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Date: Sat, 21 Jul 2001 04:44:40 -0400 (EDT)
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Subject: [CubaNews] NY Transfer's RHC News-19 July 2001
Via NY Transfer News * All the News That Doesn't Fit
Radio Havana Cuba - News Update - 19 July 2001
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*HAITI IS THE POOREST NATION, BUT RICH IN HUMAN CAPITAL: ARISTIDE
*ARISTIDE HIGHLIGHTS CUBA'S SCIENTIFIC POTENTIAL
*PRESIDENT OF BURKINA FASO TO VISIT CUBA
*ANGOLAN OFFICIAL MEETS WITH CUBAN MINISTER OF EDUCATION
*UNESCO YOUTH REPRESENTATIVE ENDS VISIT TO HAVANA
*SHORT SUMMER COMPUTER COURSES UNDERWAY ISLAND WIDE
*ARGENTINA PARALYZED BY 6th GENERAL STRIKE IN 19 MONTHS
*US SENATE MAJORITY LEADER ISSUES STINGING CRITICISM OF BUSH POLICIES
*COCA COLA'S HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSES IN COLOMBIA
Viewpoint:
*ARIEL SHARON: NUMBER-ONE ENEMY OF PEACE
*CUBANS IN HAITI: STETHOSCOPES AND FISH
.
*HAITI IS THE POOREST NATION, BUT RICH IN HUMAN CAPITAL: ARISTIDE
Havana, July 19 (RHC)--In Havana, visiting Haitian President Jean Bertrand
Aristide said that although Haiti is the poorest nation on the continent, it
is one of the richest in human capital. Speaking at the University of Havana
during an official visit to Cuba, Aristide said that his nation does not
seek to become rich, but rather to emerge from poverty with dignity.
The Haitian president took the opportunity to once again thank the Cuban
people and government for the assistance they are providing for his country,
adding that Haiti aspires one day to be able to display the same
achievements in health and education that Cuba has obtained.
President Aristide also criticized free market, neoliberal policies,
asserting that their only objective is to increase finance capital. He said
that to attain peace in the world, economic development must go hand in hand
with human development.
*ARISTIDE HIGHLIGHTS CUBA'S SCIENTIFIC POTENTIAL
Havana, July 19 (RHC)--Haiti's president Jean Betrand Aristide has
classified Cuba's scientific development as exceptional. On Wednesday, the
Haitian leader visited the National Center of Agricultural Health,
accompanied by the Cuban Minister of Higher Education, Fernando Vecino
Alegret.
The director of the center, Dr. Lidia Tablada, explained the main
investigation and production priorities of the center to the Haitian
delegation. The center produces vaccines and medical reagents, and assists
in the detection and diagnosis of some rare diseases affecting animal and
crop species.
Aristide described cooperation between the two Caribbean nations as very
positive and fruitful, and said he appreciated the opportunity to strengthen
the solidarity existing between Haitians and Cubans.
Aristide said he hopes to explore new areas of cooperation, including
health, sports, and agriculture, as well as infrastructure construction and
telecommunications. In addition, the Haitian leader stressed that the
Caribbean needs special financial assistance to fight lethal diseases such
as HIV-AIDS, which poses a grave threat to the region's population.
The Haitian president also visited Havana's International Sports and
Physical Education School, where he had the opportunity to greet Haitian
young people studying in the institution.
On Wednesday afternoon, Aristide's delegation paid tribute to Cuba's
national hero Jose Marti at Havana's Revolution Square, where the Haitian
president laid a floral wreath at the Marti monument. Afterward, he attended
the inauguration ceremony of the Fine Arts Museum.
*PRESIDENT OF BURKINA FASO TO VISIT CUBA
Havana, July 19 (RHC)--The President of Burkina Faso, Blaiso Compaore, will
arrive in Havana on Friday for a three-day official visit at the invitation
of Cuban President Fidel Castro.
While on the island, president Compaore will have a packed agenda that
includes talks with his Cuban counterpart and other high-ranking officials
with a special emphasis on bilateral cooperation. Compaore will also tour
centers of economic, social and historical interest.
*ANGOLAN OFFICIAL MEETS WITH CUBAN MINISTER OF EDUCATION
Havana, July 19 (RHC)--Angolan Minister of Science and Technology, Joao
Baptista Ngandagina, met on Thursday with Cuban Higher education Minister
Fernando Vecino Alegret. Ngandagina is participating as a special guest in
the 6th Ibero-American Seminar on Science and Technology, currently underway
here in Havana with the participation of academics, investors, businessmen
and other experts from Brazil, Colombia, Chile, Mexico, Angola and Cuba.
