[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 121 (Monday, July 12, 2021)]
[Senate]
[Page S4818]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                                  Cuba

  Mr. SCOTT of Florida. Madam President, I rise today to talk about the 
new day of freedom dawning in Cuba and the brave Cubans marching for 
freedom across the island. For decades, the Cuban people have suffered 
atrocities, oppression, and misery at the hands of the communist Castro 
regime.
  I have repeatedly told the story of Sirley Avila Leon, a Cuban woman 
who was attacked by Cuban security forces in 2015. They cut off her 
hand and stuck her arm in the mud to make sure it got infected. Her 
crime? She complained that the regime was going to shut down a school 
in her neighborhood.
  I have spoken to brave leaders like Jose Daniel Ferrer and the 
courageous members of his Patriotic Union of Cuba who are fighting 
every day to defend human rights, freedom, and the democratic movement 
in Cuba. Activists like Jose Daniel Ferrer and the artists of the San 
Isidro Movement are the future of Cuba, not the ruthless communist 
regime.
  Today, the people of Cuba are saying: Enough. Across Cuba, people are 
marching in the streets to protest against communist rule and demand 
the freedom, liberty, and basic human rights that have been stolen from 
them for decades by the brutally oppressive Cuban regime. Their demands 
are simple: libertad.
  What we are seeing in Cuba should send a clear message to the world. 
Communism is a failed ideology that does nothing but lead to suffering 
and oppression. Communism doesn't work. Socialism doesn't work.
  The people of Cuba are crying out for freedom. They are denouncing 
the oppressive communist rule that has brought ruin to their nation for 
more than 60 years. The message from the Cuban people to Diaz-Canel and 
Raul Castro has never been more clear: Your time is up. And the regime 
is terrified of the Cuban people. They are attacking peaceful 
protesters in an effort to silence them. Right now, Jose Daniel Ferrer, 
members of his family, and other leaders from his group are reportedly 
missing, likely kidnapped by the regime.
  This disgusting assault on the people of Cuba cannot go unchecked. We 
cannot ignore this historic moment in the fight for freedom. We 
understand the value and importance of freedom in our everyday lives, 
and it is our duty to support and stand up for those who are oppressed 
by dictators and denied the right the live freely.
  Today, I stand proudly with the heroic freedom fighters across Cuba 
who have taken to the streets, determined to regain their freedom and 
put an end to the Castro dictatorship.
  Now, the Biden administration must lead the freedom-loving nations of 
the world in loud and unequivocal denouncement of the brutal communist 
Castro regime and in support of the liberty, democracy, and human 
rights the Cuban people call for and rightfully deserve.
  We must be clear. For decades, Cuba has been the root of instability 
in Latin America and represented a terrible threat to the national 
security of the United States. The Castro regime harbors terrorist 
groups; has gotten rid of free and fair elections; threatens and 
arbitrarily arrests critics, journalists, and political activists; and 
props up other ruthless dictators, like Maduro in Venezuela and Ortega 
in Nicaragua.
  Today, the American people must join freedom-loving Cubans in saying 
that the oppression ends now. We cannot lift sanctions or restore 
diplomatic relations with the Cuban dictatorship. We should not offer 
another lifeline to this brutal communist dictatorship.
  I urge the Biden administration to impose further sanctions on the 
tyrannical Cuban regime. We cannot let up. There must be consequences 
for this heinous oppression and attacks on peaceful protesters.
  To the people of Cuba: You are not alone. I stand with you in this 
fight. Florida stands with you in this fight. The United States of 
America stands with you in this fight.
  The freedom of Cuba is closer than ever, and we are not going to stop 
until we see a new day of freedom, democracy, and ``Patria y Vida'' in 
Cuba.
  Madam President, I ask unanimous consent to address the Senate in 
Spanish.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. Without objection, it is so 
ordered.
  (English translation of statement made in Spanish is as follows:)
  To the people of Cuba: You are not alone. I stand with you in this 
fight. Florida stands with you in this fight. The United States of 
America stands with you in this fight.
  I yield the floor.