Why "balseros" should not be sent back

El Confeti has a great post on the persecution (physical and emotional) that dissidents are subjected to in Cuba. It doesn't get any more cruel than this. And people still wonder if Cubans are refugees or not. This is political persecution plain and simple.

Here is a story from CubaNet, which in simple terms explains the life of a rafter who had the misfortune to arrive at Mexico, only to be deported back to Cuba. And how now he is being persecuted for it. This is one of the reasons why Cubans are considered refugees and not immigrants. Because when they go back home they face oppression in many ways, from the military police to the comités de barrio; they are persecuted, stripped of their rights, constantly afraid of being monitored and threatened with imprisonment. No other Latino immigrant suffers this unless they have fled in fear for their life, in which case USA grants them political asylum. The short story is here.