Yahoo! News
September 10, 2001.
HAVANA, 9 (AP) - An American congressman visiting Havana as part of his
campaign to end the U.S. ban on most travel to Cuba met Sunday with dissidents,
his spokesman said.
Rep. Jeff Flake, a Republican from Arizona, has sponsored an amendment to a
Treasury Department spending bill that would bar the department from using funds
to enforce the travel ban.
The amendment has passed the House of Representatives, and a similar measure
is planned in the Senate. However, it is unclear whether President Bush - who
has said he supports existing U.S. policy toward Cuba - would sign it.
A spokesman for Flake said the lawmaker met several dissidents on Sunday,
but he declined to give details.
Flake's trip was sponsored by the Washington-based nonprofit, nonpartisan
group Alliance for Responsible Cuban Policy, which advocates ending the
four-decade U.S. embargo against the island.
After his arrival Friday, Flake said he believed Americans will be able to
travel to Cuba freely by the end of the year. Currently, they risk fines of up
to $55,000.
Most U.S. citizens are prohibited from traveling to Cuba under laws that bar
them from spending money on the communist island. Journalists, humanitarian
workers and academic researchers can receive special licenses, however.
The Cuban government has long criticized the embargo and generally doesn't
oppose American who secretly travel here. Customs officials often don't stamp
passports. | 
