CUBANEWS FROM RADIO HAVANA CUBA June 19, 1997 E-mail: rhc@radiohc.org The following items are taken from RADIO HAVANA CUBA's International Shortwave Service in English for Thursday, June 19th, 1997. Today's stories: 1.- CUBA AFFIRMS THAT EXEMPTING FOOD AND MEDICINE FROM THE U.S. BLOCKADE DOES NOT CHANGE ITS ILLEGALITY 2.- GUYANESE FOREIGN MINISTER CLEMENT ROHEE BEGINS HIS OFFICIAL VISIT TO CUBA 3.- TOP CUBAN OFFICIAL ATTENDS CONGRESS OF SPANISH SOCIALIST WORKERS PARTY 4.- EUROPEAN DIPLOMAT PRAISES EFFICIENT DISTRIBUTION OF EUROPEAN UNION AID IN CUBA 5.- GROUPS OF CUBAN-AMERICANS IN THE UNITED STATES TO SEND MEDICINES TO CUBA NEXT WEEK 6.- INTERNATIONAL INTEREST IN ATTENDING THE 14TH WORLD FESTIVAL OF YOUTH AND STUDENTS CONTINUES GROWING CUBA AFFIRMS THAT EXEMPTING FOOD AND MEDICINE FROM THE U.S. BLOCKADE DOES NOT CHANGE ITS ILLEGALITY Havana, June 19(RHC)-- Attempts to `soften' Washington's blockade by allowing the sale of food and medicine does not take away from the illegality of the U.S. blockade against Cuba. During this morning's weekly press briefing in Havana, Miguel Alfonso, spokesperson for the Cuban Foreign Ministry, referred to initiatives by U.S. congressional representatives to exclude food and medicine from the U.S. blockade. Alfonso said that Cuba appreciates their "valiant efforts," but that nothing can change the "illegal and unethical nature of the blockade, which is a total aberration." The Cuban foreign ministry spokesperson doubted that the initiative, backed by a number of Republican and Democratic representatives in Washington, will actually go through the legislative process. But, Alfonso quipped, "nothing that the U.S. Congress does surprises us." He added that at least the effort demonstrates that there are still a few sane people on Capitol Hill. Also during the news briefing, the foreign ministry spokesperson reiterated Cuba's denunciation of U.S. biological warfare against the island. Alfonso presented a report drawn up by Cuban experts concerning the October 21st flight through Cuban air corridors of a U.S. State Department aircraft that released a deadly and voracious Asian insect previously unknown in Cuba, called the "Thrips Palmi." Washington claimed that the pilot had only activated the plane's smoke generator in order to make known his presence and location to aircraft in the vicinity, among them a Cubana commercial flight. But Cuban experts have asserted that nowhere in the international civil aviation regulations is the use of smoke generators stipulated for that purpose. The report also points out that upon arriving back in the U.S., the pilot of the State Department aircraft did not report the incident to local air controllers. Cuba presented a formal denunciation to the United Nations last May 5th, recalling that this is not the first U.S. biological attack against the island. GUYANESE FOREIGN MINISTER CLEMENT ROHEE BEGINS HIS OFFICIAL VISIT TO CUBA Havana, June 19(RHC)-- During his first full-day in Havana, Guyanese Foreign Minister Clement Rohee presided over his country's delegation at the 19th Meeting of the Cuba-Guyana Mixed Commission. The meeting began discussions on bilateral cooperation between the two countries. The Guyanese delegation, led by the foreign minister, arrived late last night in the Cuban capital and will visit the island over the next ten days. Foreign Minister Rohee told reporters in Havana that one of the purposes of their official visit is to study ways to strengthen ties between Cuba and Guyana in the areas of tourism, business, education, health, sports and culture. In an indirect reference to Washington's attempts to isolate Cuba in the region, the Guyanese foreign minister dismissed efforts to prevent the Caribbean from growing closer to Cuba: "Not withstanding whatever efforts other countries might take to block these relations, it is inevitable that these relations will develop. Right now, the relations between Cuba and the Caribbean are at a very interesting juncture and, of course, it is only natural for us to take advantage of these opportunities." During his stay in Cuba, the Guyanese foreign minister will visit places of social and economic interest, including the international trade fair "EXPOCARIBE '97," which opens Monday in Santiago de Cuba. TOP CUBAN OFFICIAL ATTENDS CONGRESS OF SPANISH SOCIALIST WORKERS PARTY Madrid, June 19(RHC)-- Member of the Political Bureau of the Cuban Communist Party, Jose Ramon Balaguer, is in Madrid at the invitation of the Spanish