[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 39, Number 41 (Monday, October 13, 2003)]
[Pages 1366-1368]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Remarks on Cuba

October 10, 2003

    Hola. Sientese. Thank you for coming. Welcome to the Rose Garden. 
It's my honor to host you for an important policy announcement.
    I'm proud to be joined by our great Secretary of State Colin Powell 
and a son of Cuba, a graduate of the Pedro Pan program, Mel Martinez. 
I'm also pleased to be joined with other members who will be--of my 
administration who will be charged with implementing policy. From the 
Department of Homeland Security, Under Secretary Asa

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Hutchinson is with us today. From the Treasury Department, Rick Newcomb, 
Director of the Office of Foreign Asset Control, is with us today. Rick, 
thank you for coming. Assistant Secretary for the Western Hemisphere 
Roger Noriega is with us today. Y por fin, from my staff, Envoy Otto 
Reich.
    As well we're honored to have distinguished Members of the Congress 
with us, starting with the very capable and able Senator from the State 
of Virginia, George Allen --bienvenidos, Jorge--[laughter]--from the 
State of Florida, Congressman Lincoln Diaz-Balart; y su hermano, 
Congressman Mario Diaz-Balart; Ileana Ros-Lehtinen; and Porter Goss. 
Thank you for coming. I'm honored you all are here.
    The Secretary mentioned to me that Bob Dole is with us. Bob Dole is 
not with us.
    One hundred and thirty-five years ago today, the struggle for Cuban 
freedom began at a sugar mill near Manzanillo. Carlos Manuel Cespedes, 
known as the Father of the Homeland, led an uprising against colonial 
rule. Today, the struggle for freedom continues--it hasn't ended--in 
cities and towns of that beautiful island, in Castro's prisons, and in 
the heart of every Cuban patriot. It is carried on by brave dissidents 
like Oscar Elias Biscet, Marta Beatriz Roque, Leonardo Bruzon Avila.
    Last year in Miami, I offered Cuba's Government a way forward, a way 
forward toward democracy and hope and better relations with the United 
States. I pledged to work with our Congress to ease bans on trade and 
travel between our two countries if and only if the Cuban Government 
held free and fair elections, allowed the Cuban people to organize, 
assemble, and to speak freely, and eased the stranglehold on private 
enterprise.
    Since I made that offer, we have seen how the Castro regime answers 
diplomatic initiatives. The dictator has responded with defiance and 
contempt and a new round of brutal oppression that outraged the world's 
conscience.
    In April, 75 peaceful members of Cuban opposition were given harsh 
prison sentences, some as long as 20 years. Their crimes were to publish 
newspapers, to organize petition drives, to meet to discuss the future 
of their country, Cuba's political prisoners subjected to beatings and 
solitary confinement and the denial of medical treatment. Elections in 
Cuba are still a sham. Opposition groups still organize and meet at 
their own peril. Private economic activity is still strangled. Non-
government trade unions are still oppressed and suppressed. Property 
rights are still ignored. And most goods and services produced in Cuba 
are still reserved for the political elites.
    Clearly, the Castro regime will not change by its own choice, but 
Cuba must change. So today I'm announcing several new initiatives 
intended to hasten the arrival of a new, free, democratic Cuba.
    First, we are strengthening enforcement of those travel restrictions 
to Cuba that are already in place. U.S. law forbids Americans to travel 
to Cuba for pleasure. That law is on the books, and it must be enforced. 
We allow travel for limited reasons, including visit to a family, to 
bring humanitarian aid, or to conduct research. Those exceptions are too 
often used as cover for illegal business travel and tourism or to skirt 
the restrictions on carrying cash into Cuba. We're cracking down on this 
deception.
    I've instructed the Department of Homeland Security to increase 
inspections of travelers and shipments to and from Cuba. We will enforce 
the law. We will also target those who travel to Cuba illegally through 
third countries, and those who sail to Cuba on private vessels in 
violation of the embargo.
    You see, our country must understand the consequences of illegal 
travel. All Americans need to know that foreign-owned resorts in Cuba 
must pay wages--must pay the wages of their Cuban workers to the 
Government. A good soul in America who wants to be a tourist goes to a 
foreign-owned resort, pays the hotel bill; that money goes to the 
Government. The Government, in turn, pays the workers a pittance in 
worthless pesos and keeps the hard currency to prop up the dictator and 
his cronies. Illegal tourism perpetuates the misery of the Cuban people. 
And that is why I've charged the Department of Homeland Security to stop 
that kind of illegal trafficking of money.
    By cracking down on the illegal travel, we will also serve another 
important goal. A rapidly growing part of Cuba's tourism industry

