From: NY Transfer News <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
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Date: Wed, 13 Jun 2001 23:45:51 -0400 (EDT)
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Subject: [CubaNews] NY Transfer's RHC News Update-13 June 2001
Via NY Transfer News * All the News That Doesn't Fit
Radio Havana Cuba - News Update - 13 June 2001
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*FIDEL CASTRO PRESIDES OVER THE OPENING OF PEDIATRICS CONFERENCE
*INS REFUSES TO CHALLENGE "FALSE PAPERS FOR CUBANS" LAW
*CUBAN MEDICAL HELP REDUCES INFANT MORTALITY IN GUATEMALA
*GRANMA PROVINCE REPORTS LOWER INFANT MORTALITY FIGURES
*CUBA AND MEXICO INCREASE COOPERATION IN FISHING INDUSTRY
*UN CONFERENCE FOR LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN WINDS UP IN HAVANA
*BUSH REFUSES TO HEAR EUROPEAN OBJECTIONS TO STAR WARS
*ACTIVISTS ON VIEQUES PREPARE FOR MORE CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE
*Viepoint: INTERNATIONAL SOLIDARITY NEEDED FOR PALESTINIAN STRUGGLE
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*FIDEL CASTRO PRESIDES OVER THE OPENING OF PEDIATRICS CONFERENCE
Havana, June 13 (RHC)--Cuban President Fidel Castro presided over the
opening session of the Pediatrics 2001 conference, held Wednesday morning at
Havana's Convention Center.
During his address before more than 1500 delegates from 14 countries
participating in the meeting, the Cuban leader focused on the relationship
between education and health care, and pointed out that had it not been for
the 1961 Literacy Campaign, Cuba would not have the health indicators it has
today.
Fidel said that in Cuba, all citizens have their health care services
guaranteed free of charge, while in other nations this doesn't happen. He
said that in the United States, for example, 43 million people are without
health insurance. He added that the quality of life of a nation is also
measured by its health care indicators, and that the Cuban government has
prioritized health care despite its economic problems, mainly due to the US
blockade and to the collapse of the former socialist block.
In this regard, the Cuban leader said that among the many programs underway
on the island is one for children from birth to 15 years of age, who are now
being measured and weighed in order to detect any case of malnutrition,
whether it is due to medical conditions, lack of the necessary food or
social problems.
Fidel also announced that this year another 2,000 students will join the
5,000 already studying at Havana's Latin American School of Medicine;
enrollment is expected to increase slowly to 10,000.
Tomorrow, nearly two thousand schools newly electrified with solar power
will be inaugurated. From now on, Fidel said, those children will be able to
watch educational and recreational television programs, noting that
installation of the solar panels was completed in just eight months.
Also present at the opening session of Pediatrics 2001 were Cuban Health
Minister, Dr. Carlos Dotres and the General Secretary of the World Health
Organization, Norwegian Dr. Gro Harlem Brundtland.
*INS REFUSES TO CHALLENGE "FALSE PAPERS FOR CUBANS" LAW
Havana, June 13 (RHC)--The U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service, has
failed to challenge a ruling that will allow Cubans to enter the United
States using false documents. The deadline for an appeal to a ruling by the
Board of Immigrations Appeals in Virginia expired today.
Cuban Parliament President Ricardo Alarcon said in Havana that the ruling,
an extension of the 1966 Cuban Adjustment Act, allows Cubans traveling from
a third country on false passports or visas to enter the United States.
According to the previous ruling, Cubans traveling with false documents NEED
NOT fool U.S. government officials in order to enter the country. All they
have to do is simply announce that they are there to stay.
Alarcon said that in general, the existing migratory accords between
Washington and Havana are working, facilitating the orderly, safe and legal
migration of a number of Cubans into the U.S. However, he stressed that
Washington is trapped in a very clear contradiction in regard to its
migration policy. On the one hand, the U.S. has signed an agreement
establishing normal, organized migration between the two countries while at
the same time, the Cuban Adjustment Act is still on the books, promoting
illegal migration from the island.
*CUBAN MEDICAL HELP REDUCES INFANT MORTALITY IN GUATEMALA
Guatemala City, June 13 (RHC)--The Cuban medical mission that went to
Guatemala in the days following the devastation of Hurricane Mitch in late
1998 has managed to reduce by a full 50 percent the infant mortality rate in
the area in which they work.
The head of the team, Elia Rosa Lem�s, says that when the Cubans arrived,
the infant mortality rate in the 10 departments in which they work was 50
for every 1000 live births. Thanks to the cooperation of community leaders,
the rate in all these departments has dropped to between 18 and 20 per 1000.
