Cuba Frees All 553 Prisoners and a Travel Ban Looms
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The Trump Administration is expected to announce a new travel ban that could bar Cubans from entering the United States, raising serious concerns about its impact on Cuban citizens in the US and abroad. With Secretary of State Marco Rubio decrying the leaders of Cuba and Venezuela as “enemies of humanity,” and the Trump Administration increasing economic sanctions and pulling funding for “democracy promotion,” journalists and civil society groups in Cuba – it is unclear what the Administration’s policy goal is – and what American officials expect Cubans to do.
Meanwhile, Cuba has fulfilled its Vatican-brokered promise to release 553 prisoners, deportations from the US to Cuba continue, and—for the first time since its inception—Cuba’s small business sector is shrinking.
In case you missed it, CEDA organized a series of webinars on migration policy this month. The recording of the first webinar, “Migration Policy Under the Trump Administration: What’s Changing and What’s At Stake?” is available here.
Expected Travel Ban for Cuban Citizens
Within the next week, President Trump is expected to announce a new travel ban targeting several countries, including Cuba, Iran, Libya, North Korea, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Venezuela, Yemen, and potentially Afghanistan. President Trump imposed a travel ban on a similar group of countries during his first term in office, citing deficient screening practices used by these countries when allowing visitors to come to the US or “sufficient risk factors” that should prevent their citizens from traveling to the US. The 2017 ban was challenged in the courts leading to its revision.
Notably, neither Cuba nor Haiti appeared on the 2017 travel ban—making their appearance new and concerning. The Miami Herald reported on March 13 that there would be “an absolute ban on entry by Cuba and Venezuelan nationals, regardless of what country they live in, with no exceptions for the elderly, the sick or harassed dissidents.”
Cuba Fulfills Vatican Deal Freeing All 553 Political Prisoners
On March 10, Cuba announced the release of 553 prisoners as promised by January’s Vatican-brokered deal. Very little information is available regarding the individuals released but watchdog groups estimate that about 200 July 11th protest-related detainees were released. Cuba’s government has stated that they are subject to return to prison at the will of the government.
According to civil society organizations monitoring the situation of prisoners, at the start of the releases on January 15, there were about 549 people imprisoned due to the July 11th, 2021 protests, and more than 880 were classified as political prisoners. Most of those convicted by the courts had no prior political activism. Some advocates told the Associated Press that they are not satisfied with the release due to the remaining political prisoners incarcerated.
Background: On January 14, Cuba’s President Miguel Díaz-Canel announced that he had written to Pope Francis, pledging to release 553 political prisoners. This announcement coincided with the Biden–Harris Administration’s decision to remove Cuba from the State Sponsor of Terrorism List.
104 Cubans Deported from the United States to Havana
On February 17, 104 Cubans were deported from Miami to Havana. Cuba’s Ministry of the Interior (MININT) announced that the group included 84 men, 19 women, and one minor.
According to El País, here’s what we know about the individuals on the most recent deportation flight to Cuba:
One migrant was immediately arrested upon arrival due to outstanding criminal charges in Cuba, while two others were detained for allegedly leaving the island while on parole.
One person with an I220-A document was deported after showing up for a regular immigration appointment in Miramar, Florida. He had no criminal record. This is critical as approximately 500,000 Cubans in the US have an I220-A document, meaning they were released into the US without parole and are without permanent legal status preventing them from adjusting under the Cuban Adjustment Act. Univision also reported the detention of a 26 year-old Cuban woman in Miramar, Florida who was residing in the US with an I220-A document.
One individual came to the US as a child in the 1980s during the Mariel boatlift, although this particular case has not been confirmed. Reportedly, Cuba had repeatedly refused to accept him into the country.
Cuban social media influencer Cinthya Medrano García, popularly known as La Cintumbare, was on the flight. She had been in ICE custody for weeks after entering the US without parole three years ago.
This was the second deportation flight of Cubans during President Donald Trump’s second term, following the first on January 23. No details have been released about those aboard the earlier flight. Since 2023, Cuba has been receiving one deportation flight per month. Under President Joe Biden, a total of 978 Cubans were returned across 42 flights.
