Mai 2001 : Une nouvelle loi états-unienne qui propose de financer l'opposition interne à Cuba à hauteur de 100.000.000 de dollars sur quatre ans... Nota : aux Etats-Unis, le financement d'un mouvement politique par des fonds étrangers est interdit...
Nota : ne manquez pas de lire le dernier paragraphe de cette loi. S 894 IS 107th CONGRESS 1st Session S. 894
To authorize increased support to the democratic opposition and other oppressed people of Cuba to help them regain their freedom and prepare themselves for a democratic future, and for other purposes.
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES May 16 (legislative day, MAY 15), 2001 Mr. HELMS (for himself, Mr. LIEBERMAN, Mr. SANTORUM, Mr. GRAHAM, Mr. TORRICELLI, Mr. ENSIGN, Mr. ALLEN, Mr. CRAIG, Mr. NELSON of Florida, Mr. SHELBY, Mr. SMITH of New Hamphsire, Mr. SMITH of Oregon, and Mr. REID)
introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations
A BILL
To authorize increased support to the democratic opposition and other oppressed people of Cuba to help them regain their freedom and prepare themselves for a democratic future, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. This Act may be cited as the `Cuban Solidarity Act of 2001' or the `SOLIDARIDAD Act of 2001'.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. Congress makes the following findings:
(1) The American people support a principled policy of taking proactive measures to promote liberty and economic opportunity for the Cuban people and to help them prepare themselves for a better and more prosperous future after the regime of Fidel Castro Ruz.
(2) The United States has a moral obligation to increase its assistance to the democratic opposition in Cuba, providing such assistance with the same intensity, creativity, and decisiveness with which it supported the pro-democracy Solidarnosc movement in Poland to defeat martial law and communism.
(3) The economic and political transitions in Eastern European countries can serve as models for Cubans seeking to recover their country after the lost decades of the communist dictatorship of Fidel Castro Ruz.
(4) The United States Government should redouble efforts to overcome Fidel Castro's blockade on independent information in and about Cuba, so that people in Cuba realize the opportunities for fundamental change and that people in other countries recognize their obligation to support such change.
(5) The regime of Fidel Castro Ruz denies the Cuban people basic necessities of life as a means of political control, compounding the hardship caused by the mismanagement that is typical of all other failed Marxist, centrally planned economies throughout history.
(6) Increasing assistance to the Cuban people will undermine the control of Fidel Castro Ruz by promoting their independence and strengthening relief groups that operate independently of the Castro regime, if such increased assistance is delivered directly to victims of political repression by genuinely independent nongovernmental groups.
(7) Encouraging the growth in the number of independent, self- employed Cubans will broaden and empower that segment of the population that is surviving or prospering independent of the Castro regime.
(8) The Castro regime requires the Cuban people to pay United States dollars for basic necessities, including food and medicine, as a means of diverting hard currency into the coffers of the repressive state, imposing extraordinary hardship on workers whom the state pays an average hourly wage of 5 cents.
(9) The Castro regime refuses to import adequate medicine and medical equipment for the Cuban people, despite the fact that Cuba can purchase such material from many countries, including the United States, which removed the embargo on medicines and medical equipment in the Cuban Democracy Act of 1992.
(10) The people of the United States already provide more humanitarian assistance to Cuba under present United States law than all other nations of the world combined.
(11) Increasing assistance directly to the Cuban people is consistent with the aims of the LIBERTAD Act of 1996 and the Cuban Democracy Act of 1992.
SEC. 3. PURPOSES. The purposes of this Act are--
(1) to challenge the unrelenting, systematic repression of the Castro regime by authorizing the President to--
(A) provide increased, decisive support to the democratic opposition in Cuba; and (B) take specific measures to bring about fundamental political and economic change in Cuba;
(2) to ensure that expanded assistance is provided oppressed persons in Cuba, including political prisoners and their families and others, in order to undermine the deliberate policies of the Cuban government to-
(A) deny food and medical care as a means of intimidation and control; and (B) isolate Cubans from those who support their freedom;
(3) to strengthen independent nongovernmental organizations in Cuba, including groups committed to the political and spiritual liberation of the Cuban people;
(4) to encourage increased donations of food, medicine, and other support by individuals and nongovernmental organizations in the United States to the oppressed people of Cuba, who are unable to obtain these necessities because of the failed economic policies of the Castro regime; and
(5) to encourage the development of an independent and self- sufficient economic sector comprised of independent, self-employed Cubans.
SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS.
(a) DEFINITIONS IN THIS ACT-
In this Act:
(1) CUBAN GOVERNMENT- The term `Cuban government' has the meaning given the term in section 4(5) of the LIBERTAD Act of 1996 (22 U.S.C. 6023(5)).
(2) ECONOMIC EMBARGO OF CUBA- The term `economic embargo of Cuba' has the meaning given the term in section 4(7) of the LIBERTAD Act of 1996 (22 U.S.C. 6023(7)).
(3) INDEPENDENT NONGOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATION- The term `independent nongovernmental organization' means an organization that is designated by the Secretary of State under section 5.
(4) INDEPENDENT, SELF-EMPLOYED CUBAN- The term `independent, self-employed Cuban' means a Cuban national in Cuba who is self- employed, who is not an agent or instrumentality of the Cuban government, and who is not in a profit-sharing arrangement with the Cuban government.
(5) LIBERTAD ACT OF 1996- The term `LIBERTAD Act of 1996' means the Cuban Liberty and Democratic Solidarity (LIBERTAD) Act of 1996 (22 U.S.C. 6021 et seq.).
(6) VICTIMS OF POLITICAL REPRESSION- The term `victims of political repression' means any Cuban nationals in Cuba, including political prisoners and their families, who are not officials of the Cuban government or of the ruling political party in Cuba, as defined in section 4(10) of the LIBERTAD Act of 1996 (22 U.S.C. 6023(10)).
(b) DEFINITIONS AND DESIGNATIONS UNDER THE LIBERTAD ACT OF 1996-
Section 109 of the LIBERTAD Act of 1996 (22 U.S.C. 6039) is amended by adding at the end the following new subsections:
`(d) DEFINITIONS- In this section:
`(1) INDEPENDENT NONGOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATION- The term `independent nongovernmental organization' means an organization that is designated by the Secretary of State under subsection (e).
`(2) VICTIMS OF POLITICAL REPRESSION- The term `victims of political repression' means any Cuban nationals in Cuba, including political prisoners and their families, who are not officials of the Cuban government or of the ruling political party in Cuba, as defined in section 4(10) of the LIBERTAD Act of 1996 (22 U.S.C. 6023(10)).
`(e) DESIGNATION OF INDEPENDENT NGOS- For purposes of this section, an organization shall be treated as an independent nongovernmental organization if, not less than 15 days before any obligation of funds under this section to the organization, the Secretary of State--
`(1) determines that the organization is a charitable or non- profit nongovernmental organization that is not an agency or instrumentality of the Cuban government; and
`(2) so designates the organization, and the designation is made in accordance with the procedures applicable to reprogramming notifications under section 634A of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2394-1).'.
SEC. 5. DESIGNATION OF INDEPENDENT NGOS.
For purposes of this Act, an organization shall be treated as an independent nongovernmental organization if, not less than 15 days before any obligation of funds under this Act to the organization, the Secretary of State--
(1) determines that the organization is a charitable or non- profit nongovernmental organization that is not an agency or instrumentality of the Cuban government; and
(2) so designates the organization, and the designation is made in accordance with the procedures applicable to reprogramming notifications under section 634A of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2394- 1).
SEC. 6. AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS FOR ASSISTANCE TO VICTIMS OF POLITICAL REPRESSION IN CUBA.
(a) AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS-
(1) IN GENERAL- Except as provided in subsection (b), of the total amounts made available under chapter 1 of part I of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (relating to development assistance) and chapter 4 of part II of that Act (relating to the economic support fund) in any fiscal year beginning on or after October 1, 2001, not less than $25,000,000 may be available each such fiscal year to carry out activities under section 109(a) of the LIBERTAD Act of 1996 (22 U.S.C. 6039(a)), including assistance to victims of political repression in Cuba through independent nongovernmental organizations.
