From mail.infocom.etecsa.cu!radiohc@mail.infocom.etecsa.cu Mon Apr 14 17:07:23 1997 Return-Path: mail.infocom.etecsa.cu!radiohc@mail.infocom.etecsa.cu Received: from dns2.infocom.etecsa.cu ([169.158.64.1]) by nyxfer.blythe.org (8.6.12/8.6.12) with SMTP id RAA15094 for ; Mon, 14 Apr 1997 17:07:12 -0400 Received: by dns2.infocom.etecsa.cu (Smail3.1.28.1 #3) id m0wGsxa-0001tMC; Mon, 14 Apr 97 17:06 EDT Received: from manati.in.etecsa.cu by dns2.infocom.etecsa.cu with SMTP id XXXXXXXX-Xa00510; Mon, 14 Apr 97 17:06 EDT Received: by manati.in.etecsa.cu (Smail3.1.28.1 #3) id m0wGsxY-0002A8C; Mon, 14 Apr 97 17:06 EDT Message-Id: Subject: RHC news stories, April 8, 1997 To: reg.cuba@conf.igc.apc.org Date: Mon, 14 Apr 1997 17:06:43 -0400 (EDT) From: "Lic. Jorge L. Ruiz" Cc: nyt@blythe.org, cubaseccion@igc.apc.org X-Mailer: ELM [version 2.4 PL13] MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Content-Length: 8704 Status: O CUBANEWS FROM RADIO HAVANA CUBA Tuesday, April 8, 1997 The following items are taken from RADIO HAVANA CUBA's International Shortwave Service in English for Tuesday, April 8, 1997. Today's stories: 1.- U.S. CONFISCATES PLANE USED TO `TRAFFIC' HUMANITARIAN AID TO CUBA 2.- CUBAN FOREIGN MINISTER ROBERTO ROBAINA ADDRESSES NON- ALIGNED MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE IN NEW DELHI 3.- FORMER SPANISH PRESIDENT CONDEMNS ARREST OF BUSINESSMAN IN MIAMI 4.- CUBA AND SOUTH AFRICA SIGN COOPERATION PROTOCOL IN EDUCATION 5.- CARIBBEAN HOTEL ASSOCIATION MEETS IN HAVANA 6.- MONEY EXCHANGE HOUSES EXTEND THROUGHOUT THE ISLAND 7.- EOLIC ENERGY GAINS TERRAIN IN CUBA 8.- PRESIDENT FIDEL CASTRO ELECTED HONORARY MEMBER OF BRITISH YOUTH ORGANIZATION U.S. CONFISCATES PLANE USED TO `TRAFFIC' HUMANITARIAN AID TO CUBA Havana, April 8(RHC)-- Authorities in the United States have confiscated a small aircraft that brought humanitarian aid to Cuba without U.S. government permission. 71-year-old Millard Harmon landed Monday at the Albany, New York airport, where he was interrogated. He said he was treated like a drug trafficker. Last weekend, Harmon brought to Cuba 50,000 dollars worth of donated penicillin and inhalers for asthma sufferers, destined primarily for Cuban children. He said he had been attempting to get government permission for the past 18 months when he decided to fly his Beechcraft 36 to the Caiman Islands and leave the donation there for its eventual shipment to Cuba. But the pilot, who calls himself "a humanitarian missionary," said he was forced to land in Havana due to engine problems and bad weather. Harmon faces a 5000 dollar fine for not complying with the requirement that any plane going to the U.S. from Cuba must first land in Miami. He could also face federal charges for violating the U.S. blockade of Cuba. CUBAN FOREIGN MINISTER ROBERTO ROBAINA ADDRESSES NON-ALIGNED MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE IN NEW DELHI New Delhi, April 8(RHC)-- "To reform the United Nations, an agreement must be hammered out with the Non-Aligned Movement, which constitutes two-thirds of the world body's membership," stated Cuban Foreign Minister Roberto Robaina at the 12th Non- Aligned Ministerial Conference in New Delhi, India. Robaina asked, "How long can a silent majority continue to be silenced by a disastrous, international political and economic order that only benefits the powerful?" In the final document of the two-day conference, which wound up today, the Non-Aligned nations came out against a selective or partial expansion of the U.N. Security Council to the detriment of developing countries. The Non-Aligned foreign ministers also called on member nations to freeze their relations with Israel until Tel Aviv moves to put the Middle East peace process back on track. Concerning the environment, the Non-Aligned Movement blasted the developed countries for not transferring cleaner technology to poor nations, and asserted that the Movement will adopt a common position during the special U.N. gathering next June to revise compliance with the accords adopted at the Rio Earth Summit. The conference also unanimously condemned Washington's blockade of Cuba. FORMER SPANISH PRESIDENT CONDEMNS ARREST OF BUSINESSMAN IN MIAMI Madrid, April 8(RHC)-- Spanish socialist leader and former President Felipe Gonzalez has accused the United States of violating the human rights of a Spanish businessman arrested in Miami for violating the blockade against Cuba. Gonzalez said the businessman's appearance before judicial authorities and the media in chains was "an absolutely unnecessary