S. HRG. 101-1141 U.S. INTERNATIONAL DRUG POLICY- ALLEGATIONS OF INCREASED CUBAN INVOLVEMENT ININTERNATIONAL DRUG TRAFFICKING HEARING BEFORE THE CAUCUS ON INTERNATIONAL NARCOTICS CONTROL OF THE UNITED STATES SENATE ONE HUNDRED FIRST CONGRESS FIRST SESSION ON ALLEGATIONS OF INCREASED CUBAN INVOLVEMENT IN INTERNATIONAL DRUG TRAFFICKING AUGUST 11, 1989 COCONUT GROVE, FL Printed for the use of the Senate Caucus on International Narcotics Control U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 37-281 WASHINGTON : 1991 For salk by the Sup(rintendent of Documents, Congressional Sales Office Ul S Government Printing Office, Washington, DC 20I012 SENATE CAUCUS ON INTERNATIONAL NARCOTICS CONTROL [Created by Public Law 99-151] JOSEPH R. BIDEN, JR., Delaware, Chairman ALFONSE M. D'AMATO, New York, Cochairman DENNIS DECONCINI, Arizona FRANK H. MURKOWSKI, Alaska ALAN J. DIXON, Illinois PETE WILSON, California BOB GRAHAM, Florida (!I) CONTENTS STATEMENT OF COMMITTEE MEMBER Page Graham, Hon. Bob, U.S. Senator from the State of Florida (presiding) ............... 1 CHRONOLOGICAL LIST OF WITNESSES Panel consisting of Jaime Suchlicki, director, Institute of Interamerican Stud- ies, and professor of political economy and international relations, Universi- ty of Miami; Dr. Antonio Jorge, Florida International University economist, specialist on the Cuban economy; Dr. Juan M. Clark, sociologist, Miami- Dade Community College, specialist on Cuban human rights; Manuel De- Beunza, former Cuban counterintelligence officer; Jorge Mas Canosa, execu- tive director, Cuban American National Foundation .......................................... 3 Hon. Larry Smith, U.S. Congressman from the State of Florida ........................... 70 Panel consisting of Thomas V. Cash, Special Agent in Charge, Miami Field Division, Drug Enforcement Administration; Robert Asack, Deputy Assist- ant Commissioner, U.S. Customs Service; Rear Adm. Martin Daniell, Com- m ander, 7th Coast G uard D istrict ............................................................................. 138 ALPHABETICAL LIST AND MATERIAL SUBMITTED Asack, Robert: T estim on y .................................................................................................................. 149 P repared statem ent ................................................................................................. 151 Cash, Thomas V.: T estim on y .................................................................................................................. 138 P repared statem ent ................................................................................................. 140 Clark, Juan M.: Testim on y ................................................................................................................. 53 P repared statem ent ................................................................................................ 58 Newspaper article, "Castro Linked to 'Alarming' Cocaine Traffic?," by David Kraslqw, the Miami Herald, Sept. 22, 1963 ............................ 69 Daniell, Martin H.: I T estim on y .................................................................................................................. 156 P repared statem ent ................................................................................................. 160 DeBeunza, Manuel: Testim on y ................................................................................................................. 71 P repared statem ent ................................................................................................ 74 C ertificate of accuracy .....................................................................................98 Jorge, Antonio: Testimony .................................................. 26 P repared statem ent ............................................................................................... 30 Mass Canosa, Jorge: Testim on y .................................................................................................................. 99 Prepared statem en t ................................................................................................ 101 Statement on behalf of the Cuban American National Foundation before the House Foreign Affairs Committee Task Force on Inter- national Narcotics Control. July 25, 1989 ................................................ 114 Sm ith, H on. Larry: Testim ony ...................................................................................... 70 Suchlicki, Jaime: Testim o n y .................................................................................................................. 3 P repared sta te m en t ................................................................................................. 