The Angolan minister is also scheduled to tour various places of interest
here in Havana, among them the National Center for Genetic Engineering and
Biotechnology, the Laboratory Animals Breeding Center and the Pharmaceutics
and Molecular Immunology Center.
*UNESCO YOUTH REPRESENTATIVE ENDS VISIT TO HAVANA
Havana, July 19 (RHC)--UNESCO's Youth representative Maria Helena Henriquez
Mullero concluded her official visit to Cuba on Wednesday with a tour of the
University of Havana. Henriquez said UNESCO is fully aware of the need for a
closer relationship and exchange of experiences. She added that for UNESCO,
Cuba's plan of action is a priority.
UNESCO's program to improve quality of education will require that the
agency obtain necessary resources to train professors and second to promote
international cooperation, especially among the least developed countries.
She added that UNESCO currently works towards the dissemination of
information on courses, scholarships and resources to boost research
projects which are usually offered by European universities and
institutions.
At the University of Havana, the UNESCO official was welcomed by the head of
the institution's Foreign Relations Department, Antonio Boza, who briefed
her on the university's work. During her three-day visit to Cuba, Henriquez
had the opportunity to visit several educational centers and meet students.
She left the island impressed with what she learned, she said, and very
interested in boosting exchange between UNESCO and Cuba.
*SHORT SUMMER COMPUTER COURSES UNDERWAY ISLAND WIDE
Havana, July 19 (RHC)--Cuba's island-wide Computer Clubs have begun their
short summer-school vacation courses, part of a new program for computer
education. Every person, regardless of age, can have access to these
facilities. Young people, workers or adults who are interested in learning
or deepening their knowledge of computer science are welcome to the computer
clubs.
The summer computer courses include the basics of PC operation for complete
beginngers, with special emphasis on applications such as Microsoft Word,
Excel and Access.
For those who have some knowledge on how to operate a computer, various
topics about programming are also included, focusing on the creation of
databases and multimedia applications. The 60-hour courses will last one
month.
*ARGENTINA PARALYZED BY 6th GENERAL STRIKE IN 19 MONTHS
Buenos Aires, July 19 (RHC)--Argentina's 6th general strike during the
Fernando de la Rua's presidency virtually paralyzed the country on Thursday,
with public transport almost completely halted. Trash collectors were not
working, and Argentina's large cities were covered with garbage.
International flights were canceled, while public and private employees,
workers in the judicial and legislative sectors, factories, teachers and
health professionals participated in the labor stoppge.
The strike comes amid threats from both ruling alliance and opposition
legislators to block approval of President de la Rua's economic shock
program, a threat that has once again sent the country's financial markets
into a tailspin.
Dario Alessandro, president of the block of ruling alliance legislators,
said lawmakers agree on the need to eliminate Argentina's fiscal deficit,
but they don't want to do it by reducing salaries and pensions. Allesandro
said he believed members of Congress will come up with a different plan when
the lower house gathers again next Wednesday.
*US SENATE MAJORITY LEADER ISSUES STINGING CRITICISM OF BUSH POLICIES
Washington, July 19 (RHC)--U.S. Senator Tom Daschle issued a stinging
criticism of the Bush Administration's foreign policy Thursday, contending
that the United States is isolating itself from the rest of the world, and
that the country is being taken less seriously than it was a few years ago.
In statements published Thursday by "USA Today," Daschle, leader of the
democratic majority in the Senate, said that the U.S. has moved away from an
aggressive search for peace in the Middle East, has diminished emphasis on
pacification efforts in other parts of the world, has failed to play a
decisive role in the struggle against AIDS in Africa, and is complicating
relations with Russia and Washington's European allies with its plans to
develop a space-based anti-missile system.
The Senator made reference to British Prime Minister Tony Blair's recent
offer to serve as an intermediary between Washington and the Europeans,
calling the offer a sad commentary on the state of transatlantic relations.
Daschle also expressed concern over the friendship treaty that China and
Russia signed last Monday, saying it indicates that something is going
wrong.
He said Bush's isolationist tendencies create a global vacuum, and that if
the United States is unable to fill the vacuum, others will.
