US House votes to overturn Cuba parcel rules
(Agencies)
Updated: 2004-07-08 11:10

The U.S. House of Representatives on Wednesday voted in favor of overturning new Bush Administration rules banning items including clothing, seeds and soap from being sent in parcels to Cuba.

Last month the U.S. Department of Commerce issued new rules on parcel contents after an interagency report recommended them as a way to hasten the demise of the Communist government in Cuba by denying the island of much-needed cash and resources.

Food, medicines, medical supplies and receive-only radios are still allowed but other items such as veterinary medicines and fishing equipment were banned.

The House voted 221 to 194 to approve the amendment to a $40 billion bill funding the Departments of State, Justice and Commerce for 2005.

Cuban President Fidel Castro gestures during a speech Monday June 21,2004 during a demonstration in front of the US Interests Section in Havana, Cuba [AP]

Supporters argued that Cuban Americans were being punished by the rules, which they said will do little to bring down Cuban President Fidel Castro.

"Let's allow Cuban Americans to observe the freedom they have to send food, medicine and hygiene items to their people in Cuba," said Rep. Jeff Flake, an Arizona Republican who authored the amendment.

Opponents of the measure said lifting the restrictions would help Castro by bringing much needed funds into the country. "The best thing we can do right now is continue the pressure on Castro until he's gone," said Rep. Dana Rohrabacher, a Republican from California.

Castro told cheering supporters last month the measures were "pitiless and inhumane" and politically motivated ahead of November U.S. elections to placate the powerful Cuban American lobby in Florida, a state President Bush won by just 537 votes in 2000.

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