wfn.org | Ease restrictions on aid to Cuba, church leaders urge

["Barb Powell"<powellb@ucc.org>]

Sept. 11, 1998

Office of Communication
United Church of Christ
Laurie Bartels, (216) 736-2213
bartelsl@ucc.org

Office of Communication
Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)
Clifford L. Willis, (317) 635-3113, ext. 207
discnews@ecunet.org

On the World Wide Web:
<http://www.ucc.org>
<http://www.disciples.org>

Ease restrictions on aid to Cuba, church leaders urge

   CLEVELAND   With legislation due to arrive in the U.
S. Senate within the next few weeks, the leaders of the United
Church of Christ and the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) are
urging the Senate to ease restrictions on the sale of food and
medicine to Cuba.
   The Rev. Paul H. Sherry, United Church of Christ
president, and the Rev. Richard L. Hamm, general minister and
president of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), today
(Sept. 11) sent a letter to U.S. Senators asking their support of the
Dodd/Warner bill.  The bill (S 1391) would restore President
Clinton's authority to permit the sale of food and medicine to
Cuba, a step, the letter states, which should be taken "not only for
humanitarian reasons, but also as a step in the development of a
more constructive relationship with Cuba."
    Citing the witness of their partner churches in Cuba to
view, first-hand, the effects of the embargo, the letter further states
that "[o]ne need not be a supporter of the current Castro
government to believe that the embargo's devastating impact on
the Cuban population is wrong."
   "Studies indicate that the embargo has reduced the daily
food intake of Cuban people by as much as a third since 1989,"
the leaders continue, "which, along with the limited availability of
medicines, has caused severe health problems, especially among
pregnant women, children, and the elderly."
   The Council of Churches of Cuba, the Catholic Bishops of
Cuba and the Cuban Jewish community also support an end to the
embargo.
   With the letter, Sherry and Hamm are asking legislators to
"seize the legislative opportunity that may be available in this
session of Congress to begin a more humane and compassionate
relationship with the people of Cuba."
   The United Church of Christ, with national offices in
Cleveland, has more than 6,000 local churches in the United
States and Puerto Rico with a total membership of 1.4 million. 
The Indianapolis-based Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) has
some 3,900 congregations in the United States and Canada
representing a total membership of 900,000.
   The UCC's General Synod and the Disciples' General
Assembly have gone on record in opposition to the economic
embargo against Cuba.  In the UCC's and Disciples' systems, the
Synod and Assembly are churchwide decision-making bodies that
meet biennially.  Synod and Assembly resolutions are not binding
upon other settings of the church.  Members, congregations and
regional bodies are free to hold differing opinions.
                 #   #   #

[EDITORS: Here is the full text of the letter sent today (Sept. 11) by
the Rev. Paul H. Sherry, president of the United Church of Christ,
and the Rev. Richard L. Hamm, general minister and president of
the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ).]

"During the coming weeks the United States Senate will be
considering legislation to ease the embargo against Cuba.  The
General Assembly of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in
1973, 1993 and 1997, and the General Synod of the United Church
of Christ in 1993 have opposed the economic embargo against
Cuba.  On the basis of that policy, both churches strongly support
the easing of restrictions on the sale of food and medicine to Cuba,
not only for humanitarian reasons, but also as a step in the
development of a more constructive relationship with Cuba. 
Therefore, we hope you will support the Dodd/Warner legislation as
it comes to the Senate for consideration.

"Our concern stems from the witness of our partners in Cuba.  Our
churches relate closely to the Council of Churches in Cuba, an
ecumenical body composed of 19 Protestant denominations and 10
ecumenical movements, as well as to the Pentecostal Christian
Church of Cuba.  In the context of that relationship we have had
numerous opportunities to view first hand the effects of the
embargo.  Since 1994 the Council of Churches of Cuba has called
for an end to the United States blockade of Cuba, citing the
significant health impact the embargo has had on Cuban people. 
This call for an end to the blockade is shared by the Catholic
Bishops of Cuba and by the Cuban Jewish community.

"One need not be a supporter of the current Castro government to
believe that the embargo's devastating impact on the Cuban
population is wrong.  Studies indicate that the embargo has reduced
the daily food intake of Cuban people by as much as a third since
1989 which, along with the limited availability of medicines, has
caused severe health problems, especially among pregnant women,
children, and the elderly.  The impoverishment of Cuban citizens
resulting from the embargo must be ended.

"As leaders of two churches who related ecumenically to many
Christians in Cuba, and who for years have joined ecumenical
partners in the United States in calling for an end to this punishing
embargo, we urge you to seize the legislative opportunity that may
be available in this session of Congress to begin a more humane and
compassionate relationship with the people of Cuba."
                                          
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