Following the devastating impact of Hurricane Oscar, which was later downgraded to a tropical storm, solidarity demonstrations have surged in many countries. These events aim to provide humanitarian aid to assist the victims and support the recovery efforts of Cuban government agencies and the local community.
Italy Raises Funds to Support Hurricane Victims in Cuba
Rome.- The National Italy-Cuba Friendship Association (ANAIC) is reportedly carrying out a fund-raising campaign to help the victims of Hurricane Oscar that recently hit the eastern Cuban province of Guantánamo.
In a statement to Prensa Latina, Anaic president Marco Papacci said that the purpose of this initiative is also to express solidarity with the Cuban people, who have also been hit by a recent energy crisis, mainly as a result of the US economic, commercial, and financial blockade against that nation.
In a recent communiqué, this friendship group pointed out that the criminal US blockade, which violates human rights, “affects all sectors of Cuban society and affects the lives of the population daily,” and urged to increase actions to denounce it and demand its end.
As a result of the initiative with the theme Energy for Life, a fund-raising campaign in favor of the Cuban people managed to collect more than 11,000 Euros in only two days.
Papacci said that 5,000 euros were contributed by the ANAIC central level while the remaining 6,000 came from members of that organization and many Italians who are joining this call. The financial contributions continue to arrive.
Cuban Ambassador Appreciates Mexican Donation to Guantánamo
Mexico City.- Cuba's ambassador here, Marcos Rodríguez, today thanked the solidarity of the Richmeat company which, in conjunction with the Mexican Embassy in Havana, will donate food to the province of Guantánamo.
“We appreciate the solidarity the Mexican company Richmeat has shown, which, together with @EmbaMexCuba, is making a donation that will help the Guantánamo people who were hit by hurricane Oscar."
"It is a worthy example of the deep relationship between our countries," the diplomat pointed out on the social network X.
Richmeat's note states that the humanitarian aid consists of 100 tons of seasoned mixed picadillo, equivalent to 250,000 units, which will allow the preparation of 750,000 portions of food made for the population.
The donation is being delivered to the fridges of the Ministry of Domestic Trade in the eastern province of Guantánamo so that the corresponding authorities can deliver them to the victims.
"It is worth mentioning that this donation is in addition to the humanitarian aid that the Mexican government has offered to Cuba," he said.
United Nations in Contact and Ready to Provide Aid to Cuba
United Nations.- The United Nations (UN) confirmed today that it remains in contact with the Cuban authorities to provide aid to the country after Hurricane Oscar hit the east of the island.
In a press conference, Farhan Haq, the deputy spokesman for the UN Secretary-General (António Guterres), ratified the willingness to support the nation, which was also affected by last week's total disconnection of its electrical system.
According to the spokesman, several entities of the United Nations System are preparing supplies prepositioned for the response.
With that objective, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs sent a small team from Panama who will lead the efforts.
For its part, the World Food Program brought aid to 275,000 people for 60 days while the United Nations Children's Fund hopes to reach more than 40,000 Cubans with water, hygiene, accommodation, and education.
Last Monday, the organization confirmed that its Technical Emergency Team remained activated and in contact with its national counterparts through its resident coordinator in the largest of the Antilles, Francisco Pichón.
Storm Oscar, which crossed the eastern part of the country, left seven fatalities and considerable material damage in the small Caribbean state.
The hurricane also caused significant rains during several days in the eastern and central provinces.
Coinciding with the storm winds, the country faced a tense context due to some disconnections of the National Electric System (SEN).
On October 18, the SEN suffered a total disconnection that caused prolonged blackouts, restored in the middle of the week.
According to the Cuban Minister of Energy and Mines, Vicente de la O Levy, the System's failures after the total collapse are due to its weakening, largely caused by the impact of the United States’ economic siege against Cuba.
Fuel shortages are the main problem for the sector, which is influenced by the brutal economic, commercial, and financial blockade that has lasted more than six decades. (PL)