In view of the announcement by the U.S. Government of new migratory decisions affecting Cuban citizens, Cubadebate asked Ernesto Soberón, Director of Consular Affairs and Cubans Residing Abroad of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, for his thoughts on the matter.
-How does our Foreign Ministry assess the new measures of the U.S. government aimed at dealing with the irregular entry of Cuban emigrants and those from other countries of the region to that country?
We have maintained a consistent position in favor of regular, orderly and safe migration between Cuba and the United States.
To that end, we have signed several bilateral agreements with the U.S. since 1980 and have been zealous in complying with them.
Irregular migration is risky, on many occasions, unfortunately, it costs lives and, as a rule, turns people into victims of organized crime, traffickers, extortion and abuse in various forms.
We have been warning the US government for years about the risks of encouraging irregular migration, with the Cuban Adjustment Act and the privileged and politically motivated treatment of Cubans arriving in US territory or at the US border.
-These new measures at the border may discourage irregular entry into the United States, but aren't there still root causes that encourage emigration in the Cuban case? What else could the U.S. government do?
The unjustified failure since 2017 to comply with the commitment to grant a minimum of 20 thousand visas annually and the also unjustified closure of visa processing at the US Embassy in Cuba, which was recently corrected, have caused an accumulation and significant growth of the migratory potential, which not only affects our two countries, but also transit countries.
The strengthening of the economic blockade since 2019 has aggravated that situation, since it is known that the worsening of socioeconomic conditions in any territory becomes one of the fundamental causes of emigration, and Cuban emigrants are no exception.
A more rational policy on the part of the U.S. and full compliance with the migration agreements signed demonstrated, in 2017, that it is possible to drastically reduce the irregular, disorderly and unsafe emigration of Cuban citizens to U.S. territory.
A more normal migratory relationship, which includes temporary visits between the two countries, would also contribute to reduce the migratory potential and the attempts to enter the U.S. through irregular channels and practices; at the same time, it would favor communication between Cuban families.
-Is there any change in Cuba's immigration policy?
Cuba's migration policy facilitates the travel of its nationals abroad and their return to Cuba in a regular, orderly and safe manner. The sustained increase in travel, in one direction or another, before and after the Pandemic, is proof of this.