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Date: Wed, 26 Dec 2001 22:09:45 -0500
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Subject: Radio Havana Cuba-26 December 2001
Radio Havana Cuba-26 December 2001
Via NY Transfer News * All the News That Doesn't Fit
Radio Havana Cuba - News Update - 26 December 2001
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*VENEZUELA OFFICIALLY CONFIRMS EXTRADITION REQUEST FOR POSADA CARRILES
*CUBA STRONGLY CONDEMNS CHILD ABUSE AND SEXUAL EXPLOITATION
*MORE SUGAR MILLS UP AND RUNNING ACROSS THE ISLAND
*HOTEL SOL CLUB CAYO LARGO REOPENS ITS DOORS AFTER RESTORATION WORK
*NEW YEAR WILL BRING MORE CULTURAL PERFORMANCES TO CUBAN AUDIENCES
*ARGENTINA: DISAGREEMENTS EMERGE OVER PLEDGE TO EXTRADITE RIGHTS VIOLATORS
*INDIA DEPLOYS MISSILES ON PAKISTANI BORDER AS TENSIONS INCREASE
*US GOVERNMENT BODY REPORTS ANTI-ARAB JOB DISCRIMINATION ON THE RISE
*HUGE DISPARITIES IN 9-11 COMPENSATION SPARK COMPLAINTS IN US
*Viewpoint: "BLACK GOLD" AND UNDERDEVELOPMENT
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*VENEZUELA OFFICIALLY CONFIRMS EXTRADITION REQUEST FOR POSADA CARRILES
Caracas, December 26 (RHC)-- Authorities in Venezuela announced
Tuesday that an official extradition request against terrorist of
Cuban origin Luis Posada Carriles has been presented to Panamanian
authorities. Venezuelan Foreign Minister Luis Alfonso Davila recalled
that Posada Carriles, along with Venezuelans Hernan Ricardo Lozano
and Freddy Lugo, were arrested in 1976 in connection with the
terrorist bomb attack against a Cuban civilian airliner off the
coasts of Barbados that claimed the lives of all 76 people on board.
He also recalled that Posada Carriles escaped from prison in 1985
under mysterious circumstances. According to one version, Posada
Carriles walked out of the prison's front door after prison officials
were bribed with, according to Cuban authorities, money provided by
the Miami-based Cuban-American National Foundation. The Venezuelan
Supreme Court decided to issue the extradition request last week at
the petition of President Hugo Chavez.
Besides the Barbados bombing, the Venezuelan foreign minister said
Posada Carriles is also accused in Venezuela of belonging to an
organization responsible for some 20 terrorist actions, including an
attack against the Cuban embassy in Caracas and against a Venezuelan
military aircraft in Miami.
Panama rejected an extradition request from Cuba after Posada
Carriles was arrested over a year ago in connection with an
assassination plot against Cuban President Fidel Castro, who was in
Panama City for that year's Ibero-American Summit.
*CUBA STRONGLY CONDEMNS CHILD ABUSE AND SEXUAL EXPLOITATION
Havana, December 26 (RHC)-- The President of the Federation of Cuban
Women (FMC), Vilma Espin, has urgently called on the international
community to do more for the children of the world. Upon her return
from Japan, where she represented Cuba at the Second World Congress
Against the Commercial and Sexual Exploitation of Children, Vilma
Espin told reporters that she was shocked to hear so many reports of
sexual abuse and the trafficking of children.
The head of Cuba's delegation to the event in Yokohama said that 3000
representatives from more than 130 countries took part in the
Congress, which was organized by the United Nations Children's Fund,
UNICEF.
During the Congress in Japan, Cuba strongly condemned the commercial
use and sexual abuse of children. Vilma Espin told delegates that all
countries of the world should guarantee the rights of children --
including the right to health care, education and protection.
The president of the Federation of Cuban Women pointed to the efforts
being made in Cuba to provide adequate care for its youngest
citizens. As an example, she noted that in Cuba, 98 percent of those
under the age of 14 are in school. She also pointed to the low rate
of infant mortality, as well as health and social programs put into
place by the Cuban Revolution. And Vilma Espin said that Cuba was
willing to share its experiences and resources anywhere in the world
to help eliminate child abuse and sexual exploitation.
Addressing delegates to the Second World Congress Against the
Commercial and Sexual Exploitation of Children, the Executive
Director of UNICEF, Carol Bellamy, said that governments must take
the primary role in the fight against the sexual exploitation of
children. Bellamy specifically mentioned Cuba, noting that Havana was
one of the first countries to ratify a special UN protocol against
child prostitution and pornography.
*MORE SUGAR MILLS UP AND RUNNING ACROSS THE ISLAND
Havana, December 26 (RHC)-- Forty-eight sugar mills across the
island are in operation, according to the Cuban Sugar Ministry.
Despite damages to this year's harvest caused by Hurricane Michelle
-- which hit Cuba on November 4th -- sugar mills in 11 provinces of
the island are now up and running.
