Secretary's Speech

Commerce Secretary Carlos M. Gutierrez Remarks to the Cuba Democracy Advocates
Coral Gables, Florida

Thank you. Good afternoon.

I want to thank the Cuba Democracy Advocates for hosting this event, and all of you for being here.

I'm very pleased that Senator Martinez could be with us. He's doing a terrific job for the citizens of Florida in Washington.

Also with me today is Caleb McCarry. He's the Cuba Transition Coordinator, and he will be speaking about his work at the State Department.

I come here today with a very clear message: the people of Cuba deserve better.

I'm not talking ideology. I'm talking about results.

Over the past several decades, the Western Hemisphere has seen a steady march toward freedom. Only Cuba has moved backward.

The role of a leader is to make people's lives better, not to survive in power at any cost. Fidel Castro has never understood this.

History will judge Castro's leadership as one of the world's biggest failures.

President Bush said, "We believe the future of Cuba is a future of freedom. It's in our nation's interest that Cuba be free. It's in the neighborhood's interest that Cuba be free. More importantly, it's in the interest of the Cuban people that they be free from tyranny."

Jose Marti once wrote that liberty is the essence of life. Let's look at life in 21st century Cuba.

1) In Cuba, there is no freedom of association; no freedom of speech; no freedom to work where one pleases, no free flow of information.

In a global index on media freedom released in 2004 by Reporters Without Borders, Cuba was bottom-ranked at 166 out of 167 countries. Only North Korea has a worse record.

In the land of Jose Marti, there is no liberty.

The people of Cuba deserve better.

2) Cuba has one of the world's highest per capita percentage of political prisoners.

There are hundreds of cases of imprisonment for political dissent, human rights advocacy, civil society participation, and conscientious objection to the Castro regime.

No international human rights group has been permitted to visit the Cuban prisons since 1989, and we all know why.

The people of Cuba deserve better.

3) Prosperity is flourishing in the world. Middle classes are growing. More people are buying homes and receiving more for their hard work.

In Cuba, the average monthly income is about $10. Pensioners receive about $4.00.

The people of Cuba deserve better.

4) While people all over the world have access to a broad array of products on supermarket shelves, Cubans have survived for more than 40 years on ration books that subsidize a limited number of basic products, such as soy protein, rice, and beans.

These rations are enough for about ten days of the month. Then, if they have the money, Cubans must buy these staples at expensive market prices or in the black market.

Subsidized milk is rationed to children under seven years old. The subsidy ends when they turn eight.

The Castro regime's own statistics from 2005 indicate that at least 15 percent of Cuba's population is at severe nutritional risk.

The people of Cuba deserve better.

5) At a time when Internet use in other countries is flourishing and people all over the world are connecting like never before, the Cuba government is using censorship, wire-tapping, and restrictive access. Government authorization is required to buy a modem.

It's illegal for private citizens in Cuba to have a TV satellite dish. Official authorization is required to own fax machines, computers and cell phones.

Leaders inspire confidence by believing in their people. Can there be a stronger sign of insecurity than to be afraid to allow your people to talk to each other and to the outside world?

The people of Cuba deserve better.

6) Cuba today lacks water, and Cubans are forced to live in awful unsanitary conditions. Water and sewer pipeline networks are in a shambles.

In the entire country, there are only five municipal wastewater plants. And only four percent of the sewage water has some degree of treatment.

Havana's two million people use a sewer system designed for 70 percent fewer people.

The people of Cuba deserve better.

Last week, Secretary Condoleezza Rice and I presented the Second Report of the Commission for Assistance to a Free Cuba.

Under President Bush's leadership, the United States is keeping our promise to support the rights of the Cuban people to define a future of freedom and democracy for themselves and their country.

The Commission's recommendations include concrete support for democratic change in Cuba.

Among these: a new two-year $80 million dollar program to break the regime's information blockade so we can communicate consistently and directly with the people on the island.

Our recommendations are intended to ensure that the United States will be ready well in advance to help the Cuban Transition Government.

And they are intended to let the Cuban people know that we will be there to provide assistance.

At the same time we presented the Commission report, we also presented the Compact with the People of Cuba. The Compact is a message of hope and reassurance to Cubans on the island.

We've printed it on a card, which we'll be distributing to each of you.

The Compact affirms our commitment to provide aid in areas such as food and medicine, economic recovery, and free and fair elections.

The people of Cuba have a choice: economic and political freedom and opportunity or more political repression and economic suffering under the current regime.

We pledge to help them attain political and economic liberty.

We pledge to extend a hand of friendship and support as they build a democratic government, a strong economy and a brighter tomorrow for their families and their country.

And we pledge to discourage third parties from obstructing the will of the Cuban people.

And let me be very clear: The United States and our citizens pose no threat to the security or the homes of the Cuban people.

The idea that the United States is interested in imposing a so-called "imperialist regime" is false. President Bush recognizes that Cuba belongs to the Cuban people, and that the future of Cuba is in the hands of Cubans.

In his second inaugural address, the President spoke to all those who live in tyranny and hopelessness, and said, ""When you stand for your liberty, we will stand with you."

President Bush is determined to stand with the Cuban people. He is determined to prevent any future continuation of the current regime from claiming legitimacy.

The people of Cuba have suffered too much and for too long. They deserve so much more than what they have today.

The people of Cuba deserve better.

Thank you, and God bless you.