Cuban Psychologist Received as Hero Following Incident in Panama
HAVANA TIMES — The 7th Summit of the Americas held in Panama has pulled psychologist Sucelys Morfa Gonzalez, Second Secretary of Cuba’s Young Communists League (UJC) out of her official anonymity and turned her into a memorable character – for the time being, at least.
On Monday, Morfa was received as a heroine at the foot of the steps of the plane that took her back to Havana along with the Cuban delegation that attended the civil society fora at the Summit.
“We came back filled with courage and determination,” Morfa said on behalf of the group that was welcomed by Salvador Mesa Valdes, member of the Politburo and Council of State, and other government leaders.
According to the young woman, Cuba’s official delegation participated in the Panama Summit in “a hostile and hegemonic environment.”
“We not only attended the Summit, we also actively participated and exposed what is most genuine about our country (…) It was our responsibility to hold Cuba’s name high and to speak on behalf of Venezuela and others who aren’t heard also,” the UJC leader added during declarations for Cuba’s Granma newspaper.
Wealthy in Cuba
The 31-year-old official became notorious in social media as of last weekend, after irately stating she had paid for her trip and that she is “rich in Cuba,” in response to questions posed by Univision 23 reporter Mario Vallejo.
“They’re lackeys, they’re mercenaries, they’re self-financed, they are badly-paid imperialist agents,” the young woman said before the cameras, referring to the members of Cuba’s opposition present at the Summit. Vallejo then asked who paid for her trip and those of her compatriots.
“No one!” she snapped back. “The people of Cuba. I paid for my own ticket. I have a Bachelor’s in Psychology.”
“But you earn 20 dollars a month,” the journalist retorted.
“Who told you I earn 20 dollars a month? Do your homework, the economic model is being updated and we are rich, we saved up to come here so that our voices can be heard,” the psychologist replied at the top of her lungs, with an irate look on her face.
Morfa’s replies – and her screaming in particular – have been the object of mockery, caricatures and memes in social networks. A satirical rap has even been dedicated to her.
Long-Standing Government Official
In Panama, Morfa acted as part of Cuba’s pro-government representatives who attended the Summit’s parallel forums (the Youth Forum, in her case).
Morfa was born in Cienfuegos and was the UJC provincial secretary until 2013, when she was promoted to Second Secretary of the National Committee of this communist organization. Until that time, she had been a leader at different levels of the UJC for 11 years, from the municipal to the provincial level, such that she has been unable to practice psychology in this time.
Cuban government representatives stirred up protests during the civil society and democratic governability forum, preventing the holding of panels and demanding that members of Cuba’s dissident movements who had traveled to Panama to participate in the Summit be excluded from debates.
The actions of Cuba’s delegation are being celebrated as an “honorable mission” by the island’s official press, with headlines such as “The Firmness and Courage of Cubans in Panama” and “We Defended the Values of our People For Many Intense Days.”
She is many things, but the voice of Cuba she is not. You know which voices are the loudest? The ones who risk their lives on the high seas to escape Cuba. Those actions scream to the heavens!
But in all honesty, those who save their money to travel to Panama can be considered “civil society”. Those who are organized and transported by the government are, by definition, not civil society.
Besides shouldn’t everyone have their boxes heard? ….regardless of whether you like Thor message or not?
Who do you believe should be excluded from the conversation?
Who says she was the voice of Cuba? Who paid for her air fare? Why respond so angrily? What is she afraid of? Do your homework before you defend the indefensible.
The lady has the right to defend her country/ The voice of those who are the lackeys of a foreign government are not the voices of the people of Cuba and Latin America. Her voice was the voice of Cuba. Those others were the voices of those who paid their passages and are the enemies of the progressive peoples of Latin America and the Caribbean. In years to come, she might be a Fidel in the making. She is full of conviction and this is the hallmark of a good leader
There’s that. But I suspect that she believes that by bullying the questioner she can change the conversation. She has no real answers, so anger and accusations are the best she can do.
JajJajajajaaaaaaa
This kind of bluster harkens from the time of the Soviet-era political speak that was intended to show strength and mask an empty growling stomach. If this idiot sat down and did the math, she would realize how ridiculous her comments were about having saved the money from her salary. What is really the key here is that Castro sycophants talk like this not because they are stupid, although I suspect in this case that is probably true. They talk like this because they think everyone else is stupid.
“…they’re mercenaries, they’re self-financed, they are badly-paid imperialist agents,” who talks like that?!
A Cuba opens up, it’s officials need to learn how tips peak with the media. Tough questions don’t merit this type of “chusma” response. ….Welcome to the real world Morfa