The US regrets that Cuba “silenced” artists on the anniversary of the protest

The government of USA regretted this Saturday that the regime Cuban “It has reaffirmed its determination to silence independent artists, activists and journalists” on the first anniversary of the historic peaceful rally of more than 300 artists last year.

“After the historic rally in front of the Ministry of Culture last year, Cubans have repeatedly asked their government for fundamental freedoms, democracy and respect for human rights,” US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement. .

“On each occasion, the regime has squandered the opportunity for dialogue, doubling its commitment to a failed economic system and a bankrupt ideology that cannot respond to the basic needs of Cubans,” he added.

On November 27, 2020, there was a historic peaceful concentration of more than 300 Cuban artists and intellectuals in front of the headquarters of the Cuban Ministry of Culture in Havana, which culminated in a pre-agreement for dialogue between the creators, who demanded the cessation of censorship and repression, and representatives of the Government.

Thirty of those gathered, among them the actor Jorge Perugorría, the film director Fernando Pérez and the artist Tania Bruguera, accessed the Ministry’s offices for a meeting with the vice minister, Fernando Rojas, and other authorities in the cultural field that lasted for more than four hours until both parties agreed to hold regular meetings to settle their differences.

Both the peaceful rally – in which those present applauded and chanted songs – as well as the meeting between artists and the government set a historical precedent in Cuba, where the de facto right to demonstrate does not exist and the institutions rarely agree to dialogue with independent groups of the civil society.