The US government Wednesday restated recent allegations that regional governments are helping Cuba in human trafficking schemes, saying countries should comply with international obligations by ditching links with the Cuban labor export program spread out across the Caribbean.
Through its embassy in The Bahamas, the State Department released a statement saying the decades-old system of sending thousands of medical professionals to work in various CARICOM member states forces Cubans to work and exploits them, leaving those back home hapless.
“We believe countries should comply with their international obligations and commitments to combat all forms of human trafficking, including forced labor, which involves forced labor and exploitation of workers around the globe, enriches the Cuban regime, and deprives ordinary Cubans of the medical care they desperately need in their home country.”
The statement came the same day Prime Minister Phillip Davis made it clear that the Bahamas feels firmly that recruiting medical professionals to work in the country has done no wrong and has not breached any international laws.
“The decision is based upon the fact that there is a belief that we are engaging in forced labor by hiring Cubans,” the PM told reporters on the sidelines of a domestic economic conference.
“Our laws, starting from our constitution, prohibit that kind of engagement. This government will never and doesn’t intend to engage in any forced labor. It is our law, and we are a country of laws, but we have indicated that we don’t think that we have done it; we will review where we are and get back to them in due course.”
The simmering row across the 15-nation bloc stems from a Feb. 25 announcement by Secretary of State Marco Rubio threatening visa restrictions for officials in the region who are associated with the Cuban medical program.
The embassy stated that this expanded policy, “which builds upon a policy put in place in 2019 during the first Trump administration, targets both Cuban and third-country officials and individuals responsible for or involved in Cuba’s labor export program,” it noted.
“With this visa restriction policy, we are sending a clear message that the United States promotes accountability for those who are responsible for lining the Cuban regime’s pockets through forced labor – a form of human trafficking – and exploitative working conditions through Cuba’s labor export program. We continue to investigate reports of Cuban forced labor around the world and to promote accountability for those involved with Cuba’s forced labor program.”
So far, several governments, including Jamaica, Trinidad, St. Vincent, and The Bahamas, have rejected any links to illegal activity outright. Most have stressed the importance of professionals and specialists, especially for domestic healthcare sectors. They all have signaled plans to keep professionals in the health sector.
Expressing alarm at the new policy, regional foreign ministers rushed to meet with US Special Envoy for Latin America Mauricio Claver-Carone in Washington on Sunday night. Most of the ministers remained tightlipped about what was discussed. Speaking off the record this week, two of them said that the visa threat was the main agenda item in cordial and informal talks, but the situation in Haiti was also discussed.
