>Via NY Transfer News * All the News That Doesn't Fit > >Radio Havana Cuba - News Update - 16 June 2000 01:00 > > >*THE LEGAL MANEUVERS CONTINUE: KIDNAPPERS APPEAL TO ATLANTA... AGAIN >*"KIDNAPPERS WILL STOP AT NOTHING TO PREVENT ELIAN'S RETURN" -- ALARCON >*UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT BEGINS OFFICIAL VISIT TO CUBA >*PRESIDENT OF AUTONOMOUS REGION OF MURCIA MEETS WITH CUBAN OFFICIALS >*COMMEMORATIVE STAMP ISSUED IN CUBA TO HONOR CHE GUEVARA >*14TH BOLEROS DE ORO FESTIVAL TO BE HELD IN EASTERN CAMAGUEY PROVINCE >*IBERO AMERICAN SINGERS JOIN IN MUSIC FOR SOLIDARITY >*FIRST CARIBBEAN GASTRONOMY FESTIVAL TO BE HELD IN SANTIAGO DE CUBA >*NEW BOOK ON GUANTANAMO SHEDS LIGHT ON THE HISTORIC US-CUBA DIFFERENCES >*US EXECUTIVES ONCE AGAIN LOBBY FOR FOOD & MEDICINE SALES TO CUBA >*Viewpoint: FUTURE OF THE CUBAN REVOLUTION GUARANTEED > > >*THE LEGAL MANEUVERS CONTINUE: KIDNAPPERS APPEAL TO ATLANTA... AGAIN > >Atlanta, June 15 (RHC)-- Attorneys for the Miami kidnappers of six-year-old >Elian Gonzalez have appealed their case to the full Atlanta Court of >Appeals. The appeal -- to review an earlier three-judge decision rejecting a >hearing for political asylum for the young Cuban boy -- will now go to all >12-members of the same court. > >Observers agree that the appeal, coming on the very last day granted for the >judicial action, is nothing more than another legal maneuver to delay the >inevitable return of Elian to his home in Cuba. According to legal experts, >the case will now go to the full panel of judges at the 11th Circuit Court >of Appeals in Atlanta for their review. If they uphold the decision of the >three judges who ruled two weeks ago that Elian is not entitled to an asylum >hearing, the case can then be appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court. > >In this morning's edition of the Cuban news daily Juventud Rebelde, a >front-page article -- anticipating the latest maneuver of the Miami >kidnappers -- calls the appeal yet another attempt to delay Elian's return >to the island. > > >*"KIDNAPPERS WILL STOP AT NOTHING TO PREVENT ELIAN'S RETURN" -- ALARCON > >Havana, June 15 (RHC)-- Cuban Parliament President Ricardo Alarcon, >responding to Thursday's appeal by Elian's kidnappers, affirmed that the >Cuban-American mafia is stopping at nothing to prevent the young boy's >return to Cuba, including violating all existing legal norms. > >Speaking during a session of a special work commision of the Latin American >Parliament, known as PARLATINO, > >the Cuban leader noted that the kidnappers in Miami have been in violation >of international law since the beginning of this episode more than six >months ago. Alarcon pointed out that even U.S. law is clear on the subject >of parental custody rights, further demonstrating that this situation is >only another political attack against the Cuban Revolution. > >The head of the Cuban parliament said that the case of Elian Gonzalez >constitutes the first time in history that a kidnapping has been carried out >in public, emphasizing that no one has been arrested or even charged with >the crime of kidnapping or child abuse. > > >*UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT BEGINS OFFICIAL VISIT TO CUBA > >Havana, June 15(RHC)-Ukraine's President Leonid Kuchman has begun a two-day >official visit to Cuba -the first by a leader of the former Soviet Republic- >aimed at strengthening bilateral economic and social ties with the island. > >During their stay in Cuba, the Ukrainian president and his delegation will >meet with Cuban President Fidel Castro, as well as with other high-ranking >government officials. > >The visitors' agenda also includes a tour of centers of social, cultural and >economic interest. Over the past 10 years, some 18,000 children and adults >from the eastern European nation, victims of the nuclear accident in the >Ukrainian city of Chernobyl, have received highly specialized medical >treatment in Cuba. > >According to official sources, the Ukrainian president will present his >Cuban counterpart, Fidel Castro, with the Yaroslav Order. The award, named >after the renowned Ukrainian scientist, is the highest granted by Kiev to >Ukranian and foreign personalities. > > >*PRESIDENT OF AUTONOMOUS REGION OF MURCIA MEETS WITH CUBAN OFFICIALS > >Havana, June 15(RHC)-- The visiting President of the Spanish Autonomous >Region of Murcia, Ramon Luis Varcarcel, met on Wednesday in Havana with the >Vice President of Cuba's Council of Ministers, Jose Ramon Fernandez. > >During the meeting, the Spanish dignitary expressed his government's >interest in expanding trade and cooperation, with Cuba, in areas such as >pharmaceuticals and agriculture. > >The Murcian president, who is on a private visit to Cuba, has officially >announced another visit to the island for next November, at the head of a >business delegation from the Spanish autonomous region. > >President Varcarcel's agenda includes his participation, as a special guest, >in the annual Congress of the Pharmaceutical Mediterranean Foundation. The >event, currently underway here in Havana marking the 50th anniversary