DECLARATION OF PRINCIPLES
NEMO’s coming of age is not only marked by having attracted more than 100,000 members in just 100 days, but also by its ability to define its grounding principles and stand with total clarity. This Declaration includes three Sections:
- What is NEMO.
- NEMO’s position on the various elements in play.
- Where is NEMO headed?
WHAT IS NEMO?
NEMO (No Embargo Cuba Movement) is a Global Mass Movement, whose sole and exclusive mission is the Lifting of the Embargo against Cuba without any form of condition or demand placed on the Government of the Island, grounded in unrestricted respect for the sovereign will of the Cuban people to decide for themselves, without any foreign interference, the destiny and social structure that they wish to build and/or maintain in a country that belongs to all Cubans of goodwill who put Cuba above individual vested interests and age-old grudges.
NEMO acknowledges and respects the struggle over the course of more than six decades by the Cuban Government, by the vast majority of UN member countries, by many organizations and individuals inside and outside of Cuba, with regard to the sanctions, which is why we are joining in this united campaign to “end” the embargo. Together and once and for all. The key to the success we are looking to achieve is in our ability to unite the efforts and experience of all participants in a new mass movement from within the United States – where this criminal entelechy will be brought down -, which can only now be attempted because technology and other conditions make it possible.
The embargo is an act that not only affects the Cuban people and Cuban-Americans but also Americans, who are limited in their individual freedoms to trade with whomever they want and travel wherever they want, while preventing them from accessing Cuban novel technologies and innovations in the field of medicine and biotechnology.
NEMO acknowledges and respects the struggle over the course of more than six decades by the Cuban Government, by the vast majority of UN member countries, by many organizations and individuals inside and outside of Cuba, with regard to the American sanctions, which is why we are joining in this united campaign to “end” the embargo. Together and once and for all. The key to the success we are looking to achieve is in our ability to unite the efforts and experience of all participants in a new mass movement from within the United States – where this inhumane policy will be brought down -, which can only now be attempted because technology and other conditions make it possible.
The embargo is an act that not only affects the Cuban people and Cuban Americans, but also United States citizens, who are limited in their individual freedoms to trade with whoever they choose and travel wherever they want, at the same time that it prevents them from accessing the latest innovations from Cuba in the fields of medicine and biotechnology.
NEMO defines itself as a humanitarian movement, in support of the Cuban family. The embargo against Cuba is by nature and essence a political phenomenon and, for various logical reasons, it has been highly politicized. However, people with very different backgrounds are participating in NEMO, with very different points of view, united by the only thing that UNITES all Cubans who care about their family and their people: the Lifting of the Embargo. Each member of NEMO has very definite political and ideological positions, but they do not discuss their views or settle their differences within NEMO.
The NEMO rules to preserve “unity in diversity” and stay on purpose are very clear and non-negotiable, as they are the rules that have guaranteed the movement’s success so far: no slogans, no praise for leaders, no statements either for or against any political position other than our shared opposition to the embargo. Our intention is to constitute ourselves as the legal entity necessary to achieve the support we need in the United States. The only viable and effective way to present ourselves to Elected Members of Congress, Senators and opinion leaders in this country is as a humanitarian project, devoid of political overtones, even when its members profess a varied range of ideologies and beliefs.
In order to explain exactly the scope of NEMO, we must declare our position on all the points that come into play in this conflict.
NEMO’s POSITION ON:
* THE EMBARGO AGAINST CUBA: at NEMO we call it an “embargo” because it is the term most familiar to US citizens, who are our main target in attracting support, since, on account of their right to vote, they have to be heard by Elected Representatives in Congress, Senators and others. “Embargo” is a term used for defining the unjust, illegal and cruel United States commercial, financial, psychological, diplomatic, and media war against Cuba. The embargo is unfair. The embargo kills. And it must end once and for all. Now.
* THE GOVERNMENT OF THE UNITED STATES: NEMO unequivocally and resolutely calls on the Biden/Harris administration to fulfill their campaign promises and denounces the irresponsibility of the US Department of State (Ministry of Foreign Affairs), which far from fulfilling the mandate of its voters to improve relations with neighboring countries, has indicated that the humanitarian crisis in Cuba is not a priority even though the embargo intensifies the suffering of the Cuban people. At the same time, we condemn the fact that not a single one of the 242 additional measures that Donald Trump added to the embargo has been revoked by President Biden, who seems to be flirting with the Trumpist Cuban ultra-right that did not vote for him and will never vote for any Democratic project, instead of listening to the voice of the majority of Cuban-Americans who supported him confident that he could do something good, not only for the United States but also for relations with Cuba.