Socialist Workers Party, which is holding its 34th Party Congress. According to Prensa Latina News Agency, the Cuban official's presence at the congress will help to deepen ties between the Cuban Communist Party and the second largest political power in Spain. During his stay in Madrid, Jose Ramon Balaguer is scheduled to meet with local political leaders. In other news, the United Left Coalition in Spain has warned that Washington would be committing a grave error if it became involved in Spain's internal affairs by questioning the possible visit to Cuba of King Juan Carlos II. According to Julio Anguita, leader of the United Left Coalition, the government of President Jose Maria Aznar should seriously question recent statements by the U.S. ambassador to Spain. An article published by the Madrid daily "El Pais" reported that Ambassador Richard Gardner told journalists that his country was opposed to an upcoming visit to Cuba by the Spanish king. Anguita said that when the U.S. embassy in Madrid was asked for a clarification the following day, the ambassador denied ever having made the statement. The United Left Coalition, the country's third largest political force, called on its members to energetically oppose any interference in Spain's internal affairs. EUROPEAN DIPLOMAT PRAISES EFFICIENT DISTRIBUTION OF EUROPEAN UNION AID IN CUBA Havana, June 19(RHC)-- Dutch ambassador in Havana, Elred Maduro, has praised the efficient distribution of humanitarian aid provided by the European Union to Cuba. During a recent news conference in Havana, the Dutch diplomat referred to the success of the aid program, which has totaled some 54 million dollars since 1993. Cuban Deputy Health Minister Ramon Diaz and Foreign Investment Minister Raul Taladrid, who were also at the news conference, submitted a government request to the European Union to increase its annual humanitarian aid budget to the island. Currently, the European Union is developing aid programs valued at more than nine million dollars. Also during the Havana news conference, the two deputy ministers denied allegations that the Cuban government has requested assistance from the international community to help face an outbreak of dengue affecting the eastern part of the island. The Cuban officials reiterated that the island has the necessary resources to provide medical assistance to dengue-infected patients and to eradicate the disease carrier: the aedes-aegiptis mosquito. GROUPS OF CUBAN-AMERICANS IN THE UNITED STATES TO SEND MEDICINES TO CUBA NEXT WEEK Havana, June 19(RHC)-- Groups of Cuban-Americans residing in the United States are determined to ship medicines to Cuba, despite threats by ultra right-wing organizations. The President of the Cuban-American Workers Alliance, Wilfredo Moreno, said the humanitarian aid will be sent to Cuba by a religious organization that has obtained a U.S. Treasury Department license to ship humanitarian aid to the island. The shipment will be sent from Miami International Airport, despite threats against the organization by right-wing Cuban- Americans. Moreno noted that Cubans of many different political persuasions took part in the drive to collect medicines and that 90 percent of those Cubans living in the United States are against Washington's blockade of the island. INTERNATIONAL INTEREST IN ATTENDING THE 14TH WORLD FESTIVAL OF YOUTH AND STUDENTS CONTINUES GROWING Havana, June 19(RHC)-- More than 100 Nicaraguan young people will attend slated to take place from July 28th to August 5th in Cuba. Nicaraguan student leader, Julio Orozco, said more than 110 Nicaraguans have applied to come to Cuba next summer for the Festival. In related news, over 500 youths will make up the German delegation to the youth event. More than thirty political, trade union, religious, ecological and student organizations will send delegates. [c] 1997. Radio Habana Cuba All rights reserved Articles cannot be reproduced, reprinted or published in any system without the consent of RHC. This prohibition includes the distribution of this material via Usenet News, "bulletin board" services, e-mail lists, print media, radio and television. For the complete RADIO HAVANA CUBA NEWSCAST and other features, please write for our daily broadcast schedule. We welcome your comments and suggestions. For further information, contact us at: Postal Address: Radio Havana Cuba P.O.Box 6240 Havana, Cuba Telephone: (53) (7) 791053 Fax: (53) (7) 795007 E-mail: rhc@radiohc.org WWW: http://www.radiohc.org