(2) CONGRESSIONAL NOTIFICATION PROCEDURES- Funds made available under paragraph (1) shall be subject to notification of the appropriate congressional committees in accordance with the procedures applicable to reprogramming notifications under section 634A of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2394-1).
(b) INELIGIBILITY FOR ASSISTANCE- Assistance may not be provided under this section to the Cuban government, to any organization or person affiliated with the Cuban government (including the state security apparatus and the Communist Party of Cuba), or to any organization or person that has violated any law or regulation of the United States prohibiting or restricting trade or other financial transactions with Cuba.
(c) ELIGIBILITY FOR ASSISTANCE- Assistance under this section may include, but is not limited to, assistance provided to--
(1) political prisoners and members of their families;
(2) persons persecuted or harassed for their dissident activities;
(3) persons persecuted or harassed for seeking to flee Cuba and repatriated to Cuba under the May 2, 1995 `United States-Cuba Joint Statement on Migration';
(4) independent libraries;
(5) independent workers' rights activists;
(6) independent agricultural cooperatives;
(7) independent associations of independent, self-employed Cubans;
(8) independent journalists;
(9) independent youth organizations;
(10) independent environmental groups;
(11) independent economists, medical doctors, and other professionals;
(12) an information and resource center in Havana, Cuba, as described in subsection (e);
(13) pro-democracy programs of the National Endowment for Democracy that are related to Cuba;
(14) nongovernmental programs to facilitate access to the Internet, subject to section 102(g) of the LIBERTAD Act of 1996 (22 U.S.C. 6032(g));
(15) nongovernmental charitable programs that provide nutrition and basic medical care to persons most at risk, including children and elderly persons; or
(16) nongovernmental charitable programs to assist the reintegration into civilian life of persons who have abandoned, resigned from, or been expelled from the Cuban armed forces for ideological reasons.
(d) INFORMATION AND RESOURCE CENTER IN HAVANA, CUBA- The center referred to in subsection (c)(12) is an information and resource center to be established, maintained, and equipped within the United States Interests Section in Havana, Cuba, for use by representatives of independent nongovernmental organizations or other persons that are eligible for assistance under this section.
(e) ASSISTANCE DEFINED- In this section, the term `assistance' means food, medicines, medical supplies, medical equipment, office supplies and equipment, educational supplies and materials, telephones, telefax machines, or other material or financial assistance.
SEC. 7. SUPPORT FOR INDEPENDENT, SELF- EMPLOYED CUBANS AND FOR INDEPENDENT NONGOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS.
(a) EXCEPTION FOR THE IMPORTATION OF CERTAIN CUBAN PRODUCTS MADE BY INDEPENDENT, SELF-EMPLOYED CUBANS- Notwithstanding the economic embargo of Cuba, the President is authorized to license on a case-by- case basis--
(1) the importation of handicrafts or other hand-made goods produced by independent, self-employed Cubans, if the President determines and reports to Congress that doing so will strengthen the economic and political independence of independent, self-employed Cubans; and
(2) the remittance of up to $1,000 each quarter by a United States person or group to any individual in Cuba to support--
(A) the activities of microenterprise activities of an independent, self-employed Cuban; or (B) the activities of an independent nongovernmental organization.
(b) SUSPENSION- The President shall, in consultation with Congress, suspend any of the transactions authorized in this section if the President determines that the Cuban government is diverting significant resources by reason of these transactions for its own purposes.
SEC. 8. EMERGENCY MEASURES TO SUPPORT DEMOCRACY; REPORTS.
