Speaking in Havana on Tuesday, Obama said he was there to “bury the last remnant of the Cold War in the Americas”.
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“This is a huge step for us, for people in Cuba and I want to thank again President Obama for all of his kindness”, Abreu said through a team interpreter.
Matthew Perez, who emigrated from Cuba when he was 14, said he believed Obama’s trip to Cuba legitimized a government that terrorized and controlled the Cuban people.
Obama even directly addressed Cuban leader Raúl Castro, who was in the audience, telling him the US presidential visit means he no longer needs to fear Cuba’s Cold War foe.
Mr Obama’s speech was the first opportunity for Cubans to hear his vision of warming US-Cuban relations as closely linked to Cuba’s internal evolution.
Though he praised the improved relations between the Cuban and American governments since the two nations began normalizing relations in December 2014, the president spoke at length on Tuesday about the need for improved democratic rights for Cubans, such as the right to protest and open internet access.
Cuba’s President Raul Castro (R) and U.S. PresidentBarack Obama(L) attend a press conference at the Revolution Palace in Havana, capital of Cuba, on March 21, 2016.
“We share a national past-time – la pelota – and later today our players will compete on the same Havana field that Jackie Robinson played on before he made his Major League debut”, he said. And Obama’s speech, which included phrases in Spanish and echoed his campaign promises of hope and change, was clearly directed at the people watching at home.
Despite old differences, there remain many ties that bind the people of Cuba and the United States -including baseball and music. He continued, saying that although he can’t tell the Cuban people what to do, he did not agree with Cuba’s suppression of dissenting voices. “And that the rule of law should not include arbitrary detentions of people who exercise those rights”, Obama said.
YURI CORTEZ/AFP/Getty Images ” Raul Castro (l.) said that their policies are not going to change”, Alonso said of the current Cuban president.
The issue of political prisoners is of particular importance to Cuban-Americans and the global community.
The US president was in Cuba for a historic three-day visit along with his wife, two daughters, mother-in-law as well as a group of cabinet members, lawmakers and business leaders.
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Republicans Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio, both of Cuban descent, have sought the GOP nomination, though Rubio recently ended his campaign.
