It's funny you raised the issue about somebody going to jail for a radio. On the most recent trip, I actually went out and bought some gifts for the union folks down there, and one of them was a wind-up--not battery-powered--radio, like those lights. I took a number of those too, and gave them to the union there.
They're building a new union centre in Cienfuegos, and they were very happy to receive it. They said it was great to have something that doesn't need batteries, because they're hard to get down there, and you can crank it up. They said they'd use it to get news around when there are disasters like hurricanes and other things.
I'm surprised to hear.... They accepted my gift of a batteryless crank-up radio with the weather channels on it and everything as being a really nice gift to get, along with flashlights and other things--things that are in short supply because of the embargo, things that they need in cases of emergency.
I ask this committee to maintain the support. I have not heard of any human rights complaints from the workers. We've been to workers' training centres. I've talked to individual workers out on the street, people sweeping and things like that, and engaged them in conversation everywhere I go when I go down there, whether it's vacation or whatever, and I haven't heard of any complaints of these sorts. The complaints are really that they don't have what they need to move forward in their economy, because of the embargo. I hope this committee takes that into account and continues their help to Cuba.
When they're restricted from getting it from the rest of the world, Canada needs to play an important role there and help out, as they've been doing for a number of years.
Thank you.