With the outbreak of Cuba, Cuban Canadians accused the Trudeau government of abandoning it

Biden said that the protests-thousands of Cubans marching in cities on the island-were “calls for freedom.”

When CBC News requested a copy, Global Affairs Canada issued an unsigned statement regarding the Cuban protests.department Not released yet And other statements on its website.

The statement announced support for the “right to freedom of speech and assembly,” but did not criticize the Havana regime. Instead, it calls on “all parties to safeguard this basic right.”

The statement said: “The Canadian Department of Global Affairs urges all parties to exercise restraint and encourages all parties involved in the crisis to engage in peaceful and inclusive dialogue.”

The language of “all parties” made the Cuban exile Michael Lima Cuadra (Michael Lima Cuadra) harsh, who came to Canada as a political refugee in the 1990s and was a member of the newly formed Canadian government. Cuban democratic transition committee.

“The language is very neutral,” he said. “Desmond Tutu has a saying that if you choose to remain neutral during a period of oppression, you are on the side of the oppressor.”

Critics say the government statement echoes the regime’s spin

The statement on global affairs went on to discuss the shortage of food and medicine in Cuba-strongly suggesting that the starving stomach and lack of vaccines triggered protests rather than any desire for political change.

Fannia Brito, a Cuban-Canadian from Gatineau, Quebec, said that in this sense, it is closely related to the Cuban Communist Party’s attitude towards the incident.

She said: “The Cuban people do not need drugs or treatment for the new crown virus.” “The Cuban people took to the streets with great courage, demanding an end to the dictatorship and an end to oppression. This is what the Cuban people demand.”

The protest video clearly showed that the crowd chanted “Freedom!” and other slogans. And “Down with Communism!”.

The GAC statement is different from the language normally used in Canada when talking about other authoritarian regimes in the region, because it does not call for the restoration of democracy—it does not imply that it is time to end Cuba’s 62-year-old one-party state.

When asked about Cuba this week, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said: “We have always called for greater freedom and more human rights protection in Cuba. We will continue to support Cubans in achieving greater peace and greater stability. Desire. And a greater say in how things are going.”

Lima Cuadra said this is not good enough.

“They need Canada”

“We urge the Canadian government to listen to the people’s demands, support their peaceful struggle for democracy, and condemn-publicly condemn-waves of suppression, arbitrary arrests, and intimidation, just as they have done. And Venezuela The Belarusian regime is done together,” he said.

“It is very important that when people are fighting for democracy, democratic governments take a public stand. That is why these movements are provided with support and legitimacy. Without the voice of a democratic government, these movements cannot exist. They need Canada.”

The Trudeau government has consistently treated Cuba in a significantly different way from other authoritarian regimes such as Venezuela, Nicaragua, and Belarus. It is at the forefront of calling for the removal of Venezuela’s Nicolas Maduro government, and is the second government in the world to recognize opposition leader Juan Guaido as the country’s president.

The Trudeau government has Sanctioned Venezuela repeatedly because it did Ortega-Murillo regime in Nicaragua with The Lukashenko regime in Belarus. It justifies these sanctions on the grounds of flawed elections, suppression of protests, and suppression of political opposition.

Canada’s position It was the Maduro regime that lost its democratic legitimacy on January 10, 2019, after he and his mentor Hugo Chavez were in power for 20 consecutive years.Long before Canada announced the end of Maduro’s legal authorization, it Often condemned His government violated democracy.

There is no such language in the Canadian government’s current statement on Cuba. There are no real elections, no traces of independent courts, no opposition legislators, mayors or governors—all of which are Still insisting In Venezuela.

For Cuba, there is no Canadian sanctions, but a statement of loyalty, friendship and commercial interests.

The Department of Global Affairs stated: “Canada and Cuba have established a sound, important and evolving business and investment relationship.” website“Cuba is Canada’s largest market in the Caribbean/Central America subregion.”