Cuba is maintaining 468 doctors in Guatemala; 37 have just returned home
after completing a two-year tour of duty. They were seen off by a grateful
Guatemalan Health Minister, Mario Bola�os. They will be immediately replaced
by a fresh team.
A total of 869 medical personnel have served in Guatemala since 1998. They
are responsible for saving the lives of at least 25,000 people, said Lem�s.
The medical mission has opened 337 health stations, refurbished six
hospitals and treated nearly two million patients.
The Cuban mission chief said that to be truly effective in their work, her
team had to work with the resources that were locally available. She said
she was first and foremost a doctor and that, while her country had enabled
her to become a physician, Guatemala had enabled her to grow and do
something worthwhile in her life.
The Guatemalan health minister commented that the Cubans who arrive in his
country don't waste time but hike out into some of the country's most
inaccessible areas to provide health care to remote communities.
*GRANMA PROVINCE REPORTS LOWER INFANT MORTALITY FIGURES
Bayamo, June 13 (RHC)--The Cuban province of Granma ended the January-May
period with the second-lowest infant mortality rate in the nation. The
municipality of Yara had the best figures, at zero child mortality, while in
the province's mountain zone, the figure was under the average provincial
rate.
Most neonatal deaths were due to congenital problems which science as yet is
unable to diagnose prior to birth.
The percentage of low-weight infants has also decreased significantly, and
with the improved weight comes an improved quality of life and resistance to
disease.
One of the main reasons for the improved health of newborns in Cuba is the
existence of maternity homes where pregnant women who are at risk for
low-weight babies, breach births, twins, etc. are cared for by professionals
until they are ready to give birth. Another reason is the island's nearly
100% success in persuading mothers to breast-feed their babies.
*CUBA AND MEXICO INCREASE COOPERATION IN FISHING INDUSTRY
Havana, June 13 (RHC)--Fishing authorities from Cuba and Mexico have agreed
to carry out eleven scientific projects during the current year. In addition
to strengthening exchange programs and developing joint programs on marine
life.
A press communiqu� released by the Commerce Office of the Cuban Embassy in
Mexico City, highlighted the commitment of both countries to promote a
higher level of commercial investment and exchange.
These and other issues were discussed during an annual meeting held this
year on June the 7th and 8th in Havana, which reviewed the state of
bilateral cooperation in the fields of fishing and agriculture and proposed
measures to strengthen and widen bilateral relations.
Both nations stressed the urgent need for more effective commercial fishing
products and investment in industrial processing. Both nations are
interested in promoting investment in animal-feed production and the farming
of marine species.
*UN CONFERENCE FOR LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN WINDS UP IN HAVANA
Havana, June 13 (RHC)--With increased support from the international
community for restoring the rights of the people of Palestine, the UN
meeting for Latin America and the Caribbean on the current situation in the
Middle East concluded today in the Cuban capital.
The delegates' discussions emphasized the defense of international
legitimacy as a means to reach a global, fair and long-lasting solution to
the Palestine-Israel conflict, as well as international support for the
inalienable rights of the Palestinian population.
The Palestinian Foreign Minister, Farouk Khadoumi, urged Washington on
Tuesday to order an immediate end to Israel's repression and the withdrawal
of Israeli troops from the Palestinian territory.
*BUSH REFUSES TO HEAR EUROPEAN OBJECTIONS TO STAR WARS
Brussels, June 13 (RHC)--At Wednesday's summit of the North Atlantic Treaty
Organization in Brussels, U.S. President George W. Bush turned a deaf ear to
objections concerning Washington's plan to deploy a space-based anti-missile
system.
During the gathering, and in Bush's presence, French President Jacques
Chirac said the United States should work to preserve the current strategic
equilibrium, of which the Anti-Ballistics Missiles Treaty, the ABM, is the
pillar.
On Tuesday in Madrid, however, Bush stated that the ABM is a relic of the
past. Spanish President Jose Maria Aznar became the first European leader to
support Bush's anti-missile defense system.
German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder insisted on Wednesday that weapons
control and the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons should continue being
vital factors in any western security initiative. The U.S. president
nevertheless reiterated that Washington is going to deploy Star Wars as soon
as possible.
In related news, several thousand people demonstrated in front of the U.S.
embassy in Brussels on Tuesday -- protesting Bush's visit to the Belgian
capital. The protests were sponsored by some 30 organizations opposed to
Washington's environmental policies and neo-liberal globalization.
