The CubanAmerican Voice®

Marco Rubio's Cuban Opportunity

Marco rubio cuban opportunityMarco Rubio's Cuban Opportunity

Marco Rubio has numerous challenges vying for his attention as he begins his tenure as U.S. secretary of State. In Latin America alone, he faces a migrant crisis in Mexico, a corrupt dictatorship in Venezuela, and China's rising influence across the region.

We Cubans are fortunate that Rubio has become America's chief diplomat, because he knows the region's challenges and will also prioritize the crisis taking place just 90 miles from U.S. shores in Cuba.

As the son of Cuban immigrants, Rubio is a close observer and vocal critic of Havana's communist regime. During his confirmation hearing, Rubio said Cuba is "literally collapsing."

He's right. My neighbors and I in Havana experience ongoing power outages and long lines for food and basic medications. Many necessary items are simply not available. The situation is even worse in Cuba's rural areas.

Support for the regime is at an all-time low, and Cubans have become increasingly willing to criticize its economic mismanagement and authoritarianism.

More than 1 million Cubans have fled the island in the last four years, most seeking asylum in the U.S. Even high-ranking communist party officials are leaving. A recent Miami Herald investigation found that Cuba's corrupt elites are hoarding billions of dollars, even as Cuba's electrical grids fail and its people go hungry.

So, what can Secretary Rubio and the Trump administration do? 

First, I want to thank Secretary Rubio and President Donald Trump for re-designating Cuba as a State Sponsor of Terror on their first day in office. In the closing days of his presidency, Joe Biden removed Cuba from the list, even though the communist regime has given safe harbor to scores of fugitives and terrorists. The Cuban government continues to aid terrorist organizations in Colombia and is friendly toward Hezbollah and Hamas. The terrorist designation reimposes sanctions on Cuba's government, cutting off funds to the corrupt regime.

Looking ahead, I urge Rubio's State Department to bolster its support for Radio and Television Marti, an American state-run radio and TV broadcaster based in Miami. Created in 1983, Radio-TV Marti gives Cubans who can access it an alternative to the propaganda being broadcast by the Cuban government.

Because of the regime's stranglehold on news and information, many Cubans are unaware of what's really going on around them, both domestically and internationally. In his first term, President Trump proposed drastic cuts to Radio-TV Marti. Instead, the Trump administration should boost its broadcast power.

The State Department could also help Cuba by increasing sponsorship of programs that assist the construction and strengthening of an independent civil society that advocates for democracy and human rights on the island. These programs educate Cubans about democratic ideals, provide access to alternative forms of media and phone cards for family members to communicate with political prisoners.

If more young, freedom-loving, civic-minded Cubans can envision a future Cuba that's free and democratic, more of them will stay on the island. That will stem the tide of migrants coming to the U.S., another Trump administration priority.

The State Department should also apply diplomatic pressure to stop Havana from forcing Cuban doctors to participate in "medical missions" in Venezuela, Mexico, and other countries. The Cuban government takes as much as 90 percent of incomes earned by doctors and other medical personnel involved in the program. Female doctors are often targeted for sexual harassment, and those who refuse to participate face harassment and loss of employment. All this amounts to a form of modern-day slavery. These medical missions are a financial and diplomatic benefit to Cuba's corrupt leaders but come at the expense of the Cuban doctors themselves.

As a doctor who was stripped of my medical license and prevented from practicing because of my political and humanitarian activity, I know how heavy-handed Cuba's rulers can be with medical personnel.

The Global Magnitsky Act authorizes President Trump to impose sanctions on any international entities involved in corruption and human rights violations. All of those involved in this exploitative practice should be sanctioned and prohibited from entering the U.S.

A weakened Cuban regime means Venezuela's Nicolás Maduro would receive much less support to continue to tyrannize his subjects. Cuba assists Venezuela's government through military support, training, and strategic aid. Venezuela's economic devastation has prompted millions of its citizens to leave for the U.S., including many hardened gang members. Both the Cuban and Venezuelan regimes have turned their countries into narco-states.

Many Cubans watched Marco Rubio's ascension to America's chief diplomat with pride. We also see it as an opportunity to assist the country of his parent's birth while bolstering America's standing and security in the region.

In his confirmation hearing, Rubio said that "the moment of truth is arriving" for Cuba's communist rulers. I am certain that moment will someday arrive. And I am certain it will arrive much sooner with America's support.

Published by Newsweek

Oscar Elias BiscetAuthor: Oscar Elías Biscet, Cuban doctor and human rights leader, former political prisoner, and winner of the 2007 Presidential Medal of Freedom, nominated for the 2005 Nobel Peace Prize, President of the Lawton Foundation for Human Rights. He lives in Havana, Cuba. Follow him at https://www.facebook.com/Dr.OscarEliasBiscet

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