MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. — The Assembly of the Cuban Resistance, a coalition of pro-democracy groups, met on Thursday in Miami-Dade County’s Fontainebleau neighborhood to discuss efforts to kick communism out of power on the island.

Orlando Gutiérrez-Boronat, who was at the Freedom Tower on Wednesday for the announcement of Raúl Castro’s indictment, delivered a statement.

“We are the closest we have ever been to freedom,” Gutiérrez-Boronat said. “I think that after yesterday, we are even closer.”

For the fatal 1996 shootdown of two Brothers to the Rescue planes, the indictment charged Castro, 94, with conspiracy to kill U.S. nationals, two counts of destruction of aircraft, and four counts of murder.

“The Feb. 24, 1996, massacre of Brothers to the Rescue was not the only massacre Raúl Castro has ordered,” Gutiérrez-Boronat said. “He has ordered several more massacres in Cuba. They are fully documented, and it’s time for all these crimes to be presented before the world.”

Gutiérrez-Boronat said Chilean lawmakers are going to vote on a resolution that would implement an international tribunal against the Castro regime’s crimes against humanity.

René Bolio, an attorney in Mexico who serves as the president of the Cuba Justice Commission, a non-governmental organization, said The Rome Statute, the foundational international treaty that established the International Criminal Court, was key.

“Of the 11 crimes listed in the Rome Statute, the Cuban regime has committed since 1959 at least 10,” Bolio said in Spanish. “And the important thing about this is that they are alive, they remain in power, and they can be tried.”

Chile has been a participant ICC member since 2009.

Gutiérrez-Boronat also reported there was also progress with the European Union’s review of an agreement with Cuba, which could result in a loss of financing.

EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas “recognized that communism always fails on everything and always does harm,” Gutiérrez-Boronat said.

Gutiérrez-Boronat also said Honduran lawmakers voted on a resolution in support of democracy in Cuba, which indicated an international “consensus.” Luis Zúñiga, a former Cuban political prisoner, was hopeful.

“The dictatorship may already be in its final phase,” Zúñiga said in Spanish.

Gutiérrez-Boronat complete statement

Orlando Gutiérrez-Boronat delivers statement during Assembly of the Cuban Resistance meeting

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