Letter: Why didn’t U.S. take a stand against Cuba?

Wednesday, May 28, 2003 | 8:55 a.m.

On April 29, shortly after unleashing a brutal wave of repression across Cuba, Fidel Castro's regime was re-elected without opposition to a seat on the United Nations Human Rights Commission. The move, according to Reuters, prompted "a fierce response by Washington."

Of what did this "fierce response" consist? The dispatch quoted White House spokesman Ari Fleischer as saying, "Having Cuba serve again on the Human Rights Commission is like putting Al Capone in charge of bank security."

"Cuba does not deserve a seat on the Human Rights Commission," Fleischer reportedly said. "Cuba deserves to be investigated by the Human Rights Commission." All of which is true, and all of which sounds very good. The question that naturally arises is this: Why didn't a single nation out of the 53 member nations sitting on the commission vote against allowing Cuba to have another term?

More specifically, why did the United States fail to vote against this incredible sham? Why couldn't the administration that mustered American troops and an international coalition to go half way around the world to Iraq even muster enough courage to vote against a two-bit thug 90 miles from our shore?

FRANK M. PELTESON