Cuba: On 15 November ‘We Will March Civilly and Peacefully for Our Rights,’ Responds Archipielago

People peacefully demonstrating on July 11th, 2021 in Havana. (14ymedio)

14ymedio bigger14ymedio, Havana, October 12, 2021–“On November 15th our personal decision will be to march civilly and peacefully for our rights,” responded Archipiélago to the Cuban Government’s decision to reject the Civil March for Change scheduled for that day, considering it “illegal” and a “provocation for regime change” on the island.

“The regime’s response demonstrates, once again, that rights do not exist within the Cuban State, that they are unwilling to respect even their own Constitution and violate the human rights of the Cuban people,” adds the collective in a message published this Tuesday on its social media platforms.

Members of Archipiélago also insisted that the authorities’ decision “has ridiculed their own president of the Supreme Tribunal, who said that Cuba would respect the right to demonstrate,” for which they classified the government response as a “crime” and branded it “full of falsehoods, defamation, and lies”.

Through the municipal assemblies of the cities that were notified in writing of the march by members of Archipiélago, officials announced this Tuesday their response to the demonstrations.

In the document, the regime confirmed that it does not recognize the “legitimacy of the reasons given” for the peaceful protests. Furthermore, they repeated the standard argument of the foreign “enemy” by stating that the organizers of the march maintain “ties” with subversive organizations or agencies that are financed by the United States Government, and “have the stated intention to promote a change to the political system in Cuba”.

Upon learning of the Government’s position, Observatorio Cubano de Derechos Humanos (OCDH) condemned the prohibition of the marches and “reclaimed the right of Cubans to demonstrate”.

“The official argument itself makes clear the antidemocratic nature of the current system in Cuba and that the ink is still wet on the Republic’s new Constitution, created without endorsing fundamental rights and the few it confers are denied arbitrarily by executive powers,” stated the organization in a communication disseminated this Tuesday.

OCDH called on the European Union, “to condemn this clear violation of human rights in Cuba, which are incompatible with the Political Dialogue and Cooperation Agreement between Cuba and the European Union.”

In the document, OCDH also demands that the Government of the Island accept, “the challenge of listening to its citizens.”

“It did not do so on July 11th, when the president called for combat and confrontation among Cubans, and it is not doing so now as it prohibits the civil march scheduled for November 15th.”

Translated by: Silvia Suárez

____________

COLLABORATE WITH OUR WORK: The 14ymedio team is committed to practicing serious journalism that reflects Cuba’s reality in all its depth. Thank you for joining us on this long journey. We invite you to continue supporting us by becoming a member of 14ymedio now. Together we can continue transforming journalism in Cuba.