CUBANEWS FROM RADIO HAVANA CUBA E-mail: rhc@radiohc.org http://www.radiohc.org The following items are taken from Radio Havana Cuba's news service for Friday, June 26, 1998. Today's stories: 1.- 23rd MEETING OF HEALTH MINISTERS OF NON-ALIGNED MOVEMENT ENDS TWO DAYS OF SESSIONS IN THE CUBAN CAPITAL 2.- COLOMBIAN PRESIDENT AND HEAD OF NON-ALIGNED MOVEMENT ERNESTO SAMPER BLASTS NEO-LIBERAL ECONOMIC RECIPES 3.- LARGEST DOMINICAN BUSINESS REPRESENTATION EVER AT THE EXPOCARIBE '98 TRADE FAIR 4.- CUBAN FISHING MINISTRY SIGNS LETTERS OF INTENT WITH SEVERAL CARIBBEAN NATIONS 5.- CUBAN FIRM LABIOFAM, S.A. EXPORTS PRODUCTS WORLDWIDE 6.- TRICONTINENTAL MAGAZINE DEDICATES ITS LATEST ISSUE TO COMANDANTE MANUEL PINEIRO 7.- FINNISH PARLIAMENTARY DELEGATION VISITS THE ISLAND 8.- RENOWNED U.S. ACTOR JACK NICHOLSON ENDS VISIT TO CUBA 23rd MEETING OF HEALTH MINISTERS OF NON-ALIGNED MOVEMENT ENDS TWO DAYS OF SESSIONS IN THE CUBAN CAPITAL Havana, June 26(RHC)-- After two days of intense debates, participants at the 23rd Meeting of Health Ministers of the Non-Aligned Movement issued a Final Declaration which includes strategies and plans of action to cope with problems and difficulties faced by underdeveloped nations in the health sector. The document focusses on globalization as a characteristic of today's world and ways in which it affects underdeveloped countries, pointing to the widening gap between rich and poor. It also focusses on reform processes in the health sector in order achieve equity, something that has been impossible with traditional health care systems. Health, poverty and development was another aspect of the Final Declaration. It emphasizes that health care should become a central element for development and that sustainable health care systems should be organized and developed to satisfy the needs of the poor. The Final Declaration of the 23rd Meeting of Health Ministers of the Non-Aligned Movement stresses the need to improve technical cooperation and the development of national and international strategies, with the implementation of plans of action. The declaration urges the international community to guarantee that public health --more than commercial interests -- be a priority in health care. The meeting of health ministers of the Non-Aligned Movement concluded Friday evening here in Havana. Cuban President Fidel Castro addressed delegates at the closing ceremony, condemning wasteful spending on weapons of destruction and calling for greater investment in health care. The Cuban leader compared public with private medical care, characterizing private care as "medicine for the rich." COLOMBIAN PRESIDENT AND HEAD OF NON-ALIGNED MOVEMENT ERNESTO SAMPER BLASTS NEO-LIBERAL ECONOMIC RECIPES Havana, June 26(RHC)-- Colombian President and head of the Non-Aligned Movement Ernesto Samper blasted neo-liberal, economic recipes during a master lecture at the University of Havana Thursday. Samper delivered the lecture following his inauguration of the 23th Meeting of Health Ministers of the Non-Aligned Movement earlier Thursday morning. The lecture, which was attended by Cuban President Fidel Castro, dealt with the Non-Aligned Movement, of which Samper has served as president since October 1995. The Colombian head of state said that non-aligned countries do not need to follow neo-liberal recipes, adding that free trade is -- in his words -- "the freedom for the wolf to devour the chickens." He stated that rich and powerful countries are setting up protectionist restrictions, making it more difficult for Latin American and other Third World countries to market their products. During his master lecture at the University of Havana on Thursday, Ernesto Samper referred to the importance of making the United Nations more democratic, pointing specifically to the issue of permanent members of the UN Security Council with veto power. The Colombian president and head of the Non- Aligned Movement said the fact that five major world powers can exercise their veto over decisions affecting other countries destroys democracy in the United Nations. He added that the UN General Assembly approves rhetorical resolutions that are never carried out, while the Security Council pushes around the rest of the world. President Ernesto Samper also warned of the danger in placing limits on the social programs of the United Nations, such as the Food and Agriculture Organization, the FAO, UNESCO and UNICEF. He stated that the so-called peace keeping operations of the United Nations are actually eating away at the international organization's