Published Tuesday, August 29, 2000, in the Miami Herald
U.S. rebukes Cuba on denial of exit permits / Miami Herald
Defectors' families punished, diplomats say
Don Bohning. dbohning@herald.com .
Responding to an intense Cuban campaign against the law that bestows special U.S. immigration status on refugees from that country, the Clinton administration Monday accused Havana of "separating families and the deaths of hundreds of Cuban citizens'' by forcing them to flee in secret even
though they hold U.S. visas.
In a notably tough diplomatic note delivered to Fernando Remírez, chief of the Cuban diplomatic mission in Washington and to the Cuban Foreign Ministry in Havana, the State Department charged that "a large and growing number of Cuban citizens have not been able to leave Cuba legally
because they have been denied permission . . . by Cuban authorities.''
Cuba "routinely denies exit permits to family members of persons it deems defectors . . . punishing entire families, including small children, for the actions of one family member,'' according to the note, contents of which were made available to The Herald.
Peter Romero, assistant secretary of state for Western Hemisphere affairs, said the note was sent out of frustration with Cuba's failure to schedule regular bilateral immigration talks to deal with issues under 1994 and 1995 migration accords.
There have been no talks for more than a year, said Romero, with the Cuban side canceling indefinitely and without explantion the meeting scheduled for last June.
Cuban President Fidel Castro, said Romero, appears to be "desperately searching for something to whip up domestic sentiment after the Elián [González] affair begins to wane.'' Although the State Department denied that the timing of the rebuke was connected to motives other
than diplomacy, it followed campaign visits to South Florida by presidential candidates from both major parties.
EMBARGO SUPPORTERS
Both Vice President Al Gore and Texas Gov. George W. Bush support the trade embargo against Cuba, but Bush commands a lead in the Cuban-American community.
Although Gore differed with the administration decision to return 6-year-old Elián González to his family, anger at President Clinton was widely believed to have hurt the Democratic nominee's chances to win Cuban-American votes.
For months now, Cuba has waged an incessant campaign against the so-called Cuba Adjustment Act of 1966 which allows illegal Cuban immigrants who reach U.S. soil to remain and apply for legal residency after one year.
Cuba blames the law for fueling the risky exodus across the Florida Straits, contending that if illegal immigrants were returned to their homeland -- as are other illegal aliens -- such traffic would end.
"The Cuban government, and particularly Fidel Castro, has been on a tear to criticize the Cuban Adjustment Act as genocidal when in fact it is his repression and obstacles thrown in way of would-be migrants that is causing a greater desperation,'' said Romero.
"For growing number of Cuban citizens with full [U.S] documentation, we are seeing more obstacles thrown in their path . . . essentially the Cuban government has instituted a policy whereby it refuses to give exit permission to those who are family members of people who have defected in
other countries,'' Romero said.
COMPLAINTS
In its note, the State Department accused the Cuban government of "failing to live up to its obligations'' under the 1994 and 1995 immigration accords which call for the U.S. to grant up to 20,000 immigrant visas a year to Cubans, plus family members. The note said 117 Cubans -- from 56
families -- all of whom held U.S. visas -- had been denied exit permits since May. Romero said the figures came from the U.S. diplomatic mission in Cuba.
Philip Reeker, a State Department spokesman, said that of those cases "at least 16 are cases of separated immediate family members. There are 17 cases that denied exit to medical professionals who had appropriate U.S. documents. And in one, the applicant has insufficient funds to complete
the exit application process.''
CITES DEATHS
Romero cited Coast Guard reports of increased interceptions of Cubans with U.S. travel documents and reports from the U.S. diplomatic mission of an increasing number of Cubans seeking to renew their documents because they had not been able to get exit visas within the six-month time frame.
The diplomatic note cites the deaths earlier this month of the Juan Carlos and Alexei Rodríguez as dramatizing "the growing propensity of Cubans denied the means to migrate in safe, orderly and legal fashion to risk their lives.'' The brothers were killed by sharks in the Florida
Straits in their effort to flee Cuba. The diplomatic note also charged that even if the exit permit is granted, the exorbitant fees charged are virtually impossible for the average Cuban family to pay.
HIGH FEES
For a person earning an average of $144 annually, says the State Department, the fee for the exit permit is $550, or the equivalent of almost four years' wages.
"For an average family of four with one wage-earner, exit fees amount to over 12 years of wages,'' contends the note. "Cuba's failure to permit free legal travel not only impedes its compliance with migration accords but it is also contradictory to the Universal Declaration of Human
Rights.''
The note also complains that Cuban government regulations make it virtually impossible for medical personnel to emigrate, "forcing these individuals to choose between migrating illegally and separating their families.''
Roberto García, second secretary at the Cuban mission in Washington, confirmed receipt of the U.S. note. Although he refused to discuss its contents, García again blasted the Cuban Adjustment Act: "In general, we think that only the criminal, immoral and discriminatory policy
of the U.S., manifested specifically in the Cuban Adjustment Act of 1966, is responsible for the continuing death of Cubans who reach American soil to get privileges that no other immigrants are granted.''
