CUBANEWS FROM RADIO HAVANA CUBA November 18, 1997 rhc@radiohc.org http://www.radiohc.org The following items are taken from Radio Havana Cuba's English Language Service for Tuesday, November 18, 1997. Today's stories: 1.- CHINESE PRIME MINISTER LI PENG RECEIVES IN BEIJING CUBA'S FIRST VICE PRESIDENT AND DEFENSE MINISTER RAUL CASTRO 2.- EL SALVADOR'S FARABUNDO MARTI NATIONAL LIBERATION FRONT SAYS THE COUNTRY IS BECOMING A MARKET OF MERCENARIES 3.- US STATE DEPARTMENT SENDS MORE HELMS-BURTON WARNING LETTERS TO EXECUTIVES OF FOREIGN FIRMS INVESTING IN CUBA 4.- NEWLY DECLASSIFIED PENTAGON DOCUMENTS PROVIDE FURTHER REVELATIONS OF WASHINGTON'S SECRET WAR AGAINST CUBA 5.- REPRESENTATIVES FROM LATIN AMERICAN CENTRAL BANKS WIND UP MEETING IN HAVANA 6.- CUBA EXPECTS TO SEE A STEADY GROW OF SUGAR PRODUCTION AS OF 1999 7.- CUBA WILL DONATE 100,000 DOLLARS TO VIETNAMESE VICTIMS OF TYPHOON LINDA 8.- INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S WORKSHOP UNDERWAY IN THE CUBAN 9.- PARASITOLOGY CONGRESS UNDERWAY IN HAVANA CAPITAL 10.-CUBA'S MEN'S VOLLEYBALL TEAM WILL PLAY JAPAN WEDNESDAY CHINESE PRIME MINISTER LI PENG RECEIVES IN BEIJING CUBA'S FIRST VICE PRESIDENT AND DEFENSE MINISTER RAUL CASTRO Beijing, November 18(RHC)-- Chinese Prime Minister Li Peng received in Beijing visiting First Vice President and Defense Minister Raul Castro Tuesday. During the official reception in Beijing's Great Palace of the People, the First Vice President of Cuba's Council of State said his two week visit to the Asian nation was aimed primarily at observing the economic reforms taking place in China, which, he said, could serve as a point of reference for the reforms underway in Cuba. The Chinese Prime Minister said he was aware of the difficult circumstances in which Cuba was attempting to boost its economy, but that he was sure the island would be successful. Li Peng also expressed his conviction that the Cuban official's visit would have a significant impact on bilateral relations between the two countries. On Wednesday, Army General Raul Castro is expected to meet with Chinese President Jiang Zemin. During his stay, the Cuban Defense Minister will visit sites of historic and economic interest, including the city of Shanghai, China's principle financial center. EL SALVADOR'S FARABUNDO MARTI NATIONAL LIBERATION FRONT SAYS THE COUNTRY IS BECOMING A MARKET OF MERCENARIES San Salvador, November 18(RHC)-- The Farabundo Marti National Liberation Front has charged that El Salvador is becoming a market of mercenaries. The denunciation followed Sunday's front page feature report in The Miami Herald asserting that a recent wave of terrorist bombs in Havana was the work of a band of Salvadorean car thieves and armed robbers, and was organized and financed by Cuban-Americans in Miami. Former Salvadorean rebel commander, and current House Deputy Eugenio Chicas also said that undoubtedly there are individual members of the Salvadorean government who in the very least are covering up and facilitating this type of criminal activity. The statements by Chicas have placed the government on the defensive. Salvadorean President Armando Calderon Sol asserted that his government has every intention to intensify an investigation into the charges, while a spokesperson of the Salvadorean army claimed that an investigation is underway in that military corps. But Chicas insisted that the government is afraid to discover responsibilities within its members. The FMLN House Deputy pointed out that Cuban-American terrorist Luis Posada Carriles was living in El Salvador up to a month ago, and was in possession of a Salvadorean passport. And he accused Salvadorean Interior Minister Mario Acosta Oertel of having strong ties with ultra-right wing Cubans in Miami and of covering up for Posada Carriles, who The Miami Herald said had trained Salvadorean mercenaries in the use of explosives. The Salvadorean Interior Minister was the first government official to come out in defense of Salvadoran Raul Ernesto Cruz Leon, arrested in Havana last September accused of placing several of the bombs in the Cuban capital's tourism installations. US STATE DEPARTMENT SENDS MORE HELMS-BURTON WARNING LETTERS TO EXECUTIVES OF FOREIGN FIRMS INVESTING IN CUBA Washington, November 18(RHC)-- The US State Department confirmed late Monday that letters have been sent to an Israeli firm investing in Cuba, warning the firm that it is violating the Helms-Burton Law. State Department spokesman Lee McClenny confirmed rumors that letters have been sent to the executives of the Israeli BM citrics company, warning them that within 45 days they will be prohibited from entering US territory if they continue investing in Cuba. McClenny refused to say how many executives were warned, though he revealed that similar letters have been sent to the executives of Panama's Motores Internacionales -- dedicated to the exportation of vehicles. Thus far, the executives of two foreign firms, and their families, have been prohibited entry into the US: Canada's Sherrit International and Mexican telecommunications firm Domos. NEWLY DECLASSIFIED PENTAGON DOCUMENTS PROVIDE FURTHER REVELATIONS OF WASHINGTON'S SECRET WAR AGAINST CUBA Washington, November 18(RHC)-- Newly declassified Pentagon documents released Tuesday in the US capital have provided further evidence of the extent of the US military's efforts to destroy the Cuban revolution in the early 1960s. The documents were declassified within the framework of the current efforts to shed more light on the assassination of President John F.Kennedy. They were presented by Anna Nelson, member of the agency created by the US Congress for the publication of the documents, who said that we now have another window to the anti-Cuba options considered within the highest spheres of the US military. Some one 1 500 pages of declassified documents demonstrate how in 1962 the US's Joint Chiefs of Staff proposed to then-Defense Secretary Robert McNamara a simulated attack