aRRoz con pUnK !

A letter I wrote and sent to all the major Canadian papers I knew about. If any of you happen to be Canadian or know Canadians, please send this to your friends, newspapers and your representatives in government.

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Canada... Cuba...

Friends since forever it seems. I remember at Trudeau's funeral in 2000, then Prime Minister Jean Chretien with Boris Yeltsin and Fidel Castro, in their suits at the Notre-Dame Basilica in Old Montreal, talking and smiling. But Canada's friendship with Cuba doesn't just end with its former head of state however.

In 2007, according to Cubatourism.ca, Canada was Cuba second largest export partner, fourth largest import partner and Canada has several joint partnerships with the island for the exploitation of resources such as oil and nickel. Not to mention Cuba's booming tourism industry where Canadian travelers make up the large majority of those seeking cheap vacations and all inclusive drinks.

Which leads to ask why, with so many ties to Cuba, is the Canadian media not covering the hunger strikes currently taking place? Sure there was a brief mention of the death of Orlando Zapata Tamayo following his hunger strike that ended tragically on February 23rd. Since then, two more hunger strikers have taken up where he left off, but the Canadian media has been silent while the rest of the world news agencies (Associated Press, Reuters, Reporters Without Borders) are reporting everyday and giving the world updates. But as Canadians, we're not seeing them in our papers or our papers' websites.

Them government too, has been strangely silent. We criticize everyone: from Israel for planning to build settlements; China on censorship; and we love to lecture the US about everything, but when it comes to Cuba: we willingly turn a blind eye. Is this because of the meager dollars that are brought in because of trade? Or is it because our government is also a fan of cheap all-inclusives? As a voter, a taxpayer and a Canadian, I would like to know the answers to these questions.

March 18th marks the 7th anniversary of Black Spring, a day where 75 journalists were arrested in Cuba for what amounts to speaking their minds. 52 of them are still behind bars. This week, the Ladies in White, the wives and mothers of those arrested that day are marching peacefully through the streets of Havana. They plan to march everyday for seven days to commemorate the darkest day for freedom of speech in Cuba. They are risking their freedom and their safety in the hopes that the someone somewhere in the world will listen, that people will talk about it and that if enough people talk... they are hoping that maybe Cuba might listen. Isn't that reason enough for Canadian journalists to type a few words about censorship, repression and Human Rights violations?

Orlando Zapata Tamayo died following a hunger strike for better conditions for him and his fellow inmates. Some of them have described the daily beatings they endured and the appalling conditions under which they were held, all of which are against our fundamental values as Canadians are a clear violation of their rights. Following his death Guillermo Farinas took up a hunger strike of his own asking for the release of 26 prisoners of conscience who are ill; he has since been hospitalized and been hydrated through intravenous tubes, but his strike continues. Another man has vowed to pick up where Farinas will leave off should he pass away. I am certain others will follow.

A hunger striker liberated India from British rule, his name was Gandhi.
And the world knows his name.
A hunger striker like Zapata Tamayo has brought the eyes of the world onto Cuba and its abuse of Human Rights.
But Canada doesn't seem to know anything about it.

If a person is willing to go to this extent, to sacrifice himself in a peaceful way for the cause of Human Rights (a cause we can all agree with), shouldn't we at least listen to what he has to say?

Muchacho Enfermo