The World - News from March 12, 1989

Twenty-three people drowned as a Haitian boat headed for the United States capsized off the coast of Cuba, Prensa Latina news agency reported in Havana. The Cuban agency said that the vessel was carrying 166 when it left Haiti but that many survived the wreck because of the fast response of police and frontier guard rescuers. There was no immediate word on the cause of the capsize. Each year, dozens of U.S.-bound Haitians in small boats land on the Cuban coast because of motor problems, leaks or heavy seas. The policy of the Cuban government is to give them food and medical care, repair their boats if possible and send them back to Haiti.