US and Cuban Delegates Clash at UN Over Castro's Human Rights Record

When Fidel Castro seized power,

he confiscated businesses, farms,

factories, homes, and the savings of

generations of hardworking Cubans,

billions in wealth taken, stolen

from the people in an instant. And then,

when Castro sent thousands

of gay people,

Christians, Afro Cubans and others to concentration camps,

it was the regime who stripped them of their property

and profited from their forced labor.

Ever since, Havana would have you believe

everything in Cuba has just disappeared.

Well, we know,

we know where it went, and today we are here to

share it to the world.

I hope everyone, Mr. President, is listening to the delegation right

now.

Imagine what happens when someone asks questions-

Mr. English, delegation, uh-

Imagine what happens when someone asks these questions in

Havana, not in a

room full of ambassadors and cameras.

Imagine what happens to those people if this is the intimidation and

disruption that we see.

Yes.

I request-

Your Excellency, I know you don't like to hear this.

This is America, my friend.

Mr. President-

This is the United Nations. This isn't your communist dictatorship.

Mr. Minister-

You cannot silence me-

Mr. Minister

... or you cannot silence my colleagues.

I hear you.

Point of order, by the way, sir.

Mr. President, Rule seventy-one is crystal clear.

I'll read it for our colleagues here.

It says, quote, "A representative rising to a point of

order may not-

Okay

... may not-

Okay. Yeah

... speak on the substance of the matter."

May, may, may I... Okay.

The reality is, he doesn't like the substance of what he's

hearing.

I, I, I asked all, I asked all-

He doesn't like the hard truths.

I res-

And you can come and intimidate all you want.

Excellencies, I ask everybody-

You back away from this podium

... to respectfully-

Mr. President

... please-

This individual needs to back away from this podium.

Okay.

He's not going to intimidate me-

Excellencies

... in the United States of America like he

tries to intimidate political

I appeal to you to listen to me, and I'll ask everybody to go

I appeal to you to listen to me, and I'll ask everybody to go

back to their delegation.

And I'm the representative of the United States of America.

Please, there is-

Back up.

Okay.

You are a liar, Mr. Minister.

Back up, Ambassador. Back away. This isn't Havana. Don't intimidate us.

I'm suspending the meeting.

You're not going to intimidate me.

I'm suspending this meeting.

Do you understand who you're dealing with? This is America.

Back up. The rule is clear. This is the substance of the

speech. There are no procedural... You can bring as many people as you want.

The meeting is suspended.

Please sit down. Sit down.

So please go back to your seat. You have the floor, sir.

Thank you, Mr. President. Again, I hope everyone is listening.

I hope everyone observed this today.

This is in a room in a free country with

cameras, with ambassadors, with diplomats.

Imagine what happens if you dare to speak out

under the iron fist of this regime.

Imagine what happens when no one is looking.

We recently had

just released pol- political prisoners here, and this

delegation of supposed diplomats tried to

intimidate them, film them, harass them.

If this happens here, imagine what's happened-