CUBANEWS FROM RADIO HAVANA CUBA December 1, 1997 rhc@radiohc.org http://www.radiohc.org The following items are taking from Radio Havana Cuba's news service for Monday, December 1, 1997. Today's stories: 1.- 4TH CUBA-CARICOM MIXED COMMISSION GATHERING UNDERWAY IN HAVANA 2.- CUBAN WEEKLY "TRABAJADORES" SAYS US MILITARY ATTACK AGAINST THE ISLAND WOULD GENERATE A MASSIVE RESPONSE FROM POPULATION 3.- WORLD AIDS DAY IN CUBA 4.- 19TH INTERNATIONAL FESTIVAL OF NEW LATIN AMERICAN FILM TO BEGIN IN HAVANA TUESDAY 5.- CUBA SOLIDARITY GROUPS IN CANARY ISLANDS MEET 6.- BIOTECHNOLOGY ENCOUNTER TO KICK OFF IN HAVANA TUESDAY 7.- WORLD'S LONGEST CIGAR ROLLED IN CUBA'S EASTERN PROVINCE OF GRANMA 8.- DEBORAH ANDOLLO POISED TO BREAK ANOTHER IMMERSION RECORD 4TH CUBA-CARICOM MIXED COMMISSION GATHERING UNDERWAY IN HAVANA Havana, December 1(RHC)-- The 4th gathering of the Cuba-CARICOM Mixed Commission opened today in Havana. Topping the agenda is regional cooperation in trade, investment, tourism, transportation and human resources. CARICOM Secretary General, Edwin Carrington, arrived in Havana on Saturday, and was received by Cuban Foreign Trade Minister Ricardo Cabrisas. Representatives of the 14 CARICOM member nations will be meeting with Cuban authorities at Havana's International Convention Center through next Wednesday. Though Cuba-CARICOM trade in 1996 was a modest 300 million dollars, this figure represented a 30 percent increase with respect to the previous year. The Cuba-CARICOM Mixed Commission was set up in Havana in December, 1993. CUBAN WEEKLY "TRABAJADORES" SAYS US MILITARY ATTACK AGAINST THE ISLAND WOULD GENERATE A MASSIVE RESPONSE FROM POPULATION Havana, December 1(RHC)-- On the eve of the 41st anniversary of Cuba's Revolutionary Armed Forces, the Cuban news weekly "Trabajadores" warned today that a US military attack against the island would generate a massive response from the population. The editorial centered its comment around the so-called Graham Ammendment, recently approved by the US Congress. Attached to the defense spending bill, the Graham amendment defines Cuba as a military threat to the United States, and demands that the US Defense Department periodically inform Congress of Cuba's military preparedness and develop contingency plans to counter a Cuban military attack against US territory. "Trabajadores" highlighted the adhesion of the Cuban Revolutionary Armed Forces to the country's social, economic and political system. On Sunday, on the occasion of National Defense Day, millions of Cubans islandwide engaged in defense exercises within the framework of Cuba's territorial militia structure. WORLD AIDS DAY IN CUBA Havana, December 1(RHC)-- Monday December 1st is being marked internationally as World AIDS Day. Activities in Cuba will have as main site the eastern province of Santiago de Cuba, where preparations for the date began in October. Since the HIV virus first became known in Cuba in 1986, one thousand 770 cases have been registered; 635 of them are still battling the illness while 470 have died. Official statistics also reveal that only seven children have been reported as HIV positive nation-wide. Among activities marking AIDS Day in Cuba is a Memorial Project, in remembrance of all those who have died of AIDS on the island. The Project has toured all 14 Cuban provinces and is expected to arrive in Santiago de Cuba today. World AIDS Day preparations in Cuba also included an educational program on the HIV virus. The initiative is primarily aimed at young people, whom recent surveys have shown to wrongly perceive AIDS as a disease confined only to certain groups. The polls have revealed, too, that many Cuban youths wrongly believe they are not at risk because people with AIDS are all confined in special institutions. 19TH INTERNATIONAL FESTIVAL OF NEW LATIN AMERICAN FILM TO BEGIN IN HAVANA TUESDAY Havana, December 1(RHC)-- Cuban and foreign film lovers are preparing for their annual assault on Havana movie theaters as the curtains in more than a dozen halls are poised to go up starting on Tuesday when the 19th International Festival of New Latin American Film gets underway. This year the endless lines of movie buffs will begin forming on December 2, the day the 19th Festival officially opens its doors with a star studded inauguration and the showing of a film that fans believe to be among the Festival's best. In addition to the non-stop movie showings, there will be press conferences by local and international stars and directors; a master conference on film making by one of Cuba's foremost directors, Juan Carlos Tabio; seminars and round table discussions; and a varied artistic program. As in previous years, most of the entries and those most