The use of a port confiscated by the Fidel Castro regime in 1960 can cost four cruise companies dearly. A Miami judge ruled on Friday that Norwegian Cruise Lines must pay 110 million dollars (just over 100 million euros) to the American firm Havana Docks Corporation for having used the facilities that belonged to it before Cuba nationalized them. And it will not be the only victim: Carnival, MSC and Royal Caribbean, also with its headquarters in Florida, face the payment of similar amounts, which could raise the bill to a joint total of 400 million dollars, according to the newspaper. miami herald.
In the absence of knowing if the judicial resources of the shipping companies prosper, the case sets a dangerous precedent for those companies that have made a fortune using properties seized by Cuba. The Donald Trump Administration removed in 2019 the suspension, renewed for six months, of article III of the Helms-Burton Act, which allowed US companies to file claims in court related to the expropriation of assets during the 1959 Castroite revolution in Cuba, as Havana Docks has done.
Some estimates say that the four cruise companies obtained income of around 1,000 million euros for using the port. The cruise lines argue that their activity was legal at all times because they had authorizations and licenses granted by the US Government, but Judge Beth Bloom, who has now sentenced the cruise companies to pay, already pointed out in March that that argument might not be enough. “The fact that [el Departamento del Tesoro] issue licenses to travel to Cuba, and the executive branch, including the president, encourage defendants to do so, does not automatically exempt defendants from liability if they engaged in tourism prohibited by law,” he wrote.
According to data from the US-Cuba Economic and Trade Council cited by Reutersthere are 5,913 certified claims for the assets seized in Cuba, for a value of some 2,000 million dollars (1,870 million euros), and there are 44 active lawsuits under the protection of the Helms-Burton Law.
The Spanish hoteliers, in the spotlight
When Trump opened the door to sanctions in 2019, many Spanish multinationals present in Cuba held their breath fearing an avalanche of legal disputes. Spain is the country with the most joint ventures (arising from collaboration with Cuban companies) and the most branches established on the island, with a notable presence in tourism —particularly in the hotel industry— and services. So far, there have been no serious consequences, but there are cases underway that could affect them soon.
The clearest is the one related to the Iberostar chain. A US court ruled in November that a lawsuit against the Palma de Mallorca-based hotel company can go ahead. The complaint was filed in January 2020 by María Dolores Canto Marí, who alleges that in 1961 Cuba took over the El Imperial hotel, owned by her family since 1909, as well as the land where it stands in the city of Santiago de Cuba. Iberostar has managed it since 1996, now renamed Cubanacan Imperial. The Spanish company tried to paralyze the judicial process based on a European regulation that would protect it against the Helms-Burton, and for three years it succeeded, but the North American justice has reactivated that front. Other large companies in the sector, such as NH and Meliá, also received complaints, although the low number of those that have gone ahead with their judicial journey has been a relief for the tourism industry.
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