humiliation." Javier Ferreiro, a Spanish resident in Havana whose family lives in Miami, was arrested last April 1st. But the accused asserts that he has not violated U.S. laws because the products destined for Cuba were bought in third countries. The former Spanish president also blasted the current government of Jose Maria Aznar for not condemning the arrest, comparing it to Madrid's strong reaction to the recent arrest in Cuba of a Spanish tourist involved in a traffic accident in Havana. He said the Aznar administration "should not bow to the powerful and beat its chest before the weak." CUBA AND SOUTH AFRICA SIGN COOPERATION PROTOCOL IN EDUCATION Havana, April 8(RHC)-- South African and Cuban educational officials have agreed to broaden bilateral cooperation. South African Education Minister Sibusiso Bengu -- visiting the island since April 4th -- told reporters at the Havana signing ceremony that the protocol covers relations in the fields of education and will benefit both nations. During his stay on the island South Africa's education minister attended the central ceremony of the 35th anniversary of the founding of Cuba's Young Communist League on April 4th. The South African Education Minister also held talks with Cuban education authorities and visited schools. CARIBBEAN HOTEL ASSOCIATION MEETS IN HAVANA Havana, April 8(RHC)-- A meeting of the Caribbean Hotel Association's Board of Directors entered its second and final day Tuesday in Havana's National Hotel. In attendance were representatives from 18 countries and tour regions including Tobago, Aruba, Barbados, Jamaica, Belice, Guadalupe, Bermuda, Puerto Rico and several states and cities of the United States among them the city of Miami and the states of Florida, Connecticut and Texas. The meeting was divided into work committees in preparation for the Caribbean Tour Convention to be held soon in Puerto Rico. The Caribbean Hotel Association works jointly with the Caribbean Tourism Organization to promote the Caribbean as a unique tour destination. Cuba became a member of the Caribbean Hotel Association in 1993 despite strong opposition from the United States. The meeting in Cuba was also objected to by the U.S., a position defeated with the support of the other Caribbean islands. MONEY EXCHANGE HOUSES EXTEND THROUGHOUT THE ISLAND Havana, April 8th(RHC)-- Cuba's Money Exchange Houses, known as CADECA, will be extended to the eastern cities of Guantanamo, Las Tunas, and the Isle of Youth. CADECAS were established in 1995 to sell Cuban pesos and U.S. dollars. The current exchange rate is 22 pesos per dollar. There are currently 33 offices in Havana and money exchange houses will reportedly cover the entire island by the end of this year. EOLIC ENERGY GAINS TERRAIN IN CUBA Havana, April 8(RHC)-- Cuba is developing and using eolic electrical generators according to an Eolic Energy Workshop underway in the eastern Cuban province of Camaguey. The scientific gathering is sponsored by the United Nations Children's Fund -- UNICEF -- and the Cuban Society for the Promotion of Renewable Energy Sources. At the meeting, delegates said that the level of technical work being done in Cuba places the island among the nations with the real possibility to rationally use the renewable energy source. PRESIDENT FIDEL CASTRO ELECTED HONORARY MEMBER OF BRITISH YOUTH ORGANIZATION London, April 8(RHC)-- Cuba Forum, a student organization from the British universities of Oxford and Cambridge, has announced the election of President Fidel Castro as honorary member. Founded in 1994, Cuba Forum, is the largest British student organization working in solidarity with the island. Cuba Forum leader, Mauricio Guiliano, says the organization gives conferences and conducts debates on political, social and cultural issues in support of the Cuban Revolution and in opposition to Washington's policies. Guiliano noted that all over Britain, and especially at Oxford and Cambridge, people have become aware of the true situation in Cuba and that the British government itself voted in the United Nation's General Assembly against the U.S. blockade of Cuba. The head of Cuba Forum explained that by choosing President Fidel Castro as an honorary member of the youth organization, members expressed their recognition and love for the Cuban leader. For the complete RADIO HAVANA CUBA NEWSCAST and other features, please write for our daily broadcast schedule. We welcome your comments and suggestions. Postal Address: Radio Havana Cuba, P.O. Box 6240 Havana, Cuba Telephone: (53) (7) 791053 Fax: (53) (7) 795007