THE HUMAN TOLL OF MISGUIDED POLICY

By Guillermo J. Grenier, Ph.D. Professor of Sociology/Chair, Department of Global and Sociocultural Studies, Florida International University

A new rule by the U.S. Government went into effect on November 27 and it is unleashing a heavy toll on the people of Cuba. The policy will increase individual suffering and seeks to drive yet another wedge between families living on both sides of the Florida Straits.

On the eve of the Presidential Election, the U.S. Government issued a new rule regarding transfers of money from the U.S. to Cuba. The rule, published on October 27, provided 30 days for money transfer operators, including Western Union, to persuade the Cuban Government to appoint a new representative to receive money transfers.

The rule has been widely reported by media, including in this newspaper. Less reported is that it will shutter 407 Western Union locations on the island, effectively ceasing direct money transfers to the Cuban people.

The process of transferring money to Cuba is somewhat unique; for more than 20 years, the legal mechanism of money transfer flows primarily through one Cuban company. Secure remittances have been available through Western Union and a couple of smaller firms that established a logistical channel via the government agency FINCIMEX to move money between the two nations. The Trump Administration, as an attempt to throw red meat at conservative Cubans in Miami before the Presidential election, aggressively moved to cut off this remittance…