WITH Trump’s pivot towards Latin America, from being the first country in the world to bomb a Latin American country, to the kidnap of the President of Venezuela Nicolas Maduro and his wife Cilia Flores, the situation could not be more serious for Cuba.

Donald Trump signed an executive order last week which described Cuba as an unusual and extraordinary threat and continuing with the lie that Cuba harbours terrorists.

More worryingly, this order enabled the US to impose tariffs on any country that sells or supplies oil to Cuba. At a time in which oil is scarce in Cuba, Cuba is in an extremely difficult situation. Countries that do not possess large oil reserves, and rely heavily on US markets, are now effectively coerced into cutting off energy support to Cuba to avoid their own economic punishment. The US’s actions and threats towards Cuba are nothing short of gangster imperialism.

Trade union solidarity
In the face of this aggression from the US, solidarity between the British labour movement and Cuba is paramount. Our trade union movement has longstanding solidarity with the people of Cuba in their fight for peace, sovereignty and socialism. I feel privileged to be one of those trade unionists in Britain who continue to fight for Cuba in our unions. In 2023, I was part of a delegation to Matanzas to re-establish the longstanding ties we had with Matanzas and North West Unison. It was there I saw first hand the impact that the blockade and more recent inclusion on the spurious States Sponsor of Terrorism list has on Cuba, but we also witnessed the great resilience of the Cuban people, unity and dignity, defending their socialist system and revolutionary achievements.

A Health System Under Siege
Anyone who has travelled to Cuba can testify to the remarkable achievements of its healthcare system. With the highest number of doctors per capita in the world, universal free healthcare, and a preventative care model envied across Latin America, Cuba has long shown what can be achieved when health, rather than profit, is the foundation of their health policy.

However, the strangulation of their economy by the US has had a devastating impact on the health service. From March 2023 to February 2024, the US blockade cost the Cuban health system nearly £270 million.

The consequences are stark. Cuba’s national list of essential medicines includes 651 items and 51 per cent of them are currently unavailable.

Surgeries have plummeted due to shortages of anaesthetics, surgical supplies, and diagnostics. Tens of thousands await operations. Infant mortality has increased from 5 per 1,000 live births to 7.5 per 1,000 in the past few years. Their world-class health service is under threat due to the unjust policies of the US.

How can the US say it supports the people of Cuba, when its policies are causing devastation?

The hypocrisy of the US on Cuba’s inclusion on the State Sponsor of Terrorism list when they finance and facilitate a genocide in Gaza is off the scale. When the only threat to the world that Cuba brings, is the threat of a good example.

Energy crisis
The blockade, combined with the scarcity of oil, is lethal. In context, this means hospitals without power, education disrupted, transportation of goods and services disrupted and the added psychological impact of going days without electricity.

Solidarity from the British trade union movement
In the midst of this increasing hostility, I see it as our absolute responsibility to step up out material and political solidarity with Cuba. I am proud of the Unison and Cuba Solidarity Campaign Cuba Vive campaign which has raised over £200,000 of medical aid to Cuba and Cuba solidarity has partnered with a charity in Yorkshire, and the value of the aid we’ve been able to send has the value of over £1 million.

We have now sent a second container with medical aid which was packed full of much-needed resources.

This includes 200 first aid packs for every educational establishment in Cuba as part of the medical aid funded by the NEU, responding to a special request from the Cuban Education Union as the shortages in health have had huge impacts on the education sector.

While Cuba Vive is a material aid campaign, it has helped raise political awareness of the economic situation in Cuba and understanding of the unjust blockade amongst our activists.

But we must do more. We owe it to the Cuban people to dramatically step up and strengthen our longstanding solidarity. For my union Unison, Cuba is a firm priority because it has to be. We cannot get complacent just because our unions may have longstanding policy on solidarity with Cuba, we need action.

We must do everything to raise the cause of solidarity with Cuba in every workplace, union branch, region and national union. We must be steadfast in this fight.

Strength in Unity
Given what solidarity that Cuba gives to the world, and the shining light that Cuba is in Latin America of the values of solidarity and a better society, it is our responsibility to support them in this extremely difficult time for them.

In the centenary of Fidel, the great Cuban revolutionary, we remember his words: “Our country does not drop bombs on other peoples, nor does it send thousands of planes to bomb cities; our country does not possess nuclear weapons, chemical weapons, or biological weapons. Our country’s tens of thousands of scientists and doctors have been educated in the idea of saving lives.”

In difficult times, it’s easy to just talk about the difficulties. But both times I have been to Cuba I have seen the strength, unity and resilience of the Cuban people. So the Cuban people will overcome and the values of fairness, social justice and peace will prevail. Viva Cuba! Venceremos!  

Micaela Tracey-Ramos is a member of Unison’s national executive committee and vice-chair of its international committee.