American
Group Builds Playgrounds in Cuba
By VANESSA ARRINGTON, AP
Sep. 30, 2005
HAVANA (AP) -
A group of Americans has found a unique way to work in
Cuba despite tough U.S. restrictions on travel to the communist-run
island: building playgrounds for children.
Forty-nine volunteers led by San Diego real estate investor Bill Hauf
are spending the week digging holes and assembling modern park
equipment in four Havana neighborhoods.
But they aren't talking about politics, particularly the U.S. trade and
travel restrictions aimed at squeezing the communist-run island's
economy and pushing out President Fidel Castro.
"We have been very successful with this project because we have been
apolitical," Hauf said. "Both governments seem to understand this
program is to help children - in this case, they happen to be Cuban
children. Our objective is to not take political sides."
Hauf led his first group of American volunteers here two years ago to
help construct three playgrounds.
The Treasury Department grants Americans licenses to travel to Cuba for
humanitarian, religious and academic trips. The U.S. travel ban
prohibits all Americans from ordinary tourism in Cuba.
As the government has tightened those limits, the numbers of Americans
visiting has dropped. And those who do come seem increasingly reticent
to speak out against the decades-old U.S. policy.
The number of Americans coming to Cuba fell 40 percent from 85,809 in
2003 to 51,027 last year, according to a Cuban government report issued
this week in protest against U.S. sanctions. The numbers fell further
in 2005, the report said.
So-called "people-to-people" travel was encouraged under former
President Clinton to plant democratic ideals in Cuba. But President
Bush's administration has sought more stringent enforcement of the
restrictions forbidding most travel here.
The Bush government complains many American travelers and institutions
given U.S. licenses abuse them by engaging in "disguised tourism."
New U.S. rules purportedly aim to cut down on tourism under academic or
humanitarian pretenses and ensure Americans see more than white-sand
beaches and salsa concerts. Those coming without permission are being
fined in record numbers.
"We have to be extremely cautious and make sure that they really want
to come and work every day," Hauf said of the volunteers for the
playground-building trip. "So far, we've had 100 percent participation."
Americans in shorts and baseball caps set up brightly colored climbing
equipment on a recent scorching day in a corner park in a western
Havana neighborhood while passers-by peered through a metal fence.
"How lovely!" exclaimed 65-year-old Candidad Gallego, an umbrella
shading her from the sun's intense rays. "We are really happy with this
- my granddaughter can hardly wait to come."
The Americans came from more than a dozen states. A dance instructor
from Illinois and a retired military officer in Oregon were among them.
"Some of the buildings look really old, it's so different," Katie
Roberts, a 17-year-old from Arlington, Va., said of Havana. "But it's
good just to be outside the little bubble we live in. This is a lot
more rewarding than the beach."
The high school senior's father, Mike Roberts, said he was seeing a
different side of Cuba than the one presented by the U.S. government.
"We are so isolated from the Cubans," said the older Roberts, an
attorney who represents a shipping company with service to Cuba. "We
have impressions that tend to be distorted because of the rhetoric our
governments throw at people."
The group - It's Just the Kids, Inc. - was constructing four new
playgrounds on the weeklong trip ending Saturday. They can return to
Cuba in the spring to build four more under its two-year U.S. license.
As fewer
Americans travel to Cuba, one group finds formula that
sidesteps controversy: building playgrounds
By VANESSA
ARRINGTON, AP
Sep. 29, 2005
HAVANA (AP) - It's hard to avoid controversy when travel to Cuba is
involved, but the latest group of Americans visiting the island seems
to have found a decidedly agreeable formula: building playgrounds for
children.
Forty-nine volunteers led by San Diego real estate investor Bill Hauf
are spending the week digging holes and assembling modern park
equipment in four different Havana neighborhoods.
But they aren't talking about politics, including the U.S. trade and
travel restrictions aimed at squeezing the communist-run island's
economy and pushing out President Fidel Castro.
"We have been very successful with this project because we have been
apolitical," Hauf said. "Both governments seem to understand this
program is to help children - in this case, they happen to be Cuban
children. Our objective is to not take political sides."
As fewer Americans travel here because of tightened restrictions, those
who do come seem increasingly reticent to speak out against the
decades-old U.S. policy, fearful of threatening U.S. Treasury
Department licenses granted for humanitarian, religious and academic
trips.
The number of Americans coming to Cuba fell 40 percent from 85,809 in
2003 to 51,027 last year, according to a Cuban government report issued
this week in protest of U.S. sanctions. The numbers continued to
decline in 2005, the report said.
So-called "people-to-people" travel was encouraged under former U.S.
President Bill Clinton to plant democratic ideals in Cuba. But the
administration of U.S. President George W. Bush has sought more
stringent enforcement of provisions forbidding most travel here.
The Bush administration complains many American travelers and
institutions given U.S. licenses abuse them by engaging in "disguised
tourism." The U.S. travel ban prohibits all Americans from ordinary
tourism to Cuba.
New U.S. rules purportedly aim to cut down on tourism under academic or
humanitarian pretenses and ensure Americans see more than white-sand
beaches and salsa concerts. Those coming without permission are being
fined in record numbers.
"We have to be extremely cautious and make sure that they really want
to come and work every day," Hauf said of the volunteers for the
playground-building trip. "So far we've had 100 percent participation."
Americans in shorts and baseball caps set up brightly colored climbing
equipment on a recent scorching day in a corner park in a western
Havana neighborhood while passers-by peered through a metal fence.
"How lovely!" exclaimed 65-year-old Candidad Gallego, an umbrella
shading her from the sun's intense rays. "We are really happy with this
- my granddaughter can hardly wait to come."
The Americans hailed from more than a dozen states, ranging from a
dance instructor in Illinois to a retired military officer in Oregon.
"Some of the buildings look really old, it's so different," Katie
Roberts, a 17-year-old from Arlington, Virginia, said of Havana. "But
it's good just to be outside the little bubble we live in. This is a
lot more rewarding than the beach."
The high school senior's father, Mike Roberts, also appreciated the
firsthand look.
"We are so isolated from the Cubans," said the older Roberts, an
attorney who represents a shipping company with service to Cuba. "We
have impressions that tend to be distorted because of the rhetoric our
governments throw at people."
The group - It's Just the Kids, Inc. - was constructing four new
playgrounds on the weeklong trip ending Saturday, and can return to
Cuba in the spring to build four more under its two-year U.S. license.
Hauf, the organization's founder, was surprised by the condition of
swing sets and merry-go-rounds when he first visited Cuba in 1999. "I
saw 50-, 60-year-old equipment that was very much in disrepair, much of
it unusable," he said.
He led his first group of American volunteers here two years ago to
help construct three playgrounds.
"We take parks like this for granted in the United States," said Julie
Guinn-Bailey, who works in Milton, Pennsylvania, for the company
providing the new playhouses and climbing structures. "It's nice to
share the same quality equipment."
Cubans helped the Americans with transport, cement, and some labor.
"This is about solidarity," said Hector Valdes, an urban sites
inspector directing workers at one park. "When this is done, there's
going to be a hurricane of children."
Copyright 2005 The Associated Press.