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 Monday, March 16, 1998. Today's stories: 1.- REMAINS OF INTERNATIONALIST FIGHTERS ARRIVE IN CUBA 2.- U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT DENIES VISAS TO CUBANS INVITED TO ATTEND "DIALOGUE WITH CUBA" CONFERENCE AT UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA 3.- CUBA CELEBRATES 120th ANNIVERSARY OF PROTEST OF BARAGUA 4.- SANCTI SPIRITUS WILL HOST WORLD HEALTH DAY 5.- ANDORRAN FOREIGN MINISTER SCHEDULED TO VISIT CUBA 6.- INTERNATIONAL SEMINAR ON WOMENS RIGHTS SLATED FOR HAVANA 7.- NEW MEXICAN AMBASSADOR IN HAVANA REMAINS OF INTERNATIONALIST FIGHTERS ARRIVE IN CUBA Havana, March 16(RHC)-- The remains of five internationalist guerrilla fighters who fought with Ernesto Che Guevara in Bolivia during the 1960's arrived in Havana Sunday night. The skeletal remains, found last month near the site where Che and other guerrilla fighters were discovered last year, were positively identified as two Cubans -- Manuel Hernandez, known as "Miguel," and Octavio de la Pedraja, known by his guerrilla name "Moro." Also sent to Cuba at the request of surviving family members were two Bolivians -- Roberto Peredo Leigue, "Coco" and Julio Cesar Mendez, "Nato." A Peruvian internationalist -- Edilbeto Lucio, known as "Eustaquio" -- was also flown to Havana from Bolivia. The remains of the five guerrilla fighters will be taken to Santa Clara where they will be laid to rest in the Ernesto Che Guevara Mausoleum, together with the remains of others who fought with Che. Experts will continue the search near locations where the earlier discoveries were made. They say they hope to find the remains of all 37 members of Che's guerrilla force that fought in Bolivia. U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT DENIES VISAS TO CUBANS INVITED TO ATTEND "DIALOGUE WITH CUBA" CONFERENCE AT UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA San Francisco, March 16(RHC)-- More than half of the Cuban scholars and professionals invited to attend a conference at the University of California in Berkeley this week have been denied visas by the U.S State Department. The conference, "Dialogue with Cuba," is slated to begin on Friday, the 20th, with panels on health care, economic development, religion, education, biotechnology and film- making. Organizers of the conference say that the academic and cultural event will go ahead despite the visa denials. Eleven of the 20 Cubans invited by the University of California were denied State Department authorization. Among them is Alberto Juantorena, the Vice President of the National Sports Institute and Cuban Olympic Committee and a former Olympic track star; and Sergio Arce, a Presbyterian theologian and Secretary General of the Latin American and Caribbean Christian Conference on Peace. Also among those being denied a visa to enter the United States is the head of the English-language Department of Radio Havana Cuba, Jorge Miyares. In a last minute effort to get Washington to change its mind, more than 20 congressional representatives from the State of California have sent a letter to U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, asking that she override the decision. One of the organizers of the conference, Professor Ling-Chi Wang, the Chairman of the Department of Ethnic Studies at the University of California-Berkeley, expressed his anger over the denial of visas. He told reporters that the conference will mark the first time since the triumph of the Cuban Revolution that an event of this magnitude and depth as been attempted, adding that it comes on the heels of Pope John Paul II's visit to Cuba. The California university professor said that the State Department's refusal to grant visas to top notch Cuban scholars and professionals, planning to exchange ideas with their American counterparts, amounts to censorship. Wang said he remains hopeful that some or all of the visas will be approved before the conference begins later this week. CUBA CELEBRATES 120th ANNIVERSARY OF THE PROTEST OF BARAGUA Santiago de Cuba, March 16(RHC)-- Cuban Vice President and Minister of the Armed Forces, General Raul Castro and Comandante of the Revolution Juan Almeida Bosque presided over the military ceremony which commemorated the 120th anniversary of the Protest of Baragua in eastern Santiago de Cuba on Sunday. The two Cuban officials laid a floral wreath at the monument where independence hero Antonio Maceo rejected a conditional treaty proposed by a Spanish army officer -- known as the "Protest of Baragua." The activity, located in the municipality of Julio Antonio Mella in eastern Santiago de Cuba, was attended by workers, students and the population in general. During the ceremony, the First Secretary of Santiago de Cuba's Communist Party, Juan Carlos Robinson, pointed out that the Protest of Baragua has conserved the valuable aspects of the Cuban Revolution, exemplified in its ideas of love, justice and independence. SANCTI SPIRITUS WILL HOST WORLD HEALTH DAY Havana, March 16(RHC)-- Cuba's central province of Sancti Spiritus will host the main activity celebrating World Health Day next April 7th. Sancti Spiritus was selected for its achievements in the area of maternal health care. The World Health Organization has named 1998 "The Year of Maternal Security." According to Dr. Maria de los Angeles Garcia, it is a challenge for Cuba to maintain and improve current maternal health figures. She added that Cuba has always been concerned with safe and secure pregnancies. In 1997, Sancti Spiritus had a infant mortality rate of six and did not have any maternal deaths. The Cuban province also registered a low weight birth rate of 5.3 per cent, the lowest in the country. Another important factor was that this central province was able to reduce teenage pregnancy to 12 percent. ANDORRAN FOREIGN MINISTER SCHEDULED TO VISIT CUBA Andorra la Vella, March 16(RHC)-- Andorran Foreign Minister Albert Pintat has characterized his country's relations with Cuba as "excellent." Speaking to reporters in advance of his official visit to Cuba, scheduled for early April, the Andorran official reiterated his rejection of the U.S. blockade against the island. Foreign Minister Pintat believes that the ties between Cuba and Andorra are solid and prosperous, based on dialogue, friendship and cooperation. The Andorran official said that the main objective of his visit to Cuba is to strengthen bilateral relations and between the two countries. INTERNATIONAL SEMINAR ON WOMENS RIGHTS SLATED FOR HAVANA Havana, March 16(RHC)-- Some 1500 delegates from 60 nations will participate in the International Solidarity Among Women event, scheduled to take place in Havana next April 13th to the 16th. Participants will analyze the main problems facing women in today's world. The event is sponsored by the International Democratic Women's Federation, the Continental Front for Women's Right to a Dignified Life and the Federation of Cuban Women. Attending the meeting will be parliamentarians, academics, students, workers, and other social sectors which will discuss national sovereignty access to employment, the fight against discrimination, culture, education, and health among others. NEW MEXICAN AMBASSADOR IN HAVANA Havana, March 16(RHC)-- The Mexican government has appointed Pedro Coldwell as its new ambassador to Havana. Coldwell was the former Mexican government peace negotiator in the Chiapas conflict. He was also tourism minister and coordinator of the Mexican National Commission for Assistance to Refugees. The diplomat will take the place of Claude Keller, who has been accredited in Cuba since June 1985. Cuban officials said that during his term in Havana, Claude Keller performed valuable work in strengthening relations between Cuba and Mexico. [c] 1998, Radio Habana Cuba All rights reserved Articles cannot be reproduced, reprinted or published in any system without the consent of RHC. 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