WHEREAS, The US - Cuba Sister City Association has already been established as a result AL - Havana; Madison, WIS - Camagüey; Pittsburgh, PA - Matanzas; Richmond, CA - Regla; Oakland, CA - Santiago de Cuba, among others; and
WHEREAS, The US embargo against Cuba, a relic of the Cold War, is the longest, harshest embargo ever placed against any nation, as documented by the American Association for World Health; and
WHEREAS, More than 70% of American citizens, according to a May 2000 Gallup poll, are in favor of normalizing relations with Cuba; and
WHEREAS, The City of Cárdenas has made an unprecedented invitation to the City of Philadelphia to establish a Sister City relationship; and
WHEREAS, The United Nations General Assembly and every major religious denomination have passed resolutions condemning the US embargo against Cuba, and his Holy Father John Paul II has called for ending the embargo calling it a "crime against humanity"; and
WHEREAS, Many organizations support the normalization of relations with Cuba, including distinguished institutions such as the American Friends Service Committee, the NAACP, Citizen Diplomats, the Philadelphia Boys Choir, the Women International League for Peace and Freedom, and the Foreign Affairs Council, which has sponsored educational tours to Cuba; and
WHEREAS, Businesses such as Smith Kline Beecham have began testing a Cuban vaccine for meningitis B, and the White Dog Café has established a sister restaurant in Cuba; and
WHEREAS, US policy states that it supports the restoration of people-to-people relationships; and
WHEREAS, Thousands of international visitors, including many from the United States and Philadelphia in particular, have visited Cuba, among them the musically distinguished Philadelphia Boys Choir who performed in Cuba in May and December of 1999; now therefore
RESOLVED, THAT THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA Urges the President of the United States and Congress to move toward normalization of relations with the people of Cuba based on principles of peace, respect for international law, friendship, sovereignty, and goodwill; and
FURTHER RESOLVED, THAT THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA, As an expression of its goodwill, urges the Mayor and the City of Philadelphia to support the formation of a Philadelphia - Cárdenas Sister City relationship, and that an Engrossed copy of this resolution be presented to Oscar Redondo, First Secretary of the Cuban Interest Section, as a sincere representation of the sentiments of this legislative body.
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