[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 66 (Thursday, April 20, 2023)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1305-S1306]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
SENATE RESOLUTION 168--COMMEMORATING THE 62ND ANNIVERSARY OF THE BAY OF
PIGS OPERATION AND REMEMBERING THE MEMBERS OF BRIGADA DE ASALTO 2506
(ASSAULT BRIGADE 2506)
Mr. RUBIO (for himself, Mr. Cruz, and Mr. Scott of Florida) submitted
the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on
Foreign Relations:
S. Res. 168
Whereas April 17, 2023, marks the 62nd anniversary of the
first day of the Bay of Pigs operation, an event held dear in
the hearts of many who long for the return of freedom,
democracy, and justice to Cuba;
Whereas the Communist dictatorship in Cuba that resulted
from the January 1, 1959, revolution in Cuba has
systematically denied the Cuban people their most basic human
rights and fundamental freedoms;
Whereas, from 1959 until his death in 2016, dictator Fidel
Castro, who promised to implement a revolution against
tyranny, systematically violated the human rights of the
Cuban people, curtailed freedom of the press, arbitrarily
imprisoned and killed an untold number of members of the
political opposition in Cuba, and confiscated the properties
of citizens of Cuba and the United States;
Whereas Fidel Castro's dictatorship supported terrorism by
providing safe haven and logistics to terrorist groups and
fugitives throughout the world;
Whereas the men and women participating in the Bay of Pigs
operation assumed the title of Brigada de Asalto 2506
(Assault Brigade 2506), which was named after the serial
number (2506) of Carlos Rodriguez Santana, a founding member
of the brigade who died during training exercises in
September 1960;
[[Page S1306]]
Whereas Assault Brigade 2506 consisted of individuals,
primarily Cuban exiles in the United States, from diverse
backgrounds, including doctors, nurses, engineers,
architects, priests, cooks, musicians, actors, business
owners, barbers, bankers, construction workers, office
clerks, students, pilots, and many other individuals
representing different sectors in Cuba;
Whereas, on April 17, 1961, approximately 1,400 individuals
selflessly volunteered to free the Cuban people from tyranny;
Whereas, in the ensuing days, and in the course of a battle
against the Cuban military, which was superior in manpower
and firepower, more than 100 men lost their lives;
Whereas the events of April 17 through April 20, 1961,
ended with the capture and imprisonment of 1,204 members or
more than 75 percent of Assault Brigade 2506;
Whereas a large number of the 1,204 captured members of
Assault Brigade 2506 were imprisoned in deplorable conditions
for close to 18 months, subjected to harsh and inhumane
treatment, and later sentenced without due process to 30
years of imprisonment;
Whereas, in September 1961, the Cuban regime executed 5
members of Assault Brigade 2506 who had been captured during
the operation;
Whereas 67 members of Assault Brigade 2506 died in combat,
including 4 American pilots and 10 Cuban pilots and
navigators, 10 members died while trying to flee Cuba on a
fishing boat that drifted in the Gulf of Mexico for almost 15
days, 10 members died while being transported to prison by
their Cuban captors inside a sealed truck with limited
oxygen, 9 members were executed by firing squads, and 3
members died while in prison due to lack of medical
attention;
Whereas one of the most heinous acts relating to the
operation was ordered by then Captain Osmany Cienfuegos, who
forced nearly 100 male prisoners into a closed trailer in
which they were transported for 8 hours with limited oxygen;
Whereas the Cuban regime is a party to the Geneva
Conventions of 1949, which require the humane treatment of
prisoners of war;
Whereas, in March 1962, as the trial of the captured
fighters approached, the President of the International
Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) appealed to Cuban dictator
Fidel Castro, asking that the provisions of Article 3 of the
Geneva Convention relative to the Treatment of Prisoners of
War, done at Geneva August 12, 1949, be fully applied, and
for permission to visit the prisoners, but all the requests
went unanswered;
Whereas the 1,113 members of Assault Brigade 2506 who
finally returned to the United States after the operation
have made significant and valuable contributions to the
United States, while never forgetting their beloved homeland;
Whereas, on December 29, 1962, President John Fitzgerald
Kennedy was presented with the banner of Assault Brigade 2506
that had reached the shores of Cuba during the operation, and
the President pledged, ``I can assure you that this flag will
be returned to this brigade in a free Havana.'';
Whereas, on April 24, 1986, a joint resolution (Public Law
99-279; 100 Stat. 398) was approved ``Commemorating the
twenty-fifth anniversary of the Bay of Pigs invasion to
liberate Cuba from Communist tyranny.'';
Whereas Cuba's authoritarian regime continues to
arbitrarily detain thousands of critics, activists, and
opponents and continues to deny the people of Cuba the
ability to vote in free, fair, multiparty elections with
independent and opposition candidates;
Whereas Cuba's authoritarian regime has actively fostered
and supported anti-democratic parties and actors throughout
the Western Hemisphere, including the regimes of Nicaragua
and Venezuela;
Whereas Cuba is designated as a state sponsor of terrorism
by the Department of State; and
Whereas the Cuban people continue to struggle and demand
respect for democratic values, civil liberties, freedom, and
justice: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the Senate--
(1) remembers all the veterans of Brigada de Asalto 2506
(Assault Brigade 2506), both living and deceased;
(2) honors the courageous veterans of Assault Brigade 2506
who fought for freedom, including those who suffered torture
or perished in the struggle for a democratic Cuba;
(3) calls on the Government of the United States to
continue to support policies that promote the respect for
democratic principles, civil liberties, freedom, and justice
in Cuba, in a manner consistent with the aspirations of the
Cuban people;
(4) recognizes that individual members of Assault Brigade
2506 later joined the United States Armed Forces and fought
in the Vietnam war;
(5) calls for the international community to support and
express solidarity with the Cuban people in their demands for
freedom against the Communist regime; and
(6) recognizes that many veterans of the Bay of Pigs
operation settled across the United States to become
productive members of the society of the United States,
including public officials and industry leaders.
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