The chairwoman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee is continuing her push against a memorial to Che Guevara in Galway, Ireland.
Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-Fla.) wrote Irish Prime Minister Enda Kenny in March asking him to intervene to stop erection of the statue, intended to honor Guevara’s Irish roots.
Ros-Lehtinen, who was born in Havana, fired off another statement on the matter yesterday.
“I find it very troubling and hurtful that supporters of a proposed monument to Che Guevara are going out of their way to manipulate or ignore history in an attempt to find reasons to honor their wannabe icon, Che Guevara,” she said. “There is no sugarcoating what Che did, what he stood for, or what the brutal dictatorship he helped established has done for decades to the Cuban people. Che was bloodthirsty, power hungry, and a human rights violator who took pride in taking innocent life.”
“It is deeply disappointing that after so much suffering and sacrifice by former Cuban political prisoners at the hand of Che and other Castro thugs, some still refuse to admit that Che Guevara’s legacy is one of hate, murder, violence, bigotry, and totalitarianism,” Ros-Lehtinen added. “I urge all people to learn more about the many victims of Che, and to stand up for the rights, liberty, and basic dignity which Che took from them.”
Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart (R-Fla.) similarly blasted the project in March.
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