*COCA COLA'S HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSES IN COLOMBIA
Washington, July 19 (RHC)--Labor and human rights organizations in the
United States are planning to bring charges against Coca Cola, accusing the
firm of using paramilitary security agents to murder, torture and kidnap
labor leaders in Colombia. The United Steel Workers of America and the
International Labor Rights Fund today announced that the charges will be
brought Friday before a federal court in southern Florida.
The case was launched by the Colombian labor union representing workers in
Colombia's Coca Cola bottling firm, Panamerican Beverages of Miami, Florida.
The attorney representing the plaintiffs, Terry Collingsworth, said the
Colombian labor union has been decimated by paramilitary intimidation.
Among those denounced is Richard Kirby, the American manager of a Coca Cola
bottling firm in Uraba Department. According to Colombian labor activists,
Kirby specifically issued death threats against labor leaders if they
continued organizing workers.
The activists charge Kirby's threat was carried out on December 5th, 1996,
with the assassination of labor leader Isidro Segundo Gil. This year alone.
more than 50 Colombian unionists have been gunned down; last year 128 were
killed. Since 1986, more than 3,800 unionists have been murdered.
Viewpoint:
*ARIEL SHARON: NUMBER-ONE ENEMY OF PEACE
Since the ultra-conservative Ariel Sharon's rise to power in Israel, the
facts have borne out somber predictions for the Middle East.
In the 1982 genocide in the Sabra and Shatila Palestinian camps in Beirut --
where more than three thousand children, women and elderly were massacred --
death was the chosen weapon against the Palestinians. And, since Sharon was
sworn in as Prime Minister, Tel Aviv's policy of extermination of the
Palestinians has become more evident and the peace process has stalled.
As Spanish writer, Manuel Vazquez Montalban said, "this exterminating angel
is a messianic politician convinced that the people chosen by the most
correct gods have the right to create and defend their vital space".
Since last September 28, when the popular Palestinian uprising known as the
Second Intifada began, more than 500 Palestinians have died at the hands of
the Israelis.
Egypt's President Hosni Mubarak on Wednesday stated bluntly, "With Sharon,
no solution is possible". Aware of the situation, the Arab League just
announced its support for the Intifada in a declaration which also denounces
the tendency of the Sharon government to profane Islamic and Christian holy
shrines in the region.
That Zionist conception was behind Sharon's refusal to return territories to
the Palestinians, who are currently confined to determined areas in the Gaza
Strip and the West Bank.
The Mitchell Commission, charged by the United Nations with investigating
the causes of the violence, asked the Israeli government to stop building
the settlements, which have traditionally been a bone of contention between
Arabs and Jews in the region.
But Tel Aviv plans to continue its colonial expansion by building new Jewish
settlements in Arab areas, even those Israel was considering returning to
the Palestinians during the last peace talks.
*CUBANS IN HAITI: STETHOSCOPES AND FISH
In 1996, the governments and peoples of Haiti and Cuba -- who live only 77
kilometers apart -- began a new era of cooperation and accord with the
re-establishment of diplomatic relations after more than 30 years.
Under the current administration of Jean Bertrand Aristide, and his
predecessor Rene Preval, Haiti has fortified its connections with Cuba to
the benefit of both countries.
Haiti is the poorest nation in the hemisphere, and one of the poorest
countries in the world. A full 80% of Haiti's population lives in extreme
poverty, with a life expectancy of only 58 years and a disastrous infant
mortality rate of 74 per 1000 live births. In contrast, Cuba has an average
life expectancy of 76 years and a 7.1/1000 infant mortality rate.
Due to the over-exploitation of its lands and accompanying soil erosion,
Haiti has to rely for its income on limited tourism and exports of coffee
and minerals such as bauxite.
Cuba has been able to provide Haiti with 485 doctors, nurses and medical
technicians, most of whom work in rural zones that are almost inaccessible.
These Cuban medical personnel have been carrying out a vaccination campaign
that is supported by France, Japan and UNICEF, covering eight principal
illnesses.
Haiti has excellent conditions for developing its fishing industry as it has
a large number of natural harbors most of which are easily navigable. More
than 40 Cuban experts have spent the last year and a half providing
information and technical assistance to hundreds of Haitians in six
departments that have fishing traditions.
Cuba is committed to assisting its neighbor and friend in every way
possible, regardless of criticism from those who idly stand by and simply
sneer that Cuba is "exporting revolution."
(c) 2001 Radio Habana Cuba, NY Transfer News. All rights reserved.
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