CUBANEWS FROM RADIO HAVANA CUBA September 26, 1997 rhc@radiohc.org http://www.radiohc.org The following items are taken from RADIO HAVANA CUBA's International Shortwave Service in English for Friday, September 26, 1997. Today's stories: 1.- CUBAN FOREIGN MINISTRY CONFIRMS UPCOMING TRIAL FOR U.S. CITIZEN ACCUSED OF TERRORIST ACTIVITIES IN CUBA 2.- CUBAN FOREIGN MINISTER ROBERTO ROBAINA HEADS TO UNITED NATIONS TO PRESENT RESOLUTION CONDEMNING WASHINGTON'S BLOCKADE 3.- CUBAN PRESIDENT FIDEL CASTRO RECEIVES VISITING MALAYSIAN PRIME MINISTER MAHATHIR MOHAMAD 4.- BRAZIL COOPERATES WITH DOMESTIC ECONOMIC RECOVERY IN CUBA 5.- ANDALUSIA GOVERNMENT BOARD EXPANDS COOPERATION WITH CUBA 6.- HAVANA AND ROME WILL COMMEMORATE WORLD FOOD DAY 7.- REMEMBERING ERNESTO CHE GUEVARA... HIS LIFE AND WORK REVITALIZES PROGRESSIVE FORCES THROUGHOUT THE WORLD 8.- AND IN SPORTS... JAVIER SOTOMAYOR, WORLD RECORD HOLDER IN MEN'S HIGH JUMP, REVEALS HIS SECRETS CUBAN FOREIGN MINISTRY CONFIRMS UPCOMING TRIAL FOR U.S. CITIZEN ACCUSED OF TERRORIST ACTIVITIES IN CUBA Havana, September 26(RHC)-- Cuba's Foreign Ministry has confirmed that U.S. citizen Walter Van Der Veer -- arrested and accused of terrorist activities against Cuba -- will be placed on trial next October 3rd. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Alejandro Gonzalez told journalists that Van Der Veer will receive all legal guarantees and that he has been assigned a public defender, since neither his family nor the U.S. government has named a defense lawyer for the accused. Gonzalez also stressed that an alleged letter from Van Der Veer published in the foreign press is false. The letter accuses Cuban authorities of physically mistreating the accused, which, according to the Cuban Foreign Ministry, has been acknowledged as false by representatives of the U.S. Interests Section in Havana that have maintained constant contact with Van Der Veer. The U.S. citizen, according to the Cuban Foreign Ministry, has confessed his ties with Miami-based terrorist organizations and his participation in Cuban territory in plans to destabilize the island, commit sabotage and recruit others for those aims. Walter Van Der Veer was arrested in August 1996, after smuggling military equipment and explosives into Cuba. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Alejandro Gonzalez also told the local and foreign press in Havana that Cuba has officially responded to a request of information from Mexico concerning the Salvadoran mercenary Raul Ernesto Cruz Leon, recently arrested in Cuba in connection with terrorist bomb explosions in Havana's tourism installations -- as well as the alleged trips to Cuba of Mexican drug trafficker Amado Carrillo, recently deceased. Mexico has requested information on Cruz Leon upon request from El Salvador, which does not have diplomatic relations with Cuba. Gonzalez said the information, requested and sent through diplomatic channels, is detailed and in accordance with the good relations between Cuba and Mexico. CUBAN FOREIGN MINISTER ROBERTO ROBAINA HEADS TO UNITED NATIONS TO PRESENT RESOLUTION CONDEMNING WASHINGTON'S BLOCKADE Havana, September 26(RHC)-- Cuban Foreign Minister Roberto Robaina will travel to New York on Sunday to participate in the 52nd U.N. General Assembly. Robaina will present Cuba's sixth consecutive project condemning the U.S. blockade of Cuba. On Thursday, Cuban Deputy Foreign Minister Jorge Bolanos stated in New York that Cuba hopes to garner the support of all members of the Non-Aligned Movement. The statement by Bolanos came during the annual gathering of Non-Aligned foreign ministers, held each year parallel to the opening of General Assembly debates. Over the past five years, Cuba's anti-blockade resolution has garnered overwhelming support that has increased each year. CUBAN PRESIDENT FIDEL CASTRO RECEIVES VISITING MALAYSIAN PRIME MINISTER MAHATHIR MOHAMAD Havana, September 26(RHC)-- Cuban President Fidel Castro received visiting Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, who arrived in Havana late Thursday at the head of a large governmental and business delegation. Following a private conversation, President Castro and Prime Minister Mohamad presided over a ceremony for the signing of three important accords. An investment promotion and protection agreement, another broad agreement on bilateral trade and an accord on the exemption of travel visas between the two countries were signed by Cuban Foreign Trade Minister Ricardo Cabrisas and his Malaysian counterpart Samy Vellu. Both government ministers called the signing of the accords an historic event in relations between the two countries. Cabrisas said that "in this unipolar world of globalization, in which the rich nations attempt to impose their models on the poor, South-South cooperation is that much more important." The Cuban minister said the trade accords signed between Cuba and Malaysia open broad perspectives in the areas of pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, tourism, sugar, construction and foodstuffs. Nearly 60 business representatives accompanying the Malaysian prime minister are to participate in a seminar on the Cuban economy, focusing on trade and investment. The delegation will travel to numerous sights of economic interest before wrapping up the official visit on Sunday. BRAZIL COOPERATES WITH DOMESTIC ECONOMIC RECOVERY IN CUBA Havana, September 26(RHC)-- Cuban and Brazilian authorities have signed a multilateral cooperation project to provide technical assistance to the island. Brazil's Cooperation Agency has pledged to contribute 1.7 million dollars worth of cooperation projects to help in the economic recovery of Cuba. Financing