[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.

                          ____________________