of the >pharmaceutical foundation, is being attended by more than 800 foreign and >Cuban delegates. > > >*COMMEMORATIVE STAMP ISSUED IN CUBA TO HONOR CHE GUEVARA > >Havana, June 15 (RHC)-- A special commemorative stamp has been issued here >in Havana to honor internationalist guerrilla fighter Ernesto Che Guevara. >He is remembered in Cuba as the Heroic Guerilla, on the occasion of the 72nd >anniversary of his birth, on June 14th. > >The stamp commemorates the 35th anniversary of Che's arrival in the Congo, >on April 25th 1965, leading the first group of internationalist Cuban >fighters. > >June 14th also marks the 155th anniversary of the birth of another hero of >Cuban independence, Antonio Maceo. To commemorate this important historical >date, an exhibition was inaugurated in Havana's Postal Museum, showing how, >despite the fact that they lived in different eras, Maceo and Che Guevara, >fought and died defending the same ideals and principles. > >Likewise, the city of Santa Clara was the scene, this June 14th, of >different activities paying homage to both independence heroes. Hundreds of >people visited the Mausoleum in the central Cuban city that holds the mortal >remains of Che Guevara and many of his comrades-in-arms, who fought and died >alongside Che in Bolivia. > > >*14TH BOLEROS DE ORO FESTIVAL TO BE HELD IN EASTERN CAMAGUEY PROVINCE > >Camaguey, June 15 (RHC)-- Representatives of nine Latin American, European, >and Asian countries will attend the 14th International Boleros de Oro >Festival to be held in Camaguey, and Santiago de Cuba, from June 21st >through the 24th. > >Jose Loyola, festival President and Vice President of the Association of >Cuban Writers and Artists, told reporters that this year's event will be >dedicated to Spain, and Cuban singer/song writer Antonio Machin (1903-1977), >who lived most of his life in Spain as Cuba's Cultural Attache. > >Participants include, Spaniards Carmen Sanchez y Pier, Mexicans Rodolfo >Muniz, Maricarmen Perez and Gabriel Inclan and Colombians, Marcela Gomez, >Amelia Gomez, Mario Bustillo, Alci Acosta, Catalina Briceno, Julio Cesar >Alzate, Lety Santamaria, Washington Freyle and Martin Madera. > > >*IBERO AMERICAN SINGERS JOIN IN MUSIC FOR SOLIDARITY > >Havana, June 15 (RHC)-- Argentinean singer/song writer Fito Paez is in >Havana as part of a project that involves renowned musicians from Spain, >Argentina and Cuba, under the name of "Musica Solidaria," or Solidarity >Music. > >The project includes the recording of an album, the profits of which - >expected to well surpass the 500 thousand dollars - will go to buy musical >instruments and materials for music schools in Cuba. > >Participating on the album, which will be recorded in Spain and Cuba, will >be renowned singers and song writers from both countries, as well as >Argentinean Fito himself, Spaniards Joan Manuel Serrat, Victor Manuel, and >Ketama, and Cubans Pablo Milanes, Carlos Varela and Santiago Feliu, among >others. > > >*FIRST CARIBBEAN GASTRONOMY FESTIVAL TO BE HELD IN SANTIAGO DE CUBA > >Santiago de Cuba, June 15(RHC)-- The eastern city of Santiago de Cuba will >host the 1st Caribbean Gastronomy Festival from July 5th through the 9th. > >The event will be distinguished by its popular participation as it takes >activities into the streets of Santiago. Running parallel to the 20th >Caribbean Festival, the event will be divided into hot and cold foods, >puddings and pastries, bars offering a variety of cocktails, natural >beverages and both formal and informal catering. > >The agenda includes discussions on themes like packaging and bottling, food >quality and consumption, culinary culture, gastronomy, sustainable >development, and the environment from both a social and ecological >standpoint. > > >*NEW BOOK ON GUANTANAMO SHEDS LIGHT ON THE HISTORIC US-CUBA DIFFERENCES > >Havana, June 15(RHC)-The history behind the illegal US occupation of the >naval Base in Guantanamo Bay, in Eastern Cuba, is the subject of a book >recently released by the Havana-based Social Sciences Publishing House. >Undesirable Neighbors: The US Base in Guantanamo is authored by renown Cuban >legal expert, Olga Miranda. > >The book examines the treaties related to the illegal occupation of the >Cuban territory, and the relentless opposition of the Cuban people to the >military enclave, since its establishment in 1903. It also discloses the >opposition of US lawmakers, at the time, who saw the action as a breach of >the US Congress' commitment to respect for Cuban sovereignty in the Joint >Resolution of 1898. > >The some eight thousand provocations and aggressions, launched over the last >40 years from the base against the island, and the Cuban Revolutionary >government's refusal to cash the 4085 dollar checks for the annual lease of >the base, are also covered by the book. > >Speaking at a ceremony to launch the book, at the Foreign Ministry on >Wednesday, Minister Felipe Perez Roque commended author Olga Miranda, for >her thorough research, and noted that people will find further historical >background on current differences between Cuba and the United States. > > >*US