CHICAGO
At a momentous moment in Cuban history -- with long-time strongman Fidel Castro in a sickbed and transferring his power to his brother -- foreign journalists are being shut out of the Communist island.Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa reported Thursday that more than 150 foreign journalists trying to enter Cuba with tourist visas have been turned away at the Havana airport since the government announced Castro had internal bleeding and faced "complicated surgery."
Journalists need a work visa to work legally in Cuba, and a spokesman of the government-controlled International Press Center told dpa there would be no exceptions.
"Across the whole world there is currently great interest (in Cuba), but nowhere on the planet can a journalist report with a tourist visa," the agency quoted an unnamed press center representative as saying.
The representative told the agency that no journalists have been expelled from the country, and none are being denied information. Castro, however, in a statement issued in his name Tuesday said that information about his health is a "state secret" that could be exploited by the enemy U.S. government.
The New York City-based Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) urged Cuba to let foreign journalists into the country.
"We call on Cuban authorities to let journalists do their work without harassment or obstruction," Americas program coordinator Carlos Lauria said in a statement. "It is critical that foreign journalists be allowed into Cuba to report the news on the handover of power by Castro, a story of global importance. We are also troubled by reports that Cuba is denying requests for journalists' visas."