From: NY Transfer News <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
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Subject: [CubaNews] Radio Havana Cuba-05 September 2001
Via NY Transfer News * All the News That Doesn't Fit
Radio Havana Cuba - News Update - 05 September 2001
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*FORMER CUBAN AGENT EXPLAINS NEED TO INFILTRATE US-BASED TERRORIST GROUPS
*READ ALL ABOUT IT! CUBA LAUNCHES SHARK ATTACK ON U.S.!
*MORE DOCTORS' OFFICES HOOKED UP TO SOLAR POWER
*CUBA HAS HIGHEST RATIO OF CHILD PSYCHIATRISTS IN LATIN AMERICA
*JAPAN WOULD LIKE TO EXPAND COMMERCIAL RELATIONS WITH CUBA
*UNITA ATTACKS CONTINUE TO CLAIM INNOCENT LIVES IN ANGOLA
*PANAMA CALLS FOR DOCUMENTATION OF CHEMICAL WEAPON USE BY THE U.S.
*HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS INCREASE IN GUATEMALA
*ISRAELI ADMITS ORDERING TROOPS TO FIRE ON PEACEFUL MARCH
*NICARAGUAN HEALTH AUTHORITIES FEAR POLIO AND MEASLES OUTBREAK
*IN-FIGHTING REPORTED IN NICARAGUA'S RIGHT-WNG PARTIES
*Viewpoint: STANDING UP TO THE SCHOOL BULLY
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*FORMER CUBAN AGENT EXPLAINS NEED TO INFILTRATE US-BASED TERRORIST GROUPS
Havana, September 5 (RHC)--A former Cuban security agent said on Cuban TV
Tuesday night that there is no remedy other than infiltration to prevent
terrorist groups in Florida from attacking the island.
Guatemalan-born Percy Francisco Alvarado Godoy said on last night's
television roundtable that in order to prevent incidents such as the 1997
Havana hotel bombings, in which an Italian tourist was killed, it was
essential for Cuba to infiltrate organizations such as the Cuban American
National Foundation (CANF) which organiz such terrorist acts against Cuba.
The US authorities are not putting a stop to their actions, he said; in fact
they operate with total impunity, forcing Cuba to take some measure of
self-defense.
During their trial in Florida, Alvarado Godoy had provided a court
deposition in defense of the five Cubans who were convicted of endangering
US national security by infiltrating Cuban-American terrorist organizations.
The deposition described his undercover work in the CANF, during which he
was assigned the job of placing explosives in public places in Cuba. Both
Guatemalan and Salvadoran citizens were eventually tried and convicted for
the 1997 hotel bombings in Havana.
Godoy explained that one of his contacts was the international terrorist
Luis Posada Carriles, who is under arrest in Panama for planning the
assassination of Fidel Castro. He said that Posada Carriles had transported
explosives to Guatemala himself.
Asked why he had gone to work for Cuba at such risk to his personal safety,
the Guatemalan national said that his country owed a lot to the island and
that it was a great privilege to help the Cuban cause.
*READ ALL ABOUT IT! CUBA LAUNCHES SHARK ATTACK ON U.S.!
Havana, September 5 (RHC)--The Cuban press is having a field day responding
to articles published in at least two US tabloids claiming the recent surge
of shark attacks along the Florida coast as planned and carried out by
Havana.
The "Weekly World News" ran a front page headline reading "Cuba Launches
Shark Attack on U.S.!" and described how President Fidel Castro had
concocted a "diabolic plan" to train sharks to nip at U.S. bottoms soaking
in the warm seas of Florida and, further afield in Hawaii. On top of this,
the island is also accused of strapping explosive devices onto dolphins that
are designed to blow up boats full of happy US day trippers, and a
"fortified ultra-secret marine biology laboratory" on the Isle of Youth is
purportedly ready to release thousands of poisonous sea serpents onto
unsuspecting holiday makers across the entire eastern seaboard.
Participants on last night's Cuban TV roundtable had difficulty keeping a
straight face as they read the story over the air. It was pointed out that
the actions described are so ridiculous that they sound very similar to
documented CIA plans to discredit and destroy the Cuban Revolution -- noting
that the U.S. government has admitted that its agents tried to smuggle
exploding cigars into Cuba to kill Fidel Castro and even developed a special
powder designed to make his beard fall out and thus ruin his image.
