[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 64 (Thursday, May 1, 2003)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E843]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             INTERNATIONAL SUPPORT FOR CUBAN OPPOSITION DAY

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. LINCOLN DIAZ-BALART

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, May 1, 2003

  Mr. LINCOLN DIAZ-BALART of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I ask that the 
following Proclamation by the Miami-Dade County Office of the Mayor and 
the Board of County Commissioners be included in the Record.

       Whereas: As the Apostle of the Cuban Independence Jose 
     Marti once said: ``Liberty is very expensive and it is 
     necessary either to resign oneself to live without it or to 
     decide to pay its price;'' and
        Whereas: Realizing that Cubans are persecuted and exiled 
     in their own land, deprived of their most elemental rights, 
     fired from their jobs, subjected to a cruel and systematic 
     hate campaign, and suffering defamation towards them and 
     their families, the thousands of men and women, that for 
     years have confronted with civic activism that tyranny, 
     deserve the admiration and support of all; and
        Whereas: On Monday, May 13, 2002, coinciding with the 71st 
     Anniversary of Pedro Luis Boitel's birthday, a Cuban murdered 
     by the Castro regimen, a group of Cuban exile institutions 
     have agreed to declare May 13th, ``International Support for 
     the Cuban Opposition Day,'' and
        Whereas: The efforts of these Cuban organizations are not 
     only against the Fidel Castro dictatorship, but against all 
     forms of oppression anywhere on earth, because the defense of 
     human rights does not know boundaries of any particular 
     nation, thus the representatives of these organizations 
     invite Cubans, inside and outside the island, as well as 
     those sympathetic to this worth cause, to join this noble 
     effort; and
        Whereas: It is fitting and proper that official 
     acknowledgement be given to the organizers, and participants 
     of these plethora of organizations, and wish them complete 
     success in their quest for a Cuba with liberty and justice 
     for all;
       Now Therefore: Be It Resolved, That I, Alex Penelas, Mayor 
     of Miami-Dade County, Florida, On Behalf Of The Board of 
     County Commissioners And This Community, do hereby proclaim 
     Monday, May 13, 2002, as International Support for the Cuban 
     Opposition Day.
       In Observance Thereof: I call upon the good people of 
     Miami-Dade County to join me in recognizing the importance of 
     this endeavor aimed to obtain the most laudable aspirations 
     of the human race--to live in freedom.

                          ____________________