• Richard M. Copland, president of the American Society of Travel
                   Agents (ASTA), advocates eliminating ban on travel to Cuba

                   BY LUIS MARINA FORNIELES SÁNCHEZ (Special for Granma International)

                   GIVEN his firsthand experience and 30 years in tourism, Richard M.
                   Copland, president of the American Society of Travel Agents (ASTA),
                   did not hesitate for a second to declare that the progress of that
                   industry in Cuba is steady and healthy.

                   After a five-day visit to the island, Copland praised the Cuban tourist
                   product, which he summarized as culture, history and natural beauty.
                   He also took the opportunity to congratulate the country for its
                   environmental policy, a highly important aspect and one much valued
                   by his association.

                   Arriving from New York, the expert expressed great satisfaction with
                   his visits to the tourist areas of Havana, Varadero, Cayo Largo, Cayo
                   Coco and Cayo Guillermo.

                   He also acknowledged to the press the unique opportunity he was
                   given to converse for four hours with President Fidel Castro, whom
                   he thanked for his generosity in reserving a space for himself and
                   other ASTA executives in the midst of so many obligations. He
                   affirmed that the president was one of the most courteous and
                   pleasant men he had met in his life. The head of that international
                   organization, based in Washington DC and consisting of 26,000
                   travel agents and those working in other sectors of the industry in
                   170 nations — 18,000 of them in the United States — likewise
                   confirmed his optimism about the future of tourism in Cuba, which he
                   termed an excellent destination that speaks for itself.

                   Asked in his meeting with the press about the current restrictions on
                   travel from the United States to the island, Copland affirmed that he
                   believes in the freedom to travel wherever one wishes, and for that
                   reason his association supports those seeking to eliminate such
                   barriers.

                   In that context, he estimated that once the travel ban is lifted, one
                   million U.S. citizens would travel to Cuba in the first year, rising to
                   five million within five years. Acknowledging that with the brevity of
                   his visit he had only been able to see a small part of this fantastic
                   destination, including 15 of the 22 hotels operated by the Spanish
                   group Sol Meliá, he acknowledged its wise selection of this territory
                   more than 10 years ago.

                   Richard M. Copland talked of the highly positive information he had
                   received on this first visit to the island, which had completely
                   transformed his former impressions. He noted that he would
                   transmit these opinions to the 5,000 delegates at ASTA’s next world
                   congress, scheduled for Hawaii in November. Mentioning that event
                   reminded him that in 1959, the travel agents’ society held its annual
                   meeting in Havana.

                   In his farewell words, the ASTA president described tourism as a
                   factor in promoting peace and understanding, and a positive element
                   for all the countries involved, as in the case of Cuba.