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Tag: Cuba

  • Terrorism: Obama to remove Cuba from list of state

    Terrorism: Obama to remove Cuba from list of state

    President of the United States, Barack Obama, on Tuesday said that Cuba will be removed from the list of state sponsors of terrorism.

    According to him, who has recently being meeting with President Raul Castro of Cuba on the sidelines of a regional summit in Panama, revealed that the decision is a key step towards fostering mutual relationship between the two countries.

    The historic talk marked the first formal meeting between the leaders of their countries in a half-century.

    In his statement to Congress, Obama maintained that the government of Cuba has not provided any support for international terrorism over the last six months.

    Similarly, his statement to the lawmakers reads in part: “Cuba has provided assurances that it will not support acts of international terrorism in the future.”

    Although, Lawmakers could veto the action of officially removing Cuba from terror list, Obama may ignore any such action.

    Cuba is expected to be officially removed from the terror list 45 days after the president’s message gets to Congress.

  • Cuba builds first church since Castro came to power

    A neglected, weed-strewn field in a small Cuban town where there are more horses than cars seems an unlikely setting for a major shift in government policy.

    But in the isolated town of Sandino, Cuba’s first Catholic Church since the 1959 revolution took power is set to be built.

    “There is money to start, there is the construction material to start, there are the permissions to start, so everything is ready,” said Bishop Jorge Enrique Serpa Pérez, who oversees the diocese where the new church will be built.

    The Sandino church has been 56 years in the making, ever since Fidel Castro took power and Cuba became an officially atheist state.

    Religious people fell under suspicion by the new revolutionary government, but none more so than those who belonged to the Catholic Church, which was seen as being overly sympathetic to the Batista regime that Castro had driven from power.

    In the first years of the revolution, thousands of Catholic priests were jailed or forced into exile, and church property, including the Jesuit school that Castro attended, was seized by the Cuban government.

    Only with the visit in 1998 of Pope John Paul IIto the island did relations between the Cuban government and Catholic Church begin to thaw. Christmas again became a national holiday, and Cubans faced less official discrimination for practicing their faiths.

    In December, Cuban President Raul Castro thanked Pope Francis for his role in the secret talks that led to a prisoner swap between Cuba and the United States and the start of negotiations to restore full diplomatic relations.

    In 2015, church officials said requests to build new churches that had long been ensnared in red tape began to receive government approval.

    While church officials said several new Catholic houses of worship are in the works, the first will be built in Sandino, a remote town at the end of a pothole-cratered road in Cuba’s westernmost province.

    The Rev. Cirilo Castro drives that road to Sandino once a week to officiate Mass in a converted garage in the back of a house the church rents. He has lost count of the miles he has put on his green Russian Lada as part of his ministry to towns throughout the province.

    When the new Catholic church is built — the first in Sandino’s history — Castro said he would move to minster there full time.

    “I hope the church doesn’t stay within the four walls,” he said “That it will go farther than that. That with the building of the new church, there will be more people of faith,” Castro said.

    The Cuban Catholic Church desperately needs more followers in Cuba, where in recent years the syncretic religion Santeria, that mixes African religions with Catholicism, has exploded in popularity.

    The church in Sandino will take about two years to build and when completed will hold 200 people, Castro said.

    Most of the $50,000 collected so far for the new church comes from fund-raisers held by the St. Lawrence Catholic Church in Tampa, Florida.

    “Much of Tampa’s history and culture comes from Cuba,” said the Rev. Tom Morgan, St. Lawrence’s vicar. “It’s absolutely fantastic they are building a new church, and I hope to be able to visit one day.”

    Morgan said he was optimistic that recent changes in U..S Treasury Department regulations would make it possible for his church to send supplies and building materials to Cuba to help with the construction of the new church.

    As she makes her way down a path to attend Mass in Cirilo Castro’s converted garage, Digna Martinez said she has waited more than five decades for a church to be built in Sandino.

    Martinez said she, her husband and two children were those relocated to the town during early 1960s when a triumphant Fidel Castro was still battling what he called “bandits,” holdouts against his revolution waging guerrilla warfare in the countryside.

    While there is no official tally, hundreds, perhaps thousands, of people suspected of plotting against the revolution were shipped to Sandino to live in a form of internal exile.

    “It was a process to make a community for political prisoners,” Martinez said. “They took our farm away and brought us here.”

    A lifelong Catholic, Martinez said one of the most devastating things about being forced to move 500 miles away from her home to a town she had never heard of was that there was no church.

    “Having a church is very important,” she said. “Many of the people here were brought up Catholic and need a church. We were baptized and prayed when we went to bed and woke up, just like our parents and grandparents taught us.”

     

    •Culled from CNN

     

     

  • Celebrating US-Cuba’s new start

    SIR: Not many people saw it coming yet it did. In fact, not many would think this day will ever come but it did and that in itself is a sign that nations in conflict could resolve issues through diplomacy. President Barack Obama, after months of furtive negotiations with the Cuban government, announced a number of sweeping changes that would kick-start economic, political and diplomatic relations with Cuba. The announcement formed part of Obama’s post-2008 election policy shifts where a “new start” in relations was promised between the two countries.