Cuba's Sugar Ministry reported that technicians, assessing the
storm's devastation, had earlier predicted that the country's sugar
production would not reach full capacity until January or February.
But thanks to 'round-the-clock recovery operations and the selfless
efforts of workers, damages have been repaired ahead of schedule.
*HOTEL SOL CLUB CAYO LARGO REOPENS ITS DOORS AFTER RESTORATION WORK
Nueva Gerona, December 26 (RHC)-- Cayo Largo del Sur, located on
Cuba's Isle of Youth, reopened its first hotel following restoration
efforts in the wake of Hurricane Michelle. According to local
authorities, Hotel Sol Club Cayo Largo -- with more than 300 rooms --
has once again begun receiving guests.
Immediately after hurricane-strength winds ripped across the Isle of
Youth on November 4 -- destroying homes, leveling crops and damaging
tourist facilities -- workers began clean-up operations. Within two
weeks, they were able to at least partially open several area hotels.
Now, with the reopening of Hotel Sol Club Cayo Largo, tourists will
be able to stay overnight -- effectively eliminating the optional
day-trips from Varadero and Havana, where vacationers had to return
the same day due to the lack of hotel rooms available on the Isle of
Youth.
*NEW YEAR WILL BRING MORE CULTURAL PERFORMANCES TO CUBAN AUDIENCES
Havana, December 26 (RHC)-- The year 2002 will bring more musical
and cultural presentations to Cuban audiences. According to Abel
Acosta, Deputy Minister of Culture and President of the Cuban
Institute of Music, more concerts and theatrical presentations will
be held across the island next year.
The head of Cuba's Institute of Music noted that despite the
international economic crisis -- which obviously affects the island
as well -- no cultural program slated for the year 2002 will be
cancelled. He said that resources must be used wisely and
efficiently, but without denying audiences the enjoyment offered by
musical and cultural presentations.
Abel Acosta announced that a wide variety of programs will be made
available to the public next year -- with presentations in every
province across the island.
*ARGENTINA: DISAGREEMENTS EMERGE OVER PLEDGE TO EXTRADITE RIGHTS VIOLATORS
Buenos Aires, December 26 (RHC)-- Discrepancies have arisen within
Argentina's new government regarding the extradition of human rights
violators. On Monday, Justice Secretary Alberto Zuppi announced that
authorities would either extradite or place on trial in Argentina
former dictatorship agents requested by foreign governments.
But on Tuesday, Foreign Minister Jose Maria Vernet -- who also holds
the defense portfolio -- refrained from confirming or rejecting
Zuppi's statement. Instead, he said the country's armed forces are
evaluating the situation and will soon present President Adolfo
Rodriguez with a joint statement.
Vernet stated that any eventual decision requires more detail and
negotiation. Former Presidents Carlos Menem and Fernando de la Rua
systematically denied extradition requests for hundreds of assassins
and torturers issued by the judiciaries in Spain, Italy, France,
Germany and Sweden.
In other news, the Argentine news daily "Pagina 12" has affirmed that
based on judicial investigations, there was a government plan to kill
protesters who rose up against the Fernando de la Rua administration.
The news daily reported that this is the conclusion of Judge Maria
Servini de Cubria, investigating the shooting deaths that occurred
during protests in Mayo Square, in front of presidential
headquarters.
Of the 30 people killed during the social uprising, "Pagina 12"
asserted that 25 were gunned down on December 20 as they participated
in demonstrations in front of the presidential palace and
congressional headquarters. Five of them were reportedly shot with 9
millimeter pistols at close range in either the head, the heart or
the lungs.
Judge Servini de Cubria told the news daily that judicial authorities
have determined that all those killed were taken to hospitals between
4 and 5 o'clock in the afternoon of that day. Argentina's new
government has promised to determine responsibilities in the violent
repression during the massive street protests.
*INDIA DEPLOYS MISSILES ON PAKISTANI BORDER AS TENSIONS INCREASE
New Delhi, December 26 (RHC)-- India has announced the deployment of
missiles near its border with Pakistan. Though authorities in New
Delhi did not provide details, local media outlets have reported that
the Indian army took to the border land-to-land missiles with a
150-kilometer range and capable of carrying nuclear warheads.
It wasn't certain if India also deployed its AGNI-1 ballistic
missiles with a range of 1,500 kilometers. Both countries have been
amassing troops on their mutual border since the December 13 suicide
terrorist attack against the Indian parliament, which India blamed on
organizations in the disputed Kashmir region supported by Pakistan.
Several skirmishes and exchanges of artillery fire have claimed the
lives of at least five members of both countries' armed forces.
Islamabad has nevertheless made gestures of peace towards India with
the announcement of the freezing of bank accounts of one of the
organizations struggling against Indian military presence in Kashmir
and the arrest of the leader of another similar organization. But New
Delhi has called the measures superficial, demanding that Pakistani
authorities close camps that India charges are terrorist training
centers.