The State Department's Reeker dismissed Cuban complaints about the Cuban Adjustment Act, noting that it is a 35-year-old law, "so it's somewhat unacceptable that the Cuban government has just recently decided to use the Cuban Adjustment Act as a scapegoat for their own internal problems.''
Special Correspondent Ana Radelat contributed to this report
Tough U.S. talk: Helpful to Gore?
BY RON HUTCHESON. Herald Washington Bureau
WASHINGTON -- The State Department's tough talk Monday against Cuba -- publicly accusing the communist regime of denying exit permits to Cubans holding U.S. visas -- came as Vice President Al Gore stepped up his efforts to win Florida, an electoral powerhouse that is home to thousands of Cuban
Americans.
Experts on Florida politics said Gore is running a surprisingly strong campaign against George W. Bush in a state considered crucial to Bush's hopes of winning the White House.
With Bush's brother Jeb as governor, Florida was supposed to be an easy win for the GOP. In 1996, President Clinton was the first Democrat to carry the state since Jimmy Carter 20 years before.
"Florida is in play. We're all surprised,'' said Jim Kane of Florida Voter, a nonpartisan polling organization. "It's still George W. Bush's race to lose, but it's so close that it's got to be making the Bush campaign say, 'What's going on here?' ''
The State Department's public rebuke of Cuba is sure to be welcome news to Cuban Americans. They cast about 7 percent of the Sunshine State's votes, typically as a GOP bloc. Even so, it is not likely to overcome their resentment of Washington's handling of the Elián González case.
The 6-year-old Cuban boy was returned to his homeland in June with his father after a seven-month legal battle. Elián had escaped from Cuba last November with his mother, but she and nine other refugees died when their boat capsized.
The ensuing controversy over whether to send Elián back to Cuba with his father or to let him stay in Miami with relatives -- highlighted politically by Gore's waffling over what to do -- probably ended any chance the vice president had to pull votes from the heavily Republican Cuban
American community.
"Any possibility of picking up a few percentage points in the Cuban American vote just went out the window with Elián González,'' Kane said. "The Cuban-American vote in this state is so anti-Democratic right now, I don't think there's anything the State Department could
do, short of raiding Elián's new home in Cuba, that would have any impact.''
The State Department denied Monday that the timing of its denunciation of Cuba stemmed from anything other than diplomatic motives. U.S. officials have discussed visa issues with Cuba for five years, but in June Cuban officials postponed meetings to discuss them further, so Washington decided to
protest "strenuously,'' said Phil Reeker, a department spokesman.
Bush seems to be having a tougher time winning over a more important voter group, the elderly.
More than 18 percent of Florida's residents are over 65, and elderly voters typically cast about one-third of all votes in the state.
Senate candidate Nelson talks Cuban policy with foundation
By Elena Cabral And Daniel A. Grech. dgrech@herald.com
Bill Nelson, the Democratic candidate for the U.S. Senate, made a campaign swing through South Florida on Monday, made an appearance with a key congressional candidate in Hallandale Beach and appealed for Cuban Americans' votes in Coral Gables.
He earned at least one person's vote: A board member of the Cuban American National Foundation said he prefers Nelson over Republican Bill McCollum in the race.
"I believe he will represent well the Cuba issue,'' said Carlos P. Quintela, president of Trust Finance, after a reception at the Biltmore Hotel.
The foundation doesn't traditionally endorse candidates, though individual board members are free to do so. The purpose of the meeting was to "exchange ideas'' on American policy on Cuba, CANF board member Domingo Moreira said.
The foundation will meet next month with McCollum, a congressman from Altamonte Springs.
The meeting signaled the candidates' competition for a vital political constituency -- Cuban Americans in South Florida, who generally lean Republican.
Nelson and McCollum are battling for the seat held by Republican Connie Mack, who is retiring after two terms.
Nelson has been ahead in polls. The insurance commissioner, who has run three statewide campaigns to McCollum's none, has benefited from higher name recognition.
Nelson and his wife, Grace, mingled with at least four foundation members, including board Chairman Jorge Mas Santos and President Francisco "Pepe'' Hernandez, over drinks and hors d'oeuvres..
During a brief speech, Nelson said he will follow Florida Sen. Bob Graham and vice presidential candidate Joseph Lieberman's positions on "freedom and democracy in Cuba.''
"My record has a message, despite the fact I have a `D' after my name instead of an `R,' '' he said.
Afterward, Nelson said he supports economic sanctions and the embargo against Cuba and has a track record on immigration in line with Cuban Americans. "On matters involving Cuba, the foundation and I see eye to eye.''
After the reception, Graham and Nelson headed to the Coconut Grove home of Larry and Boni Perl for a fundraiser, co-hosted by attorney Manny Diaz, a partner at Coffey, Diaz & O'Naghten.
Earlier in the day, Nelson sought to set himself apart from McCollum on issues such as education, abortion rights and gun control at an event for Nelson and Democratic congressional candidate Elaine Bloom hosted by Hallandale Beach Vice Mayor Joy Cooper.
McCollum will campaign today in Miami and plans to meet with the Log Cabin Republicans, a gay political organization.
Herald staff writer Steve Bousquet contributed to this report.
Copyright 2000 Miami Herald | 