"Whether you believe it or not," said Granma newspaper, "this appeared in
print and is believed by some." The daily said that it normally doesn't
respond to such attacks against Cuba but that this one was quite frankly
hard to ignore.
*MORE DOCTORS' OFFICES HOOKED UP TO SOLAR POWER
Bayamo, September 5 (RHC)--Cuba's solar energy program, which is focusing
on providing electricity to remote schools and doctor's offices across the
island using solar energy panels, has logged another 50 successes to its
program in Granma province.
The capacity of the panels to provide energy to the 50 doctors' offices
recently hooked up is enough to power 12 fluorescent lamps, a TV,
refrigerator, electronic medical equipment and a radio-transmitter allowing
communication with the entire eastern region in each office.
The panels are being installed with the assistance of Cubasolar, a Cuban
non-governmental association. Another 30 doctors' offices in the province
will soon have solar power as part of a government plan to have every
doctor's office and classroom in the country hooked up to an electricity
source.
*CUBA HAS HIGHEST RATIO OF CHILD PSYCHIATRISTS IN LATIN AMERICA
Havana, September 5 (RHC)--According to a report by Prensa Latina news
agency, Cuba has the highest ratio of child psychiatrists per capita in
Latin America. The island currently has 200 specialists in child psychiatry.
serving a population of a little over 11 million.
Dr. Crist�bal Martinez, who is the nation's chief child psychiatrist,
commented that Mexico has the same number of specialists, with a population
of 90 million inhabitants, and countries such as Nicaragua and Panama only
have 2 or 3. General psychiatrists treat children in nations that lack
enough specialized child psychiatrists.
Martinez explained that child psychiatrists are an integral part of Cuba's
child health program and deal with such problems as changing damaging life
styles, control of one's own environment, early diagnosis, elimination of
risk factors in a child's behaviour and rehabilitation.
One of the island's most important advances in recent weeks has been the
opening of the first school in Cuba for autistic children. The school will
begin with 83 pupils and will include teachers, a psychiatric team,
phonetics experts, social workers, a doctor, nurse and psychologist.
Next year Cuba will host the Panamerican Congress of Psychiatry, Child
Psychology and Related Professions. The gathering will tackle issues such as
mental health in the classroom, suicide tendencies, violence, sexual
education, and child abuse.
*JAPAN WOULD LIKE TO EXPAND COMMERCIAL RELATIONS WITH CUBA
Havana, September 5 (RHC)--Japan continues to express increasing interest
in expanding commercial relations with Cuba.
In statements to reporters in Havana on Wednesday, Japan's ambassador to the
island, Mutsuo Mabachi, said he expects to see many more Japanese business
people on the island in the next few years.
Tokyo's Ambassador addressed participants at the 7th Cuba-Japan
International Workshop underway at Havana's Riviera Hotel through Friday.
Mutsuo Mabichi noted that cultural relations between Cuba and Japan have
increased over the last several years.
The diplomat affirmed that Japanese companies that do business with Cuba are
always faced with strong pressure from Washington, aimed at blocking all
foreign economic or trade relations with Cuba.
The 7th Cuba-Japan International Workshop, organized by the Cuba's Asia and
Oceania Studies Center, includes lectures on Japanese history, relations
with other countries of the world including Cuba, and possibilities
expanding bilateral ties between the two islands.
*UNITA ATTACKS CONTINUE TO CLAIM INNOCENT LIVES IN ANGOLA
Luanda, September 5 (RHC)--Another ten Angolan civilians, among them
several children, have been killed in terrorist attacks carried out by UNITA
forces. According to reports from Luanda, the Angolan capital, UNITA troops
attacked a school in the southwestern province of Benguela early Monday
morning, killing five people -- including three children. After destroying
the classrooms, the terrorists kidnapped two young girls from the school and
fled back to their base.
Another attack on Monday took place in a town outside of Kuito, located in
the province of Bie. Five people were reportedly killed in the second
terrorist attack. Angolan National Radio announced that UNITA troops under
the orders of Jonas Savimbi sacked area houses and burned more than 90 of
them before retreating.