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is the illicit sex trade, a modern form of slavery which is encouraged 
by the Cuban Government. This cruel exploitation of innocent women and 
children must be exposed and must be ended.
    Second, we are working to ensure that Cubans fleeing the 
dictatorship do not risk their lives at sea. My administration is 
improving the method through which we identify refugees and redoubling 
our efforts to process Cubans who seek to leave. We will better inform 
Cubans of the many routes to safe and legal entry into the United States 
through a public outreach campaign in southern Florida and inside Cuba 
itself. We will increase the number of new Cuban immigrants we welcome 
every year. We are free to do so, and we will, for the good of those who 
seek freedom. Our goal is to help more Cubans safely complete their 
journey to a free land.
    Third, our Government will establish a Commission for the Assistance 
to a Free Cuba, to plan for the happy day when Castro's regime is no 
more and democracy comes to the island. This commission will be 
cochaired by the Secretary of State, Colin Powell, and the Secretary of 
Housing and Urban Development, Mel Martinez. They will draw upon experts 
within our Government to plan for Cuba's transition from Stalinist rule 
to a free and open society, to identify ways to hasten the arrival of 
that day.
    The transition to freedom will present many challenges to the Cuban 
people and to America, and we will be prepared. America is not alone in 
calling for freedom inside of Cuba. Countries around the globe and the 
United Nations Human Rights Commission increasingly recognize the 
oppressive nature of the Castro regime and have denounced its recent 
crackdowns. We will continue to build a strong international coalition 
to advance the cause of freedom inside of Cuba.
    In addition to the measures I've announced today, we continue to 
break the information embargo that the Cuban Government has imposed on 
its people for a half a century. Repressive governments fear the truth, 
and so we're increasing the amount and expanding the distribution of 
printed material to Cuba, of Internet-based information inside of Cuba, 
and of AM-FM and shortwave radios for Cubans.
    Radio and TV Marti are bringing the message of freedom to the Cuban 
people. This administration fully recognizes the need to enhance the 
effectiveness of Radio and TV Marti. Earlier this year, we launched a 
new satellite service to expand our reach to Cuba. On May 20th, we 
staged the historic flight of Commando Solo, an airborne transmission 
system that broke through Castro's jamming efforts. Tyrants hate the 
truth. They jam messages. And on that day, I had the honor of speaking 
to the Cuban people in the native language.
    It's only the beginning of a more robust effort to break through to 
the Cuban people. This country loves freedom, and we know that the enemy 
of every tyrant is the truth. We're determined to bring the truth to the 
people who suffer under Fidel Castro.
    Cuba has a proud history of fighting for freedom, and that fight 
goes on. In all that lies ahead, the Cuban people have a constant friend 
in the United States of America. No tyrant can stand forever against the 
power of liberty, because the hope of freedom is found in every heart. 
So today we are confident that no matter what the dictator intends or 
plans, Cuba sera pronto libre.
    De nuevo, Cuba libre. Thank you all.

Note: The President spoke at 11:03 a.m. in the Rose Garden at the White 
House. In his remarks, he referred to former Senator Bob Dole and 
President Fidel Castro of Cuba. The Office of the Press Secretary also 
released a Spanish language transcript of these remarks.