A Miami federal judge has accused four major cruise companies of violating US blockade against Cuba, codified in the Helms-Burton Act, by carrying passengers to Cuba and profiting from the use of Havana port facilities.
Miami Judge Beth Bloom considered that the cruise companies Carnival, MSC SA, Royal Caribbean and Norwegian Cruise Line engaged in “prohibited tourism” and “trafficking activities” by using the Cuban Cruise Terminal and one of its piers in various ways, the Sun Sentinel newspaper reported.
According to the judicial text, these cruise corporations benefited between 2015 and 2019 from using Cuban port facilities, nationalized following the Revolution Triumph in 1959.
Such a ruling would mean a change of position by Justice Bloom herself, who in January 2020 issued a ruling in which she dismissed a similar claim by the Havana Docks Corporation, which now claims rights to the Havana cruise terminal.
Havana Docks said this facility was its property and, therefore, believes that its use by US cruise companies violates Title III of the Helms Burton Act, activated by former President Donald Trump in 2019.
The accused cruise companies, on the other hand, argued their trips to Cuba were covered by the guidelines set up by the Treasury Department under the Barack Obama administration (2009-2017).
The case will continue as of May 2022 in a trial that will rule whether financial compensation to plaintiffs is or not necessary.
On April 2, 2019, legal proceedings were initiated under the Helms-Burton Act and as of July 31, 2021, a total of 39 lawsuits had been filed, five of which were withdrawn and 34 remained in progress.
Helms-Burton Act has affected entities from the United States and third countries that did or do business with Cuba, as well as domestic companies, which are currently working to revive tourism in Cuba, which has been hit hard by Covid-19 since 2020.
Source: PL.