(a) EMERGENCY MEASURES TO SUPPORT THE DEMOCRATIC TRANSITION IN CUBA- Not later than 6 months after the date of enactment of this Act, the President--
(1) should instruct the heads of all relevant agencies of the United States Government to increase support for democratic opposition groups in Cuba;
(2) should instruct the United States Permanent Representative to the United Nations to introduce a resolution in the United Nations Security Council calling upon the Cuban government to immediately respect all human rights, free all political prisoners, legalize independent political parties, allow independent trade unions, and conduct internationally monitored and freely contested elections;
(3) should instruct personnel of Radio Marti, Television Marti, and the Voice of America to propose and implement measures, and should seek additional funds for these activities as necessary, to increase the availability of their broadcasts on the island of Cuba;
(4) may provide up to $5,000,000 of the total amounts made available for voluntary contributions to international organizations to the Organization of American States (OAS) in fiscal year 2002, for--
(A) the fund for the deployment of human rights observers, election support, and election observation in Cuba that is described in section 109(b)(1) of the LIBERTAD Act of 1996 (22 U.S.C. 6039(b)(1)); and
(B) scholarships for Cuban students attending colleges, universities, or other educational programs in member states of the OAS;
(5) should instruct the Secretary of the Treasury, acting through the Office of Foreign Assets Control of the Department of the Treasury, to propose and implement measures, and should seek additional funds for these activities as necessary, to more vigorously enforce the economic embargo of Cuba and to expeditiously license lawful transactions involving Cuba; and
(6) should instruct the Attorney General to--
(A) investigate thoroughly--
(i) the culpability of officials of the Cuban government in the willful, premeditated attack on 2 unarmed `Brothers to the Rescue' humanitarian aircraft on February 24, 1996, which resulted in the death of four individuals on such aircraft, Pablo Morales, Carlos Costa, Mario de la Pena, and Armando Alejandre; and
(ii) the involvement of officials of the Cuban government in the trafficking of illicit narcotics and in money laundering; and
(B) take every available legal measure to bring to justice those officials of the Cuban government involved in the planning, authorization, and execution of the crimes described in subparagraph (A).
(b) REPORTS-
(1) REPORT ON IMPLEMENTATION BY THE PRESIDENT- Not later than 6 months after the date of enactment of this Act, the President shall submit to Congress a detailed written report on steps United States agencies have taken as of the date of the report, and steps those agencies will take in the 12 months following the date of the report, to implement each of the measures set forth in subsection (a).
(2) REPORT REGARDING CUBA- Not later than 120 days after the date of enactment of this Act, and every 12 months thereafter, the Secretary of State shall submit to each Member of Congress, and disseminate through all United States diplomatic and consular missions, unclassified written reports (with classified annexes as required) on the following subjects:
(A) Assistance the United States is prepared to provide to a transition government or a democratically elected government, in accordance with title II of the LIBERTAD Act of 1996.
(B) Exploitative labor conditions that exist in Cuba (including the denial of rights of independent trade unions as set forth in conventions 87 and 98 of the International Labor Organization).
(C) The policy of the Cuban government to coerce certain categories of poor, less educated, and rural women to submit to induced abortions.
(D) The role of the Cuban government or any of its agents in international narcotics trafficking or money laundering.
(E) The impact on and threat to the national security or national interests of the United States posed by--
(i) Russian intelligence facilities in Cuba, including the intelligence facility at Lourdes, Cuba (including details on the presence at that facility of personnel from the Russian Federation, including advisers, technicians, and military personnel);
(ii) efforts by the Cuban government to produce biological weapons or other technology with military or economic warfare applications; and
(iii) completion of the Cienfuegos nuclear facility at Juragua, Cuba (including support for such completion, if any, by the Russian Federation).
(F) Measures of the Cuban government to persecute, discourage, or restrict the spiritual and charitable activities of churches and other religious organizations in Cuba.
(G) The plight of political prisoners and prisoners of conscience in Cuba, including--
(i) a list of all persons who are imprisoned or detained in Cuba and the crimes, if any, with which they have been charged;
(ii) a description of prison conditions and treatment of prisoners by Cuban authorities; and
(iii) a list, to the extent practicable, of all persons who have been imprisoned or executed for political reasons by authorities of the Cuban government at any time on or after January 1, 1959.
