Democrat lawmakers blast ‘blockade of fuel’ to Cuba after delegation to island

Reps. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash. and Jonathan Jackson, D-Ill., said after a congressional delegation returned from Cuba that U.S. economic restrictions on the island represented an “illegal U.S. fuel blockade” and “really an economic bombing of the country’s infrastructure.”

Following their five-day delegation to Cuba, MPs claimed that the humanitarian crisis on the island was linked to the US embargo.

“The United States’ illegal fuel embargo on Cuba, 90 miles south of the United States, contributes to the longest embargo in world history and inflicts untold suffering on the Cuban people,” lawmakers said in a statement Sunday. he said. “For more than three months, the United States prevented a single drop of oil from entering Cuba. This is a brutal collective punishment, amounting to an economic bombardment of the country’s infrastructure, causing permanent damage. It must be stopped immediately.”

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“We saw firsthand that premature babies in incubators, weighing just two pounds, were at great risk because their respirators and incubators could not function without electricity,” they continued. “Children cannot go to school because there is no fuel to travel for them or their teachers. Cancer patients cannot receive life-saving treatments due to a lack of medicine. There is a water shortage because there is no electricity to pump water. Businesses have closed. Families cannot keep food refrigerated, and food production on the island has fallen to only 10 percent of people’s needs.”

It comes as US President Donald Trump has stepped up his pressure campaign on Cuba in recent weeks, calling the island a “failed nation” and suggesting Cuba is “next” after recent US military operations in Venezuela and Iran.

The trip came after Jayapal and Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-N.Y.) introduced legislation that would block federal funds for military action against Cuba without congressional approval.

The two lawmakers spoke out against what they called “the illegal US fuel blockade” and “the de facto economic bombing of the country’s infrastructure.” (Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

Jayapal and Jackson said they spoke to Cubans across the political spectrum, including families, religious leaders, entrepreneurs, nongovernmental organizations, the Cuban government, ambassadors to Latin America and Africa, humanitarian organizations and dissidents.

“There is a consensus across all sectors: This illegal blockade must end immediately. We do not believe that the majority of Americans would want such cruelty and inhumane behavior to continue in our name,” the lawmakers wrote. he said.

The duo added that the Cuban government “has sent many signals that this is a new moment for the country.”

“While we were there, President Diaz-Canel released more than 2,000 prisoners. The Cuban government began liberalizing its economy with significant reforms, including allowing Cuban American entrepreneurs to invest in private businesses in Cuba. Entrepreneurship has increased significantly, with small and medium-sized private businesses now making up the bulk of the economy,” the statement said.

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US President Donald Trump has increased his pressure campaign against Cuba in recent weeks. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

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“Importantly, the Cuban government has called on the FBI to conduct an independent investigation into a fatal attack on a speedboat.” he continued. “The remaining obstacles to progress in Cuba now depend on the United States changing its old, Cold War-era policy of coercive economic measures and military pressure on Cuba.”

Jayapal and Jackson said that “real reform will only be possible by charting a new course.”

“The United States and Cuba must immediately engage in genuine negotiations that will ensure the dignity and freedom of the Cuban people and provide tremendous benefits to the American people from genuine cooperation between our two countries.”