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16 July 1999

Fact Sheet: Clinton Suspends Helms-Burton for Six Months

(Details efforts to promote democracy in Cuba)  (2520)
Washington -- Following is a White House fact sheet announcing
President Clinton's July 16 decision to suspend for another six months
Title III of the Helms-Burton Act.
The fact sheet also contains information on progress toward
establishing democracy in Cuba.
(begin text)
July 16, 1999
FACT SHEET
CUBA: President's Title III Decision on Helms-Burton Act
Presidential Decision
President Clinton has suspended for an additional six months,
effective August 1, 1999, the provision of the Cuban Liberty and
Democratic Solidarity (LIBERTAD) Act that allows U.S. nationals with
claims to confiscated property in Cuba to file suit under Title III of
the Act. In accordance with the Act, the President certified that a
suspension is necessary to the national interest and will expedite a
transition to democracy in Cuba. He has reported his determination to
the appropriate Congressional committees. In reaching this decision,
the President cited important continuing actions by our friends and
allies to promote democracy in Cuba.
The President allowed Title III to enter into force on August 1, 1996,
but suspended for six months the provision that would permit American
nationals to bring suit against persons trafficking in confiscated
properties in Cuba claimed by a U.S. national. He did so in order to
work with our friends and allies to develop a multilateral approach to
advance democracy, human rights and fundamental freedoms in Cuba. The
President appointed Ambassador Stuart Eizenstat to lead a new effort
to develop international support for democracy and human rights in
Cuba. Ambassador Eizenstat met with leaders throughout Europe and
Latin America from all sectors -- government, politics, private
sector, labor, religion, and human rights -- to forge this new
multilateral movement. While there remains substantial disagreement
about the best approach to bring democracy to Cuba, all recognize that
Cuba must undertake democratic change and respect human rights.
In January 1997, the President cited significant progress in the
development of the multilateral initiative and renewed the suspension
for another six months in order to consolidate and further develop the
multilateral approach. At that time, he said he would expect to
continue to suspend the Title III lawsuit provision as long as our
friends and allies continue their efforts to promote a transition to
democracy in Cuba. In July 1997, January 1998, July 1998, and January
1999, the President noted additional concrete steps to promote
democracy and human rights when he announced additional six-month
suspensions.
The President's initiative to gain international support for democracy
in Cuba -- the most ambitious since Castro seized power -- is yielding
tangible positive results. In the past six months, with continued
coordination by Under Secretary of State Eizenstat, governments,
non-governmental organizations, and the private sector have taken
additional important steps to promote democracy in Cuba. Cuban
officials at home and abroad continue to hear a concerted message in
support of democratic change.
Progress in the International Effort to Promote Democracy in Cuba
Government Actions
-- On January 7, Canada's Foreign Minister Lloyd Axworthy raised the
issue of human rights with President Fidel Castro. Axworthy reviewed
with Vice President Carlos Lage and Foreign Minister Roberto Robaina
the 14-point agreement between their two countries signed in 1997,
which included commitments to human rights. Axworthy also raised the
case of the four imprisoned leaders of the Dissident Working Group.
His staff met with dissidents.
-- On January 13, Belgian Foreign Minister Derycke raised human rights
with Cuban officials and gave a speech supporting human rights and
democracy in Havana. He called on Cuban authorities to adapt "to the
progressive values of the post-cold war period," and pointed to
Belgium's "great love of individual freedom" and "enormous diversity
of opinion."
-- Colombian President Pastrana visited Cuba and, on January 15, gave
a speech at the University of Havana which was a clear call to
democracy and human rights. He compared Jose Marti and Simon Bolivar
and said, "one of the biggest mistakes of history has been to lift up
the state to a position of absolute importance ... " and "the state
should know that the participation of its citizens is a right ... "
-- Then-Cuban Foreign Minister Robaina visited Italy on January 21.
Italian Foreign Minister Dini told Robaina that the development of
relations between Cuba and the European Union must move forward with
progress toward greater democracy and socio-economic freedom in Cuba.
-- Also on January 21, Costa Rican President Rodriguez rejected Cuba's
candidacy for the UN Human Rights Commission because of Cuba's bad
human rights record. He also said that Castro has "failed to fulfill
the promises of pluralism, democratization, and human rights" of the
Ibero-American Summit.
-- The Costa Rican Foreign Minister in February denied Castro's
request that it open an embassy, not just a consulate, in Cuba. Costa
Rica refused to open an embassy because of the situation in Cuba
-- During her February 1-3 visit to Cuba, Austrian Foreign Ministry
State Secretary Ferrero-Waldner told Cuban officials of her concerns
about freedom of expression and the single-party Cuban political
system. She expressed concern about the imprisoned leaders of the
Dissidents Working Group. She also met with four different dissident
and human rights groups.