Angolan authorities stated that these two recent attacks are added to a long
list of terrorist actions by UNITA troops. Last week, UNITA forces ambushed
three busses -- killing 29 people and wounding another 52. Just a few days
ago, on August 28, UNITA troops massacred 50 civilians in the northern
province of Malanje.
The latest terrorist spree began in early August when UNITA blew up a rail
line as a passenger train was traveling toward Cuanza Norte -- killing 252
of the 500 passengers on board.
In related news, Angolan radio reports that the recent announcement by
President Jose Eduardo dos Santos that he will not run again as a candidate
for the presidency, shows he has no selfish ambitions. Dos Santos has called
on UNITA leader Jonas Savimbi to agree to an immediate ceasefire and
disarmament of the terrorist troops under his command.
*PANAMA CALLS FOR DOCUMENTATION OF CHEMICAL WEAPON USE BY THE U.S.
Panama City, September 5 (RHC)--The Panamanian government has called on
Washington to hand over documents pertaining to the use of chemical weapons
on the island of San Jose, located just north of Panama City.
Panamanian Foreign Minister Jose Miguel Alem�n told reporters that his
government is trying to verify the use of chemical weapons by the United
States during the time that Washington controlled the Panama Canal.
The documents, dated in 1993, are called the Listing of Suspected Chemical
Burial Sites Overseas, an appendix to a survey and analysis prepared by the
U.S. Army Chemical and Biological Defense Command. The Pentagon claims that,
according to U.S. law, the document is classified and must remain
confidential for the next 25 years.
The Panamanian foreign minister insisted that his government has aerial
photographs of the island, showing beyond any doubt that chemical weapons
were used on San Jose and are buried there. He affirmed that U.S. Army
troops tested chemical weapons on the island during World War II.
Jose Miguel Alem�n pointed out that agreements between Panama and the U.S.
call on Washington to clean up all military bases of toxic materials and
explosives, or at least provide complete information to facilitate such
clean-up activities.
Since the end of 1999, when the Canal was turned over to Panamanian
sovereignty, at least one dozen people have been killed in accidents
involving land mines and unexploded bombs left behind by the U.S. military.
*HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS INCREASE IN GUATEMALA
Guatemala City, September 5 (RHC)--The human rights situation in Guatemala
is at a standstill, according to the United Nations Verification Mission to
that Central American country. The UN group, which monitors human rights in
Guatemala, reports that if any movement is being made at all, it is
backward.
The eleventh report by the Verification Mission -- which covers the period
from July 2000 to the end of June this year -- notes that the main
violations consist of lynchings and the use of force by members of the
National Civil Police.
Over the past year, there has also been an increase in threats against
judicial authorities, human rights activists, journalists and politicians --
from 56 during the same period one year earlier to 90 over the past 12
months.
The UN Verification Mission in Guatemala states that the greatest fear
expressed by those interviewed is a lack of investigation by authorities
into these crimes against humanity. Impunity continues to threaten the peace
process in Guatemala and the UN group has urged the government to crack down
on human rights violators in order to re-establish confidence in local
authorities.
While the report noted that the recent trial against three military officers
involved in the brutal assassination of Bishop Juan Gerardi is a positive
development, at the same time, the escape of 78 inmates from a prison
facility in Escuintla -- with the help of prison officials -- is mentioned
as a significant step backward.
The Verification Mission insists that the Guatemalan government must assume
full responsibility in the adoption of an effective policy to guard against
human rights violations. Pointing out that the Peace Accords signed between
the government and guerrilla forces in December 1996 fuelled hopes for many
Guatemalans, those dreams have been rudely shattered by the lack of
compliance by the government.
*ISRAELI ADMITS ORDERING TROOPS TO FIRE ON PEACEFUL MARCH
Tel Aviv, September 5 (RHC)--An Israeli police officer has admitted that he
gave the order to open fire on a peaceful march of Palestinians and
Arab-Israelis last October, resulting in the deaths of 13 persons.
Alik Ron is currently being investigated by a judicial commission of the
Israeli Supreme Court. He affirmed under oath that he ordered police to
shoot into a march last October 13. In addition to the 13 killed, who
included both Palestinians and Arab-Israelis who were demonstrating for
peace, dozens were seriously wounded by police bullets.
