US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Tuesday imposed visa restrictions on unnamed Central American government officials with connections to Cuban medical mission programs that are accused of forced labor and exploitation of workers.
Rubio refused to name countries or officials targeted but highlighted the action as part of a larger effort to hold responsible those that enable abusive labor practices. “These actions encourage accountability for individuals who enable and tolerate these exploitative practices,” he said.
The visa restrictions are tied to Cuba’s long-running practice of exporting doctors and other health professionals overseas, which Rubio and American officials say amounts to coercion and denies Cuban citizens much-needed medical care. “The Cuban labor export program exploits the participants, lines the pockets of the corrupt Cuban regime, and denies average Cubans access to much-needed medical care that they desperately require in their own country,” Rubio added.
The Cuban government has repeatedly rejected such allegations, and its foreign ministry has yet to comment on the latest US move.
Last February, Rubio broadened visa prohibitions to cover Cuban officials suspected of engaging in the program, now a major source of income for the economically troubled island nation.
Since the 1959 revolution in Cuba, the nation has sent medical brigades all around the world, helping out in areas of conflict and responding to illnesses like cholera and Ebola. But in more recent years, the missions have become increasingly commercialized and revenue-driven deals with foreign governments, raising the ire of human rights groups and American policymakers.
Rubio, a Cuban-American and stalwart opponent of the Havana regime, has long been an opponent of normalizing US-Cuba ties. As leader, Washington rolled back efforts by the Biden administration to relax sanctions and enabled tougher measures on financial transactions with the island.
The recent visa moves confirm Rubio’s desire to take a hardline stance against Cuba and those who cooperate with its labor export program.
