MIAMI. – Recognized among ten personalities who received the title of Hero in the 2024 report on human trafficking, awarded by the Department of State, is the name of researcher María C. Werlau, executive director of the non-profit organization Archivo Cuba.
The award, presented by Secretary of State Antony Blinken, was given to Werlau during a ceremony in Washington for her outstanding individual work in the fight against human trafficking.
For the academic and researcher, personally and for the organization she directs, “the recognition is a great honor, a boost to 15 years of work investigating and denouncing forced labor,” to which those groups of professionals who Cuba are subjected. send abroad.
The regime presents these professionals from various disciplines to the world as internationalist aid; However, the Cuban state receives sums in payment for these services, of which it dedicates a minimum percentage to pay salaries to the professionals who perform them.
“This recognition not only has an important value in alerting the Cuban regime, but also demonstrates that the United States will not stop denouncing an essentially Human Rights issue, such as human trafficking, labor exploitation of Cuban workers. abroad, which has been going on for more than 6 decades and today is the main official source of resources and income for the Cuban state,” said the specialist.
Werlau also considers that this is a way to raise awareness about the reality of the doctors and workers that the Cuban regime sends abroad as modern slaves and the main source of income for the dictatorship. He highlighted that many are unaware of this situation and that the recognition received is important support to continue forward in this fight.
The Cuba Archive project, directed by Werlau, is a non-profit organization established in 2001 in Washington, DC, whose mission is to promote human rights through research and information.
Cuba, Venezuela and Nicaragua at level 3
In the State Department Report, Cuba has been placed at level 3 (the lowest rating) due to its lack of compliance with minimum standards to combat human trafficking. This report highlights the importance of engagement in this cause to expose unjust practices and move towards a more just and equitable world.
It is relevant to mention that this June 24, the US State Department identified Cuba, Nicaragua and Venezuela among the countries with the most severe forms of human trafficking.
These governments were singled out in the report for “failing to meet minimum standards and not making sufficient efforts” to protect trafficking victims. The three Latin American countries are at level 3 of the Report on Trafficking in Persons presented by the US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, at the headquarters of the State Department in Washington.
The report highlights the urgency of addressing the problem of human trafficking in the region and the need to take effective measures to protect victims and prevent future situations of exploitation.
Blinken explained that the report is a “comprehensive evaluation” with the objective of identifying the state of “anti-trafficking” efforts carried out in 188 countries around the world, including the United States.
This year, three Spanish-speaking women were included in this list of heroines. In addition to the Cuban-American María C. Werlau, the work of Marcela Martínez, from Bolivia, was also recognized for her leadership in the movement for legal protections against trafficking, and Rosa Cendón, from Spain, for her fundamental role in the design of national policies for the protection of victims in Catalonia.
In its weekly printed edition, Diario Las Américas will offer an exclusive interview given by María Werlau, regarding the recognition received.
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Source: Interview with the Researcher, María Werlau, Voice of America, Martí Noticias,
