Kingston, Jamaica, 16 April 2019. Lisa Hanna, a member of the Parliament of Jamaica and spokesperson for Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade of the People's National Party, visited the Embassy of the Republic of Cuba and had a cordial exchange with Ambassador Mrs. Inés Fors Fernández.
The Jamaican parliamentarian highlighted the strong bonds of friendship that unite Cuba and Jamaica. She thanked the contribution of more than 350 Cuban collaborators from the sectors of health and education to the welfare of the Jamaican people and reiterated her condemnation of the unjust and criminal US economic, commercial and financial blockade against Cuba.
Ms. Hanna, a member of the Jamaican Parliament since 2007, has played an important role in the approval of resolutions in favour of the lifting of the blockade in that legislative body for ten consecutive years.
In the debates preceding the approval of the motions against the aforementioned US policy, the Jamaican legislator has expressed: "The blockade has not only failed, but it has also imposed serious difficulties on the people of Cuba and has deprived the US and Cuba of valuable exchanges in the fields of trade, investment, tourism and culture."
In the same context, she said "... I stand on behalf of the Opposition to support the Resolution and I tell our friend from the North, the United States of America, that this failed strategy should have been abandoned long ago. We ask the US to put an end to the blockade and return to normal relations with Cuba.
It is time to recognize that the end of the blockade is not just a problem for the US and Cuba, but a crucial one for the national interests of the Caribbean countries. The blockade, as part of a series of laws in the centre of which is the Helms-Burton Act, constitutes an important deterrent for our nations to expand their economies.
Therefore, this is not simply a matter of sentimental support to our close neighbours and friends in Cuba. It is a matter of urgent concern for Jamaica. It is time for us to start using our immense influence through our diplomatic channels to eliminate the blockade."
The feelings of Lisa Hanna have been shared by legislators from the two parliamentary groups of Jamaica who also disqualify a policy that has punished an entire people for their sovereign decision to undertake their own destiny.