(H) Actions taken by the Cuban government to repress freedom of the press, including persecution or exclusion of journalists, reprisals against journalists or their sources, interruption of mass communication or distribution of journalistic materials, or similar measures.
(I) Actions by other governments and international organizations, including but not limited to, Canada and member states of the European Union, taken during the preceding 6-month period, to encourage a process of transition to pluralist democracy and respect for human rights and fundamental economic and political freedoms in Cuba.
(J) Efforts by the Cuban government to influence United States policy toward Cuba through espionage, other surreptitious means, or propaganda.
(K) The issuance of visas to enter the United States to Cuban officials or persons affiliated with the Cuban government, accompanied by a justification for issuing each such visa, taking into account section 102(e) of the LIBERTAD Act of 1996 (22 U.S.C. 6032(e)).
(L) The bilateral sugar-for-petroleum agreement between the Russian Federation and Cuba, including an analysis of the banks and trading companies carrying out such agreement, an analysis of the terms of such agreement, and a determination of whether such agreement and terms provide any economic subsidy to the Cuban government.
(M) Cuban relations with other states that have repeatedly provided support for acts of international terrorism, as designated under section 6(j)(1)(A) of the Export Administration Act of 1979.
(N) Action taken by the Department of Justice and the Cuban government to extradite or otherwise surrender to the United States Joanne Chesimard (also known as `Assata Shakur', convicted in the United States for the 1973 murder of New Jersey State Trooper Werner Foerster and wounding of New Jersey State Trooper James Hooper), Arletis Blanco, Cheri Dalton (also known as `Nehanda Abiodun'), William Lee Brent, Charles Hill, Guillermo Morales, Luis Pena Soltren, Frank Terpil, Robert Vesco, and other fugitives of justice harbored by the Cuban government.
(3) TRANSMITTAL TOGETHER WITH SPECIFIED LISTS-
(A) EXPLOITATIVE LABOR CONDITIONS- In the case of the transmittal of reports described in paragraph (2)(B), such reports shall be accompanied by a list of foreign companies taking advantage of such exploitative labor conditions and a description of the efforts of the international free trade union movement to press the Cuban government and foreign companies doing business in Cuba to respect the rights of Cuban workers.
(B) ACTIONS BY OTHER GOVERNMENTS AND INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS- In the case of the transmittal of reports described in paragraph (2)(I), such reports shall be accompanied by a list of commercial ventures and bilateral agreements signed with the Cuban government during the periods covered by the reports.
SEC. 9. REDUCTION IN ASSISTANCE TO THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION FOR SUPPORT OF CUBAN INTELLIGENCE FACILITIES.
(a) ANNUAL WITHHOLDING OF ASSISTANCE- Section 498A(d)(1) of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2295a(d)(1)) is amended--
(1) by striking `, on or after the date of enactment of this subsection,' and inserting `for a fiscal year'; and (2) by striking `on or after such date' and inserting `for the preceding fiscal year'.
(b) ANNUAL TRANSMITTAL OF CERTIFICATIONS-
Section 498A(d)(2) of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2295a(d)(2)) is amended--
(1) in subparagraph (A)--
(A) by inserting `for a fiscal year' after `withhold assistance'; (B) by inserting `prior to that fiscal year' after `committees'; (C) by inserting `for that fiscal year' after `such assistance'; and (D) by inserting `for a fiscal year' after `Russia'; and
(2) in subparagraph (B), by inserting `for a fiscal year' after `with respect to Russia'.
SEC. 10. SENSE OF CONGRESS.
It is the sense of Congress that the Secretary of State should authorize the travel and contacts of Cuban diplomatic personnel in United States territory on a strictly reciprocal basis, taking into account Cuban restrictions against United States diplomatic personnel meeting with officials of the Cuban government at all levels.
SEC. 11. STATUTORY CONSTRUCTION.
Nothing in this Act or in section 109 of the LIBERTAD Act of 1996 (22 U.S.C. 6039) may be construed as authorizing the commercial sale or export of food to Cuba or any other commercial transaction with Cuba that is not otherwise authorized under law. END
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