Title	Cuba : Repression, the Exodus of August 1994, and the U.S. Response
Publisher	Human Rights Watch
Publication Date	2 October 1994
Country	Cuba | United States of America
Topics	Opposition | Persecution based on political opinion | Unlawful departure
Citation / Document Symbol	B612
Cite as	Human Rights Watch, Cuba : Repression, the Exodus of August 1994, and the U.S. Response, 2 October 1994, B612, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/45cb38ee2b9b.html [accessed 21 May 2023]
Comments	In early August 1994, hundreds of Cubans began leaving their country by boat, heading north toward the United States ninety miles away. Initially, the drama of these perilous journeys was localized, and the influx was treated as just a South Florida news story. The flow of Cubans had rapidly become an exodus, and their story of danger and desperation an international news event. For the U.S. government, the rafters were both a domestic political issue and a crisis that could shape the future of U.S.-Cuban relations.
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