7 (II) U.S. INTERNATIONAL DRUG POLICY-ALLEGA- TIONS OF INCREASED CUBAN INVOLVEMENT IN INTERNATIONAL DRUG TRAFFICKING FRIDAY, AUGUST 11, 1989 U.S. SENATE, SENATE CAUCUS ON INTERNATIONAL NARCOTICS CONTROL, Coconut Grove, FL. The committee met, pursuant to notice, at 9:30 a.m., in the city of Miami Commission Chambers, 3500 Pan American Drive, Coco- nut Grove, FL, Hon. Bob Graham presiding. Also present: Congressman Larry Smith, who joined the hearing at a later time. OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. BOB GRAHAM, A U.S. SENATOR FROM THE STATE OF FLORIDA Senator GRAHAM. Good morning. I call to order the U.S. Senate Caucus on International Narcotics Control, the caucus established by statute with the responsibility of reviewing U.S. policy as it relates to the international prevention of drug trafficking. Today's hearing will focus on two issues. The first issue is the subject of the second panel, which will be the U.S. law enforcement response to the allegations of increased utilization of Cuba as a center for the transportation of drugs into the United States. That panel will include representatives of various U.S. law en- forcement agencies involved in the protection of our borders. The second issue will be for the first panel, which will attempt to discuss the context within Cuba out of which the allegations of ex- panded Cuban involvement in international drug trafficking is oc- curring. A caveat for both of the panels is that this is a very rapidly de- veloping issue. There may be some subjects which cannot be pur- sued to their conclusion because of the confidential nature of infor- mation involved. I am aware of some of those areas and will at- tempt to be sensitive in terms of questions to be asked. If there are questions which are inadvertently put that would raise such con- cerns, if you would please so indicate the committee will be under- standing. This is part of a series of hearings which are being held both in Washington and at field locations by the International Drug Caucus on the subject. This has also been the subject of hearings by other committees, including in the House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Commit- tee under the chairmanship of Congressman Dante Fascell under the subcommittee chaired by Congressman Larry Smith. Congress- man Smith will be joining us later this morning to participate in this hearing. Before turning to our first panel, I would like to make these in- troductory comments. The first panel will attempt to answer a series of questions. One of the most fundamental is, what did Fidel Castro know about the use of his country as a new center for drug trafficking, when did he know about it, and what actions were taken? The evidence that has been accumulated to date suggests that Fidel Castro knew a great deal about drug smuggling and that he knew it a long time ago. I personally remain extremely skeptical as to Castro's statements of overnight conversion into the hemi- sphere's tough guy on drug smuggling. If Castro was really inter- ested in fighting drug trafficking, he could have started a long time ago-perhaps as I9ng as 25 years ago. One of our witnTesses in the first panel, Dr. Clark, will be present- ing the Miami Herald article dated September 22, 1963, entitled "Castro Linked to 'Alarming' Cocaine Traffic". Regardless of Cas- tro's recent statements that he was ignorant of drug smuggling around him, the record indicates otherwise. Some examples from that record: Since the early 1960's, Castro has reportedly maintained close ties with the Colombian narcoterrorist group, M-19. In 1982, Thomas Enders, Assistant Secretary of State for Inter- American Affairs, testified before a Senate committee on Cuba's direct role in, "using the Colombian narcotics ring to funnel arms as well as funds to Colombian M-19 guerrillas". Also in 1982, a U.S. grand jury indicted four high-ranking Cuban Government officials on charges of smuggling drugs into the United States. Ironically, one of those named in that indictment, Adm. Aldo Santamaria, was one of the 47 officers who sat in judg- ment of Maj. Gen. Arnaldo Ochoa. As we know, General Ochoa was executed July 13, accused of drug trafficking and "betraying the revolution". Another of those indicted in 1982 was Cuba's current Anbassa- dor to Nicaragua, Fernando Ravelo Renedo. At the time, he was Cuba's Plenipotentiary Ambassador to Colombia. As serious as this indictment was, it was just the beginning. In 1983, the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Federal Bureau of Investigation reiterated Ender's testimony; both agencies said that Cuba helped narcotraffickers smuggle drugs in exchange for help smuggling arms to Latin American guerrilla groups. In 1988, a Southern District of Florida grand jury indicted five individuals as part of a conspiracy