Against the blockade from Vancouver

Bush's Cuba Blockade Breached at Blaine Border Crossing

Reporting by Marcel Hatch, Cuba Education Collective, Vancouver, BC

20 June 2004

BLAINE, WA -- Victoria Goods for Cuba contingent of the 15th Pastors for 
Peace Caravan successfully breached the blockade and crossed into 
Washington State with "illegal" computers, school supplies and bicycles 
destined for island schools. This was the second time in so many days the 
blockade was busted. Yesterday, Canadians and Americans crossed into the 
U.S. from eastern Canada with donations for Cuba without incident.

Sixty-five friends of Cuba from Olympia, Seattle and Bellingham, WA, along 
with supporters from Vancouver and Victoria, BC, stood fast with two 
pickups and a car filled with humanitarian aide for the embargoed Caribbean 
nation. U.S. border police and customs agents granted unusually smooth 
passage for the vehicles, drivers and donations after a cursory review of 
the contents of a half-dozen boxes.

Customs agents spent more time trying to decided if oranges from California 
in possession of a Canadian could reenter the States, leading to brief 
chants of "repatriate the oranges!" An agricultural inspection officer 
denied entry of the oranges, but let a Canadian returning north keep them. 
An unusual decision, considering most plant items are confiscated and 
destroyed.

The border known as Peace Arch is among the most heavily crossed in the 
world. During the long hot wait to enter the U.S., vehicles loaded with 
Cuba supplies received honks and raised fists of support from impatient 
drivers entering the U.S. and Canada. They were responding to banners and 
placards on aide vehicles reading "Goods for Cuba," "U.S. Hands Off Cuba," 
"Free the 5 Cuban Heroes in U.S. Jails," and "Impeach the War Criminals in 
Washington."

Among the 65 blockade busters were Cubans from Canada and the U.S., 
Salvadorans, Nicaraguans, Chileans, students, many elders, feminists and 
activists from a broad spectrum of social justice and anti-war movements.

Bellingham friends of Cuba hosted a welcoming picnic prior to the crossing. 
Members of Raging Grannies from Seattle, Vancouver and Bellingham performed 
rousing original protest songs to which all chimed in.

Internet journalist and moderator of "CubaNews" list Walter Lippmann, a 
Caravanista from Los Angeles, detailed the new extreme measures implemented 
on June 16 by the U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC). He 
explained how the new OFAC clamp down was hatched by a secretive group 
known as the "Commission for Assistance to a Free Cuba" comprised of 
anti-Cuba Cuban Americans and other rightwing elements from the Bush 
administration. Their plan is to affect a "regime change" on the island -- 
the same language Bush use to justify his war against the Iraqi people. 
Their method: limit family visits by Cuban Americans to the island to once 
every three years and channel tens-of-millions of dollars into Miami-based 
terrorist groups -- the latter, the same dinky club responsible for Bush's 
dubious election "win" in the year 2000.

Other speakers included Rick Fellows of Olympia representing Pastors for 
Peace, Alfred Dale, a Caravanista from Washington State, Randy Caravaggio 
of Victoria Goods for Cuba, Nino Pagliccia of the Canadian Network on Cuba, 
and Leonardo Hechavarria representing the Havana-based Cuban Movement for 
Peace and People's Sovereignty.

This small but vital victory achieved today by a brave and defiant group of 
internationalists was eluded to just before the crossing by Hechavarria of 
the Cuban Movement for Peace: "Defending my country, as you do today and in 
the coming period, emboldens others to follow your example of coordinated 
resistance. This is the only way that real change has ever happened."

Hechavarria punctuated his remarks with "All power to the Caravanistas," a 
necessary condition as these bold North American blockade resistors 
traverse the United States collecting more members and donations and 
attempt to exit it with their aide into Mexico to Cuba in July.

Marcel Hatch can be contacted at <[email protected]>

-- 
Macdonald Stainsby
http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/listinfo/rad-green
In the contradiction lies the hope
		--Brecht.

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