Civilians in the border region are reportedly fleeing, while Pakistan
is reportedly carrying out test blackouts of up to 15 minutes to
prepare the population for war. India and Pakistan have engaged in
three border wars over the disputed Kashmir.
*US GOVERNMENT BODY REPORTS ANTI-ARAB JOB DISCRIMINATION ON THE RISE
Washington, December 26 (RHC)-- The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity
Commission, the EEOC, has revealed that complaints about
discrimination on the job from Muslims, Arab-Americans and Sikhs have
more than doubled since the September 11 terror attacks, compared
with the same period last year. Most of the complaints reportedly
involve unjustified firings.
While EEOC president Cari Dominguez said her office will work
tirelessly to avoid anti-Arab abuse and discrimination in the
country, the US's National Association of Muslim Attorneys stated
that merely recognizing the problem is not sufficient. Association
leader Arshad Majid affirmed that hundreds, perhaps thousands, of
cases are not denounced or included in the statistics, and that these
cases constitute a worrisome pattern.
Jean Abi Nader, director of the Arab-American Institute, said the
EEOC and the Immigration and Naturalization Services are sending
mixed signals. Nader said that while the EEOC is calling on workers
of Arab origin to bring their cases to the authorities, the INS is
pursuing immigrant workers whose visas have expired.
The EEOC admitted that the majority of complaints are against firms
that lack sufficient policies or measures to avoid a work atmosphere
permeated by ethnic or religious prejudice.
*HUGE DISPARITIES IN 9-11 COMPENSATION SPARK COMPLAINTS IN US
New York, December 26 (RHC)-- The different amounts of compensation
for family members of the September 11 terror victims is generating a
growing number of complaints. While family members of security guards
for firms located in New York's Twin Towers agree that the families
of firemen and police who perished should receive high amounts of
compensation, they're insisting that so, too, should the family
members of security guards.
Mike Fishman, a labor representative for the security guards, said
many of them also lost their lives trying to help people in the
aftermath of the attack. The widow of one security guard, Matilde
Salcedo, said her compensation is nothing compared to what's been
given to the family members of firemen, police and the rich
executives who worked in Twin Towers offices.
She said that with the $10,000 she received she won't be able
to cover the necessities of her three small children for very long.
Relatives of firemen are to receive as much as one million dollars.
Tomas Cruz, the brother of another security guard who perished, said
his brother's family has only received $5,000.
At the same time, the family members of workers in powerful financial
firms who died in the tragedy are complaining that the relatives of
high-income executives are receiving more than lower income workers.
Laurie Bidden, a widow with three children who received much less
money that the family members of her late husband's boss, said the
life of one is worth just as much as the other.
*Viewpoint: "BLACK GOLD" AND UNDERDEVELOPMENT
Humanity continues suffering under the fluctuating prices of oil;
an indispensable product that is the basis for the hard currency
earnings of the producer countries both within and outside of OPEC,
the organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries. Many Third World
nations excluded from the exclusive club of oil producers also suffer
the ups and downs of the prices of barrels of crude, but for the
opposite reason.
Unlike those that possess rich oil reserves, each year the poor
nations fear that they will be unable to buy enough of the precious
"black gold," to meet their domestic needs. In the year 2001, the oil
world was marked by efforts of the OPEC countries to control the
prices of crude which last year rose higher that 30 dollars a barrel.
Faced with the insistent demands of consumer nations for lower
prices, OPEC had no alternative but to reduce the high prices. With
cuts in production, the OPEC per barrel price in the first six months
of 2001 was on the average 25 dollars. After the tragic events of
September 11th in the United States and the ensuing economic crisis
in commercial air traffic, oil prices dropped again; this time to
between 22 and 28 dollars per barrel.
The dive in oil prices has seriously affected nations that depend on
income from oil sales compelling them to increase exports to
compensate for their losses. The pressure also increased due to more
activity in the sector since last year when the high prices attracted
investors. The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, which
controls nearly two thirds of the world's crude exports, stated that
it was impossible to defend by itself, the stability of the market
and warned of the danger of a price war if non-OPEC producers refused
to agree to limit production.
While OPEC members negotiate with non-member producers the
impoverished South waits expectantly, because for those countries
earlier price reductions were insufficient. Cuba has not escaped this
negative influence, which has been accumulating over the last two
years. It is a situation that has obligated the country to go into
debt with credits received in order to purchase petroleum.
In fact, Cuban domestic energy production has increased in the past
few years to the point where the island is now generating 52 per cent
of its electricity with national fuel. Cuba is currently producing
all of its cement needs and has saved more than 90 million dollars
this year by using domestic products rather than imports.
But still, the national budget must be tightly squeezed to be able to
find the money to acquire on the international market the necessary
quantities to cover its domestic needs because Cuban oil covers only
38 per cent of demand. So Cuba has not been exempt from the oil price
situation and like many other countries continues to face
uncertainty. However, prospects are positive in the medium and long
terms especially if Cuba continues to increase local oil production.
(c) 2001 Radio Habana Cuba, NY Transfer News. All rights reserved.
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