Cuba Reluctant to Rejoin OAS after 47-Year Ban

June 4, 2009 by Suzanne Conlon

The Organization of American States voted to readmit Cuba after a 47-year hiatus from the group on Wednesday. Following the announcement of the revocation, Honduran President Manuel Zelaya exclaimed that "the Cold War has ended this day in San Pedro Sula...We begin a new era of fraternity and tolerance." Ecuadorian Prime Minister stated that it represents "a moment of rejoicing for all of Latin America." Former Cuban leader Fidel Castro declared the OAS to be a "U.S. Trojan horse." He has stated that "it is naive to think that the good intentions of one president justifies the existence of a body that...supported...neoliberalism, drug trafficking, military bases, and economic crises," and has called for the organization to be dissolved altogether.

Cuba was barred from the group in 1962 after seeking the support of the Soviet Union against U.S. embargoes on the country. The move represented a United States social, political, and economic blockade to the island. Cuban officials have since said that they're not interested in rejoining the group, an organization which they believe to be operated and manipulated by the United States. Per Al Jazeera's Latin American editor Lucia Newman, "the OAS has long been viewed as little more than a forum where the U.S. dictated its will to its southern neighbors."

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Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton lobbied for Cuba to make democratic reforms and to improve respect for human rights before being reconsidered for re-inclusion in the OAS. However, the decision was a consensus, signifying that the U.S. did reach a compromise to annul the resolution and an agreement to readmit Cuba. The United States represents the only country in the OAS that hasn't re-established relations with Cuba.

Membership in the OAS purports to give every country involved a voice in hemispheric agreements. In the past, the OAS has worked on mediating solutions to political conflicts and health policies. The group has also tried to protect human rights.

The Obama Administration has been working to mend U.S. relations with Cuba. U.S. officials have lifted restrictions on money transfers and travel to the island by Americans with family there. Cuba has agreed to resume immigration and postal service talks with the United States.

Argentine Foreign Minister Jorge Taiana commends the efforts of the Obama Administration and credits President Obama for making this decision possible. "This resolution should be understood as a renewed spirit of dialogue...We have finished with an injustice with discrimination and everything that came from the past, from the Cold War."