Cuban "refugees" : Landing in Central America = ?

Not sure if things will change or more will be known about the "refugees", but the new Honduran president is to appoint a Honduran Ambassador to Cuba in 2007. Sounds truly unremarkable but the U.S. has basically dictated Honduran policy for so long that the two countries havent had diplomatic ties since 1961. The first / last real gesture was when Cuba sent 100's of teams of doctors after Hurricane Mitch. Many of them are still in Honduras and as a general rule, they are the better doctors in the country, outside the high-end private hospitals catering to the embassies and wealthiest people.

Not sure about the Cuban refugeee part. Seems more high risk to try to get to Honduras than the U.S., but that is just a guess. I have heard countless stories and seen many statistics which show that, historically, many Cubans have come to Honduras. Same with people from Lebanon and Palestine (for many decades this has been true; there are books for sale in Tegucigalpa bookstore windows celebrating this long history of immigration). I have seen more Chinese people in Honduras than in any other Central American country. There must be something which attracts them here. Cant possibly be the economy. Of course, if Chinese fisherman crashed ashore on Roatan Island, I am not so sure they would get to stay. In terms of not doing standard paperwork and being apart of the immigrant lottery, perhaps Cubans are unique in Honduras. Honduras is the most pro-U.S. (in the sense that they simply end up doing whatever the U.S. recommends, every single time, for as long as anyone can remember) of the Central American countries, and perhaps there is some policy or "refcommendation", though I do not recall seeing any duscussion of this or mentions of it in a newspaper article.

Not sure if rumors are true. But, the Cubans are taken to Honduran immigration, where they are documented, and asked to sign certain documents. Not sure what they are. They are then each required to have a private session with the Cuban Ambassador to Honduras. There they are again required to sign documents. Again, not sure what they are. I believe at least one document, or clause, is that they promise to never give an interview about their exit of Cuba, nor the reasons for it. I guess, depending on what they say or admit to in these documents, they are given some provisional status in Honduras (they all seem to stay; you never hear of any chosing to go back?). I am not sure if Cubans are treated differently than people from other countries, who end up in Honduras "accidentally". They need to visit Honduran immigration, every month, for something like 5 years or more. I do not know if Cubans actually try to target Honduras as a destination, but there is a large number of Cubans in San Pedro Sula and La Ceiba -- and these people have nothing in common with the Cuban "economic advisors", who knew basically nothing about economics, and who were running around Honduras in the late 1980's and 1990's. It is possible that the Cubans who stay simply never go back to Honduran immigration and stay illegally, but I doubt that. There is no animosity I have ever seen. Honduras has its problems, but is a rather inviting and accepting country/people. Again not sure about the rumor mill. But, I have never seen a Cuban give a newspaper interview, and you are correct that they are "tight lipped" about their arrival and immigration status. I think that Belize makes the Cuban government pay for them to go back home, without the stay option they get in Honduras, but that is just a comment I heard on the radio several years ago when in Guatelama.

When I used to be in the USCG. We would make patrols above Bahamian waters (I was up in the Jets), when a Cuban, Hatian or other refugee was spottted we would report it to the closest asset, in many cases the Bahamian Navy. They would pick them up and from there, I do not know for sure. I here they are processed and sent back to their home soil, where they then try to escape yet again.

Why would anyone want to leave Fidel's worker's paradise???

It's been many moons since I had experience charter boating in the caribe and the brain cells containing the information are beyond salvage, but...

I did read at some point about drift patterns in the upper caribe/Gulf of Mexico and, if IIRC, the currents wouldn't allow them to "drift" to Central America. Maybe a freak storm could change that but basically it has something to do with the structure and strength of the currents.

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I wouldn't recommend sex, drugs or insanity for everyone, but they've always worked for me. HST

Miskito Alan:

Carl: I've seen "Peruvians" dropped at "Corn Island" several times and they were taken by the immigration and police to Managua.

I know of a group of fisherman from Mississippi about 10 years ago who were fishing in Nicaraguan waters when they came from Cosa Rica and did not legally enter Nicaragua and the group was taken to Managua and then returned to the USA.

I have seen a couple of times where people from Tobago/Trinidad and another country were shipwrecked and floated to "Corn Island" and they were placed in the hospital there and days later were taken to Managua.

I have no idea what happens to these people in Managua.

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