Correa Congratulated for Refusal to Attend Summit

HAVANA TIMES, April 16 — A large group of signers have sent an open letter to Ecuadorian president Rafael Correa praising his stand to not attend the “Summit of the Americas,” which took place over the weekend.

The letter states: “The decision by President Rafael Correa not to attend the Summit of the Americas as long as it maintains its unilateral practice of excluding Cuba, was an act of dignity – and consequently we are in agreement and celebrate it.

At the same time, we are calling on the other presidents to reconsider their participation in the meeting. There cannot be another Summit of the Americas without Cuba present.”

The letter, which was coordinated by the Mexican intellectual Ana Esther Cecena, was signed by more than 700 individuals and organizations from countries of the Americas and other continents, nations that included Germany, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Spain, Philippines, France, Greece , Holland, India, Jordan, Norway, UK, Sweden, Switzerland and Tunisia.

The document was circulated by email and social networks several days before the summit and was published by several digital media outlets, including the Cuban blog of the Critical Observatory network.

In Cuba, the letter was signed by Aurelio Alonso, Juan Valdes Paz, Jesus Cruz Gonzalez, Pedro Martinez Pirez, Selma Diaz, Fabio Grobart Sunshine, Miranda and Vicente Feliu Miranda y Canto de Todos, Lourdes Alejandra Bravo Rivas, Valentin Lombino, Luis Acevedo Fals, Ledys Perez Vivian Tabarez, Claudia Acevedo, Daylet Acevedo, Pavel Aleman Benitez, Isabel Monal, Camila Piñeiro Harnecker, Indira Daudinot Pineda, the GALFISA Group, Maritza Barrera Valle, Migdalia Miranda Martinez, Carlos Moya Lopez, Armando Chaguaceda, Jesus Cruz Gonzalez, Santos Prieto and Dmitri Prieto Samsonov.

In addition to Rafael Correa, also absent from the “Summit of the Americas” for the same reason was Daniel Ortega, the president of Nicaragua. Hugo Chavez did not attend, but on the recommendation of his doctors.