CUBANEWS FROM RADIO HAVANA CUBA October 28, 1997 rhc@radiohc.org http://www.radiohc.org = The following items are taken from RADIO HAVANA CUBA's International Shortwave Service in English for Tuesday, October 28, 1997. Today's stories: 1.- CUBAN GOVERNMENT DECREES CONSTITUTION OF MUNICIPAL ASSEMBLIES OF POPULAR POWER FOLLOWING SECOND ROUND OF ELECTIONS 2.- CUBANS PAY TRIBUTE TO ONE OF THEIR MOST BELOVED HEROES: COMANDANTE CAMILO CIENFUEGOS. 3.- CUBAN FOREIGN MINISTER ROBERTO ROBAINA RECEIVED IN CARACAS BY VENEZUELAN PRESIDENT RAFAEL CALDERA 4.- HAVANA'S INTERNATIONAL TRADE FAIR PROVES ITS POINT. 5.- MEXICO'S AEROCARIBE AIRLINE TO INCREASE FLIGHTS TO HAVANA. 6.- CUBA HOSTS INTERNATIONAL CONGRESS ON PEDIATRICS. 7.-WORLD FAMOUS WINE, SPIRIT AND LIQUOR COMPANIES TO CHOOSE THE TOP 100 CUBAN RESTAURANTS SELLING MOST WINES. CUBAN GOVERNMENT DECREES CONSTITUTION OF MUNICIPAL ASSEMBLIES OF POPULAR POWER FOLLOWING SECOND ROUND OF ELECTIONS Havana, October 28th, (RHC). Cuba's Council of State today decreed the constitution of the island's Municipal Assemblies of Peoples Power, slated for November 2nd, following Sunday's second round of municipal elections. Last Sunday, more than one million Cuban voters -- of a total of close to 8 million -- cast their ballots in one thousand 98 electoral districts where candidates did not achieve 50 percent of the vote. Cuba's news daily Granma once again highlighted today the massive voter turnout, with 94.77 percent -- up from the turnout in the second round of elections in 1992 and 1995, 86.6 and 89.2 percent respectively. Last week, Cuban authorities hailed the 97.59 percent voter turnout in the first round as overwhelming popular support for Cuba's electoral process and for the island's socialist system. The number of spoiled and blank ballots also again decreased, to 7.32 percent during the second round. In all, 14 thousand 533 delegates were elected to the country's 169 municipal assemblies. General elections have been called for next January 11th to elect the delegates to 14 Provincial Assemblies and the more than 500 house deputies of the National Assembly. The National Assembly selects among its more than 500 members the 31 members of the Council of State, Cuba's executive power. The president of the Council of State is also the chief of government --in this case, President Fidel Castro. CUBANS PAY TRIBUTE TO ONE OF THEIR MOST BELOVED HEROES: COMANDANTE CAMILO CIENFUEGOS. Havana, October 28(RHC)-- Every October 28 flowers bloom in Cuba's coastal waters. Each year millions of Cubans pay tribute to their beloved Comandante Camilo Cienfuegos by tossing flowers into the sea in remembrance of the day 38 years ago that the small plane his was riding in plunged into the sea. That day Camilo - who headed the Army at the triumph of the Cuban Revolution in 1959- carried out his last mission. The Revolutionary leadership had reports of a counterrevolutionary conspiracy in the eastern province of Camaguey led by traitor Comandante Huber Matos. Fidel Castro -Prime Minister at the time- ordered Comandante Cienfuegos to fly to Camaguey to put down the conspiracy. After successfully completing his mission Camilo Cienfuegos headed back to Havana in a small plane that went down into the ocean. When the people learned about the accident, thousands joined in the search for the charismatic leader, but neither his nor the pilot's remains were recovered. Since Tuesday early morning, Cubans from all walks of life took time out from their daily tasks to throw flowers into the ocean as has become customary since Comandante Camilo Cienfuegos disappeared 38 years ago. CUBAN FOREIGN MINISTER ROBERTO ROBAINA RECEIVED IN CARACAS BY VENEZUELAN PRESIDENT RAFAEL CALDERA Havana, October 28(RHC)-- Cuban Foreign Minister Roberto Robaina was received today in Caracas by Venezuelan President Rafael Caldera. Robaina made a brief stop-over in the Venezuelan capital before continuing on to Colombia to hold talks with Colombian Foreign Minister Emma Mejia. The stop-over has been described as a visit of courtesy due to the upcoming 7th Iberoamerican Summit, to be hosted by Venezuela next November 8th and 9th. HAVANA'S INTERNATIONAL TRADE FAIR PROVES ITS POINT. Havana, October 28(RHC)-- On the