TIGblogs TIG | TIGblogs GROUP TIGBLOGS LOGIN SIGNUP
Bahamas Blog International
Bahamas Blog International
Documents show Robert Kennedy tried to lift Cuba travel ban
Translations available in: English (original) | French | Spanish | Italian | German | Portuguese | Swedish | Russian | Dutch | Arabic

WASHINGTON, USA (AFP) -- One month after president John F Kennedy was assassinated in 1963, his brother, attorney general Robert Kennedy, tried to convince the US government to lift its travel ban to Cuba, according to documents released Thursday by the National Security Archive.

Freedom to travel to Cuba, Kennedy wrote in a memo to then secretary of state Dean Rusk in December 1963, "is more consistent with our views as a free society and would contrast with such things as the Berlin Wall and Communist controls on such travel."

President Dwight Eisenhower broke diplomatic relations and imposed the travel ban on Cuba in January 1960, only days ahead of John F. Kennedy's inauguration as the 35th US president.

President Kennedy was subsequently assassinated on November 22, 1963 in Dallas, Texas.

"It is going to be extremely difficult, under the best of conditions, to prevent travel to Cuba and this problem is likely to be increasingly embarrassing to us," Robert Kennedy wrote in a memorandum.

He was alluding to several leftist US university student groups who at the time had announced their intention to violate the travel ban and visit Cuba.

"There would be less travel to Cuba if restrictions were removed than there will be if they are maintained," Kennedy said.

As a means of controlling travel by activists to Cuba, Kennedy suggested creating a special passport to be used only with Cuba. The idea was supported by some State Department officials, but was ultimately rejected.

The travel ban remained in effect until president Jimmy Carter refused to extend in 1977, but was reinstated under president Ronald Reagan in 1981.

President Barack Obama on April 13 lifted all travel restrictions for Cuban-Americans with relatives in Cuba.

Robert Kennedy was attorney general from 1961-1964, then served as New York senator until his assassination in June 1968, when he was campaigning for the Democratic Party presidential nomination in California.

The National Security Archives is a Washington-based non-governmental research group that collects and publishes declassified documents acquired through the Freedom of Information Act.

April 24, 2009

caribbeannetnews

April 24, 2009 | 6:36 PM Comments  0 comments

You must be logged in to add tags.


Dennis Dames's Profile


Latest Posts
Rastafari: Ja's...
Caribbean countries...
Jamaica: The gay...
Gambling and human...
Gorbachev Russia’s...

Monthly Archive
December 1969
October 2005
November 2005
December 2005
January 2006
February 2006
March 2006
April 2006
May 2006
June 2006
July 2006
August 2006
September 2006
October 2006
November 2006
December 2006
January 2007
February 2007
March 2007
April 2007
May 2007
June 2007
July 2007
August 2007
September 2007
October 2007
November 2007
December 2007
January 2008
February 2008
March 2008
April 2008
May 2008
June 2008
July 2008
August 2008
September 2008
October 2008
November 2008
December 2008
January 2009
February 2009
March 2009
April 2009
May 2009
June 2009
July 2009
August 2009
September 2009
October 2009
November 2009
December 2009
January 2010
February 2010
March 2010
April 2010
May 2010
June 2010
July 2010
August 2010
September 2010
October 2010
November 2010
December 2010
January 2011
February 2011
March 2011
April 2011
May 2011
June 2011
July 2011
August 2011
September 2011
October 2011
November 2011
December 2011
January 2012
February 2012

Change Language


Tags Archive
america american bahamas barack caribbean crime crisis cuba cuban democracy development economic economy financial global health history ict4d individualeconomy international investment obama people political revolution trade war washington world

Links
A+ Links Int'l
Affiliate Marketplace
Bahamas Dames
Bahamas Political Blog
Bahamas Search
Bahamian Phone Cards
Blog Directory
Blog Directory
Blogadr
BlogExplosion
Caribbean Blog International
Cheap Int'l Calling Cards
Crooks Blog
DAD's Matchmaking Online
Dating Network
Dennis Dames Hotels...
Dennis Dames Online...
Dennis Dames Pages Online
Free Paid Web Directory
LS Blogs
Politics Blogs
Top Web Blogs
Vote For Me
Woo Love Poems Menu


2495490 views
Important Disclaimer