Cuba sues USA

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Cuba claims $181bn damages from US
Financial Times, November 3, 1999

A Havana court upheld a $181.1bn claim against the US government lodged
by state-affiliated organisations for alleged aggression committed by the
US since the 1959 revolution.

The Popular Provincial Tribunal accepted the claim from several
State-affiliated agencies, including a children's organisation, on behalf
of 3,478 Cubans allegedly killed and 2,099 injured by US aggression over
the last 40 years. A 33-page document released by the court ordered the
US to pay damages and demanded a public apology.

However, US officials have largely ignored the case, with no US
representative attending the trial. The US neglected to respond to the
court summons and it is unlikely that Cuba will receive any damages, with
no US funds in Cuba that could be frozen or seized.

Fidel Castro, Cuban president, said last week that while Washington was
unlikely to make payment, nonetheless the case served as a reminder of
the four decades of aggression committed against his country. He said he
would continue to demand the compensation be paid.

The verdict had been widely expected and was seen as Cuba's response to
recent legal actions in the US. A federal judge in Miami ordered Cuba to
pay $187m to the families of three US citizens killed in 1996 when the
Cuban military shot down two private aircraft.

Evidence presented in the case included declassified CIA papers, used by
Cuba to detail alleged direct and indirect attacks since 1959.

"The accused US government did not ease off for one moment in using
terrorism against Cuba as state policy," the court's verdict said.