eve of the next millennium, Havana's International Trade Fair -FIHAV- has become one of the most active in the region. Cuban officials report that an increasingly number of foreign firms have expressed interest in taking part in FIHAV 97. To date, some one thousand eight hundred companies from 60 nations will display their products in Havana during the first week of November. The president of the fair's organizing committee, Abraham Maciques, points to Canada, Spain, France, Mexico and South Korea, as the nations with the most participation in Havana's International Fair. According to Maciques, foreign firms have contracted a total of 22 thousand square meters in the Expocuba exhibition pabillion, on the outskirts of Havana. Companies from Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, China and the European Union will also be on hand. The president of the trade fair's organizing committee says that representatives from seventeen chambers of commerce and top business executives from Canada, Panama and Turkey will also participate in the international trade fair. As for the host nation, more than three hundred twenty local firms will exhibit their products at the fair in what is described as the largest participation of Cuban industries and companies ever in the event. Begun in 1983, Havana's International Trade Fair is, in the view of experts, one of the most attractive business events in Latin America. MEXICO'S AEROCARIBE AIRLINE TO INCREASE FLIGHTS TO HAVANA. Havana, October 28(RHC)-- The Mexican AEROCARIBE airline will increase flights to Havana. AEROCARIBE sales manager, Salvador Gonzalez, said that the airline also has plans to fly from Cancun, Mexico to Cuba's Varadero beach resort three times a week. The AEROCARIBE official told the press in Mexico City that these extra flights come at a time when the flow of Mexican tourists to the island traditionally registers a considerable increase. According to Gonzalez, a similar weekly flight increase is expected in 1998 based on the results of market research. He noted that the Cuban travel agencies sending the most passengers to AEROCARIBE are Vinales Tours, Tips Travel, Cubamar and Taino Tours. CUBA HOSTS INTERNATIONAL CONGRESS ON PEDIATRICS. Havana, October 28(RHC)-- Under the slogan "Nothing is More Important than a Child" an International Congress on Pediatrics has begun sessions in Havana. Sponsored by the United Nations Children's Fund, the Panamerican and World Health Organizations and the Latin American Pediatrics Association, more than 1500 delegates from 25 European and Latin American nations are in attendance. The President of the Cuban Pediatrics Association, Enzo Duenas, announced that the island will make available its vast experience in pediatrics. Dr. Duenas noted that despite hardships, this year Cuba has registered an infant mortality rate of just 7.6 per one thousand live births. Commenting on that achievement, the President of the Latin American Pediatrics Association, Julio Lorenzo, said that the island is second to none on the continent. Havana's International Pediatrics Congress will also examine the follow up to agreements made at the World Children's Summit. WORLD FAMOUS WINE, SPIRIT AND LIQUOR COMPANIES TO CHOOSE THE TOP 100 CUBAN RESTAURANTS SELLING MOST WINES. Havana, October 28(RHC)-- For the second year in a row Cuban restaurants will compete for the island's coveted top 100 classification. The competition is aimed at choosing restaurants with the most extensive wines and best food and service islandwide. This time the Top 100 classification will coincide with Havana's International Trade Fair the first week of November. Sponsoring the competition are France's Moet et Chandon Champagne and Chile's Concha y Toro Wines. Restaurants classifying for the Top 100 must have a wine menu of more than a hundred wines, good sales, excellent service and a balanced cuisine offer. Last year the Top 100 Classification went to Las Ruinas, the famed Floridita, Le Select and Sala Aguiar Restaurants in Havana and the Las Americas Restaurant in Varadero Beach in Matanzas province. [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) 814243 Fax: (53) (7) 812927 E-mail: rhc@radiohc.org WWW: http://www.radiohc.org