Flotilla sets off for waters near Cuba
March 2, 1996
Web posted at: 10:00 a.m. ESTKEY WEST, Florida (CNN) -- With thunderstorms and rough seas predicted, a flotilla of boats set off for waters near Cuba early Saturday to honor four pilots shot down by Cuban jet fighters a week ago.
Escorted by U.S. Coast Guard cutters and backed by a heavy U.S. military presence, the flotilla of about 20 fishing boats organized by the anti-Castro group Democracy Movement, began departing at approximately 6:45 a.m..
The boats will rendezvous with about a dozen civilian planes for a memorial service at sea scheduled for approximately 3:30 p.m. The 250-300 flotilla participants plan to hold a prayer service and lay wreaths on the water approximately 20 miles northwest of Havana, near the site where Cuban MiG fighters shot down the planes.
Planes participating in the service, including those flown by members of Brothers to the Rescue, the group that sponsored last Saturday's ill-fated mission, will drop flowers on the water. U.S. military planes will provide security for the civilian planes. The military presence is also aimed at discouraging participants from straying into Cuban territory.
Cuban leaders said they will "act with the utmost restraint" and will take action to defend their territory only if the flotilla violates the security zone, an area anywhere from 12 to 20 miles outside of Cuba.
Flotilla leaders say they plan to stay well outside Cuba's security zone.
"Our intentions are non-violent. We will not go into Cuban territorial waters, and I pray that everything will turn out all right," said flotilla organizer Felipe Rojas.
President Clinton declared a national emergency to provide authority for Coast Guard cutters armed with mounted machine guns to defend the flotilla if necessary. The cutters are backed by three U.S. Navy warships.
A Pentagon official stressed the military preparations are "strictly a precautionary step. We don't expect any trouble with Cuba."
Choppy seas may hinder the progress of the flotilla, the third such demonstration organized by Democracy Movement in the last year.
Forecasters predicted thunderstorms and rough seas of up to 7 feet for waters between Florida and Cuba. A small-craft warning was issued for boats smaller than 30 feet. All but two of the boats in the flotilla are larger than 30 feet.
On Saturday evening, tens of thousands of members of Miami's large Cuban-exile community were expected to gather at the Orange Bowl stadium for a community memorial service. Organizers, who likened the event to a funeral service for the four pilots, discouraged participants from bringing political signs or planning demonstrations.
U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Madeleine Albright was to represent the Clinton Administration at the Orange Bowl memorial service.
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Reuters and AP contributed to this report.
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