-- Then-Cuban Foreign Minister Robaina visited Japan from February
22-27. Both Prime Minister Obuchi and Foreign Minister Koumura
discussed human rights in Cuba with Robaina. PM Obuchi told Robaina
that the Government of Japan remains "concerned about the human rights
situation in Cuba." FM Koumura spoke to Robaina about Japan's view of
the universality and indispensability of human rights and the role
that view will play in Japan's relationship with Cuba.
-- The Costa Rican Foreign Ministry issued a communique March 13 which
said, "the situation on human and civil rights in Cuba remains
unsatisfactory." It called on the UN Commission on Human Rights to
"analyze and discuss objectively the human rights situation prevailing
in Cuba."
-- President Aleman of Nicaragua has repeatedly and publicly
reaffirmed his decision not to attend the Ibero-American Summit in
Havana this Fall. Nicaragua also co-sponsored the Czech-Polish
resolution on Cuba at the UN Commission on Human Rights in Geneva.
Arrest of the Dissidents Working Group
For over a year, governments, organizations, and individuals
throughout the world have expressed concern, both publicly and
privately, about the Cuban government's arrest and detention of the
four leaders of the Dissident Working Group -- Martha Beatriz Roque,
Vladimiro Roca, Felix Bonne, and Rene Gomez Manzano. They were
arrested in 1997 for publishing a document entitled "The Fatherland
Belongs to All," which criticized Cuba's one-party system and called
for democratic change. On March 1, a closed trial was held. On March
15, the four dissident leaders were convicted of sedition and
sentenced to prison terms of 3-1/2 to 5 years. The trial, conviction,
and sentencing of these brave leaders brought widespread condemnation
from throughout the world.
-- Before the sentence was announced, on March 5, Italy's foreign
ministry summoned the Cuban ambassador in Rome to express Italy's
concern about the handling of the trial. The trial, Italy said, risked
setting back whatever advances there had been since the Pope's visit
in 1998.
-- On March 15, Canada's Prime Minister Chretien expressed
disappointment at the trial and sentencing, noting that he had raised
these cases with Castro himself last year. He said "in light of the
convictions and other related events, we have informed the Cuban
government that we would be reviewing the range of our bilateral
activity."
-- On March 16, Spanish Prime Minister Jose Maria Aznar said the
"harsh, severe sentences" were "incomprehensible at the end of the
twentieth century," and represent a "serious setback" for the
situation in Cuba, and for the possibility of a visit by the King of
Spain to Cuba.
-- On March 16, Brazil's government said it "regrets the recent
conviction of four Cuban citizens in a closed trial, which neither the
press nor diplomats were allowed to observe. The verdict ...
represents a step backward in the promotion of human rights and
democracy." Brazil's Federal Chamber of Deputies Human Rights
Committee also passed a resolution condemning the Cuban government
action.
-- The Japanese government, on March 17, issued a statement expressing
its "regret" at the sentences, noting, "In Cuba, there are continuing
violations of human rights, such as restrictions on the freedom of
political activities, freedom of assembly and association, and freedom
of expression." Japan "strongly hopes that Cuba will promote
democratization and improve its human rights situation."
-- On March 11, before the verdict was announced, the European
Parliament, with members elected from all EU countries, passed a
resolution condemning a new Cuban law that strengthened the state's
repressive apparatus with broad support across the spectrum of
political parties; condemned the arrest charges against, and trial of
the four members of the dissidents working group, and objected to the
Cuban government taking into custody over 100 critics of the regime.
-- On March 17, the European Commission, representing all member
governments, issued a statement strongly condemning the trial and
sentencing of the four. The statement defended the actions of the
four, and expressed "grave concern."
-- Another major development was the passage in April by the UN
Commission on Human Rights of the Resolution offered by the Czech
Republic and Poland on the human rights situation in Cuba. The
resolution passed 21 to 20, despite intense Cuban pressure on many
nations to vote no or to abstain. In addition to support by all
EU-member states on the Commission, the resolution received more Latin
support than ever before. The U.S. Government exercised a significant
degree of leadership.
-- On June 25, the European Union Council renewed for an additional
six months its Common Position on Cuba. The Council noted that "the
parameters of Cuban domestic and foreign policy have not improved"
over the past six months.