Family portrait

The public highlight of Justin Trudeau’s visit to Cuba in November 2016 was a Q&A session with a group of students from the elite university of Havana.

Trudeau sits on both sides of the outgoing leader Raul Castro and his protégé Miguel Diaz-Canel, who is the leader today Cuban people. (Raul Castro, 90 years old, retired.)

Trudeau told the Communist Party leaders that Canada will be “Cuba’s unwavering friend.” “We do not agree with the US approach to Cuba. We think our approach is much better-partnership, collaboration, contact,” he said, and once described Cuba as an “ally” of Canada.

Trudeau wanted to see the dying Fidel, Until the last moment Frustrated by the Cuban Embassy in Ottawa, when he was told that the supreme leader was too sick.

Instead of Fidel’s own audience, his three sons gave Trudeau a photo album, showing Castro and the Trudeau family together.

Praise for the regime without mentioning elections

The then U.S. President Barack Obama, who visited earlier this year Condition His visit to Cuba.

Obama said two months before the trip that if he were to visit Cuba, “then part of the agreement is that I can talk to everyone”-including dissidents.

Trudeau did not set any public conditions for his visit, and the civil society groups he met did not include the kind of dissidents Obama met—some of whom had been in prison for decades or had done so. A hunger strike against one-party rule.

Instead, the civil society representatives who met with Trudeau were chosen because they opposed Sexism, homophobia and racism -The ideological comfort zone of the Cuban Communist Party.

On the same day, across the town, Trudeau’s wife Sophie praised the Cuban leader’s “very enlightened and honest” commitment to gender equality.

Trudeau’s comments on Cuban land did not include the words “democracy”, “rule of law” and “elections”.

‘Deep and lasting feelings’

Ten days later, when Fidel Castro finally passed away, Trudeau pay tribute “On behalf of all Canadians” to “a great leader who has served the people for nearly half a century.”

“As a legendary revolutionary and speaker, Mr. Castro has made significant improvements to the education and health care of his island country,” the prime minister said.

“Although he is a controversial figure, supporters and critics of Mr. Castro acknowledged his great dedication and love to the Cuban people, and they have a deep and lasting affection for el Comandante.”

Those remarks kick off Short-lived String of Spoof.

Trudeau also praised Fidel Castro as “Cuba’s longest-serving president”-this is not difficult, because the last free election in Cuba was in 1948.

The statement was condemned among the Cuban diaspora, Raise eyebrows about world.

‘Conspiracy with the dictatorship’

Canadian tourists are vital to the Cuban economy. More than twice as many Canadians enter Cuba every year as citizens of any other country (including Cuba itself). Canadian tourism funds and Canadian investment are important to the survival of the Communist Party’s control.

Some Cuban-Canadians worry that just when change seems likely to happen, Prime Minister Trudeau’s personal and family history will affect the actions of a country that has a major impact on Cuba’s future.

In 1960, in the early days of the Castro regime, Pierre Trudeau tried to Paddling to cubaLater, he was ridiculed by John Diefenbaker in the House of Commons because he had a “love affair” with the Cuban Revolution “in a canoe”.

In 1964, Old Trudeau returned to visit the island. He returned with his family in 1976. That famous visit-Trudeau chanted “Viva el Primer ministro Fidel Castro!” on TV-was the regime’s propaganda coup. Pierre Trudeau was the first NATO leader to visit the island since the Communist Party took over.

Justin Trudeau once said that he had visited the island privately when he was young, and he was obviously moved by Castro’s attendance at his father’s funeral in Montreal. Fidel was awarded the role of honorary guardian.

Fannia Brito said that Trudeau’s apparent emotional attachment to Castro’s legacy made Cuban-Canadians question his motives. She said that phone calls, emails, and meeting requests in her community were ignored by Liberal politicians.

“It is incredible that the government has neither expressed support nor opposition, but has remained almost completely silent,” she said. “This proves the complicity of this government with the dictatorship.

“We want an answer, we want a public response. We will not stop until we get it.”