Castro's Gift to Obama
Barack Obama has made restoring normal relations with Cuba a major part
of his second term foreign policy agenda. The hope was that the restoration
of economic ties would help liberalize the island prison community.
Obama's making nice with the Castros was criticized by Cuban American
Obama's making nice with the Castros was criticized by Cuban American
Senators on both sides of the aisle, including Marco Rubio, Ted Cruz, and
Robert Menendez. These children of Cuban immigrants predicted that
normalizing relations would simply provide the Castros with more cash
to operate their prison state.
Today it appears those gentleman are right. As Obama arrived in Cuba,
Today it appears those gentleman are right. As Obama arrived in Cuba,
Raul Castro provided him with a gift- an absence of protesters. As USA
Today notes:
Just hours before President Obamalanded Sunday in Cuba for his historic
visit to the communist island, Cuban authorities arrested more than 50
dissidents who were marching to demand improved human rights.
Members of the group, known as the Ladies in White, are used to the
routine. They march each Sunday after Mass at a church in a suburb
of Havana called Miramar and usually get arrested and detained for
hours or days.
Some in the group thought Cuban authorities would back off this Sunday
out of respect for Obama's visit. Berta Soler, one of the founding
members who has been marching since 2003, said while walking to the
church Sunday morning that maybe they would be allowed to protest
without getting arrested.
"Everything looks good so far," she said.
Despite dozens of international reporters in town for Obama's trip, the
group was quickly rounded up in buses and police cars.
Will Obama decry this crackdown on free expression, or will he simply
pretend it didn't happen, and go on living in a fantasy world where the
Castros are interested in political freedom?
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