NGO's and Human Rights Organizations
Non-Governmental organizations, human rights organizations, political
parties, and other independent groups outside of Cuba continued to
press for human rights and democratic change in Cuba.
-- In December, officials of the International Confederation of free
Trade Unions raised human rights issues with Cuban government
officials in Havana.
-- On January 25, the World Confederation of Labour (WCL) issued a
statement from Brussels objecting to the decision of the Cuban
government not to receive its delegation on a scheduled visit. The
statement indicated that the Cuban decision was a result of WCL
efforts to meet with independent unions. It concluded, "The world is
opening up to Cuba, but are the Cuban regime and its trade union
really ready to open up to the democratic world?"
-- In a report released February 11, the International Press Institute
(IPI) said, "Cuban authorities regularly threaten, arrest, and jail
journalists, often attempting to 'persuade' them to leave the
country."
-- On February 23, Pax Christi, the respected Dutch human rights
organization, issued a report entitled "Cuba: A Year After the Pope:
return of the Iron Curtain?" The report cited 6 examples of
intensifying political repression, noting the passage of new
repressive measures, such as the "Law for the Protection of the Cuban
National Independence and Economy." Pax Christi said "Cuba is a
ticking bomb ... The international community ... should become more
persistent in its pressure on Cuban authorities to respect human
rights and start democratization."
-- On March 4, the President of the World Association of Newspapers,
representing over 15,000 papers in 90 countries, sent a letter to
Fidel Castro objecting to the disappearance of two journalists in
Cuba, the arrest of nine others, and the passage of the repressive new
law entitled "Law for the Protection of the Cuban National
Independence and Economy."
-- Reporters Sans Frontieres and the Committee to Protect Journalists
on March 17 issued a joint "briefing book" chronicling a three-month
crackdown on the independent press in Cuba. It said that since January
1, at least 28 journalists had been arrested or harassed because of
their work.
-- On May 28, a large group of important Mexican intellectuals sent a
letter to the Mexican government describing repression of human rights
in Cuba and the treatment of the Dissidents Working Group. The letter
asked the Mexican government to "include concern about human rights on
the agenda of bilateral relations with the government of Cuba."
-- The Amnesty International annual report on Cuba, published in June,
reported that Cuba held at least 350 political prisoners, including
some 100 prisoners of conscience. The report noted that many political
dissidents were detained for short periods or harassed, and there were
frequent reports of ill treatment.
Press Commentary
The European news media has stepped-up its focus and commentary on
Cuba's repressive human rights measures. Many editorials in respected
newspapers from the left, center, and right have called for democracy
and human rights in Cuba. Following is a sample of this commentary.
-- On February 2, the Italian newspaper La Republica sharply
criticized the Cuban government for repression and the arrest of six
independent journalists.
-- On March 17, La Republica continued, "Fidel Castro's policy of
'openness to the world' has never produced anything concrete.... Ever
since the conclusion of the Pope's visit, Fidel Castro has devoted all
his energies to reversing the meaning of that event...We start all
over again now, and the prospect for Fidel is a new, long phase of
isolation."
-- A front page commentary in Italy's top-circulation Corriere della
Sera on March 5 condemned Cuban government repression and wondered why
"international public opinion continues to be indulgent or
sentimentally weak toward the Castro regime."
-- The Belgian Le Soir carried a story on March 2 which said, "Brutal
repression of any kind of opposition could challenge the policy of
opening toward Cuba initiated by numerous countries, including
Belgium, these last months."
-- In Denmark, Jyllands-Posten said March 9, "Castro chose to continue
on the economic and social downward spiral that does not offer Cuba
any hope as long as he is alive. The world's answer must be to
continue its hard-line policy and thereby force Castro to accept
democracy and the market economy."
-- In Spain, on March 2, La Gaceta wrote, "Castro has unleashed a new
campaign of persecution against internal dissent and put in place a
series of new repressive laws. Any ideas of a gradual transformation
to a pluralist, constitutional, Western political system have gone by
the wayside as Marxist-Leninism is in full vogue."
-- Spain's El Pais said on March 4, "After the brief parenthesis
created by the Pope's historic visit, Castro's regime has once again
clamped down.... It is a way of saying: 'Nobody move!' And, of course,
the one who has moved least is Castro."
-- Spain's El Mundo noted on March 17 that Canada and Spain are
reviewing their relationship with Cuba following Cuba's crackdown, and
recommended that Ibero-American countries consider whether to postpone
their planned November summit in Havana, "Not for theatrical effect or
to deepen the crisis, but to remind Castro that admission to the
international community entails certain responsibilities."
(end text)