According to Cuba’s Vice Foreign Minister Carlos Fernández de Cossio, Cuba has not yet engaged in migration discussions with the Trump Administration, despite the plans to rescind legal status for over half a million Cubans, many granted entry into the US under temporary humanitarian parole programs established during former President Biden's tenure and over 500,000 granted entry into the country without parole.
Background: Prior to 2017, Cubans were subject to the “wet-foot, dry-foot policy,” which allowed those who reached U.S. soil to stay and apply for legal status, while those intercepted at sea were returned to Cuba. This policy provided a direct path to residency for many Cuban migrants and effectively shielded them from deportation. However, in January 2017, the Obama Administration ended the policy, leaving Cubans with fewer options to achieve permanent residency. The policy’s termination marked a historic shift. As part of the re-establishment of diplomatic relations between the US and Cuba, former President Raúl Castro agreed to accept deportation flights from the US on a selective, case-by-case basis. This agreement carries on today.
Number of Small to Medium Enterprises in Cuba Goes Down for the First Time
Cuba’s National Office of Statistics and Information (ONEI) marked a decline in the number of private micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs, or Mipymes in Spanish) on the island. This is the first time the number of these businesses has decreased since their legalization. Previously, MSMEs experienced rapid growth: from 262 in 2021 (their first year of approval) to 4,666 in 2022 and nearly doubling to 8,066 in 2023. However, this growth slowed in 2024, halting in May when the Ministry of Economy and Planning (MEP) stopped publishing weekly authorization lists. The approval process resumed sluggishly in the second half of 2024 after decentralization to 15 local governments, but approvals have remained limited, and information on the process is scarce.
As stated by Auge, a private Cuban business consultancy, “the decline in the number of private MSMEs not only reflects the current challenges of entrepreneurship in Cuba but also underscores the need for more agile and effective mechanisms to foster a more dynamic business ecosystem.” While business closures are normal, a steady influx of new enterprises is essential to maintaining economic vitality.
Congressional Delegation Visits Guantánamo Bay Military Base; No Migrants Remain at the Base as of 3/13
A bipartisan congressional delegation composed of members of the Armed Services Committee visited the Guantánamo Bay base to assess if the US should continue housing migrants at the base. The trip was supposed to occur several weeks prior but Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth abruptly canceled it, explaining that the facility was not yet ready to accept the delegation.
The group included House Armed Services Chairman Mike Rogers (AL-03), Representative Don Davis (NC-01), Representative Abe Hamadeh (AZ-08), as well as Cuban-born Representative Carlos Giménez (FL-28), who had not returned to the island in 64 years.
The trip comes amid concerns that the base is unfit to house migrants due to logistical, legal, and financial challenges. The Defense Department calculates that flying migrants to the base costs the Pentagon $23,000 to $27,000 per detainee. Additionally, reports suggest that the base is unprepared to accommodate 30,000 migrants as President Trump announced. A briefing presented to the delegation revealed that currently the facility can only hold 225 immigration detainees at a time. In response, the Pentagon is considering recalling some of the 1,000 U.S. troops who were rapidly deployed to the island following the President’s announcement.
As of March 12, no migrant detainees remain at the base, as 40 detainees were flown back to Louisiana to await deportation.
Caribbean leaders oppose U.S. policy targeting Cuban medical missions
Caribbean leaders are opposing the new U.S. policy targeting Cuban medical missions, arguing that Cuban doctors play a crucial role in the region’s healthcare systems. The policy, which threatens visa restrictions for those involved in the missions including local government officials, has been criticized by officials from Guyana, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, and St. Vincent and the Grenadines.
Jamaica’s foreign minister emphasized the importance of the 400 Cuban medical professionals in her country, while St. Vincent’s Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves declared he would rather lose his U.S. visa than see patients go without life-saving treatment. Trinidad’s Prime Minister Keith Rowley echoed this sentiment, stressing his nation’s reliance on Cuban healthcare workers.
Recommended Reading, Viewing, Events:
📖 Read: El País | Cuba gets older: The island reports its lowest birth rate since the Revolution
📖 Read: The Nation | Life in Cuba Under the Sanctions
📺 Watch: Center for Economic and Policy Research | Economic Sanctions: A Root Cause of Migration