Cuba has been subjected to an illegal blockade by the U.S. government for 40 years. This blockade applies to all goods including food, medicine, books and information.
In 1998, at the United Nations, 157 countries, including Britain, voted against the blockade. Only 2 countries, USA and Israel, voted to support it!
Cuba has started legal proceedings to reclaim over L1 billion in damages from Washington for deaths and injuries the socialist island has suffered during 40 years of U.S. hostility.
The compensation claim demands damages for 3,478 Cubans killed and 2,099 disabled as a result of "sabotage, bombings and other hostile terrorist acts" caused by hostile U.S. government policy toward Cuba following the 1959 revolution.
Lawyers will present declassified U.S. intelligence documents from the period registering plans by the U.S. security services to destabilize the government and overthrow President Fidel Castro.
This strategy was intensified by the Helms-Burton and Torricelli Acts. Track 1 of the Torricelli Act strengthened the illegal blockade. Track 2 funds "non governmental organizations" such as the so-called "Friends of Cuban Libraries" (sic) formed by Robert Kent and Jorge Sanguinetty.
Robert Kent is a librarian who lives in New York City. According to Ann Sparanese (Englewood Library, NJ) who has spoken to Mr. Kent: "There are many U.S. visitors to Cuba who travel there mainly for the purpose of searching for 'dissidents' and Mr. Kent, who describes himself as 'no friend' of the Cuban government is among these."
Mr. Kent's trips to Cuba are paid for by Freedom House and the Center for a Free Cuba, which are funded by the U.S. government under Track 2 of the Torricelli Act.
Mr. Kent gets much of his information about Cuba from Cubanet which according to Ann Sparanese, "is funded by the following organizations: National Endowment for Democracy (which supports a number of anti Cuban government enterprises emanating from such places as the National Republican Institute, Ronald Reagan's creation); the Open Society Institute (funded by George Soros); USAID (dedicated to "advancing the political and economic interests of the United States") and private donors, including two very special anonymous ones." Cubanet is based in Miami, home of the violently anti Cuban and U.S. funded Cuban American National Foundation.
Jorge Sanguinetty lives in Miami, which is the base for most anti Cuban activities. He works for Radio Marti, a U.S. government funded radio station which invades Cuban airwaves and broadcasts a constant stream of propaganda that encourages Cubans to overthrow their government. To add insult to injury, the radio station is named after Jose Marti, the Cuban national hero.
For more information about the Cuban Libraries Support Group, contact John Pateman at johnpateman9@hotmail.com
John Pateman is a member of the Society of Chief Librarians and has visited Cuban libraries in 1993, 1995, 1999, 2000, and 2003.
Last updated 7/2003, © 2000 Cuban Libraries Support Group
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