Cubans frantic to migrate despite new hurdles

STORY: Protests like this reflect growing tension and frustration in Cuba...

As a flood of people trying to leave the country face new travel blocks.

(SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) CUBAN CITIZEN, BRAY PEREZ, SAYING:

"Every time I come to my village, ten people have left. Relatives, friends, neighbors. It's hard to get up in the morning and find that you're not going to see them anymore."

It all started when Nicaragua lifted visa requirements for Cuba in November.

Many dropped everything - sold their homes - and raced to Havana's airport...

All in hopes of joining the so-called 'migrant highway' through Central America to the United States.

But that in turn led to soaring airfares,

Along with fresh visa requirements in travel hubs like Colombia, Panama and Costa Rica.

Jorge Duany is a migration expert with Florida International University.

(SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) DIRECTOR OF THE CUBAN RESEARCH INSTITUTE AND PROFESSOR OF ANTHROPOLOGY AT FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY, JORGE DUANY, SAYING:

"We see a very precarious situation for most of the Cuban population. Thousands of these people surely have no other way out of this economic crisis than to leave the country. So they seek different ways, for example, by traveling to Russia to eventually cross the border into Europe."

Cuba has blamed the United States for the uptick in illegal immigration -

Saying the country's policies - including the Cold-War era embargo -

encourages Cubans to risk their lives to leave the island.

Darinel Perez is among those who made the journey.

(SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) CUBAN MIGRANT, DARINEL PEREZ, SAYING:

"There were only Cubans in the buses coming from Nicaragua, Honduras, and Guatemala. They are many, thousands of migrants who are leaving. At present, the greatest dream of the Cuban youth is to leave Cuba."

More than 16,000 Cubans were apprehended at the border in February – a monthly record – according to U.S. figures.