Gift of fish is a gift of hope

A few days before the 50th anniversary of its victorious revolution, Cuba made a significant gesture of international solidarity to its nearest neighbor, Haiti.

It delivered three million fish and 500 breeding adult fish to Haiti’s Toussaint Louverture International Airport, according to Haïti-Liberté (Dec. 31) The Haitian government is going to use these fish to restock Haiti’s lakes and develop fish farming (pisciculture) to relieve the country’s chronic lack of protein.

Ever since U.S. imperialism forced Haiti to eradicate its Creole pigs in the 1980s by whipping up false fears of swine flu, Haiti’s production of protein has been on a downward spiral.

Cuba’s gift, made despite 46 years of a criminal blockade imposed by the United States, gives Haiti the hope of improving the lives of its people.