* THE AMERICAN PEOPLE: in their daily lives, the average US citizen is not linked to the interests that promote the embargo against Cuba, rather on the contrary, but is also affected by those interests and can become our ally in this struggle if we provide relevant information and educational support, not through slogans and political statements, but by sharing the facts and realities related to the embargo and appealing to two intrinsic traits of their national psychology: compassion, that may move them to speak out against an inhumane policy that was designed, originally, to “bring about hunger and desperation and the overthrow of the government“, and pride in their individual freedoms, affected by being prevented from freely trading with Cuba and traveling freely to Cuba.
* THE CUBAN GOVERNMENT: NEMO is not subordinate to, nor is it financed or sponsored by any governmental, political or social organization of Cuba or any other country. However, NEMO acknowledges and supports the legitimate and necessary actions of the Government of the Republic of Cuba in dealing with the cruel policy that the United States carries out against the people of Cuba, the illegality of its conduct, and the extraterritoriality of its actions. It is up to those people and their Government to lead the struggle to lift the embargo, to which we add the modest support of our Movement.
* THE FUTURE OF CUBA: as corresponds to any sovereign nation, the future of Cuba will be the one chosen and decided by its people, who with 73.3% of the electoral roll and 86.5% of the ballots issued in a free vote (almost 7 million Cubans), approved their new Constitution in February 2019. NEMO recognizes the right of the Cuban people to define, implement and perfect the improvements it deems necessary to its structure and social organization while rejecting any attempt to interfere, in any way and by any means, with the sovereign will of that people. The changes that, logically and gradually, are taking place in Cuban society must not be caused or induced from the United States, but promoted exclusively by the will of a people that has decided not to be a satellite of anyone or ever return to what it once had which worked exclusively for a small fraction of the Cuban population, as happens in the United States and other developed and underdeveloped countries, where in the richest nation in the world millions of people lack access to health coverage and one in six children is food insecure.
* UNITY IN THE STRUGGLE FOR THE END OF THE EMBARGO: our movement is inclusive and open to all who embrace the cause of the unconditional lifting of the embargo: members of NEMO may or may not support the existing government in Cuba, may or may not wish to see deep structural changes in the current Cuban social structure. However, they do recognize that such changes are the responsibility of the Cuban people alone, and they unequivocally oppose sanctions designed to depress the wages of ordinary Cubans and to deprive them of basic consumer goods including access to food, medicine, and medical equipment.
The “extreme right” tries to prevent more and more Cuban-Americans from joining us, with gross lies, encouraging division and creating confusion among those who want the best for Cuban families, accusing us of “selling out” and “communists.” The “extreme left” on the island, in a convincing demonstration that extremes do meet, also tries to divide us, accusing us of “selling out” and not being “communists” or “revolutionaries“. Both are wasting their time, because, espousing the best values of our people, NEMO “neither surrenders nor sells out“. Each of our members will continue to defend what they believe to be the fairest in whatever forum they have at their disposal, but within the NEMO framework, the only “anti” that is welcome is ANTI-EMBARGO sentiments and actions. We will move forward without slogans, images of leaders, or political statements, except those that relate to the purpose that unites us. We will preserve “unity in diversity” above any enemies, false “friends” and fakers of any denomination.
* BRIDGES OF LOVE: the call to action based on the idea that in the fight for the end of the sanctions we must put aside, temporarily or permanently, according to whatever each individual decides, everything that divides us and build Bridges of Love on the basis of what unites us, has been one of the sources of inspiration and guidance in creating and developing NEMO. This initiative by the teacher Carlos Lazo, a source of motivation and hope for people of the most diverse creeds and ideologies, ratifies the message of love of our very own José Martí and mobilizes souls and wills based on the great and common purpose of all of us who are involved in this noble endeavor.
THE CARAVANS: NEMO supports and participates en masse in the caravans, but neither leads nor organizes them. The Caravans arose before NEMO and have been planned and carried out by its many participants, both organizations and individuals. The Caravans have a high visual impact in the struggle to lift the embargo and constitute an indissoluble and indispensable part of the movement that joins us all. NEMO will work closely and in full collaboration with their organizers to make them grow, strengthen and reinforce their inclusive and humanitarian character, beyond any kind of political pretensions that are not related to the unconditional lifting of the U.S. sanctions on Cuba.
* FAMILY REUNIFICATION: for NEMO, attempts to reunify families, in isolation from the commitment to lifting the embargo, are selfish and irresponsible, since they express concern for one’s own loved ones and total disregard for the loved ones of everyone else. We embrace the fight for family reunification, for the reopening of the US Embassy in Havana, for the reestablishment of remittances to the island, and flights to the provinces as an integral part of the fight to lift each and every one of the unilateral sanctions against Cuba. NEMO strongly condemns those who seek to confuse so many good Cubans and break links within the same chain, with the well-known objective of causing more discontent, frustration and division, at the same time that we recognize and greet the possibility of achieving partial and consecutive victories in the long process of total removal of all sanctions.