for the agreement, which spans over a period of three years, will come from the United Nations and Norway. The project is one of the accords signed during the Cuba- Brazil Mixed Economic Commission, which met in Havana this week. Under the agreement, Chile and Mexico will also provide technical assistance in different economic sectors. Experts from the Central Bank of Cuba and the Ministries of Financing, Prices, Economic Planning, Labor and Social Welfare will soon travel to Brazil to be trained by their local counterparts. Cuba's economy saw a slight recovery two years ago after its Gross National Product decreased by one third in the early 1990's. With the collapse of socialist Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union, Cuba lost more than 80 percent of its foreign trade exchange. ANDALUSIA GOVERNMENT BOARD EXPANDS COOPERATION WITH CUBA Havana, September 26(RHC)-- The Spanish autonomous region of Andalusia plans to expand its cooperation with Cuba. Andalusia's Social Affairs Secretary Isaias Perez has ended a five-day visit to the island. Perez told reporters before leaving the Cuban capital that he was extremely pleased with his visit. Current cooperation projects financed by the Andalusian government amount to 6.6 million dollars. Much of that amount is allotted to a cotton and tomato agricultural project in the western-most province of Pinar del Rio. The Andalusian social affairs secretary said that his government is also helping in the repair of a portion of Havana's seaside drive -- popularly known as the Malecon. And the Andalusian Government Board is financing the construction of a day care center in the Cuban capital. HAVANA AND ROME WILL COMMEMORATE WORLD FOOD DAY Rome, September 26(RHC)-- Through the `magic' of live television broadcasts, Havana and Rome will be linked together in the commemoration of World Food Day. According to the Italian daily "La Republica," world renowned singers will simultaneously perform in Havana and Rome next month. Italy's public television and Cuba's state television will broadcast the two concerts from the Coliseum in Rome and Havana's Malecon. Giant screens will allow concert goers to enjoy the live performances of both cities. According to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the concerts will be one of the main activities to mark World Food Day, observed on October 16th. Observers hope the concerts and the publicity they will generate will help in the fight against world hunger. REMEMBERING ERNESTO CHE GUEVARA... HIS LIFE AND WORK REVITALIZES PROGRESSIVE FORCES THROUGHOUT THE WORLD Havana, September 26(RHC)-- Latin Americans are hosting an ambitiously broad spectrum of activities in homage to Argentinean-born guerrilla fighter Ernesto Che Guevara. On October 8th -- the 30th anniversary of Che's murder in Bolivia -- Argentina's "Pagina 12" will publish letters, speeches and biographical notes on the Heroic Guerrilla. In the Argentinean city of Rosario -- Che's birthplace -- an international seminar will be held on the life and work of the internationalist fighter. Attending the seminar, which will take place from October 5th through the 11th, will be representatives from Latin America, Europe and Australia. In the Bolivian locality of La Higuera, where Che and several of his comrades were captured and then executed by Bolivian soldiers in October 1967, homages will include photo exhibits, film and theater festivals. And on October 8th, La Higuera will be the site of a huge concert by Argentinean, Cuban and Bolivian singers and composers. In Venezuela, the Athenaeum in Caracas will be the site of a photo exhibit by Cuban photographer Raul Corrales. In Santiago de Chile, organizers of a huge concert with Silvio Rodriguez and other Cuban and Chilean artists in the National Stadium, report that the event is almost sold-out. In Guatemala, student, labor and community activists have organized a program, including conferences and workshops on Che's example. Organizers are also planning a march in Guatemala City, the capital. And in Cuba, one hundred delegates from around the world are attending the international meeting "Che's Solidarity, Anti- Imperialism and Ethnics." OSPAAAL -- the Organization of Solidarity with the Peoples of Africa, Asia and Latin America -- is sponsoring the important event. AND IN SPORTS... JAVIER SOTOMAYOR, WORLD RECORD HOLDER IN MEN'S HIGH JUMP, REVEALS HIS SECRETS Havana, September 26(RHC)-- Javier Sotomayor says that 1997 has been a crucial year in his career as a high jumper. He spoke at a news conference in Havana to announce the official launching of a book written by Juan Velazquez on his life and career. Sotomayor pointed out that the world title grabbed in Athens in August has given him the necessary confidence to continue in active sports and with his eyes on the prize in the Olympic Games of the year 2000. The book is entitled "Sotomayor: El Salta Nubes" -- the `Cloud Jumper' -- in reference to his magnificent jumps, valid for the world record for outdoor world championships with 2.45 meters and 2.43 for indoor world events. The 111-page book was written by Juan Velazquez, who was a former member of the island's triple jumpers team some years ago and belongs to the Cuban Union of Writers and Artists. Velazquez wrote the book in first person and readers experience Sotomayor's life, his hopes and aspirations, successes and setbacks. It was announced that the book will be presented at the Alcudia Book Fair in Palma de Mallorca, Spain. Javier Sotomayor is the only Cuban athlete ever to be awarded the Principe de Asturias Prize in the category of sports. [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