July 14, 2006
From Associated Baptist Press
By Robert Marus
WASHINGTON (ABP) -- The Bush administration recommendation that the United
States further limit humanitarian and religious aid to Cuba "flies in the
face of religious freedom," say many U.S. Christian groups, including the
Alliance of Baptists.
The Commission on
Assistance to a Free Cuba released a report July 10 with recommendations
designed to foster democracy in the Caribbean communist nation. President
Bush charged the interagency task force -- headed by Secretary of State
Condoleezza Rice and Secretary of Commerce Carlos Gutierrez -- with devising
plans to ease Cuba's transition to democracy once longtime dictator Fidel
Castro dies. Castro recently turned 80.
But the report also
included measures designed to further tighten the nearly-50-year-old U.S.
embargo of Cuba. One of its recommendations is to ban U.S. groups from
providing humanitarian aid to Cuban organizations the administration deems
too closely tied to Castro's regime.
The report recommends the
government tighten strictures on U.S. groups' "export of humanitarian items,
other than agricultural or medical commodities, to ensure that exports are
consigned to entities that support an independent civil society and are not
regime-administered or -controlled organizations, such as the Cuban Council
of Churches."
That recommendation -- and
the fact that the commission singled out the Cuban Protestant group --
outraged officials with the National Council of Churches and the World
Council of Churches.
"We strongly feel that it
is completely inappropriate for the U.S. government, or any government, to
determine who is and who is not a legitimate national council of churches
and to restrict or deny Christian fellowship and humanitarian assistance to
any particular national church council, including the Cuban Council of
Churches," said Samuel Kobia, the WCC's general secretary, in a July 11
letter to Bush.
The Cuban body, comprised
of about half the nation's Protestant churches, has partnered with the NCC
and WCC in humanitarian work since long before Castro seized power. A July
11 news release from the Church World Service, the WCC's humanitarian arm,
said the recommendation "flies in the face of religious freedom."
The Latin American Council
of Churches also sent Bush a letter condemning the recommendation as well as
the administration's increasingly hard line on Cuba.
The recommendations are
the latest in a series of setbacks the Bush administration has dealt to
religious, humanitarian and educational groups seeking to work with the
Cuban people.
In recent months, the
Treasury Department has declined to renew travel licenses for several
mainline Protestant denominations and other religious groups with long track
records of sending missions and humanitarian workers to Cuba.
The groups include the
American Baptist Churches, the United Methodist Church, the Disciples of
Christ and the National Council of Churches.
Due to the government's
embargo on commerce with Cuba, religious groups must use renewable travel
permits for religious activity to enable U.S. citizens to travel to Cuba.
The permits are granted through the Treasury Department. Earlier this year,
a bipartisan group of congressmen sent a letter to administration officials
opposing new restrictions that the department had placed on religious travel
to Cuba. The restrictions would make it virtually impossible for any
religious group other than a local congregation to receive a Cuba travel
license.
The head of one Baptist
group whose Cuba license was suspended last year said July 11 that the
Commission for Assistance to a Free Cuba's latest recommendations are wrong
but not surprising.
"There is no doubt in my
mind that the administration has not only exceeded its regulatory authority
but also has trampled on the free exercise of religion -- not only in this
action but in a series of actions limiting our ability to work with churches
in Cuba," said Stan Hastey, executive director of the Alliance of Baptists.
The network of churches has a long-standing partnership with a Cuban Baptist
denomination that pairs local churches in the United States with Cuban
congregations.
Referring to the WCC and
NCC letters, Hastey said, "I fully understand why they are outraged by the
president's signing off on this -- and by that coterie of Castro-haters at
the State Department, dominated by hard-line Cuban Americans who, by the
way, do not represent even the Cuban-American community in this country."
Experts outside the
administration have said the hard line Bush has taken on Cuba has come in
response to Cuban-American Republicans in South Florida, many of whom are
Cuban expatriates who fled to Miami and surrounding areas after Castro came
to power and seized their property.
The Church World Service
news release said the group is "looking into the possibility of a lawsuit"
if Bush chooses to implement the recommendation.
Caleb McCarry, the State
Department official in charge of overseeing U.S. transition plans for the
Cuban regime and director of the commission, was traveling in Florida July
13 and unavailable for comment on the religious leaders' allegations.
However, a State Department spokesperson contacted July 12 said the
department wasn't even aware of the Christian groups' expressions of
displeasure with the recommendation.
The report itself said
that the recommendation was necessary because Castro's policies "continue to
debilitate the Cuban economy, impoverish the Cuban people, and isolate Cuba
from economic advances enjoyed by the rest of the Western Hemisphere. The
regime ignores its obligations to its people and diverts its resources to
maintain its grip on power, manage a succession of the regime, and
destabilize democracies elsewhere in the hemisphere."
However, the report
claimed, the recent travel and financial restrictions "have sharply
curtailed the regime's manipulation of and profiteering from U.S.
humanitarian policies. These measures have been successful and should
continue to be implemented."
June 9,
2006
U.S. Government Suspends
Travel Applications from Cuba
The Bush administration
has suspended virtually all applications by citizens of Cuba to travel to
the United States, according to an announcement issued by the U.S. Interests
Section in Havana. The new policy took effect June 2 and specifically
includes Cubans invited to the U.S. by religious organizations.
In Havana, the U.S.
Interests Section functions in behalf of the Department of State under the
flag of Switzerland. It fulfills duties similar to those of U.S. embassies
in countries with which the United States maintains normal diplomatic
relations. Such relations with Cuba were broken off in 1961. Broad economic
sanctions, including a comprehensive embargo, were imposed in 1962. In
addition, travel to Cuba by U.S. citizens is generally forbidden, with
well-defined exceptions.
Announcement
of the new restrictions on Cubans ability to visit the United States came
one week after the implementation of a new policy requiring individuals and
organizations in the U.S. to request interviews with consular officers in
Havana for such travelers. The previous policy was for Cuban citizens
themselves to request the interviews at the U.S. Interests Section with
letters of invitation in hand. The full text of an open letter announcing
the suspension follows:
(Letter translated from
Spanish by Stan Hastey)
The
United States Interests Section takes this occasion to inform you that
beginning June 2, the new system of requests for Non-Immigrant Visas,
including requests for interviews in the Program of Religious Visas from the
United States, has been suspended indefinitely.
The
new system, which was begun with great public support, sought a more
efficient process for requests for interviews that permitted persons in the
United States to solicit an interview in the name of their family members or
others known to them. Under the Program of Religious Visas, the churches in
the United States were able to solicit interviews for those Cubans who had
been invited to participate in meetings or other religious activities in the
United States.
The
volume of calls received has been much larger than expected since its
inception May 25. On June 2, the new system received more than 500,000 calls
and caused the collapse of the call center server. During the six working
days of the new system for requesting interviews, such interviews were
scheduled until January 2007.
The
suspension of the system affects all visitors, including those persons who
apply under the Program of Religious Visas. The Interests Section will
maintain the validity of those interviews requested on or before June 2. We
regret that given this setback we will be unable to schedule new interviews
for visas for non-immigrants until further notice.
Requests for interviews for medical reasons or other emergencies will be
considered case by case. Those persons who consider themselves eligible to
travel for these reasons should send a fax to the Interests Section at
number 833-1084. Besides including name and contact information, they should
specify details related to the purpose of their visit as well as supporting
documents, including letters from doctors and/or hospitals justifying the
urgent need for the trip.
We
appreciate your understanding and apologize for whatever inconvenience this
suspension may cause persons affiliated with your institution.
Sincerely,
Robert
H. McCutcheon, III
Chief,
Office of Visitors Visas
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