Title:Cubans Intercepted Off Miami Can Stay--For Now
By Jane Sutton
MIAMI (Reuters) - After a night of street protests by angry Cuban exiles and appeals from politicians, a group of Cuban boat people grabbed by the U.S. Coast Guard within reach of a Miami beach will be allowed to stay in the United States while their fate is decided, federal officials said Wednesday.
The incident drew attention to U.S. immigration policy under which Cuban migrants intercepted at sea are generally sent back to the communist-ruled island while those who make it ashore are allowed to stay and pursue political asylum claims.
In a city dominated by Cuban emigres who despise President Fidel Castro's government, the Coast Guard also faced withering criticism for their handling of the incident.
``When people escape the last tyrannical regime in the Western Hemisphere, they should not be greeted with water hoses and pepper spray. This is not the American way,'' said Sen. Connie Mack, a Florida Republican.
Monday six Cuban men in a 12-foot (3.6 meter) wooden boat were surrounded by Coast Guard vessels a few hundred yards (meters) off Surfside, just north of Miami Beach. The Cubans swung their oars at the Coast Guard vessels then jumped into the water to try to swim to the beach.
Live TV broadcasts showed Coast Guard crews spraying the tiny boat with a fire hose and firing pepper spray at one of the migrants -- scenes that incensed Miami's Cuban community.
Four were plucked from the sea but two, clad only in swim trunks, managed to swim to shore where they were greeted by crowds of cheering onlookers. Police wrestled one to the sand and handcuffed him as spectators jeered.
Hundreds of callers telephoned the Coast Guard to complain and protests broke out. Hundreds of demonstrators, some waving Cuban flags, blocked a busy highway overlooking the Coast Guard base and cut off the causeway between Miami and Miami Beach during the evening rush hour.
In the Hialeah district, Cubans Americans scuffled with police and blocked an expressway in a demonstration that lasted into the early hours of the morning.
The Democracy Movement exile group demanded the dismissal of the Guardsmen involved in the ``sad and cowardly incident''.
``We demand also the suspension of the sick policy the Clinton administration conducts with the tyrant of Havana, Fidel Castro,'' its leader Ramon Saul Sanchez said.
Local politicians joined in criticizing the Coast Guard. ''My personal reaction is of outrage for a country that stands for human rights,'' Miami-Dade County Mayor Alex Penelas said.
Miami Mayor Joe Carollo said the incident was unusual for the Coast Guard, which has saved the lives of thousands of Cuban migrants at sea.
``Today was a very sad day, not only for Miami and the U.S. but for freedom,'' Carollo said.
``This will not be swept under the rug,'' he said.
In the meantime, Rosenholm said, ``U.S. policy as far as we know is still in effect and we will continue to interdict illegal migrants off our coast.''
Seven other Cuban men intercepted off Fort Lauderdale Monday were still aboard a Coast Guard vessel Tuesday, undergoing interviews with immigration officers.
Cubans frequently flee the Communist-ruled island in small boats or makeshift rafts and attempt the 100-mile (160 km) crossing to Florida. The Coast Guard said 224 Cuban migrants were intercepted in June, bringing the 1999 total to 826. In 1998, 1,047 were interdicted.