Cuba Pays Homage to US diplomat Wayne Smith

HAVANA, Cuba, Dec 17 (acn) Diplomats, poets, biologists and people in general honored in this capital Wayne Smith, who was the first chief of the US Interests Section in Cuba and has fulfilled one of his dreams: the restoration of diplomatic relations between the two countries.

In a ceremony that took place in the Cuban Institute of Friendship with the Peoples, professionals from both countries paid tribute to Smith, who served in that position from 1977, during the presidency of James Carter.

Four decades ago Wayne said that the blockade was a senseless measure and that the US had to close the Guantanamo Naval Base, intellectual Ricardo Alarcón recalled; it brought blackmail, threats and even a fine of thousands of dollars he had to pay for defamation.

Now we are here to congratulate a winner, he stated, because what he envisioned today is the preaching of the White House, when the need for change is newsflash, our friend already knew.

Phillip Brenner, a professor at American University, recalled the stage when Ronald Reagan took office, which brought with it a US far-right position to Cuba that led Smith to resign in 1982.

That was for Wayne a year of losses: lost colleagues, because the State Department feared that speaking to him would harm them, lost its upward diplomatic career because after that he was not offered a job; he is one of the few officials in US history who gave up a senior position on principle, said Brenner.

Although for a long time he has had no official ties with Cuba, the creator of the American diplomatic corps in this Caribbean country has given himself to the defense of a number of causes, such as the return of the antiterrorism fighters to their families, another aspiration that today becomes reality.

Removing Cuba from the list of countries sponsoring terrorism, close the Guantanamo Naval Base, are things that can be achieved with just a signature of the President, said Smith in his acceptance speech, and even in the long-term Congress can take measures to eradicate the blockade.