Elian Gonzalez, once a young boy who was at the center of an immigration battle between the U.S. and Cuba in 2000, spoke out against the U.S. policy of his native Cuba, according to a report by The Wire.
Gonzalez spoke in Spanish and was shown on CNN en Espanol.
"Just like her [Gonzalez's mother], many others have died attempting to go to the United States. But it's the U.S. government's fault. Their unjust embargo provokes an internal and critical economic situation in Cuba," Gonzalez said on CNN. "But, despite that, Cuba, even with all its problems has progressed over the years. The progress we've made is all thanks to Cuba's courage, our dignity, our continued fight for a more just model."
Gonzalez' comments came the same day when U.S. President Barack Obama shook the hand of Cuban President Raul Castro when the two attended the memorial service dedicated to former South African President Nelson Mandela. It was an historic handshake considering the sour foreign relations between the two countries. The U.S. government imposed a strict economic embargo against Cuba, which goes back since the time of former U.S. President John F. Kennedy's administration.
Gonzalez, now 20, resurfaced 13 after years he was taken from relatives living in Miami, Florida and was returned to Cuba. Gonzales is attending the 23rd World Festival of Youth and Student. His participation in the youth conference in Ecuador was his first trip since the highly publicized and media-grabbing event that happened to him. He is now seen as a Cuban revolutionary after attending a military academy in Cuba and studying engineering, the report said.
When asked about his experience with the immigration battled that involved him and the two countries, he said he is happier in Cuba.
"I haven't had any long-lasting psychological trauma," Gonzalez said. "It hasn't affected me, but it has been hard on my family, because those were difficult moments."
In spite of what happened 13 years ago, he said that he's had 15 wonderful years in Cuba where he experience growth.
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