For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
January 17, 2002
Title III of Cuban Liberty and Democratic Solidarity Act
Title III of the Cuban Liberty And
Democratic Solidarity Act Fact Sheet
Title III of the Cuban Liberty and Democratic Solidarity Act
(libertad) Allows U.S. Nationals That Own Claims to Confiscated Property in
Cuba to file suit in U.S. courts against those who traffic in such
property.
The title includes waiver authority, if
the President determines that a suspension of this provision is
necessary to the national interests of the United States and will
expedite a transition to democracy in Cuba. The waiver must
be renewed every six months for the suspension to remain effective.
Using this authority, the President has
suspended application of Title III for an additional six months,
effective February 1, 2002. He has reported his
determination to the appropriate congressional committees.
Basic Policy Commitments
The President remains firmly and fully
committed to encouraging a rapid, peaceful transition to a democratic
government characterized by strong support for human rights and an open
market economy.
The President likewise remains committed
to the use of the embargo and travel restrictions to encourage a rapid
transition. As he indicated last July, the administration
will oppose any effort to loosen sanctions against the Cuban regime
until it frees political prisoners, holds democratic, free elections
and allows for free speech.
The Cuban regime is a repressive,
totalitarian anachronism in a region where democracy and open markets
prevail. Its leaders continue to carry out misguided and
failed policies which have deeply damaged the Cuban people and left its
economy in ruins.
The Cuban government also properly remains
on the Terrorist List, due to its continued support for terrorism,
including the fact that it continues to harbor fugitives from justice
in the United States wanted for terrorism-related offenses.
Increasing Outreach to the Cuban People
The President is determined to encourage
and deepen our outreach to the Cuban people, especially those brave and
independent activists for democracy and human rights.
In order to move toward this goal, the
U.S. Government has increased the resources available to support civil
society development and information exchange in
Cuba. Despite obstacles created by the Cuban regime, the
U.S. Interests Section in Havana has expanded its outreach to the Cuban
people in innovative ways.
A big part of this effort is a major
increase in public diplomacy on-island, so that more Cubans have more
accurate and broader information about the world around
them. Independent journalists, libraries, and
Non-governmental organizations are the beneficiaries of these efforts.
The President has also committed to
increasing the listenership of Radio Marti and the viewership of TV
Marti in Cuba. Radio Marti in particular has an increasingly
popular product and appears to be making real gains in terms of its
audience.
We will be exploring new ways, including
the use of cutting-edge technology, to increase the Cuban people's
access to Radio and TV Marti.
Policy Review
The recent appointment of Otto Reich as
Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs completes
the President's foreign policy team. With it, a full review
of the tools we are using to achieve our policy goal in Cuba is now
appropriate.
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