The job of the four murdered was to throw bottles of water and some food, while they notified the United States Coast Guard to rescue the refugees.
Nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize, the Brothers to the Rescueunder the direction of José Basulto, made dozens of similar flights over the turbulent waters of the strait.
In this way, thousands of lives were saved from falling into the depths of the sea or perishing in the mouths of sharks.
They were two Americans born to exiled Cuban parents, a Cuban who grew up in Miami and another who came to the United States as a rafter: Carlos Costa, 29, Mario Manuel de la Peña, 24; Armando Alejandre Jr., 45, and Pablo Morales, 29, fell into the sea, pulverized, along with the remains of the small twin-engine Cessna planes.
Tests
The Cuban Government alleged that the small aircraft had violated the airspace and dropped anti-government leaflets in Havana a few days before, but the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) disqualified the argument and assured that the Cuban Air Force Cuba was ordered “to intercept subsequent flights and shoot them down, whether or not they had entered Cuban airspace.”
As revealed in the audio presented, the Hermanos al Rescate planes were flying over the Strait of Florida north of the 24th parallel, which marks the limit of Cuban territorial waters, when two Cuban war planes, a MiG-29 and a MiG-23 , were ordered to confront and shoot down the small planes.
The shootdown was coincidentally witnessed from the cruise ship Majesty of the Seas and the American fishing boat Tri-Liner, as well as from the third plane of Hermanos al Rescate, commanded by Basulto, which managed to escape the attack.
The small aircraft were even close to the fishing boat, which then denoted a registered position nine miles north of Cuban maritime territory.
Furthermore, the investigative report showed that the crew members of the small aircraft were neither contacted nor warned, as indicated by the basic principle of international maritime law, promulgated by the ICAO.
The downing of the planes was condemned by several countries and international organizations. Even the National United Security Council deplored the fact, with the expected abstention of China and Russia.
The resolution stated that the downing of the two small planes constituted a violation of the principle of not using weapons against civil aircraft in flight and that, by intercepting said aircraft, the lives of the people on board should not be in danger.
According to the files, condolences were expressed to the families of the four murdered people, while all parties involved were called to respect international civil aviation, laws and procedures.
ICAO’s decision to investigate standards and practices to prevent a similar incident was also welcomed.
Reactions
In Miami, the Cuban exile closed ranks under the voice of Jorge Mas Canosa: “That two fighter planes of the Government of (Fidel) Castro shoot down two unarmed civilian planes with American flags on a humanitarian mission should be considered an act of war against the United States.” “said the co-founder and then leader of the Cuban American National Foundation.
At that time, President Bill Clinton (1993-2001) led the United States Government, and although his administration took the matter to the United Nations, in the voice of the then Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, and sanctions were issued, the The matter practically ended with the imposition of international diplomatic patience.
There are those who believe that there was no political will to take the matter to greater consequences.
“We can say that the United States Government did not have the political will to do justice. They chose to cope with the situation as best as possible so as not to harm international relations. They preferred to approach the case as a problem of international law, and that was it,” said Maggie Alejandre Khuly, Armando’s sister, during an interview with DIARIO LAS AMÉRICAS a few years later.
In fact, Miriam de la Peña, Mario’s mother, pointed out that during the presidency of George W. Bush there was a certain willingness to carry out “a fair judicial process.”
De la Peña recalled that they achieved a conviction for the downing of the small planes within the Human Rights Commission of the United Nations, as well as a guilty verdict in a civil trial against the Government of Cuba.
Then, the Cuban Gerardo Hernández, leader of the Wasp Network of Cuban espionage in the United States, was convicted of conspiring to materialize the downing of the small planes.
However, Hernández, who was sentenced to two life sentences, along with four other members of the spy network, obtained a pardon from President Barack Obama as part of the process that would reestablish diplomatic relations with Cuba in 2014.
Guilty
Fidel Castro publicly took responsibility for the incident, but he could never be fully judged by international organizations.
“The general who gave the order, Rubén Martínez Puente, had an order to be tried in the United States, but he also died,” Mario’s mother recalled.
On the other hand, the military pilot Luis Francisco Pérez Pérez, who was chosen to shoot at the small planes and for whom an arrest warrant and judicial process were being considered in the United States, also died in Cuba last year.
Official reports claim that Raúl Castro, who was then Minister of the Armed Forces, issued the fateful order. He still lives and resides in Cuba.
Today, 28 years after the horrible event that shook much of the Western world, the relatives of Armando, Carlos, Mario and Pablo reinforce their desire to judge those who participated in the consummation of the events.
“There will be justice. Someday an international court will hear the case and there will be justice,” De la Peña highlighted.
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