MIAMI (WSVN) - As Cuba faces yet another blackout in recent weeks, many members of the Cuban exile community came together to discuss their vision of a free nation.
At the American Museum of the Cuban Diaspora in Miami, several infrastructure experts held a forum to share their visions of a plan to rebuild the island nation.
“What you witnessed today was a panel of technical experts on what Cuba will need to become a modern nation,” said Florida International University Cuban Research Institute Interim Director Sebastian Arcos.
In 1959, Cuba was considered one of the most prosperous countries in Latin America before Fidel Castro came to power.
The island nation has descended into dire straits after decades of being controlled by the dictatorship, with rolling blackouts happening more frequently and many of the island’s impoverished residents lacking basic commodities like food and medicine.
On Tuesday, the United States sent a cargo plane loaded with food and hygiene kits intended for residents on the island.
Experts at Wednesday’s forum said any rebuilding plan for the island would be a massive undertaking.
“The basic infrastructure is water, energy, transportation and telecommunications, so we’re wanting to get a sense of what does it take to really put that into practice,” said Ideas for Cuba Project Chairman Marcell Felipe.
They estimate the envisioned plan could take as long as 15 years and cost several hundreds of billions of dollars.
The first priority for any plan would be to restore and establish a reliable power grid for the country, as well as ensuring access to clean water, officials said.
“There is not a wastewater system to speak of in most places,” said Jose Enrique Cueto, a former director for Miami-Dade Water and Sewer.
As for the forum, attendees also discussed concepts for modern highway systems, new rail lines, an expanded port in Havana and 5G networks to connect the island.
“The only problem is [that the port of Havana is] only 135 acres. That’s not even half of the size of the Port of Miami,” said ports expert Luis Ajamil.
“5G network, very high capacity, handles many, many users. That is why we need to transition now,” said Jesus Lebeña
Elsewhere in Miami, Rosa María Payá, a longtime Cuban opposition figure, attended a mass to honor her father, Oswaldo Payá.
Wednesday marked 14 years her father and fellow pro-democracy leader Harold Cepero died in a car crash. According to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, Cuban state agents were involved in the incident.
“He was seen as the hope for Cuba,” said Payá.
The Christian Liberation Movement honored both men with a memorial mass at the Church of Saint Raymond on Wednesday.
Payá said her father never lost faith that the Cuban regime would one day fall.
“They used to tell my father that he was not going to see the change. But they’re wrong. We’re going to see the change,” she said.
That faith is shared by many members of the exile community, who also see Payá as a critical leader in helping see through their dream of a better future for their homeland.
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