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> Cuba is not stopping anyone from leaving That's a step in the right direction, if true. Do you have a source for it? This older article [0] says: President

> Cuba is not stopping anyone from leaving That's a step in the right direction, if true. Do you have a source for it? This older article [0] says: President Raul Castro said the regime will still decide who can renew or obtain passports. The government will protect "human capital" in its decision-making, and travel can be denied for "national security reasons." Those deemed necessary to the Cuba socialist revolution — professionals such as doctors, scientists and engineers — can be prevented from departing. The "national security" clause worries some opposition figures. [0] https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2012/11/11/cuba-exit-visas/1694569/ https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2012/11/11/cuba-ex...

toomuchtodo 5y ago
It also appears that a Cuban passport is ~5 months of salary for a Cuban, which is a limiting factor in expatriating. I would be curious what a crowdsourced effort to fund passports and travel out of Cuba does to the government's posture and position on Cuban's leaving the country.
- sudosysgen 5y ago
  It would probably end similar to the Mariel Boatlift : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mariel_boatlift https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mariel_boatlift
  - toomuchtodo 5y ago
    TIL, thanks for the link.
sudosysgen 5y ago
Yes, that is it. It is certainly not perfect yet, but controls on who can obtain passports are sadly the norm in the entire world. And indeed the price of the plane ticket stays the most significant hurdle.
- alentist 5y ago
  > It is certainly not perfect That's an understatement. > controls on who can obtain passports are sadly the norm in the entire world These restrictions are far from "the norm in the entire world".
  - sudosysgen 5y ago
    Actually, not granting passports to people that are in dire need economically is fairly common, South Korea does it for example and so do a few African countries. Crucially it's not as bad as the previous system because you know of this complication before you make the choice of studying for these professions. It really sucks, but sadly it's more common than it should be.
    - alentist 5y ago
      > fairly common, South Korea does it for example and so do a few African countries Source? To prevent goalpost-moving, the restrictions we're referring to are: The government will protect "human capital" in its decision-making, and travel can be denied for "national security reasons." Those deemed necessary to the Cuba socialist revolution — professionals such as doctors, scientists and engineers — can be prevented from departing.

toomuchtodo 5y ago

It also appears that a Cuban passport is ~5 months of salary for a Cuban, which is a limiting factor in expatriating. I would be curious what a crowdsourced effort to fund passports and travel out of Cuba does to the government's posture and position on Cuban's leaving the country.

sudosysgen 5y ago
It would probably end similar to the Mariel Boatlift : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mariel_boatlift https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mariel_boatlift
- toomuchtodo 5y ago
  TIL, thanks for the link.

sudosysgen 5y ago

Yes, that is it. It is certainly not perfect yet, but controls on who can obtain passports are sadly the norm in the entire world. And indeed the price of the plane ticket stays the most significant hurdle.

alentist 5y ago
> It is certainly not perfect That's an understatement. > controls on who can obtain passports are sadly the norm in the entire world These restrictions are far from "the norm in the entire world".
- sudosysgen 5y ago
  Actually, not granting passports to people that are in dire need economically is fairly common, South Korea does it for example and so do a few African countries. Crucially it's not as bad as the previous system because you know of this complication before you make the choice of studying for these professions. It really sucks, but sadly it's more common than it should be.
  - alentist 5y ago
    > fairly common, South Korea does it for example and so do a few African countries Source? To prevent goalpost-moving, the restrictions we're referring to are: The government will protect "human capital" in its decision-making, and travel can be denied for "national security reasons." Those deemed necessary to the Cuba socialist revolution — professionals such as doctors, scientists and engineers — can be prevented from departing.