Mr. Speaker, a six year old Cuban boy, Elian Gonzalez, who survived the sinking of a boat illegally transporting him from Cuba to Florida, is now being held in the U.S. in blatant violation of both humanity and international law.
The boy's father and grandparents, all in Cuba, naturally seek his immediate return. New Democrats join this young boy's family and the Government of Cuba in demanding that the U.S. immediately return the boy to his family and apologize for this serious breach of international law.
As Cuban foreign minister Felipe Perez Roque recently stated:
Arbitrarily holding the boy in the territory of the United States of America qualifies as an abduction...and a true escalation in the stubborn and failed anti-Cuban policy rejected by the international community and detrimental to the best interest of the American and Cuban peoples.
This boy's case is clearly being manipulated for political purposes, and I call today on our foreign minister to strongly condemn the U.S. actions and demand the return of young Gonzalez to his family in Cuba.
Today, on on International Human Rights Day, let us reaffirm the fundamental human rights of all people, including the Cuban people.