Demonstrators condemned Washington's rejection of the Kyoto Protocol --
designed to reduce toxic gas emissions that contribute to global warming --
as well as the continued use of the death penalty in the U.S.
Demonstrators also protested in Madrid on Tuesday, during the U.S.
President's visit to the Spanish capital. The U.S. embassy was protected by
more than 200 anti-riot police, who kept protesters away from the entrance
to the building. Hundreds carried signs that condemned Washington's Star
Wars project; and organizers told reporters that the so-called anti-missile
shield will only fuel a dangerous arms race.
Meanwhile, opposition to Star Wars is mounting in the U.S. Congress, where
on Tuesday organizations from 40 states joined voices with a group of
legislators to announce a political offensive against the plan. Lawmakers
Tom Allen, Barney Frank, Rush Holt, Janice Shakowsky, John Tierney, Bob
Filner and Barbara Lee stated that deployment of a space-based anti-missile
system would be enormously costly, inoperative and destabilizing.
Congresswoman Barbara Lee said the Star Wars program is "a fantasy, although
the term 'nightmare' may be a more appropriate definition."
During the past several days, NGOs have been lobbying in the halls of
Congress, sending more than 40,000 e-mail messages to legislators along with
thousands of signatures of citizens expressing their opposition. According
to the NGOs, Star Wars would cost U.S. taxpayers $15 billion with no
guarantee that effective technology can even be developed.
*ACTIVISTS ON VIEQUES PREPARE FOR MORE CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE
San Juan, June 13 (RHC)--Puerto Ricans are reportedly preparing another
civil disobedience campaign against U.S. military exercises in Vieques. The
Navy plans a second round of target practice very soon; the bombing is
expected to begin sometime between Thursday and Friday.
During the previous round of target practice, some 140 people were arrested,
40 of whom remain in jail serving up to four-month prison sentences. As the
new round is about to begin, Amnesty International has called on the U.S.
Navy to use more restraint when arresting civil disobedience protesters,
asserting that there is abundant evidence that military personnel engaged in
cruel, inhumane and degrading treatment when repressing peaceful protesters.
The new exercises coincide with the Puerto Rican Congress' approval Tuesday
evening of a July 29th referendum on Vieques, aimed at applying more
international pressure on Washington to stop the target practice.
Vieques residents will have three options: an immediate halt in the target
practice and the clean-up and return of the zones occupied by the Navy; a
continuation of the bombardment until May 2003; or the permanent
continuation of the bombardment. The U.S. government has already approved a
referendum on the same issue next November 6th, which offers voters a choice
of only the last two options.
*Viepoint: INTERNATIONAL SOLIDARITY NEEDED FOR PALESTINIAN STRUGGLE
Since the triumph of the Cuban Revolution in 1959, the island has taken the
side of the Palestinians. Cuba has consistently supported the Palestinians
in their in their fight against Israeli occupation. Tel Aviv, using force in
violation of all perceptions of the freedom of peoples, and with the full
support of the United States, has become a defensive power created in the
Middle East as an instrument of Washington.
Using U.S. economic assistance, Israel has set off a series of wars in the
region that have profoundly affected other nations, such as Syria and
Lebanon. Those counties were attacked to create an area in which the US
could defend the sea of petroleum which fuels a great part of capitalist
industry.
Other powers, also interested in oil, have supported the U.S. policy of
aggression, in which the Palestinians are the principal victims. Under
pressure from the international community, and well aware that it is in its
own best interest to calm the strategic region, Washington managed to get
the Israelis and Palestinians to sit down together in peace talks that led
to the creation of the Palestinian National Authority. However, the
conditions were such that Israel kept the Palestinians surrounded and
submitted them to constant aggressions, which interrupted peace negotiations
and worsened the situation.
More than 500 unarmed Palestinians who participated in the Intifada, or
popular uprising against the Israeli occupiers, have died at the hands of
the Zionists. An ultra-rightwing Israeli coalition government headed by
Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, known as the "Butcher of Sabra and Shatilla,"
has run roughshod over the agreements and continued the policy of Jewish
settlements in Palestinian territory, which has been the primary cause of
the problems.
Prompted by international pressure, Washington has intervened and has
managed to achieve a cease-fire that unfortunately has not ended the
massacres. In order to achieve a true solution, even more international
solidarity is needed so that peace talks are resumed to resolve, once and
for all, this terrible situation which has brought so much grief to the
region for more than half a century.
(c) 2001 Radio Habana Cuba, NY Transfer News. All rights reserved.
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