The Cuban-American congressman Carlos Giménez stated this Saturday that the freedom of Cuba is near and that he will celebrate the upcoming New Year in Havana, during the commemorative events of the 65th anniversary of the Bay of Pigs Invasion.
Giménez made the statements to journalist Iván Kasanzew from Martí Noticias during the memorial and tribute ceremony for the pilots of Brigade 2506, held in Miami.
When directly asked if Cuba would be free this year, the legislator replied without hesitation: "I believe so, that next year, the new year in Havana. Let's wait and see, if God wills it."
The congressman emphasized the personal significance this date holds for him: "Two of my cousins are veterans of the battle, as well as a friend (...) for me, Playa de Girón is something personal, and for all Cubans in exile, it is personal as well."
Giménez paid tribute to the brigadistas and warned about attempts to rewrite history: "They are people who have sacrificed their lives; many of them died, and others are no longer with us over time. It is important to remember because, I don’t know, in recent times there tends to be a change in the truth, there tends to be a change in history."
The legislator, the only member of the United States Congress born in Cuba, described President Kennedy's decision to withdraw air support from Brigade 2506 as a historical betrayal: "They needed help, the support of President Kennedy, and he did not give it to them, and that is quite a significant betrayal by the American government to us Cubans, but now I believe we have a different president and I think things are going to change." His words add to the more direct and hopeful messages from the Cuban exile community in recent weeks.
Giménez also recalled the original deception of Fidel Castro towards the Cuban people: "Fidel Castro said that he would hold elections in six months and never told anyone that he was a communist (...) it was a great deception, and now it is time to rectify this deception and give Cuba and the Cubans the freedom, the democracy that must be fulfilled now."
His statements come at a time of intense diplomatic activity between Washington and Havana. Last Friday, officials from the State Department met in Havana with Raúl Guillermo Rodríguez Castro, grandson of Raúl Castro, during the first landing of a U.S. government plane on the island since the visit of former President Obama.
The Trump administration has conditioned any agreement on structural reforms: free elections, the release of political prisoners, and political and economic openness. The Secretary of Energy Chris Wright stated on Friday: “We do not want a humanitarian crisis. We want to force change and allow the Cuban people to be free."
"The Cuban people deserve freedom, and that is what they were fighting for, simply for next year's New Year to be in Havana," added the official.
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