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Published in the Spokesman-Review on February 17, 2002

Thanks to a longtime trade embargo, the U.S. Government still bans most travel to Cuba.  Americans who plan to perform humanitarian, religious, or educational activities, among other exceptions, can receive licenses to visit the Caribbean island.

An Inland Northwest company can now help arrange travel to the island.  Travel Management, Inc., which recently moved into a new building off Interstate 90 in Post Falls, has received authorization from the Treasury Department to send travelers to Cuba.

Only one other Northwest travel agency-out of Kirkland, WA-is listed by the Treasury Department as an approved company.

“It took us years to get this approval,” said TMI operations manager Vicky Johnson.  “You’ve got to go through a lot of government hoops to do it.”

Since last month, TMI has arranged for some 50 people to head to Cuba.  Most have been delivering medical supplies, while other have gone on educational and religious missions.

The U.S. Government allows those missions in order to achieve broader goals.  American policy on Cuba is to promote a peaceful transition to a democracy by maintaining the embargo, providing humanitarian assistance and boosting the development of society.

Details on Cuba travel restrictions are available on the Web at www.treas.gov/ofac and www.state.gov.www/regions/wha/cuba/index.html.  Or contact the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control at (202) 622-2620.

To contact Rhonda Sand at TMI, call (800) 975-7775.

Rhonda Sand