"A radical change", "A before and after": reactions of Cuban exiles to the speech of John Bolton in Miami

The attention of ex-combatants – men over the age of 58 who landed in the Bay of Pigs and were defeated by Fidel Castro's forces, so that they still talk about the treachery of John F. Kennedy – is focused on what they see as a justification: the reverse of key points of the measures taken by Barack Obama, shortly before leaving the White House, this which allowed a historic thaw.

Bolton's commercials have thrilled those who refuse to set foot in their country as the process that sparked the 1959 revolution continues – many die without returning – and therefore lament the rapprochement between the United States and Cuba. When they consider that any income in foreign currency benefits the authorities, they count cultural trips or money transfers as financing in Havana.

At the foot of the scalars of Biltmore Hall – a historic site in the city of Miami, developed by George Merrick, where athlete Johnny Weismueller learned to swim and care for the wounded during the Second World War, became a hospital – The Republican MP Mario Díaz-Balart said that the current government had decided to "stand on the side of people who suffer from these tyrannies and not tyranny, this was the attitude of the previous government" against Obama .

"And not only with words, but with real facts: we have witnessed a daily increase in pressure and sanctions, a dramatic and extremely positive change," said the politician, Fidel Castro's nephew because of the first marriage of his aunt. Mirta Diaz-Balart.

He added: "This is happening in Venezuela, by the brave Venezuelan people but also thanks to the support of the Trump administration, the situation is changing, I am convinced that the dictatorship of Maduro is unsustainable and that the pressure is increasing. also in Nicaragua. "In his speech, Bolton spoke of" the troika of tyranny "and, like Diaz-Balart, other politicians attending Bolton's speech referred to Venezuela and Nicaragua.

Díaz-Balart said the announcements were "a big step forward, but one step further" in the continent's foreign policy. Bolton explained in this regard that "Monroe's doctrine is in good health". Congressman recalled that Trump had warned that "all options are on the table". He pointed out: "This is not advanced syrup: this administration understands that it is a cancer for the national security of the United States".

Miami Mayor Francis Suarez spoke of the impact that the reduction in remittances can have on Cuba and its electorate: "I believe that the limitations allow families to help with what is necessary to provide for their needs, but they do not allow to finance Cuban economy, "he summarized.

"It was the desired balance: we obviously want to help people and give Americans the opportunity to support the families of our countries, but when these funds are excessive, they are not only funding the tyranny in Cuba, but also in Venezuela and Nicaragua. "

He stressed that Trump "was very clear about the politics of this hemisphere, as no other president has been". He cited, for example, the fact that the United States led the 50-nation coalition that recognized Juan Guaidó, Speaker of the Legislative Assembly, as President of Venezuela. "It's something meaningful, that shows courage and that we have not seen in different presidents for decades."

Tomás Regalado, director of the Cuban Communications Office (OCB), stressed that "Titles III and IV are being implemented. [de la ley Helms-Burton, que refuerza la presión económica] because there is a political will. "It's necessary" to confront Europe, Canada, to rectify an anomaly, which should never have happened: the theft of goods to US citizens or to Cubans by a regime who simply did not respect the law. real estate law ".

These measures represent "a before and after in the management of foreign policy", he added. "I think these are the strongest measures taken by a president in 40 years," he added. He was also Mayor of Miami, before Suarez: indeed, since the adoption of the Helms-Burton Act in 1996, no President Even George W. Bush, who toughened the relationship with Cuba in 2004, has implemented Title III.

"I think it sends a very clear message to the Western world: the trafficking of stolen goods, negotiating with Cuba, which is an outlaw country, is a bad deal, which will have a domino effect," he said. predicts Regalado.

María Elvira Salazar, former candidate of the Republican Party, recalled that she was in Washington as a journalist when Title III of the law was negotiated in 1996 under the presidency of Bill Clinton, as text to be approved but not to apply: "It was an excuse to silence exile."

Bolton's speech marked "a very historic day," he said. "This can only push the Castro regime to such an extent that it will have to open." They have been in the power sector for many years, and they do not want to give anything to anyone. that is, but the promise made by the American government will be held: that it would help the Cuban people to establish democracy in the country. "

Probably the only one with piercing Throughout the meeting, the musician Gorky Águila, singer Cuban punk group Porno Para Ricardo, pointed out that the possibility of litigating against those who exploit expropriated properties on the American island will affect the European Union: "This hinders him that his business is withdrawn to them, because they do not care about Cuba's freedom or anything. "

He also praised the importance of the restriction on remittances and travel, despite its potential cost to Cubans: "Freedom has a price, the road will be a sacrifice, we must consider this a good measure because it is something concrete, not a title III speech, which should never have been implemented ".

From Havana to Miami, the musician explained that "Cubans already know a lot about the situation in Venezuela, because it is impossible to cover". For the use of mobile phones, "you start to see indignation and barbarity," he added: "One of the things that can happen – let's say it well, if anything good can to be sought – is that Venezuela is a lighthouse that is enlightening the world to show at what level such a system can reach: kill people on the street, and also starve them to death, even the leftists understand that this is not the way to go ".

One member of the 2506th Brigade Veterans Association, Raymond Molina, who had a brief political career, said in Trump's favor: "We have a new president who has a very different vision from the presidents. The goal is to end socialism in Latin America, which has only brought misery. "

He said that if the new measures, which also concern Venezuela and Nicaragua, have an impact, "Cuba will not receive more oil: there will be an un-enlightened Havana without traffic". He celebrated the reduction in remittances, "even though I think $ 1,000 a quarter, that's too much." In the Bush era, he recalled, they were $ 300 per quarter). "We cut everywhere", closed to the first person of the plural. "The idea of ​​overthrowing the government that tyrannized the Republic of Cuba."

Rolando Nápoles, an American-Cuban journalist, has badyzed that "an interesting chapter is opening" if, as of May 2, he is authorized to "sue companies that are currently exploiting expropriated properties in Mexico. Cuba". He pointed out that in these trials – for which he is registered "more than 5,900 people who could have established, within the US Foreign Claims Commission, a possible claim" – do not affect the homes of Cubans: "People's homes, enter industrial properties".

He also disagreed that the restriction of remittances is not aimed at "the exile on foot, which sends 100 USD per month, but the mules that carry money to Cuba". Trump's policy, he said, "is the most difficult that the Cuban regime has to face with the greatest force" in recent years.

The journalist and writer Orlando Luis Pardo Lazo felt that it had been announced "a bold step, which was not included in the projects of the most learned Cubanologists" and that it occurs "in a complex scenario: it can have difficult consequences. " However, he said, "anything that changes the scenario and involves new actors – for example, foreign companies likely to be affected", is, beyond the result, a way to provoke some reaction to Havana. always: under pressure. "

If it is carried out "effectively, without suffering those who are still suffering, who are the poorest, but the companies", the application of Titles III and IV of the Helms-Burton Act could allow "to reach" to a pact, because it is not a war. "But" it is necessary that Castro recognize the economic and civil rights of the Cuban people, a scenario which, moreover, does not want to. "