Relatives cling to hope of missing kin in Bahamas

IMMIGRATION
Relatives cling to hope of missing kin in Bahamas
Some 40 migrants who disappeared on their way to Miami may not have
perished at sea, relatives said. They believe their loves ones are being
detained in the Bahamas.
By LUISA YANEZ
lyanez@MiamiHerald.com

Relatives of some 40 Cuban migrants who vanished in the Florida Straits
two months ago said Wednesday they believe their loved ones are alive
and being secretly detained in the Bahamas.

''We have no concrete evidence right now, but we hope to in the next few
days,'' said Mario Galbán, whose brother, his wife, and two kids are
among the missing. ``We know they have a new detention center there
where they hide Cuban migrants and we have reports they might be there.''

They also said cooperation between Cuba and the Bahamas is growing when
it comes to migrants.

Bahamian officials could not be reached to confirm the group's
allegations Wednesday night, but U.S. Coast Guard officials previously
said that they had checked with officials in the Bahamas and Mexico,
where Cuban migrants also regularly land, and the group of 40 was not
detained in either country.

The relatives would not say who was the source of their reports.

That person wants to remain secret for now, the relatives said at a
press conference at the office of the Democracy Movement, a group headed
by exile activist Ramón Saúl Sánchez.

Galbán and other relatives are asking anyone with information to contact
them.

The Coast Guard believes it was a smuggling operation. The 40 Cubans --
all from Matanzas province -- left Cuba before dawn on Nov. 23 in a
32-foot Wellcraft.

At around 11 a.m., some of the migrants made a call to relatives in
Miami, saying they were near Cay Sal, off the southernmost Bahamas.

They indicated the boat captain would wait for darkness to avoid the
Coast Guard. The weather, they said, was fine, although some on board
were seasick.

What happened next remains a mystery. First believing the group had been
interdicted at sea and sent back to Cuba, Miami relatives did not report
them missing for 12 days.

No trace of the Wellcraft has been found; nor the 21 life-jackets said
to be on board along with a large cooler.

To the families, that's a sign of life.

''Something would have been found floating by now if their boat had
capsized,'' said Lazaro Martinez, whose wife and young child are missing.

Luis Bazán, whose wife and two young sons are missing, chartered a
private plane to fly over Cay Sal last month, but no one was spotted.

Several relatives say strangers have called, hinting the group is being
held -- but the callers offer no concrete information.

Although relatives have not confirmed this was a smuggling mission, paid
for by them, Bazán was asked what advice he would give to others
thinking of bringing relatives from Cuba to the United States in go-fast
boats.

''Don't do it,'' he said.

Anyone with information about the missing Cuban migrants can call Mario
Galbán at 305-546-1398.

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