§ 6044 TITLE 22—FOREIGN RELATIONS AND INTERCOURSE Page 1252

(Pub. L. 104–114, title I, §113, Mar. 12, 1996, 110

Stat. 803.)

§ 6044. News bureaus in Cuba

(a) Establishment of news bureaus

The President is authorized to establish and

implement an exchange of news bureaus between

the United States and Cuba, if the exchange

meets the following conditions:

(1) The exchange is fully reciprocal.

(2) The Cuban Government agrees not to

interfere with the establishment of news bureaus or with the movement in Cuba of journalists of any United States-based news organizations, including Radio Marti and Television Marti.

(3) The Cuban Government agrees not to

interfere with decisions of United States-based

news organizations with respect to individuals

assigned to work as journalists in their news

bureaus in Cuba.

(4) The Department of the Treasury is able

to ensure that only accredited journalists regularly employed with a news gathering organization travel to Cuba under this subsection.

(5) The Cuban Government agrees not to

interfere with the transmission of telecommunications signals of news bureaus or

with the distribution within Cuba of publications of any United States-based news organization that has a news bureau in Cuba.

(b) Assurance against espionage

In implementing this section, the President

shall take all necessary steps to ensure the safety and security of the United States against espionage by Cuban journalists it believes to be

working for the intelligence agencies of the

Cuban Government.

(c) Fully reciprocal

As used in subsection (a)(1) of this section, the

term ‘‘fully reciprocal’’ means that all news

services, news organizations, and broadcasting

services, including such services or organizations that receive financing, assistance, or other

support from a governmental or official source,

are permitted to establish and operate a news

bureau in the United States and Cuba.

(Pub. L. 104–114, title I, §114, Mar. 12, 1996, 110

Stat. 803.)

§ 6045. Effect of chapter on lawful United States

Government activities

Nothing in this chapter prohibits any lawfully

authorized investigative, protective, or intelligence activity of a law enforcement agency, or

of an intelligence agency, of the United States.

(Pub. L. 104–114, title I, §115, Mar. 12, 1996, 110

Stat. 803.)

REFERENCES IN TEXT

This chapter, referred to in text, was in the original

‘‘this Act’’, meaning Pub. L. 104–114, Mar. 12, 1996, 110

Stat. 785, known as the Cuban Liberty and Democratic

Solidarity (LIBERTAD) Act of 1996, which is classified

principally to this chapter. For complete classification

of this Act to the Code, see Short Title note set out

under section 6021 of this title and Tables.

§ 6046. Condemnation of Cuban attack on American aircraft

(a) Findings

The Congress makes the following findings:

(1) Brothers to the Rescue is a Miami-based

humanitarian organization engaged in searching for and aiding Cuban refugees in the

Straits of Florida, and was engaged in such a

mission on Saturday, February 24, 1996.

(2) The members of Brothers to the Rescue

were flying unarmed and defenseless planes in

a mission identical to hundreds they have

flown since 1991 and posed no threat whatsoever to the Cuban Government, the Cuban

military, or the Cuban people.

(3) Statements by the Cuban Government

that Brothers to the Rescue has engaged in covert operations, bombing campaigns, and commando operations against the Government of

Cuba have no basis in fact.

(4) The Brothers to the Rescue aircraft notified air traffic controllers as to their flight

plans, which would take them south of the

24th parallel and close to Cuban airspace.

(5) International law provides a nation with

airspace over the 12-mile territorial sea.

(6) The response of Fidel Castro’s dictatorship to Saturday’s afternoon flight was to

scramble 2 fighter jets from a Havana airfield.

(7) At approximately 3:24 p.m., the pilot of

one of the Cuban MiGs received permission

and proceeded to shoot down one Brothers to

the Rescue airplane more than 6 miles north

of the Cuban exclusion zone, or 18 miles from

the Cuban coast.

(8) Approximately 7 minutes later, the pilot

of the Cuban fighter jet received permission

and proceeded to shoot down the second Brothers to the Rescue airplane almost 18.5 miles

north of the Cuban exclusion zone, or 30.5

miles from the Cuban coast.

(9) The Cuban dictatorship, if it truly felt

threatened by the flight of these unarmed aircraft, could have and should have pursued

other peaceful options as required by international law.

(10) The response chosen by Fidel Castro, the

use of lethal force, was completely inappropriate to the situation presented to the Cuban

Government, making such actions a blatant

and barbaric violation of international law

and tantamount to cold-blooded murder.

(11) There were no survivors of the attack on

these aircraft, and the crew of a third aircraft

managed to escape this criminal attack by

Castro’s Air Force.

(12) The crew members of the destroyed

planes, Pablo Morales, Carlos Costa, Mario de

la Pena, and Armando Alejandre, were United

States citizens from Miami flying with Brothers to the Rescue on a voluntary basis.

(13) It is incumbent upon the United States

Government to protect the lives and livelihoods of United States citizens as well as the

rights of free passage and humanitarian missions.

(14) This premeditated act took place after a

week-long wave of repression by the Cuban

Government against Concilio Cubano, an umbrella organization of human rights activists,