Thousands attend Havana concert for peace

HAVANA - Hundreds of thousands of Cubans gathered at the Revolution Plaza in Havana Sunday for a “Peace Without Borders” concert headlined by popular Colombian singer Juanes.

An estimated 650,000 people attended the concert making this the biggest event in Havana since Pope John Paul II’s visit in 1998, CNN reported.

Most people wore white to symbolize peace and many held up signs that said “Peace on Earth” and “We Love You Juanes”.

Juanes, who has won 17 Latin Grammy awards, is also a social activist. His first “Peace Without Borders” concert last year drew thousands to the Venezuela-Colombia border. At Sunday’s concert, he performed with 15 other international artists, including Puerto Rican Olga Tanon and Cuban Silvio Rodriguez.

The concert was criticized by Cubans in exile in Miami, Florida - where Juanes lives - for being an endorsement of the Communist regime. The singer claimed that he received death threats over Twitter and that his Miami home was under police protection.

In a statement on his website, he said the adverse reaction did not surprise him.

“We knew that this was going to happen. I have been living in Miami for seven years, and the first time I visited Miami was 10 or more years ago, so I know what happened in Miami with the Cuba issue and with all these things before (we decided) to go to Cuba to do this event,” he was quoted as saying by CNN.

In an interview to the Spanish Univision network, broadcast Sunday, US President Barack Obama said: “My understanding is that he’s (Juanes) a terrific musician. He puts on a very good concert. I certainly don’t think it hurts US-Cuban relations … I wouldn’t overstate the degree that it helps.”