Ron told reporters in Tel Aviv that he did not consult with his superiors
before giving the order to open fire. He also claimed that he was unaware of
the political situation at that time and could not provide any credible
reason for his action.
Survivors of the attack, and those who have personally known the Israeli
police officer, told judicial authorities that he is -- in the words of one
witness -- "a racist who was born to kill."
*NICARAGUAN HEALTH AUTHORITIES FEAR POLIO AND MEASLES OUTBREAK
Managua, September 5 (RHC)--Health officials in Nicaragua fear an outbreak
of measles, given recent cases of the contagious viral disease in Haiti. It
is also being reported that the appearance of polio in the Dominican
Republic has Nicaraguan authorities concerned.
Both polio and measles were eradicated in Nicaragua during the 1980s by the
Sandinista government, but numerous cases have reappeared in recent years.
According to Omar Malespin, director of the Immunization Program of the
Nicaraguan Health Ministry, doctors are on the lookout for epidemics from
neighboring countries in Central America and the Caribbean. He said that
conditions of poverty and poor health care have greatly increased the
possibilities of epidemics. The health official said that Nicaragua is no
longer prepared to confront such outbreaks and he warned that another
reappearance of these serious diseases would be devastating.
Doctor Malespin said that the risk of measles threatens at least one million
adults over the age of 20 in Nicaragua. At least one-quarter of the
country's population of just over four million have never been vaccinated
against measles, polio and many other diseases.
*IN-FIGHTING REPORTED IN NICARAGUA'S RIGHT-WNG PARTIES
Managua, September 5 (RHC)--Newspaper headlines in Nicaragua are
highlighting major in-fighting among right-wing political parties in that
Central American country.
An article in this morning's edition of La Prensa quotes the vice
presidential candidate from the Conservative Party, Consuelo Sequeira,
accusing the ruling Liberal Constitutionalist Party of trying to sabotage
the Conservatives in next November's general elections.
The Conservative Party candidate told reporters that despite attempts by the
Liberal Party to destroy their organization, the Conservatives will run
candidates as planned. According to the vice presidential contender, the
Liberal Constitutional Party and Nicaragua's Electoral Law purposefully make
it difficult for opposition political parties to publicize their platforms.
Sequeira complained that despite the fact that the Conservative Party is one
of the country's major parties, along with the Liberals and the Sandinistas,
few Nicaraguans are familiar with the Conservative Party's ideas.
*Viewpoint: STANDING UP TO THE SCHOOL BULLY
In the World Conference Against Racism in Durban, South Africa, the
rejection of Washington's sabotage in first boycotting, then walking out on,
the gathering has gained strength, with most of the 160 governments
attending the South Africa Conference aware of Washington and Tel Aviv's
attempts to ensure the failure of this meeting.
Egypt's foreign minister, Ahmed Maher, called the U.S. withdrawal from the
conference an insult to the UN organization, to South Africa as the host
country, and to the rest of the delegates.
The spirit of the UN charter, which Washington frequently ignores regarding
the legal equality of states, is applied in Durban. This principle, as many
others on international rights, is a nuisance to the U.S. hegemonic process,
which is accustomed to imposing its will on international institutions
through pressure and blackmail. The U.S. is considered the first world power
due to its economy, military might and technology. However, it is far from
being first in the field of ethics.
Most Third World nations have suffered U.S. interference in their domestic
affairs, theft of their natural resources and even of their own children.
That is why in Durban, as in New York and other international forums, most
of the participant nations react negatively toward U.S. attempts to impose
its will on the world.
Now, Washington will continue pitting the Middle East against Africa, using
its strategic allies such as Europe, Canada and Japan as a way to obtain
concessions in the final declaration and action program of the conference.
Nonetheless, Third World nations attending the meeting are not defenseless,
and have thousands of historical reasons to unite. The World Conference
Against Racism is still underway, and looks set to provide Washington with a
lesson from history: When the people stand up against it, the power of a
dictatorship dissolves.
(c) 2001 Radio Habana Cuba, NY Transfer News. All rights reserved.
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