Cuban Plane Crash Survivors Allowed to Stay

ByABC News
September 21, 2000, 1:52 AM

Sept. 21 -- Nine Cubans who survived when their plane crashed into waters off the Florida coast appear to be on the path to permanent residency in the United States.

Just hours after being ferried to U.S. soil for medical assessments, six of the survivors were escorted today to the Krome Detention Center in Miami, where they were interviewed by the Immigration and Naturalization Service.

As for the other three, Rodolfo Fuentes, 36, and his wife Liliana Ponzoa remain in a Key West hospital, according to relatives. Their 6-year-old son visited a local mall with his grandparents (see sidebar, below).

A 10th person was killed in the crash.

The survivors can expect to remain in the United States after their initial interview, the INS said. Most likely what will happen barring any criminal record is that they will be paroled, said agency spokeswoman Maria Cardona.

The 1966 U.S.-Cuban Adjustment Act allows Cubans who reach American soil the right to petition for asylum and testify at a hearing without being subjected to a credible fear test that political asylum seekers from countries other than Cuba must undergo under U.S. immigration regulations.

The Cuban government claims the Soviet-era plane was stolen when it took off Tuesday from a remote airfield in Cuba. Relatives of the crash survivors say they escaped to seek asylum in the United States. Cuban authorities had originally called the incident a hijacking, but the FBI concluded today the flight was not, eliminating a threat of criminal prosecution.

Now that the Cubans are on American soil, they can apply for residency within a year after they are paroled.

A Medical Decision

There had been a question mark over whether the Cubans would be allowed to stay. The case in many ways seemed reminiscent ot the tug of war over Elian Gonzalez, the 6-year-old Cuban castaway who became the focus of a custody battle between his relatives in Miami and his father in Cuba.