As of 2016, there were about 96,000 active Jehovah's Witnesses in Cuba (about 0.85% of the population).[26][27] From 1938 to 1947, the number of Jehovah's Witnesses in Cuba increased from about 100 to 4,000.[28] After World War II, membership in Cuba increased to 20,000,[28] and by 1989 there were approximately 30,000 members.[29] The movement was banned in Cuba in 1974,[29] and members have been imprisoned for their refusal of military service.[30] During the Mariel boatlift in 1980, about 3,000 Witnesses left Cuba.[29] In 1994, the Cuban government released representatives of the Watch Tower Society, and members were permitted to meet in groups of up to 150 at Kingdom Halls and other places for worship. A branch office of Jehovah's Witnesses, with a print shop, was opened in Havana in the same year. In 1998, Witnesses were permitted to meet at larger conventions in major cities in Cuba.