* THE SO-CALLED INTERNAL DISSIDENT FACTION: NEMO recognizes the right of every human being to freely express their ideas and to agree or disagree with the ideas of others. What NEMO does not recognize and condemns is the irresponsible actions of people, -mostly manipulated from the Cuban-American extreme right-, who have chosen to use the most subversive and anti-Cuban media in Miami and the rest of the world as a platform, in the midst of a dreadful pandemic, with the clear purpose of keeping the embargo in place and preventing the improvement of relations between Cuba and the United States, while sowing division and discontent in the vain hope that the people, who they care so little about, will rebel against their government. NEMO also condemns those who sponsor and direct them, in an attempt to take back a power they lost 62 years ago and that they will never recover. NEMO rejects vandalism, the irreverent and small-minded abuse of national symbols, the smearing of statues or busts of Jose Marti, and other behaviors of the most heinous type, which can never be disguised as “dissidence” of any kind.
* THE CUBAN ULTRA-RIGHT OUTSIDE THE ISLAND: different people and organizations participate in the Anti-embargo Movement promoted by NEMO, professing the most diverse political, ideological, and religious beliefs, which are not referred to in this digital platform in order to concentrate on the purpose that unites all Cubans who love their family and their people. Those who seek to drown the Cuban people in suffering and despair, maintain the embargo, exacerbate our differences and cause chaos, not only have no place in a deeply humanist movement but, as adversaries in essence and action, merit our deepest condemnation. While we highlight the HUMANITY of our cause, distinguishing ourselves from a minority and hostile sector, is not to turn this cause into a political one, but to take a position against those who seek to weaken and destroy it.
* THE USE OF DIGITAL PLATFORMS: NEMO is present on Facebook, Youtube, Twitter and has its own Digital Platform NoEmbargoCuba.com (NoBloqueoCuba.com in Spanish) and joins others that use similar technology to fight for the same ends. However, supporting a cause through digital platforms that are now available to all, entails both new possibilities for communication, as well as an extraordinary responsibility regarding the cause itself and those who support it. Rudeness, bad language, insults, and swearing do damage to the cause. NEMO only tolerates those who use digital platforms responsibly, maturely, with appropriate language, and above all, focusing on the cause that is being defended and not to generate clicks and income.
* THE CAUSES DEFENDED BY THOSE WHO SUPPORT US: people from more than 130 countries participate in NEMO, to whom we are grateful for their invaluable support and solidarity. In turn, NEMO supports the causes that many of them defend in their countries of origin, which are related to Justice and Social Progress. The need to keep our focus on the purpose at hand and the humanitarian nature of the project, prevents us from addressing those causes within the framework of NEMO, although a large majority of our members participate in them in some way or another, providing their support and reciprocal solidarity with our brothers around the world in the groups and movements that focus directly on each cause.
* THE STRUGGLE OUTSIDE THE UNITED STATES: for NEMO, the support, help, and contributions to this grand intention that are received from Cuba are vital and come both from the Island and from the rest of the world. However, we reiterate that this great Cuban fight against the current demons is to be won within the United States, using United States laws and rules and incorporating a large number of American voters, whose support for this cause can and must influence powerfully and effectively in bringing about the final decision to lift the sanctions on Cuba.
WHERE IS NEMO HEADED?
NEMO’s upcoming actions, many and varied, can be summed up in 7 basic points:
- Registration of a legal entity, also requesting “non-profit organization” status from the IRS, which will allow us to operate and act in the United States political and social structures, in our educational work, and in obtaining essential support in the fight to end the embargo.
2. Strengthen the NEMO Board of Directors with additional members who are representative of various ethnic groups in the United States.
3. Urgently create a Group in parallel to the original NEMO, but in the English language (NEMO USA), making the concept more attractive for those who only speak that language, based on our fundamental priority which consists of involving the largest number of US citizens as possible in NEMO.
4. Prioritize. in addition, the involvement of Cuban-Americans residing in the state of Florida and the rest of the United States, who recognize that the fight for Family Reunification, the reopening of the Embassy in Havana, the reestablishment of remittances and flights to the provinces are an indissoluble part of the struggle to lift the embargo.
5. Actively participate in supporting Cuba around the vote of the United Nations’ “Resolution against the Embargo“.
6. Open and begin operating a virtual office in Washington DC, from where to plan and conduct several rounds of interviews with Federal Representatives, US Senators, Secretaries (ministers) from the executive branch of government, and many other personalities from the country’s political and public spheres, who may influence or play a role in the decision process to end the embargo. We also intend to work with several cities and states to get them to petition the federal government for an end to the U.S. sanctions on Cuba.
7. Continue supporting and promoting the development of the Bridges of Love Caravans, helping to develop mass participation, as well as supporting any other petition, project, or initiative that in a serious, responsible, and effective way aims to lead to the end of this crime against humanity that we know as a “blockade” and others know as an “embargo”.
Miami, May 19, 2021
Dr. Manuel Tejeda / Ing. Jose Oro
On behalf of NEMO Board of Directors