COMINGANDGOING: Sex in Cuba

The following is reprinted from the Washington Post, Sunday, October 19, 2003, and effectively destroys the most rabid charge against Cuba that President Bush has made yet. In the context of his campaigning for the presidency in Nevada, where prostitution is legal and rampant, and where he never once complained to the Republican governor about something funny going on there, his concern for Cuba’s women and children is downright amazing.—Ed.

At a recent briefing [October 14], President Bush announced he was cracking down on travel to Cuba because of the government’s "brutal oppression" and to thwart what he called a "rapidly growing illicit sex trade" that is "encouraged by the Cuban government."

CoGo was surprised to hear the latter. On a trip last spring, there was no evidence of an open sex trade, let alone anything like the markets in downtown Bangkok. In fact, Cubans complained to CoGo that they had to have a date to go to the best clubs—a rule they said was to keep sex hustlers from seeking partners at clubs that attract foreigners. Plus, advocates of the U.S. travel ban have long complained that Cubans are barred from hotels and beaches frequented by foreigners.

So what’s the evidence? The State Department’s 2003 "Trafficking in Persons" report, said White House spokeswoman Claire Buchan. The report lists 80 countries as having a human exploitation problem. Cuba is on the list, as is the host of next summer’s Olympics, Greece.

CoGo turned to the World Wide Web and found that while sex is for sale everywhere, including Cuba, sex tour operators most frequently extol Thailand and Brazil. In the pedophile category, Brazil, India, and Thailand lead the pack; Brazil alone has a half-million kids in the sex trade, according to the group ECPAT, whose full name describes its mission: End Child Prostitution, Child Pornography and the Trafficking of Children. Cuba, ECPAT said, has fewer underage kids in the sex trade than any country in the region.

U.S.-Cuban relations were already shaky. The response to the latest accusation: "It’s incredible—a big lie," said Lázaro Herrera, spokesman for the Cuban Interests Section in D.C.