A weak "commitment" to Cuba will only lead to misery

Last month, vandals from the Cuban regime ruthlessly beat pro-democracy activist José Daniel Ferrer in a state prison in Santiago de Cuba. His wife and two children were forced to witness this abuse. And when Ferrer's young daughter tried to protect her father, the officials also mistreated the girl. This is not an isolated incident. For years, Ferrer has faced cruel and inhumane treatment simply for speaking out against the Cuban dictatorship.

Tragically, there is no sign of an end to the repression against Ferrer, his family, or the more than 1,000 Cubans unjustly imprisoned simply for raising their voices.

These are not the actions of a "government" that seeks greater openness and a commitment in good faith. These are the actions of criminals primarily interested in their self-preservation. They are individuals who routinely use force to repress, intimidate, and silence those who dare to challenge the illegitimate regime. And yet, there are people in the Biden Administration who mistakenly advocate for weaker sanctions and greater "engagement" with the dictatorship.

While the U.S. Departments of State, Justice, and Homeland Security held a "dialogue" with the Cuban regime, former officials from the Obama era in the White House are doing everything in their power to reverse the common-sense policies of the Trump administration. Their ultimate goal indicates the lifting of sanctions and the removal of Cuba from the State Department's list of state sponsors of terrorism. This would be a significant achievement for the regime and would demonstrate that the socialist-leaning ideologists in the White House have learned nothing from their previous mistakes.

When President Barack Obama attempted to appease the Cuban regime, the outcome, from any objective standpoint, was a complete failure. In any case, oppression worsened during Obama's presidency. The political prisoners who were released as part of an arrangement were re-arrested a few months later. Meanwhile, the profits from increased trade and travel to the island enriched the elite of the Communist Party and the military, not the Cuban people.

None of this was a surprise for those of us who are familiar with the history of the Castro brothers and their puppet, Miguel Díaz-Canel. We know from experience that they use every gesture of goodwill from the international community as an opportunity to strengthen their control and power. That is why the activist Jorge Luis García Pérez (Antúnez) referred to the actions of the Obama government as a “betrayal of the Cuban people's aspiration for freedom.”

Then, why do officials from the Biden Administration insist on repeating these actions once again? It is for the same reason that they want to normalize relations with the Venezuelan narco-dictator and be diplomatic with the Chinese Communist Party. Everything is based on a globalist economic theory skewed by Marxist sympathies, which holds that "engagement" with dictators and market openness will lead to universal freedom and prosperity.

The history reflects quite the opposite. If we implement appeasement in our relations with Cuba, we will lose the tool we need to prevent an increased wave of oppression against individuals like Ferrer, the Ladies in White, the San Isidro Movement, and other opposition voices. We cannot forget that we are dealing with criminals who use illegal immigration as a weapon against the U.S., who support international narco-terrorists like the ELN and FARC, and who remain an unwavering ally of the greatest adversaries of the U.S., including Nicaragua, the Maduro regime, Iran, North Korea, Russia, and China.

President Biden should not lift the sanctions against the dictatorship of Cuba nor remove it from the list of state sponsors of terrorism. There are real ways the U.S. can assist the Cuban people, such as providing them with access to uncensored internet and broadcasts from the U.S. Additionally, by sanctioning human rights violators, including the Cuban Army, and continuing to advocate for the hundreds of political prisoners unjustly detained following the July 11, 2021 protests.

The path of "commitment" to the criminal dictatorship of Cuba will not aid either the Cuban people or the United States. On the contrary, appeasing the Cuban regime will only encourage and enrich the oppressors.