EXECUTIVES ONCE AGAIN LOBBY FOR FOOD & MEDICINE SALES TO CUBA > >Havana, June 15 (RHC) -- U.S. business executives today returned to capital >hill to lobby in Congress for the lifting of restrictions on the sale of >food and medicine to Cuba. In a one-day conference at congressional >headquarters sponsored by the World Policy Institute, the president of the >U.S. Chamber of Commerce -- Thomas Donahue -- said the lifting of >restrictions should be a first step towards the total elimination of >unilateral sanctions as a foreign policy tool. Donahue, who visited Cuba >last year at the head of a large business delegation, said unilateral >sanctions don't work, and are purely and simply immoral. Business executive >Paula Stern, former president of the U.S.'s International Trade Commission, >said the total elimination of the blockade against Cuba would increase U.S. >medical and agricultural exports by 1 billion 600 million dollars, and would >create 20 thousand new jobs. John Block, former Secretary of Agriculture >under the Ronald Reagan administration, said that if Reagan could lift the >wheat embargo against the Soviet Union in the heat of the Cold War, why >can't the United States trade with Cuba. Republican Congressman George >Nethercutt, a major sponsor of the ammendment that would lift the >restrictions against Cuba, said the Lower House could vote on the measure as >early as next week. > > >*Viewpoint: FUTURE OF THE CUBAN REVOLUTION GUARANTEED > >The secret of the strength of the cuban Revolution, with the passing of >time, is the social and political work that it has been carrying out since >it became an independent and sovereign nation in 1959. Powerful enemies of >the Cuban Revolution are constantly attempting to threaten its achievements, >so far very unsuccessfully. The Cuban people have learned to love and defend >their new society that prioritizes education, public health care and ethical >and human values over global realities like stock markets, unbridled >comsumption and, of course, money. > >Never before in the history of their nation, did Cubans have the opportunity >to control their own lives because they had always depended on foreign >governments that exploited them and submitted the island to their own >interests. After the Spanish first stepped on Cuban soil in 1492, Cuba >endured four centuries of colonial exploitation and slavery. And in 1998, >when the second Independent War was being won and the Spanish troops and >fleets on the island were retreating, the United States intervened and kept >the island as a U.S. neocolonial dependency of corrupt governments and >social inequality. > >During all those years of imperialist pillage, poverty and repression, Cuban >youth was at the head of the revolutionary movements. The first reformation >programs, protests, strikes and pro-revolutionary organizations were born >inside the universities in the first decades of this century. And it was >precisely at the University of Havana where the most important revolutionary >organizations such as the Communist Party and the Revolutionary Directory >were founded. Today's revolutionary martyrs like Julio Antonio Mella, Ruben >Martinez Villena and Jose Antonio Echevarrma led the struggle from the very >classrooms of the University of Havana. Fidel Castro and many of the leaders >and commanders of the Revolution consolidated their political views and >began their revolutionary activities there. > >Since 1959, the younger generation of Cubans on the island have been >actively involved in the revolutionary process, participating in every >social and political event: the literacy campaign that took place throughout >the island in 1961, the continuos, massive mobilizations to work in >agriculture and construction, the solidarity aid missions to other >Third-World countries, ect. > >Universities in Cuba continue at the vanguard of the Revolution. The country >has long since been forming and graduating professionals in all fields - >from cultural to scientific - that little by little, are taking over the >leadership in the political, economic and social life of the nation. The >younger generation of Cubans are also preparing at primary and secondary >schools throughout the island to be their substitues in a future time and to >preserve the most important social achievements of the Revolution. > >Today, Cuban youth are also heading the demand of the Cuban people for the >return to the island of six-year-old Elian Gonzalez, who is retained in the >United States. The Cuban younger generation has filled the squares and >marched before the U.S. Interest Section during these last six months that >Elian has been kidnapped in the United States and have openly expressed >their opinions at the podium and at every open tribune. Last Monday, more >than two hundred thousand children marched for Elian. With such a unique >contribution and commitment by the youngest of this nation's inhabitants, >Cuba's social and political gains are guarranteed into many generations to >come. > >(c) 2000 Radio Habana Cuba, NY Transfer News. 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