against the Guantanamo naval base to be blamed on the Cubans in order to justify an invasion of the island. US plans to employ biological weapons against Cuba have also been revealed in the documents. The US military intended to secretly introduce biological agents to contaminate the fuel depots of airplanes from the Soviet block. Another effort included the falsification of photos showing Cuban leader Fidel Castro living in luxury and surrounded by women. And the US military elaborated a plan to blame Cuba in case of the failure of the US's first orbital flight, the Mercury-Atlas manned by John Glenn. It consisted of the fabrication of evidence falsely demonstrating that Cuba had electronically interfered with the flight. Some of these anti-Cuba schemes, and many, many others, were first comprehensively detailed in the extensive, 342 page book "The Fish Is Read", published in 1981 by American journalist Warren Hinckle and former FBI agent William Turner. The "Fish Is Read" was the code name to launch the Bay of Pigs invasion against Cuba. REPRESENTATIVES FROM LATIN AMERICAN CENTRAL BANKS WIND UP MEETING IN HAVANA Havana, November 18(RHC)-- Presidents and executives from Central Banks in 11 Latin America nations and the Caribbean wound up a two day meeting Tuesday in Havana. The executives exchanged experiences and debated issues on the world's latest monetary developments. Cuban vice president Carlos Lage announced to the meeting that, for 1997, Cuba expects to have a 2.5% growth of its Gross National Product, and stressed that conditions have been created to ensure the continuation of the island's economic recuperation process over the next few years. On their last day on the island, delegates to the regional event exchanged experiences with their Cuban counterparts and visited Havana's Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology. The Havana meeting of presidents and executives from Central Banks in Latin America and the Caribbean was held six months after the creation of Cuba's Central Bank. The event was co-sponsored by SELA --the Latin American Economic System, and Venezuela's Central Bank. CUBA EXPECTS TO SEE A STEADY GROW OF SUGAR PRODUCTION AS OF 1999 Havana, November 18(RHC)-- Cuba will register a systematic increase in sugar production as of 1999, according to Deputy Sugar Minister Gerson Fernandez. In statements to the Monday edition of the "Trabajadores" weekly, Fernandez said sugar cane development program for the 1998-2002 period, will be analyzed on December 13 during a national encounter of sugar cane basic cooperative production units. CUBA WILL DONATE 100,000 DOLLARS TO VIETNAMESE VICTIMS OF TYPHOON LINDA Havana, November 18(RHC)-- Cuba will donate 100,000 dollars to victims of typhoon "Linda", which affected thousands of people in southern Vietnam early this month. The governments of Algeria and Japan have also pledged to send humanitarian aid to Vietnam Cuba's embassy in Vietnam has informed Vietnamese Foreign Minister Nguyen Din Bin, that Cuban diplomats there will donate a day's salary to assist typhoon victims. Nguyen expressed his government's appreciation of the gesture. Various other countries and organizations have announced that they also will send donations including 636,000 dollars from the United States, and 400,000 dollars from Switzerland. The United Nations has contributed 255,000 dollars. Australia, France, South Korea, and China, have also sent help, totalling 618,000 dollars. Typhoon "Linda" left 4,000 dead or missing, and material losses estimated at some 500 million dollars. Official sources say that more than 150 thousand families in Vietnam suffered the consequences of the devastating typhoon. INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S WORKSHOP UNDERWAY IN THE CUBAN CAPITAL Havana, November 18(RHC)-- The 2nd International Workshop, "Women on the Threshold of the 21st Century" officially opened its doors Tuesday in the Cuban capital. For three days, delegates from 15 nations will debate issues concerning women including migration, employment, rural work and, the impact on women of social and economic policies. Violence, women's identity, family and education will also be on the gathering's agenda. Cuba will present conferences on women's reality on the island, the effects of Washington's blockade against Cuba and the repercussion of the economic crisis on Cuban women. The 2nd International Workshop "Women on the Threshold of the 21st Century" is organized by Cuba's History Institute, the Federation of Cuban Women and the University of Havana's Women's Studies Department. PARASITOLOGY CONGRESS UNDERWAY IN HAVANA Havana, November 18(RHC)-- Over 600 experts from 28 countries are participating in the 13th Latin American Congress on Parasitology, that opened its doors today, Tuesday, in Havana. The exchange of experiences on the incidence of parasite diseases in the region and current vaccines to prevent them, will top the event's agenda. Experts will also debate ways to prevent illnesses such as the Chagas Disease, malaria and filaria, which are common in Latin America, but eradicated in Cuba by the use of permanent epidemiological surveillance. CUBA'S MEN'S VOLLEYBALL TEAM WILL PLAY JAPAN WEDNESDAY Havana, November 18(RHC)-- The Cuban men's volleyball team will have its most serious challenge at the second cup of champs Wednesday when it faces Japan. The game is key for both squads which need that victory to continue up front. Brazil is leading the competition with two victories and no setbacks. The looser from the Cuba-Japan confrontation is practically out of the fight for the title, though it may hope for the second or third place, but with very slim chances. Meanwhile, in women's, Cuba and Russia took a step forward in the road for the title. Cuba defeated South Korea in three sets, while Brazil fell to Russia two sets to three. [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. 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