrests or prosecutions of journalists, and enforcement or
threat to enforce criminal libel laws to limit expression;
(9) serious restrictions on internet freedom; substantial interference
with the right of peaceful assembly and freedom of association, including
overly restrictive laws on the organization, funding, or operation of
nongovernmental and civil society organizations;
(10) severe restrictions on religious freedom;
(11) restrictions on freedom of movement and residence within the
country and on the right to leave the country;
(12) inability of citizens to change their government peacefully
through free and fair elections; serious and unreasonable restrictions on
political participation;
(13) serious government corruption; lack of investigation of and
accountability for gender-based violence, including femicide; and
(14) trafficking in persons, including forced labor; and outlawing of
independent trade unions;
Whereas 2023 Trafficking in Persons Report published by the Department of State
lists Cuba as a Tier 3 country, the lowest possible rating, stating
that--
(1) ``there was a government policy or pattern to profit from labor
export programs with strong indications of forced labor, particularly in
the foreign medical missions' program''; and
(2) the regime ``continued to deploy Cuban workers to foreign countries
using deceptive and coercive tactics'' and ``failed to address trafficking
crimes despite an increasing number of allegations from credible NGOs,
former participants, and foreign governments of Cuban officials'
involvement in abuses'';
Whereas, in January 2019, Secretary General of the Organization of American
States Luis Almagro stated that ``the Cuban dictatorship has failed in
access to rights and equity, its productive system has failed, its
financial management has failed, its management of the economy has
failed and the only way to melt away its social deficiencies is to push
its people into exile; it is a system that is incapable of giving
dignified and honest work to its people, that is unable to open its
youth to enterprise, unable to generate a competitive productive system
and unable to achieve solutions for the simplest financial issues'';
Whereas the Asociacion Sindical Independiente de Cuba (commonly known as
``Independent Trade Union Association of Cuba'' or ``ASIC'') has filed
complaints with the International Labour Organization condemning
violations of fundamental labor rights, such as freedom of assembly, and
repression of labor activist Ivan Hernandez Carrillo, and, in response,
the International Labour Organization provided recommendations on March
24, 2021, to address the violations, which Hernandez Carrillo continues
to endure in the wake of the July 11, 2021, protests;
Whereas the 2023 reports entitled ``Freedom on the Net'' and ``Freedom in the
World'' published by Freedom House summarized that--
(1) ``Cuba's one-party communist state outlaws political pluralism,
bans independent media, suppresses dissent, and severely restricts basic
civil liberties'';
(2) the government ``continues to dominate the economy despite recent
reforms that permit some private-sector activity''; and
(3) ``the regime's undemocratic character has not changed despite a
generational transition in political leadership between 2018 and 2021 that
included the introduction of a new constitution'';
Whereas the United States has long supported the Cuban people through policies
that limit hard currency to the oppressive Cuban regime while--
(1) providing democracy-building support to civil society activists;
(2) broadcasting outside information to pierce the propaganda of the
Cuban regime; and
(3) permitting virtually unlimited donations of food, medicines, and
other necessities through--
G (A) Acts of Congress such as--
G (i) the Radio Broadcasting to Cuba Act (22 U.S.C. 1465 et
seq.);
G (ii) the Television Broadcasting to Cuba Act (22 U.S.C. 1465aa
et seq.);
G (iii) the Cuban Democracy Act of 1992 (22 U.S.C. 6001 et
seq.);
G (iv) the Cuban Liberty and Democratic Solidarity (LIBERTAD)
Act of 1996 (22 U.S.C. 6021 et seq.); and
G (v) the Trade Sanctions Reform and Export Enhancement Act of
2000 (22 U.S.C. 7201 et seq.); and
G (B) Executive orders and regulations;
Whereas numerous activists in Cuba such as members of the Patriotic Union of
Cuba, the San Isidro Movement, the Christian Liberation Movement, ASIC,
the Ladies in White, the Orlando Zapata Tamayo National Resistance
Front, religious organizations, exile groups, and others are demanding
freedom for the Cuban people;
Whereas Jose Daniel Ferrer Garcia, independent journalist and leader of the
Patriotic Union of Cuba, has been held in solitary confinement since
August 14, 2021, and held incommunicado since March 17, 2023, with his
health condition unknown, which was condemned by Amnesty International
on June 6, 2023;
Whereas artists Maykel Osorbo Castillo Perez and Luis Manuel Otero Alcantara of
the San Isidro Movement, who participated in the Grammy-winning ``Patria
y Vida'' and were sentenced to 9 and 5 years, respectively, have been
unjustly imprisoned for 2 years, and Otero Alcantara has engaged in
hunger strikes to protest his abhorrent treatment;
Whereas the Cuban regime has employed so-called ``Committees for the Defense of
the Revolution'' to force neighbors to spy and turn against each other,
which has spread distrust and fear among the Cuban people and caused an
environment that is deleterious to a strong social fabric and thriving
civil society;
Whereas, on July 11, 2021, thousands of courageous protesters gathered
throughout Cuba, in every province, to demand ``libertad'' and human
rights and to express opposition to dictatorship in Cuba;
Whereas the Cuban regime reacted to the July 11 protests with violence,
arbitrary arrests, often by plain clothes state security operatives, and
forced disappearances and by shutting down internet access and calling
on supporters of the regime to harass protesters, and prosecuted as many
as 790 Cubans for peacefully calling for freedom in the protests;
Whereas Cubalex reported that the Cuban regime prosecuted 55 children in the
wake of the July 11 protests, imposing prison sentences as long as 23
years, while dozens of children reportedly remain in prison to this day;
and
Whereas, since Fidel Castro illegitimately and violently seized power, hundreds
of thousands of Cuban nationals have fled Communist oppression: Now,
therefore, be it
Resolved, That the Senate--
(1) calls for the release of all political prisoners and
for the end of acts of repression, arbitrary imprisonments,
torture, and other human rights abuses against the Cuban
people;
(2) honors the courageous Cuban people for daring to stand
up to the Cuban regime and demanding respect for fundamental
freedoms, such as freedom of expression and assembly;
(3) recognizes the brave prodemocracy and human rights
activists, including independent journalists, artists, labor
leaders, and religious leaders, who have been persecuted
throughout decades of Communist tyranny;
(A) urges other democracies, regional, and
multilateral organizations to affirm that--
(i) violence against the unarmed people of
Cuba will not be tolerated; and
(ii) human rights abusers will be held
accountable for their crimes;
(4) calls on the European Union--
(A) to reconsider the failed Political Dialogue and
Cooperation Agreement; and
(B) to place freedom and human rights at the center
of the policy toward Cuba;
(5) expresses solidarity with the longsuffering Cuban
people in their demands for a genuine democratic transition;
and
(6) calls on the international community to stand with the
people struggling for freedom in Cuba by condemning repression
and expressing unequivocal support for the rights to self-
governance, human rights, and basic liberties for the Cuban
people.
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