CUBA: Stiff New US Rules Make it Tougher to Visit the States

By Dalia Acosta Reprint | | Print |

Dalia Acosta

HAVANA, Sep 20 2002 (IPS) - New rules set in place by the United States government have made it an even more complex undertaking for Cubans to obtain a visa to visit family members or take part in cultural exchanges in that country.

The new security rules that went into effect on Aug 1 stipulate face-to-face interviews with all visa applicants, whose applications must now be sent to Washington to secure State Department approval.

As the 23 Cuban artists nominated for Latin Grammies, which were awarded this week in Los Angeles, found out, there are no exceptions to the rules in the case of Cuba, which is included on Washington’s list of countries that “sponsor terrorism,” along with Iran, Iraq, Libya, North Korea, Sudan and Syria.

The U.S. State Department released its latest version of the list in May – the first issued since the Sep 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on New York and Washington, which led to an overall tightening of security in that country.

Although there is no evidence that the number of visas granted to Cubans has declined, the fact that each application now takes at least eight weeks, and usually longer, to be approved has discouraged some Cubans from travelling, and has made it virtually impossible to schedule trips that revolve around a specific event or date.

“I have travelled to see my daughter in Miami three times. Now I came to apply for a visa, but I couldn’t even get in,” Minita Fundora, a 69-year-old pensioner who lives in a rural shantytown located 217 kms from Havana, told IPS.

“People say they are practically not issuing visas, and that if they do give you one it takes two months. Besides, it is nearly impossible to extend the stay for more than one month. Anyway, you have to stand in line all night, and I’m just too old for that,” she added.

Fundora explained that she had planned to travel in early November to help her daughter out during and after the birth of her first child. “But if I can’t stay for more than a month, why would I make her spend so much money on my trip?”

Visiting the United States from Cuba costs around 800 dollars, including the round-trip ticket and the expenses for the obligatory letter of invitation, permit to leave Cuba, interview at the U.S. Interests Section, and visa.

Given the time it now takes to obtain a visa, Cubans will have to begin planning their trips further ahead of time. “If I had known this before, I would have taken care of the arrangements earlier,” said Mercedes Pérez, an elderly woman who hopes to spend Christmas with her son in Miami.

To minimise the inconveniences, the Association of Latin American Studies, in the United States, already began this month to send the applications for Cuban academics who have been invited to take part in a conference there next year.

But sources close to the U.S. Interests Section in Havana said that since invitations to cultural or academic events are rarely sent out long beforehand, it will become very difficult for Cuban delegates to take part, which could reverse the trend of increasing participation by Cubans in cultural exchanges in the United States.

Not even being on the verge of winning a prestigious Latin Grammy award is enough to speed up the processing time.

Sources at the U.S. Interests Section said no one is exempt from the regulations. Proof of that was the absence of Cuban pianist Jesús “Chucho” Valdés at Wednesday’s Latin Grammy award ceremony.

Valdés was unable to pick up the prize he won in the category of best pop instrumental album for his long-play “Canciones inéditas”.

Nor were 22 other Cubans nominated for Latin Grammies, including folk singer Lázaro Ross, guitarist Rey Guerra, rapper X Alfonso, and the members of the rock band Síntesis, given visas to attend the big event in Los Angeles.

Latin Grammies have been awarded since 2000 by the Latin Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences in recognition of the broad variety of genres and styles in Hispanic music.

At the first edition of the Latin Grammies, held in Miami, the presence of Cuban artists triggered heated controversy. But this year was the first time that nominees from this socialist island nation were unable to secure visas to participate in the ceremony.

Cuban Culture Minister Abel Prieto blamed “a dim-witted and anti-cultural attitude on the part of some U.S. government officials.”

“None of our artists were going to place bombs,” said Deputy Minister of Culture Abel Acosta, who added that the Cuban artists were subjected to “humiliating” interviews as part of the process of applying for visas.

“The aim is to hinder the cultural exchange between Cubans and Americans,” said Acosta.

However, a U.S. official in Havana, who asked not to be identified, said the Cuban nominees had not actually been denied visas.

The problem, he said, was that their applications were still being processed by the time the award ceremony rolled around on Wednesday.