Press Releases and Op-Eds

POR TEO A. BABUN Este artículo de opinión fue publicado inicialmente por El Nuevo Herald el 20 de diciembre de 2024. Puede ver la versión orgiginal aquí. Al entrar en un nuevo año, aquellos de nosotros que apreciamos el derecho fundamental a la libertad de religión o creencia no debemos cerrar los ojos ante el [...]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE December 28, 2023   OAA Urges World Council of Churches Secretary General Pillay to Speak Up for Religious Freedom in Cuba   Miami, FL – Outreach Aid to the Americas (OAA) President and CEO Dr. Teo Babun today released an open letter to Reverend Jerry Pillay, Secretary General of the World Council [...]

Opinion by Dr. Teo A. Babun This Op-Ed was published originally in the print and online versions of The Miami Herald on December 23, 2023. On Dec. 10, Cuba’s Catholic bishops published their traditional Christmas message, one that invariably acknowledges the many difficulties experienced by ordinary Cubans while imparting a message of hope and encouragement. [...]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE December 7, 2023   OAA Observes 75th Anniversary of Adoption of Universal Declaration of Human Rights   Miami, FL – Outreach Aid to the Americas (OAA) today released the following statement ahead of Human Rights Day on December 10, when the international community commemorates the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human [...]

COMUNICADO DE PRENSA 14 de Noviembre de 2023 OAA Expresa Apoyo a Alianzas Religiosas de Cuba Miami, FL – Outreach Aid to the Americas (OAA, o Alcance de Ayuda a las Américas) hoy expresó su solidaridad y apoyo a las asociaciones religiosas de Cuba que trabajan por el respeto a los derechos humanos, entre ellos [...]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE November 8, 2023   OAA Applauds UN Human Rights Experts Calling Out Daniel Ortega’s Persecution of the Nicaraguan Catholic Church   Miami, FL – Outreach Aid to the Americas (OAA) today applauded United Nations independent human rights experts for calling on the government of Daniel Ortega to immediately release Bishop Rolando Alvarez [...]

COMUNICADO DE PRENSA 13 de Noviembre de 2023   OAA Expresa Apoyo a Nueva Asociación Independiente, la Alianza de Cristianos de Cuba   Miami, FL – Outreach Aid to the Americas (OAA, o Alcance de Ayuda a las Américas) hoy declaró su apoyo a una asociación independiente religiosa en Cuba formada en 2022, la Alianza [...]

This Op-Ed was originally published in The Hill on September 27, 2023. You can read the original version here.   For authoritarian states around the globe, the United Nations has sadly long served as a place where they can whitewash or deflect the world’s attention from their human rights abuses. We see this in the cases […]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE August 21, 2023 Denounces continued attacks on religious communities in Cuba and Nicaragua Miami, FL – Outreach Aid to the Americas (OAA) today released the following statement ahead of the fourth International Day Commemorating the Victims of Acts of Violence Based on Religion Belief tomorrow. This day was designated for August 22 by the United Nations […]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE June 20, 2023 OAA Welcomes OAS Conclusion that Cuban Dictatorship Murdered Oswaldo Payá and Harold Cepero Miami, FL – Outreach Aid to the Americas (OAA) today welcomed the report issued this week by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) finding the Cuban dictatorship directly responsible for the deaths of human rights […]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE June 8, 2023 Religious Cubans Denounce Persecution of Muslims, Jews and Yorubas by Dictatorship   MIAMI, FL – Outreach Aid to the Americas (OAA) yesterday held a webinar where Cuban religious leaders representing the Muslim, Jewish and Yoruba communities denounced the repression they and their families and communities have suffered under the [...]

This Op-Ed was originally published by the Miami Herald on May 4, 2023. You can read that version here. By Dr. Teo Babun On April 27, the Conference of Catholic Bishops of Cuba held a meeting with senior officials of the Cuban communist regime, including President Miguel Díaz-Canel. Bishops had requested this meeting for more […]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE April 13, 2023   MIAMI, FL – Outreach Aid to the Americas (OAA) and Patmos Institute have made a submission to the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) of Cuba ahead of the country’s fourth review in November 2023. The UPR is a mechanism of the UN Human Rights Council in which all member states have […]

This Op-Ed was originally published by the Miami Herald on March 2, 2023. You can read the original version here. By Dr. Teo A. Babun, Jr. While her husband, President Daniel Ortega, was out of the country in April 2018, Nicaragua’s Vice President Rosario Murillo announced a set of punitive social reforms that provoked a [...]

  FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE February 9, 2023 OAA Welcomes Release of Nicaraguan Political Prisoners MIAMI, FL – Outreach Aid to the Americas (OAA) today welcomed the reported release of more than 200 political prisoners who were unjustly jailed by the regime of Daniel Ortega in Nicaragua. OAA is pleased that the prisoners have been freed and are able [...]