    President Obama had in 2011 relaxed some travel restrictions but the implementation remained stalled so long as Alan P. Gross, a US government contractor arrested in 2009 and sentenced to 15 years in a Cuban prison was still held. The role played by the Catholic Pontiff, Pope Francis in the negotiations is remarkable. In fact, he helped to encourage the talks through written letters to both countries’ president and even hosted a meeting at the Vatican in October to finalise the deal. Both presidents even went as far as talking for the first time in over 50 years on the phone for more than 45 minutes to formally seal the deal.

    As a step forward, Cuba released Mr. Gross (released separately on humanitarian grounds because he was, according to officials, not technically part of the release deal) and the US in return freed three imprisoned Cuban spies caught in 1998. Part of the deal will see the US easing restrictions on remittances, travel and banking. Cuba will follow up by allowing more internet access and releasing 53 Cubans identified as political prisoners by the US. Also, Cuba will be removed from the US terrorist list which will pave the way for a much deeper bilateral cooperation in the area of counter-narcotics, counter-terrorism among other related security issues. The most important highlight of this new policy is the resumption of diplomatic relations and the opening of embassies in Havana and Washington respectively.

    The new start in is a right step in the right direction. Now is the time to kick-start a viable process that will end the 54 years of political debacle that has divided families and wounded lives. This is not only victory for Latin America but also Cuba and the US. This is victory for American foreign policy and international peace. Despite growing dissatisfaction with this policy shift among the Republican dominated Congress and a number of Latin American states, it is hoped common sense will prevail. The new start is certainly a win-win situation for both countries; a laudable initiative and a very important opportunity for the US to change the world’s perception about its foreign policy decisions. The cold war has ended and so should the sanctions and embargo on Cuba.

     

    • Raheem Oluwafunminiyi,

     Lagos

  • America’s restoration of ties with Cuba

    President Barrack Obama has taken a giant step that history would never forget him in politics and human endeavour.

    The decision to open diplomatic ties with Cuba is a decision that needs to be applauded in the world of politics; hence it would cement the bound between Cuba and America.

    When the threat of Ebola reared its ugly head, the Cuban government deployed its very best doctors to help the countries where the diseases was ravaging, this drew the attention of the American government, which for the first time in fifty years of its sour relations commended the Cubans.

    When the regime of former President Fidel Castro was in government, his avowed determination to hold his regime’s policies angered the Americans, particularly the communism the Cubans are practising.

    This restoration of diplomatic relations has drawn world commendation from world leaders which would open the window of opportunities between the two countries.

    Also, this relationship would afford the Cubans living in America to travel to Cuba without undue intimidation and harassment from the American government.

    It now behoves on the American dominated Republicans congress to ensure the relationship see the light of the day, because in any good thing that would come out, it must face some resistance from the section of the society.

    The Cubans are very versatile and determined people that are contributing to the uplift and development of many sister countries around the world.

    We hope the restoration of this diplomatic relationship would ensure greater ties that would reduce the unnecessary political tension amongst the various countries of the world.

    The end of cold war has opened window opportunities, where many countries in the world believe in mutual cooperation amongst themselves to promote peace, unity and development in the best interest of the humanity.

    The report that former President Fidel Castro would be visiting

    America next year is a welcome development and would go a long way to promote the much anticipated diplomatic ties.

    The opening of American embassy in Havana is the right step in the right direction which shows the seriousness of the relationship restoration.

    By Bala Nayashi

    Lokoja, Kogi State

  • WYC: Cuba 0-3 Nigeria

    WYC: Cuba 0-3 Nigeria

    Nigeria got their FIFA U-20 World Cup back on track as they recovered from their opening defeat to Portugal to cruise past Cuba 3-0 in Kayseri, according to Fifa.com.

    A first-half double from Animu Umar, followed by captain Abdul Ajagun getting his third of the tournament, allowing the west African side to reassert their knock-out stage aspirations, in what was the pairs first meeting at any level of international football.

    Nigeria were unable to break down the Cuban’s early on, with Chidi Osuchukwu’s speculative free-kick the closest they came. Nigeria’s man of the moment Ajagun almost opened the scoring with a superb lob, from the right of the penalty area while running at full pace, but Sandy Sanchez was relieved to see it land on the roof of the net.

    Seconds later they were ahead. Ajagun fed Olarenwaju Kayode down the left wing, who got clear of the defence, before squaring to Umar to score what is likely to be one of the simplest goals of his career.

    Umar had another four minutes later, which had a touch more flair to it. Osuchukwu’s deep corner eventually found Abdullahi Shehu, who drilled a cross that Umar flicked between his legs and into the bottom corner. Olaitan Michael almost made it three with a superb right-footed effort that cannoned off the outside of the post.

    Nigeria were in full control, and that continued into the second period, Kayode breaking beyond the back line and firing wide across goal. He charged forward in similar style moments later, but in choosing to square to Ajagun, Abel Martinez was able to clear.

    Ajagun did get his goal though, with 67 minutes on the clock. Kingsley Madu’s cross deceived Sanchez and Ajagun stooped to head home, seeing him become the top-scorer so far. Ajagun missed the chance to double his tally for the day late on, missing from the penalty spot after Martinez upended Kayode in the area.