Where Cubans Can Go Without a Visa

Yasmín S. Portales Machado

HAVANA TIMES — As of Wednesday we’re allowed to leave, but in Cuba we’re proceeding with caution in this matter.  Where will they accept us?  How much is our money and our resourcefulness worth?  Nothing is certain or made easy for us, since several consulates have already increased their requirements for issuing a visa.

One piece of information circulating widely at this very moment is the list of countries that don’t require this preliminary procedure.  The data is pertinent, although it remains to be seen how quickly it may change.  Ecuador has just announced that as of January 21 it will require a letter of invitation legalized by the Consulate in order to enter their territory.  All right, so we’re left with 34 other possible destinations!

And it’s not only about the visa.  You have to do some accounting: where are the prices lowest, the possibilities of employment best, the streets the calmest (it’s not about going to the Gaza Strip either).  In this XXIst century, emigrating is ever less an act of faith that “anywhere will be less miserable than where I am,”, and more a choice about where our acquired skills might yield the best results.

For that reason, I began to think about the laws and customs.  Few Cuban women, I imagine, would be interested in going to Saudi Arabia and be left without even the right to drive a car.  Few Cuban gays would be interested in Iran, where homosexuality is punishable by death.  Given that thought, it occurred to me to cross-reference the list of countries that (still) don’t require a visa with each one’s laws regarding homosexuality.  I believe that this data is useful for everyone, at least in order to know what to expect.

The list has been ordered by continents: