LETTER TO POTUS FROM CUBAN DISSIDENT MARTHA

C O N F I D E N T I A L HAVANA 000426

SIPDIS

WHA FOR A/S SHANNON, ALSO FOR DAS MADISON AND CALEB MCCARRY
NSC FOR DAN FISK

E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/03/2013
TAGS: CU EAID PREL
SUBJECT: LETTER TO POTUS FROM CUBAN DISSIDENT MARTHA
BEATRIZ ROQUE

REF: A. HAVANA 363

B. HAVANA 397

Classified By: COM Michael E. Parmly for reasons 1.4 (c) and (d)


1. After a hiatus brought about by GOC attacks on dissident
leaders, especially Martha Beatriz Roque, and on USINT, COM
met with Roque on June 2 at her apartment. Pol/Econ
Counselor and dissident leader Vladimiro Roca also were
present. During the encounter, Roque handed COM the letter
at para 2, which she had promised to send to POTUS in a
meeting following the May 6, video teleconference. By SEPTEL
we will report on overall dissident reactions now that the
dust has begun to settle from the GOC's strident propaganda
campaign. The original of the letter is being faxed to
WHA/CCA and to the NSC Staff.


2. (Informal Translation)

Havana June 2, 2008

His Excellency George W. Bush
President of the United States of America

Dear Mr. President:

First of all allow me to greet you and pay my respects. My
objective with this letter is to build on the proposals I
made to you during our conversation of May 6. However, it is
important to point out that, in spite of the events that have
occurred over the past 15 days, my commitment to fight for
democracy in Cuba remains unalterable.

As you may know, it has been proposed that it be made a crime
to receive money from any country, which the government
refers to as "subversion," and for that reason, now more than
ever, it is necessary to make some of the measures of the
(US) embargo more flexible. In accordance with your decision
on cellular telephones, and in view of the fact that it is
very difficult to activate them from outside of Cuba, the
following steps could be taken gradually and on the same
theme:

-- Increase the number of persons who can send remittances to
this country to include all close relatives. For Cubans this
would include: parents, children, spouses, in-laws,
grandparents, aunts and uncles, nieces and nephews, and
cousins.

-- Initially, bring to $400 (320 CuC) the amount that can be
remitted each 4 months so that the costs of using the phones
can be covered.

-- Owing to the state of scarcity--of all kinds--that exists
in the country it is even more critical that the time between
family visits to the island be shortened to one year.

I am convinced that we in Cuba are at a political, social,
and economic tipping point--as much from the international
standpoint, among the partners of the regime that is
extremely complex, as from the internal situation. There are
many variables that make up this equation and the government
is not prepared to confront an abrupt change, especially an
easing of the measures of the embargo.

Even though these recommendations are valid for promoting a
smooth shift in power, in my opinion the question of material
assistance to the dissidents will only be resolved if the
restrictions on travel for Cubans resident in your country
are eliminated completely and transmission of remittances
permitted. Using a few individuals from Europe and Latin
America (to transport such assistance) puts them at great
risk because they are easily identified by the regime,
whereas, (assistance) entering in massive quantities would be
practically uncontrollable.

Mr. President, with the assurance that you can count on my
highest consideration, I thank you in advance, for what you
can do to help us--even more than for what you already have
done--in this noble cause in support of democracy. God Bless
America.

/s/ Martha Beatriz Roque Cabello
PARMLY