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Eight independent human rights experts from the UN issued a joint statement in which they accuse the United States of jeopardizing human rights in Cuba through what they describe as a "fuel blockade," and demand that Washington "immediately" reevaluate its policy.
The signatories include the special rapporteurs on the right to health, the right to safe drinking water, and the right to food, among others, who accuse Washington of leading Cuba to an "energy famine" with serious consequences for the country's development and human rights.
"The interruption of fuel supply has exacerbated economic and humanitarian difficulties in Cuba, disproportionately affecting vulnerable populations," the statement specifies.
The document indicates that cutting off access to fuel has drastically worsened the shortage across the Island, pushing essential services to the brink.
"While the order refers to concerns about human rights in Cuba, it does not consider how the measure itself - a unilateral coercive measure - directly harms the enjoyment of human rights for the Cuban people," he emphasizes.
Experts documented over 96,000 postponed surgeries on the Island, including 11,000 pediatric procedures, and warned that the crisis has led to "the interruption of critical medical services, the contamination of drinking water, and the inability to refrigerate food and medicines."
According to data from the Cuban government itself, 80% of the country's electricity generation capacity relies on fuel oil, and reserves have fallen below 10% in several refineries. The electricity generation deficit reached a historic peak of 1,945 MW on April 1, with blackouts lasting up to 30 consecutive hours in some areas.
However, the narrative from UN experts collides directly with what Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated this past Monday from the podium at the White House: "There is no oil embargo against Cuba as such."
Rubio explained that Cuba received free oil from Venezuela and that the regime resold approximately 60% of that supply instead of allocating it to the population: "It didn't even benefit the people." He attributed the energy crisis to the collapse of Venezuelan supply— which was definitively interrupted in January after the capture of Nicolás Maduro— and to the incompetence of the regime, which he described as "incompetent communists running that country."
This Friday, the official revealed from Rome that the U.S. has offered $100 million in humanitarian aid to Cuba, of which the regime has only allowed the distribution of $2.5 million through Caritas and the Catholic Church: "It is the regime that is standing in the way".
Havana described the offer as a "dirty political deal" and "handouts," while the Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that the U.S. wants to "incite an explosion" on the Island.
Last Wednesday, Rubio also announced new sanctions against GAESA, the military conglomerate that controls between 40% and 70% of the Cuban formal economy, describing the entity as "a holding company created by generals in Cuba that has generated billions of dollars in revenue, none of which benefits the Cuban people." Foreign companies that operate with GAESA have until June 5 to close those operations.
UN experts concluded their statement with a cautionary note: "Unilateral sanctions should not be used as a tool for regime change."
It is not the first time this has been said: in February, they had already condemned Trump's Executive Order 14380 – which imposed tariffs on countries exporting oil to Cuba – describing it as a "serious violation of international law," while Trump signed a new executive order on May 1st, expanding sanctions on the energy, defense, mining, and finance sectors.
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