FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 19, 2008 |
Contact:
Marshall Wittmann, 202-224-4041
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WASHINGTON, D.C. - Senator Joe Lieberman (ID-CT) today issued the following statement in response to the resignation of Cuban leader Fidel Castro:
"After nearly fifty years in power, Fidel Castro leaves behind a legacy of nothing but dictatorship and impoverishment. At a time when freedom and prosperity have made unprecedented gains across the globe -- from Eastern Europe to Southeast Asia -- Castro dragged the Cuban people backward into authoritarianism and stagnation. His departure from power in Havana is long overdue, but the repressive regime he built must still be consigned to the dustbin of history.
"Unfortunately, there is every indication that Castro intends to perpetuate the sclerotic system of one-party dictatorship he installed in Cuba, by passing power to his brother, Raul. The Cuban people deserve better than this.
"Rather than condemning a proud and gifted nation to another fifty years in the shackles of dictatorship, the resignation of Fidel Castro should be the beginning of a transition to democracy in Cuba, to include the release of all political prisoners, the legalization of all political parties, labor unions, and free media, and the holding of free, fair, and internationally-monitored elections."
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