Webcast from the June 07, 2004 solidarity event for Cuba, at the Maritime Labour Centre in Vancouver to discuss new American measures against Cuba. The Cuban Ambassador to Canada, Carlos Fernandez de Cossio, was the featured speaker.

• increased support to internal counterrevolutionary activities
• stepped up international campaigns against Cuba
• intensified subversive activities against Cuba
• new measures to affect the Cuban economy and "to undermine the regime's succession strategy"

* Canadian Labour Congress condemns US Actions against Cuba *

* June 26 - Rally and March: World Solidarity With Cuba *

Other recent working TV webcasts on Cuba:

50th Anniversary of the Cuban Revolution Free the Cuban Five!

Intro - Bill Saunders, Vancouver Labour Council President RT: 7:49

Tim Louis, Councilor, City of Vancouver RT: 7:49

Carlos Fernandez de Cossio Pt. 1 of 3, the Cuban Ambassador to Canada RT: 13.02

Carlos Fernandez de Cossio Pt. 2 of 3 RT: 13.31

Carlos Fernandez de Cossio Pt. 3 of 3 RT: 13.34

For more information on the Cuban Five click here.

For more information on Canadian Solidarity with Cuba click here.

The Cuban Five, unjustly imprisoned in American jails:

Canadian Labour Congress condemns US Actions against Cuba

June 2, 2004
The Right Honourable Paul Martin
Prime Minister of Canada
House of Commons
Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0A6

Dear Mr. Prime Minister:

On behalf of the three million working men and women affiliated to the Canadian Labour Conress, I write to urge you to clearly condemn the recent hostile measures taken by the U.S. government against Cuba and to use every opportunity to express concern to the U.S. government about the impact and legality of the new measures.

The new measures recently announced seek to strengthen and deepen the failed policies of economic embargo of the past four decades. The Cuban people have withstood the ill effects of the U.S. blockade on their island and have built what many consider to be outstanding improvements in social indicators such as health, literacy, and education and made social gains unrivalled in the developing world. These latest repugnant measures by the U.S. government will not succeed either, but they will bring more suffering and hardship to the people of Cuba.

These new measures as proposed by the U.S. government's so-called Commission for Assistance to a Free Cuba include giving $59 million to try to destabilize Cuban society, to train personnel to do so, to intensify misinformation about Cuba including the use of military aircraft for radio broadcasting - all activities aimed at curbing growing tourism to the country and increasing the day-to-day hardships in life for ordinary Cubans. As well, Cuban-Americans residing in the U.S. are being subjected to further restrictions to their contacts with their families in Cuba. Also, persons of third countries may be subject to arbitrary charges and arrest in the U.S. for having invested in Cuba. In the case of Canadians this is a flagrant contravention of the Order of the Attorney-General of Canada, made under the Foreign Extraterritorial Measures Act which prohibits Canadian corporations from complying with the extraterritorial measures of the Helms-Burton Act.

We urge you, Mr. Prime Minister to immediately reject in the strongest possible terms any perceived compliance or acquiescence by your government in any of these draconian measures designed to hasten "regime change" in Cuba. It is up to the Cuban people to determine their own future. Self-determination is a human right and we would expect the Canadian government to uphold this "Canadian value".

We would also expect the Canadian government to uphold the principle of sovereignty of nations especially in the face of the hypocrisy of well-known recent violations of democratic principles committed by the United States government in Iraq, Haiti and in Venezuela.

Canadian workers support Canada's independent policy of many years towards Cuba and strongly encourage Canada to continue to seek ways to open spaces for contact between the peoples of our two countries. We believe that this is the most positive way to work with Cuban counterparts on the challenges they face with regards to human rights, use of capital punishment and reconciliation.

We, as Canadians, must roundly condemn and reject this latest illegal and inhumane U.S. government interference in Cuban affairs, affirm the internationally-recognized right to the self-determination of countries, and proudly proclaim our independence and sovereignty in pursuing a foreign policy that continues to maintain and develop our friendly relations with Cuba.

Sincerely,
Kenneth V. Georgetti, President