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http://elpais.com/elpais/2014/01/14/inenglish/1389726251_925273.html?rel=rosEP
~ 1 year ago, on Jan. 14, 2013, Raúl Castro and the Cuban government relaxed foreign
http://elpais.com/elpais/2014/01/14/inenglish/1389726251_925273.html?rel=rosEP
Comprehensive Outline of 1 Year of Cuba's New Migration Policy:
~ 1 year ago, on Jan. 14, 2013, Raúl Castro and the Cuban government relaxed foreign
travel policies for its citizens...
~ Between Jan. 14 and Nov. 30, 2013 more than 184,000 islanders had gone abroad
* Many on more than one trip
(257,518 trips total according to Cuba’s foreign
and
migration department)
* Mainly young professionals between
25 and 40 in search of jobs abroad
* Principally to the United States,
Mexico, and Spain
* ‘Brain drain’ feared by Castro
regime has not yet occurred.
~ Official
figures: 3,500 Cubans living in other countries have returned to the island to
stay
permanently…
* Havana continues to tightly
control the return of hardline critics of the socialist
Castro
regime, though it does grant temporary visit permits.
* The balseros (those who arrived to the US on shoddy rafts/boats) who
left after
the
massive 1994 economic crisis and exodus as well as physicians who
deserted
their country and faced prosecution are now returning.
*~ The Cuban reform, due to the great number of exiled Cubans that once
deserted their country but now are able
to return, has had a direct impact
on
business and travel in Florida, where many Cuban are.
*^ Since January 2013, countless travel agencies in Florida have been
incredibly busy handling calls from
potential customers calling to inquire
about prices and information about obtaining Cuban visas.
*^ Since President Obama eased travel restrictions in 2009, 15 US airports
are
now authorized to handle charter jets to and from Havana, and other
airports in Florida are also now taking advantage, with direct flights
to
Havana, amongst other Cuban cities…
~ The migration
policy change of 2013 is part of a broader series of reforms – some
structural,
others simply administrative – that have been put in motion since 2006 when
Raúl
took power in order to improve the Cuban socialist model confronted by serious
economic
and social problems…
~ Like other
reforms in the last two years however, there are limitations to it…
* It is still not easy for Cubans to
travel abroad, as regulations call for prior exit
approval,
known as the “white paper” (carta blanca).
* Cubans also must demonstrate that
they have enough money to cover their
expenses,
including airline tickets, visas, and expenditures abroad.
*~ Those who cannot fulfill requirements still resort to the dangerous balsero
practice of floating to the Florida
Keys or nearby Caribbean nations like
Haiti
and Jamaica on rickety rafts…
~ Some
high-profile Cubans previously denied exit permits have traveled, but
were forced to return when government
officials began cracking down on their
colleagues and the organizations they
represent.
* Last quarter of 2013 according to
the Commission for Cuban Human Rights and
National
Reconciliation: estimated 931 illegal arrests…
*~ Some families of dissidents, fearing for safety, have fled and exiled
themselves outside of the country,
until further notice/change.
~ The migration
reform also extended the time that Cuban travelers could stay abroad
from
11 months to 2 years without losing residency/social benefits.
* Because of this, many Cubans now
have traveled to the US with the expectation
of
staying there for 1 year and 1 day in order to then legally apply for permanent
US
residency under the “Cuban Adjustment Act (CAA)” (Ley de Adjuste
Cubano) without losing their legal
status in Cuba.
~ While the
relaxed policies have benefitted many Cubans, Washington and Havana are
still
at odds on many issues in regards to migration reform…
* The US is pushing for the release
of US contractor Alan Gross, who was given a
jail
sentence of 15 years upon being discovered delivering telephones and radios
to
dissent groups.
* Cuba is demanding that US
officials release four Cubans – part of the so-called
‘Cuban
Five’ – who are still serving time in the US for espionage.
~ Nevertheless, five
days prior to the first anniversary of this Cuban immigration reform,
the
two sides were engaged in a new round of migration policy dialogue hoping to
ensure
safe, legal, and orderly immigration between the two nations.
* This was perhaps one of the most
important, respectful, and groundbreaking
US-Cuba diplomatic meetings since 1962, when relations were severed.
* Cuba is continuing to implore the
US to abolish the “Cuban Adjustment Act
(CAA),”
which, signed by Lyndon Johnson grants the right to Cubans to apply
for legal US permanent residency
(and a ‘green card’) after one year in-country.
*~ The ‘Wet Foot, Dry Foot” (Pies
Secos, Pies Mojados) policy, added to the
1966
“Cuban Adjustment Act (CAA)” as a consequence of a 1995 revision
to
the CAA, which allows any Cuban who illegally makes it (with ‘dry
feet’) onto US mainland soil, the
right to stay and eventually be eligible for
an expedited legal permanent resident status,
is of particular Cuban concern.
*** As the one-year anniversary of the latest
Cuban migration reform passes, it provides
an intriguing and significant background and catalyst to the ongoing
migration talks
occurring between Cuba and the United States, countries that, since
1962, have not
had official diplomatic relations with one another. The direct
impacts in regards to
the United States of this Cuban policy change make it a significant
development to continue
monitoring.
monitoring.
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