This Op-Ed was originally published in the Miami Herald on January 25, 2022. You can read the online version here.   In its repression of religious freedom, Cuba targets Muslims, too By Teo A. Babun January 25, 2023 The world is increasingly aware of the human-rights abuses suffered by religious Cubans, most of whom are […]

This Op-Ed by Dr. Teo Babun was originally published in the Miami Herald on December 7, 2022. You can read the original piece here.   On Dec. 2, the U.S. Department of State designated Cuba and Nicaragua “Countries of Particular Concern (CPC),” a list of the worst violators of religious freedom. CPC countries are those […]

MIAMI, FL – Outreach Aid to the Americas (OAA), o Alcance de Ayuda a las Américas en español, junto con el Panel Internacional de Parlamentarios por la Libertad de Religión o Creencias (IPPFoRB), han publicado hoy una carta abierta al gobierno cubano en la que le instan a invitar a la Relatora Especial de las […]

More Than Two Dozen Civil Society Organizations, Parliamentarians Urge Cuba To Invite UN Religious Freedom Expert To Visit Country   MIAMI, FL – Outreach Aid to the Americas (OAA), together with the International Panel of Parliamentarians for Freedom of Religion or Belief (IPPFoRB), today released an open letter to the Cuban government urging it to [...]

This Op-Ed by Dr. Teo Babun was originally published in the Washington Examiner on September 1, 2022. You can read the original piece here. More than two dozen member states of the Organization of American States last month approved a resolution condemning the authoritarian government of Daniel Ortega in Nicaragua for its crackdown on civil society, [...]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE July 11, 2022 OAA Marks First Anniversary of July 11 Protests in Cuba Calls for Immediate Release of Pastor Lorenzo Rosales Fajardo MIAMI, FL – Outreach Aid to the Americas (OAA) today marked the first anniversary of the historic protests that took place throughout Cuba on July 11, 2021. On this date, […]

This Op-Ed by Dr. Teo Babun was originally published in the Washington Examiner on March 29, 2022. You can read the original piece by clicking here. While the world’s eyes are fixed on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, repressive regimes closer to the United States, including those of Nicaragua and Venezuela, are using the authoritarian playbook to undermine democracy by silencing […]

BY TEO BABUN JANUARY 22, 2020 07:16 PM Evangelicals pray during a church service in Havana, Cuba, in February 2019. RAMON ESPINOSA AP In Cuba last month, a gang of students severely beat a 12-year-old Jewish schoolboy. The school guard had prohibited the boy and his younger brother from entering the building. The two boys […]

BY TEO BABUN NOVEMBER 14, 2019 06:18 PM Ahmed Shaheed, the United Nations Special Rapporteur (UNSR) for Cuba, reports that current laws in Cuba allow the government to prohibit and penalize a broad range of protected religious activities. Large-scale detentions increased in 2016 and 2017, and the government even detained the entire congregation of the […]

POR TEO BABUN. 14 DE NOVIEMBRE DE 2019 JONATHAN BUTTLE-SMITH UNSPLASH El gobierno de Cuba viola la libertad de religión y circulación ante los ojos del mundo. Una prueba más está en la prohibición de salida del país a una veintena de líderes y/o activistas religiosos sin una causa explícita. La más reciente violación fue […]

by Teo Babun MAY 27, 2020 06:30 PM     In early March, responsible governments around the world closed borders to protect public health. But not Cuba. Instead, the cash-strapped government proclaimed: Visit Cuba for a safe vacation! By late March, officials reported a rise in COVID-19 infections, predominantly among Italian and Spanish tourists. The […]

by Teo Babún This Op-Ed was originally published in the Washington Examiner on November 5, 2020. For too long, Cuba’s authoritarian leaders have largely been able to avoid being held accountable for their numerous human rights abuses. For a recent example, look no further than Cuba’selection on Oct. 13 to the UN Human Rights Council, […]

This opinion piece by OAA CEO and President Dr. Teo Babun was originally published by the South Florida Sun Sentinel on July 27, 2021. Click here to read the original piece. On July 11, thousands of people from all over Cuba took to the streets to protest the communist leaders’ failure to address economic, social […]

Este articulo de opinión, escrito por Teo Babun, CEO y Presidente de OAA, fue publicado originalmente en inglés en el periódico Miami Herald el 26 de mayo de 2021. Como en la mayoría de los otros lugares del mundo, el clero católico en Cuba suele estar ocupado presidiendo rituales y prácticas e instruyendo a los […]

This opinion piece by OAA President and CEO Teo Babun was first published in the Miami Herald on May 26, 2021. As in most other places around the world, the Catholic clergy in Cuba are usually busy presiding over rituals and practices that instruct followers in the faith. Parish priests celebrate daily Mass, hear confessions every week, […]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEMarch 26, 2021 OAA Applauds UN Human Rights Experts Raising Issue of Gross Rights Violations by Government of Cuba (Miami, FL) – OAA applauds the strong expression of concern by numerous United Nations human rights experts about the serious and ongoing campaign of intimidation, harassment, and repression of members of Cuban civil society […]

Choose Language: English | Spanish Authorities Demolish Evangelical Church in Santiago de Cuba Published October 31, 2020 (Miami, FL) – Outreach Aid to the Americas (OAA) expresses its concern about the demolition on Friday of an Assemblies of God church, carried out by authorities in the province of Santiago de Cuba. Our organization received a [...]

Choose Language: English | Spanish OAA Rejects Defamatory Accusations of Cubadebate Article Published October 27, 2020 (Miami, FL) – Outreach Aid to the Americas (OAA) today rejected the defamatory claims in the article, “The multimillion financing of the anti-Cuban industry in the time of Trump,” published on the website Cubadebate on October 21, 2020, by [...]

Choose Language: English | Spanish OAA Response to Recent Cubadebate Article Published October 26, 2020 A recent article on the state-sponsored website Cubadebate, which represents the dictatorial regime in Havana, has attacked U.S. federal agencies, NGOs, independent news media and cultural projects that transparently access legally authorized funds to promote freedom, democracy and the defense [...]