Annotations for Subject-headings: Human Smuggling

The seizure of a number of Florida-based vessels in Cuban waters, including one incident in which three people reportedly lost their lives, has focused attention on the increasingly dangerous and lucrative business of smuggling people from that island. Emilio San Pedro reports.

This year alone, more than 1100 Cubans have been rescued off the Florida coast by the US Coast Guard. Many of these have received help from smugglers in the US. In some cases, these smugglers have reportedly earned up to $10,000 for smuggling refugees out of Cuba. Damian Fernandez of Florida International University says that in addition to the for-profit operations, there are also many cases of families trying to help their relatives leave Cuba.

These operations break both Cuban law and US law, as well as international law. One of their consequences is that they jeopardize and feed the fire and the tension between the United States and Cuba.

So far, seven US residents have been arrested by the Cuban government. Only one has been identified as a US citizen by the State Department for Latino USA. I'm Emilio San Pedro.