budget. Speaking in his capacity as head of the Non-Aligned Movement, Ernesto Samper told his audience at the University of Havana that the movement will work to correct the inequalities between rich and poor, stressing that the world must create "an alternative model of development." LARGEST DOMINICAN BUSINESS REPRESENTATION EVER AT THE EXPOCARIBE '98 TRADE FAIR Santiago de Cuba, June 26(RHC)-- The largest representation of Dominican business executives that have ever visited Cuba have expressed their interest in investing on the island. In statements to Prensa Latina News Agency, the Executive Director of the Dominican Center for the Promotion of Exports, Atahualpo Dominquez, explained that nearly 50 Dominican business representatives attending the EXPOCARIBE '98 trade fair hope to expand commercial exchange with Cuba. In the final days of the EXPOCARIBE '98 trade fair in eastern Santiago de Cuba, nearly 80 representatives of Cuban and foreign firms are holding formal negotiations. CUBAN FISHING MINISTRY SIGNS LETTERS OF INTENT WITH SEVERAL CARIBBEAN NATIONS Santiago de Cuba, June 26(RHC)-- The Cuban Fishing Ministry has signed various letters of intent with Jamaica, Surinam and St. Lucia at the EXPOCARIBE '98 trade fair in eastern Santiago de Cuba. On the Cuban side, the agreements include the sale of sea products and technical assistance in the field, especially in the reproduction of fresh-water perch raised in Cuban reservoirs and shrimp. CUBAN FIRM LABIOFAM, S.A. EXPORTS PRODUCTS WORLDWIDE Santiago de Cuba, June 26(RHC)-- The Cuban firm LABIOFAM, S.A. exports a wide range of some 15 products to Latin America, the Caribbean, Asia and Africa. With only two years of operation, LABIOFAM has a large exhibit at the EXPOCARIBE '98 trade fair in eastern Santiago de Cuba. Among the products on display at the fair are biological products used for pest control. According to LABIOFAM officials, Cuba has set up joint ventures with Vietnam and Uganda to build two factories that will produce Biorat -- one such biological product used to control mice and rats. Other products made by the Cuban firm LABIOFAM include pesticides to eliminate mosquitoes that can transmit dengue, yellow fever and malaria. TRICONTINENTAL MAGAZINE DEDICATES ITS LATEST ISSUE TO COMANDANTE MANUEL PINEIRO Havana, June 26(RHC)-- Tricontinental magazine has dedicated its latest issue to the memory of Comandante Manuel Pineiro, head of the America's Department in the Central Committee of Cuba's Communist Party, before his death in an automobile accident earlier this year. Havana's historian Eusebio Leal presided over the magazine's dedication ceremony at the International Press Center in the Cuban capital. Also present was the General Secretary of the Organization in Solidarity with the Peoples of Asia, Africa and Latin America (0SPAAAL), Ramon Pez Ferro, as well as family members and co-workers of Manuel Pineiro. The magazine's special edition dedicated to Comandante Pineiro includes a reflection on neoliberalism, articles on the economic crisis in Asia and globalization, as well as an article on the role of non-governmental organizations in western Africa. FINNISH PARLIAMENTARY DELEGATION VISITS THE ISLAND Havana, June 26(RHC)-- The Vice President of the Finnish Parliament, Terttu Tornqvist, met on Thursday with his Cuban counterpart, Jaime Crombet, and analyzed bilateral relations. Later in the afternoon, Tornqvist and his accompanying delegation toured Old Havana and social institutions. During their stay on the island, the Finnish parliamentary delegation is expected to meet with other Cuban government officials and visit places of economic interest. RENOWNED U.S. ACTOR JACK NICHOLSON ENDS VISIT TO CUBA Havana, June 26(RHC)-- Renowned U.S. actor Jack Nicholson has ended his visit to the island. During his last full day in the Cuban capital, Nicholson toured Havana's new Abdala recording studio, considered to be one of the best of its type in the world. Jack Nicholson and film producer Jake Bloom praised the idea of including a post-production film-audio studio in the recently-built master recording studio. Before leaving Havana, Nicholson also met with Cuban Parliament President Ricardo Alarcon, singer-songwriter Silvio Rodriguez and Teresa Torres, President of the Abdala Recording Studio. Jack Nicholson visited Cuba at the invitation of the Cuban Film Institute. The three-time Oscar winner toured places of interest in Havana, including the Partagas Cigar Factory. [c] 1998, 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