Despite a long-standing ban, thousands of US tourists travel to Cuba behind Washington’s back.
This hidden travel is among reasons US presidential Barack Obama says he wants to lift sanctions against travel to Cuba. Growing numbers of US Senators and Representatives agree.
Traveling to Cuba is not illegal for Americans but provisions of the “Trading With the Enemy Act” prohibit spending money there without authorization. If caught, unauthorized US tourists can face civil fines of up to US$55,000, though many settle for smaller amounts.
Since January 2006, 19 Americans have paid fines for sneaking to Cuba, including four people involved in making Oliver Stone’s documentary about Castro, “Comandante,” according to the AP. Fellow filmmaker Michael Moore is now being investigated for filming “Sicko” without permission in Cuba.
The U.S. Treasury Department issued 40,308 licenses for family travel last year, almost all to Cuban Americans, and the Cuban government counts these travelers as Cubans, not Americans.
Separately, Cuba said 20,100 Americans visited the country through June of this year, almost all presumably without U.S. permission.
Cuba said about 37,000 Americans not of Cuban origin came in 2006 – down from the more than 84,500 it reported in 2003, before the latest restrictions.
And what about when Fidel Castro leaves the scene? Speculation is that the US government would then scrap the travel ban and bring some significant changes to Cuba.
The American Society of Travel Agents recently estimated that nearly 1.8 million Americans would visit in the first three years following an end to the travel ban.
Report by David Wilkening
