2 Cubans rescued at sea might stay

2 Cubans rescued at sea might stay
BY J.D. GALLOP • FLORIDA TODAY• November
12, 2010

Two of the seven Cuban refugees pulled from a raft
in the Atlantic Ocean and brought to Cape Canaveral
Hospital this week have a greater chance of staying
in the United States than their counterparts who
were kept aboard a Coast Guard cutter, officials
said.

The two unidentified Cubans were treated at the
Brevard County hospital for respiratory problems
and dehydration after spending 14 days floating on
a makeshift raft that ended up about 45 miles off the
coast of Volusia County.

The five others on board the same raft were secured
aboard the Coast Guard cutter in Port Canaveral and
are expected to be taken back to Cuba within the
next week, Coast Guard officials say.

The two who were hospitalized and released have
been turned over to U.S. Customs and Border
Protection agents. The medical tab for the short stay
likely will be absorbed by the hospital's charitable
service, Health First officials said Thursday.

Immigration authorities say the two probably will
benefit from the so-called "wet-foot, dry-foot" policy
enacted under President Bill Clinton in 1995. It
means that if Cubans literally touch U.S. soil, they
can remain rather than be returned to Cuba if they
are interdicted at sea. The policy does not apply to
other immigrants attempting to get into the United
States illegally.

"They will be processed according to our border
protection policies," said Migbalia Travis, a
spokeswoman for the U.S. Border Patrol. "Under
normal circumstances, they should be able to stay,
but we cannot discuss their case directly."

The "wet-foot, dry-foot" policy, a change in the
1966 Cuban Adjustment Act, was designed to stem
the flow of refugees after President Fidel Castro
allowed more than 100,000 Cubans -- including
many from mental hospitals and prisons -- to
escape by boat to the United States in 1980. As a
result, the number of Cubans interdicted at sea this
year stands at 422, compared to 38,500 refugees
who attempted to get into the United States in 1994, which was a peak year.

Today, Coast Guard officials said those who make it
to shore are sent to immigration centers to be
interviewed and processed for criminal background
checks.

"They could still end up being treated as "wet foot"
by the U.S. government. They'll be taken into
custody, but they don't have the right to legal
protection during the interview and inspection
process," said David Stoller, a Melbourne-based
immigration attorney.

After a year and a day, Cuban refugees can apply for
permanent residency, he said.

"Basically, if you make it here, you're here. But, you
never know what's going to happen. Today, it's a
different atmosphere than before. Most of the
Cubans today are economic refugees more than
anything else."

Other refugees, such as 15 Haitians rescued June 24
at sea by the Coast Guard about 14 miles off Brevard
County, do not have the same status under federal
law, Stoller pointed out. That group was repatriated
to Haiti within a week, Coast Guard officials
reported.

"We treat Cubans differently, while others are sent
back," Stoller said, citing the Cuban Adjustment Act
of 1966.

Some Cuban-American residents living in Brevard
County -- many of whom came here as political refugees -- say the policy
needs to be reviewed.

Roland Guilarte, 52, of Satellite Beach recalls the
struggles of learning English and adapting to the
fast pace of American culture after he and his family
escaped Castro's regime aboard a 1967 freedom
flight to Miami.

"We were legal refugees and it took about two to
21/2 years for us to be processed," Guilarte said.
"But today, the main difference is that you have
Cuban organizations that offer assistance and
housing for anyone like the two people in this
situation."

Some limited federal assistance is also available. He
added that he had sympathy for the five who face
repatriation to Cuba, even though they were brought
to Port Canaveral yet not allowed to leave the Coast
Guard cutter.

"These people are oppressed, and now they're going
back to a living hell," he said. "We understand that
we don't want to strain the federal government with
taking care of these folks. We don't like the 'wet-
foot, dry-foot' policy. We want to be able to take
care of our own."

Contact Gallop at 409-1422or
jdgallop@floridatoday.com.

At a glance

A look at Cubans interdicted at sea:
Year -- Number
2005 -- 2,712
2006 -- 2,810
2007 -- 2,868
2008 -- 2,199
2009 -- 799
2010 -- 422
-- U.S. Coast Guard

http://www.floridatoday.com/article/20101112/NEWS01/11120329/1006/2+Cubans+rescued+at+sea+might+stay