likely to walk away with the Festival's prestigious Coral Awards, are Argentinean, Brazilian and Mexican. Other important offerings in this year's edition come from Cuba, Chile, the Dominican Republic, Uruguay and Venezuela. Argentina is the country with the most films in competition, with titles such as "Martin Hache," by Adolfo Aristrain, "Bajo Bandera," by Juan Jose Jusid, and "Cenizas del Paraiso" or Ashes from Paradise, by director Marcelo Pineyro. Another entry certain to attract a large audience will be "Pequenos Milagros," or Small Miracles, by Argentinean Eliseo Subiela, famous for his movie "Man Looking South East." Mexico will present "Ultima Llamada," or Last Call, by Carlos Garcia Agraz and Venezuelan filmmaker Roman Chalbuad, will show "Pandemonium". One of the most talked about Cuban entries is "Zafiro's Locura Azul," by Manuel Hererra. Other Cuban offerings are, "Amor Vertical," by Arturo Sotto, and "Kleines Tropicana," by Daniel Diaz Torrez. Among the 19th Festival's special exhibits will be the most complete showing of Spanish films ever, with 14 movies all made in l996 and l997. CUBA SOLIDARITY GROUPS IN CANARY ISLANDS MEET Canary Islands, December 1(RHC)-- Spaniards have again come out against the US blockade. This time the denunciation came from 4th Cuba-Canary Islands Solidarity Meeting that has just ended in that Spanish territory. Carlos Ramirez, vice-president of the local Canary Islands Council, told the meeting that Washington's blockade is both unjust and immoral, and violates the most elemental human rights. BIOTECHNOLOGY ENCOUNTER TO KICK OFF IN HAVANA TUESDAY Havana, December 1(RHC)-- Monday marks the opening in Havana of the 4th International Congress on Medical Applications of Biotechnology. Participating in the international event will be 1100 Cuban and foreign delegates. The Congress will run until Saturday and delegates will be discussing diverse topics from methods of modern scientific investigation, to the examining of therapies and the engineering of monoclonal antibodies and possible resulting vaccinations. WORLD'S LONGEST CIGAR ROLLED IN CUBA'S EASTERN PROVINCE OF GRANMA Granma, December 1(RHC)-- Cuba has always been widely known for high quality cigars, and now thanks to veteran Cuban cigarmaker William Collejo who recently rolled the world's longest cigar measuring 3.4 meters, it will have a place in the Guiness book of World records. Collejo, 66, made the amazing cigar in only four days in the Mario Alacron Tobacco Factory in eastern Granma province. And with his 50 years of experience in the art of cigar making, Collejo reiterated that the cigar was made with the utmost quality, like all the cigars the master cigar-maker rolls. The 3.4 meter long cigar comes in a whole half meter longer than the previous record, also held by a Cuban, Manuel Guzman whose cigar measured 2.9 meters. DEBORAH ANDOLLO POISED TO BREAK ANOTHER IMMERSION RECORD Havana, December 1(RHC)-- Cuban deep sea diver, Deborah Andollo, who has various world records in immersion, will try to break her own world record in the modality of constant ballast, according to statements to the press over the weekend in Havana. The 30 year old Cuban deep sea diver will try to break her record in the Isle of Youth's International Diving Center located, some 100 kilometers southwest of Havana. In a phone interview with Radio Havana Cuba, Deborah said" "I'll try to break the record in the modality of constant ballast which is 62 meters at the moment-- that was the record I broke in Italy last year before the accident I had. I consider this record a very important event in my sports career because it's going to be the first after the accident and the first in Cuba. People have a lot of expectations concerning my return to active sports and my return as a champion after the accident. The modality of constant ballast is the one I like the most, but it's also the hardest because it demands a lot of energy from the athlete. That's the modality where the diver has the kick constantly. It's called constant ballast because you have to go down and up with the same weight. In this case, I'll use a two kilogram ballast in the waist and I must return to the surface with the same weight. My current world record is 62 meters but this time I expect to do down to 65 meters. Generally speaking, people break this kind of record meter by meter, but I decided to dive up to 65 meters because I've been subjected to very intense training sessions, where I've surpassed that mark by a few meters. [c] 1997. Radio Habana Cuba All rights reserved Articles cannot be reproduced, reprinted or published in any system without the consent of RHC. 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