CUBA-UNITED STATES: Guantanamo to Give Up Emigrant Interception

By Dalia Acosta Reprint | | Print |

Dalia Acosta

HAVANA, Dec 3 1997 (IPS) - Illegal entry to the US Guantanamo Naval Base on the south eastern coast of Cuba, will no longer serve as a reason, advantage or benefit in obtaining a US entry visa.

Assistant Secretary of State for Latin American and Caribbean affairs, John Hamilton, said this announcement is “a clear signal to the Cuban people,” at the closing of the eighth round of talks on migratory issues between Havana and Washington this week.

The negotiations closed Tuesday in the Conventions Palace in Havana, and, according to the head of the US delegation, these talks were of a purely technical nature, concentrated exclusively on migration issues and the outcome was productive.

“We haven’t covered any new ground,” said Hamilton, explaining they had reviewed the fulfilment of all the migratory agreements signed between the two countries since 1980.

He said the use of the Guantanamo Naval Base as a processing centre for illegal emigrants trying to sail their way into the United States provided cause for concern for both Cuba and the United States.

People might flock to the base, hoping that reaching Guantanamo by sea or across densely mined areas would gain them the protection of the US authorities.

Hamiliton warned these attempts were “exceedingly dangerous” stressing those entering the enclave would not be allowed into US territory, even if they can prove they should be given protection by Washington.

“These individuals could go to our Interests Section and if they can prove their concerns are real, they will be admitted into the United States through the refugees programme in Cuba,” he added.

The US Interest Section in Havana has granted 3,629 refugee visas to islanders so far this year.

Cuba, Russia and Vietnam are the only three countries which benefit from refugee programmes in the United States.

As part of the fulfilment of the September 9, 1994 migration agreements, which put an end to the “raft people crisis,” the United States issued 15,048 emigrant visas.

The agreements state at least 20,000 visas must be granted each year, but until this number was cut back by 5,000 for several years following the assimilation of all the Cuban refugees held in Guantanamo Naval Base following the 1994 exodus.

Hamilton recognised that the 100 attempts to enter the base in recent years did not signify a large threat, but repeated the government decision to “do everything possible” to dissuade Cubans from taking this course of action.

“Both governments are doing everthing possible to discourage the disorganised traffic” of emigrants, said Hamilton, who added he was satisfied with the fulfilment of the agreements by the Cuban government.

The 1995 agreement established the minimum quota of 20,000 visas per year for those wishing to emigrate to the United States while Cuba, meanwhile, offered to do everything possible to prevent illegal departures.

The joint declaration issued on May 1995 established the return to the island of anyone intercepted attempting to enter the United States illegally, including a Cuban undertaking not to take punitive action for the crime of “illegally leaving the island.”

Hamilton did however say the United States had presented complaints not yet answered that some Cubans had lost their jobs or suffered other labour related problems on their return to the island.

Concern was also stressed over the tariffs applied by Cuba to potential emigrees, who are made to pay some 500 dollars for the necessary documents and transactions.

The official exchange rate in Cuba establishes parity between the Cuban peso and the dollar, but in the currency exchanges the rate is 23 pesos to the dollar. The average Cuban salary is 200 Cuban pesos.

Hamilton said Cuba had complained of US television broadcasts reaching the island and that a Cuban who stole an air force jet to make his getaway appears to have been accepted by its northern neighbour.

The US representative said “we are obliged to do everything possible to avoid the use of violence” in the migratory process between the two countries, avoiding explicit mention of the case.