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Published: Monday, 17 June 2019 07:52

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Photo: TrabajadoresHavana, June 17. - A very Cuban phrase expresses "clearer, not even water", when during a dialogue or before a certain situation it is necessary to show or be shown the palpable of an event.

So popular apotegma was endorsed by the workers of the non-state sector at the fair on 23rd Street corner to M, making clear on Saturday their total rejection of the new claims of the United States with the resurgence of hostility to Cuba through the Law Helms-Burton.

The message to the Trump administration was clear. Héctor Danilo Rodríguez, member of that group, ruled that the blockade affects us, but at no time intimidates us; In our day to day we are accompanied by something that no matter how much money and power the imperialists have, they can never buy and they are the reason and the truth.

Leonel Alfonso Díaz, administrator of the place, said that practically all the work done there by his colleagues require imported raw materials and mentioned the threads and fabrics.

The material difficulties for the young artisan Yoel Boza Wong are not easy, since he only has 20 percent of the inputs for the activity he carries out. "Sales have decreased and my family has been affected," he said.

"We Cubans are very tenacious and we have a lot of history to teach and we will continue to set an example in health, in culture and open our windows to the world",

With determination in his words, Maricel Cardentey Pérez, artisan in costume jewelery, stressed that "there is no discouragement among self-employed workers".

"Everyone here rejects the Helms-Burton Act and the blockade against our country. It is true that both things affect our family and the country, if we take into account that such circumstances threaten tourism, for example. "

He said that "the 35 percent of people who work in the non-state sector are women and that has a great weight in the economy of our children and in homes too."

Anchors go up, sales drop

Among dozens of canvases and crafts, Jesus Castro Borges awaits a client. Take a look at the old San José warehouse, located between Cuba and Havana, on Avenida del Puerto, looking for a potential buyer. Another day lost. Only ten days have passed since the last cruise ship sailed. He does not know what to do when the month ends.

"Most of my clients are foreigners. We are in the low stage of tourism, but now it has been excessive. If before it decreased by 30 percent, now we have done it between 70 and 80 percent ", emphasized the self-employed person.

The Cultural Center "Old Deposit Warehouses San Jose", houses about 460 stalls selling handicrafts, jewelry and souvenirs, among other products. Because they were a few meters from the cruise ship pier, visitors from the United States were their main customers. With the new measures of the Department of State of the northern nation, sales of that center plummeted.

"I used to market a daily chart, and now I can spend eight to ten days without selling one. This directly affects the family economy, because we do not stop paying taxes ", explains Jesús, who in addition to keeping his home, sends money and articles varied to his mother in Camagüey, bedridden because of an illness.

"I bought her specific foods, medicines and other things, and I could even travel and bring her items that she needed. Now I can only send you some money, but I cannot help you as before, partly also because of the scarcity, "he laments.

However, the difficulties did not undermine his spirit, nor did they affect his ability to analyze reality from his humble sales point. For this reason, Jesus Castro Borges joined his colleagues at the San José Warehouse in an act of collective repudiation of the resurgence of the blockade against our country and the Helms Burton Law.

"Our people are willing to dialogue with the American people, that there is an understanding. Otherwise, I think we do not understand each other, "he said to his colleagues. In addition to Jesus, others shared their opinions regarding these actions, including Andy Díaz Roque, a worker engaged in the sale of handicrafts.

"Why repudiate the Blockade and the Helms-Burton? Because we are Cubans, we are families that depend on their work. There is a country of more than 11 million people that needs economic solvency to be able to develop, develop, and bring bread to the table of their children, "said the worker.

"This is a political measure that affects us economically, we cannot value it as an economic measure, because it is a measure against the Cuban government, but it mainly affects the people that represent that government, "he added.

For Andy, the sanctions are the result of a small group within the Yankee government, capable of affecting their own companies. However, this harakiri will only give the Trump administration internal problems, because the actions in Cuba, if they bet to put pressure on the private sector, will not come to fruition. In the words of Jesús Castro Borges, "the 'entrepreneurs', as Obama called us, are one of the most affected parties, but we will never break down."  (Trabajadores)