Radio Havana Cuba, December 14, 1999 Via NY Transfer News Collective * All the News that Doesn't Fit 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 Tuesday, December 14, 1999. Today's stories: 1.- HAVANA AND WASHINGTON AGREE TO MAINTAIN MIGRATORY ACCORDS 2.- GENERAL SECRETARY OF INTER-PARLIAMENTARY UNION VISITS CUBA 3.- JAPANESE SOLIDARITY ACTIVISTS DONATE AMBULANCE TO CUBA 4.- INTERNATIONAL MEETING OF MURALISTS OPENS THURSDAY IN SANTIAGO DE CUBA 5.- VICE PRESIDENT CARLOS LAGE REACHES COOPERATION AGREEMENT WITH VIETNAM HAVANA AND WASHINGTON AGREE TO MAINTAIN MIGRATORY ACCORDS Havana, December 14(RHC)-- Sharp differences persisted during Monday's migratory talks in Havana between Cuba and the United States, although both sides agreed to maintain the bilateral agreements intact. During a news conference at the conclusion of the one-day round of talks -- held every six months to review the accords -- the head of the Cuban delegation, Ricardo Alarcon, stated that the talks "clearly demonstrated that there are some very different positions, which Cuba feels is unfortunate." However, while Alarcon stated that Havana will continue to work to eliminate the Cuban Adjustment Act, which encourages illegal immigration to the United States, the president of the Cuban Parliament and William Brownfield, the head of the U.S. delegation, agreed that the accords should remain in effect. The closed-door session was held amid the dispute over a six-year-old Cuban boy -- Elian Gonzalez -- who is being held in Miami against the wishes of his father. Members of the U.S. delegation from that country's Immigration and Naturalization Service met earlier Monday morning in Cardenas, the Province of Matanzas, with Juan Miguel Gonzalez, the boy's father. The six-year-old was placed on a boat by his mother without his father's permission. She and ten others drowned in their attempt to illegally reach U.S. shores, but young Elian survived. Parliament President Ricardo Alarcon stated that once the father's identity is established, the only step remaining is to turn the boy over to his family in Cuba -- in accordance with Cuban, U.S. and international law. Alarcon said that during the talks held on Monday, Havana strongly protested the Cuban Adjustment Act, which grants automatic residency to any undocumented Cuban who touches U.S. soil. The Cuban government has often charged that this legislation -- which is only applied to Cubans -- further encourages illegal immigration. The migratory accords -- which were signed in 1994 and 1995 -- establish that Washington grant 20,000 visas a year to Cubans who wish to reside in the U.S. and return those Cubans picked up at sea. Cuba is committed to take no reprisals against those involved in illegal departures and returned to the island by U.S. authorities. GENERAL SECRETARY OF INTER-PARLIAMENTARY UNION VISITS CUBA Havana, December 14(RHC)-- The General Secretary of the Inter-Parliamentary Union, Anders Johnson -- currently visiting Cuba -- toured places of interest in Havana on Tuesday. Among the places visited by the general secretary of the Inter-Parliamentary Union were Havana's Biotechnology Center and the Latin American School of Medicine, where nearly 2000 students from the region are studying medicine free-of-charge. After meeting with the president of the Cuban Parliament's International Relations Commission, Jorge Lezcano, the visiting parliamentarian learned about the island's economic situation in the face of Washington's almost 40-year-old blockade against the island. Referring to six-year-old Elian Gonzalez -- who is still being held in Miami against his father's wishes -- the general secretary of the Inter-Parliamentary Union pointed out that the young boy's well-being is what is most important. Anders Johnson stated that the father clearly has custody rights over his child. Meanwhile, renowned U.S. physician Hunter Patch Adams, who is currently visiting Cuba, pointed out that Elian's illegal detention is an inhumane act by people who do not love their own children. Dr. Patch, who is well-known for his work with children, praised Elian's father who refused an offer of two million dollars to leave his country and stay with his son in Florida. He said it was absurd to try to buy the love of a parent. JAPANESE SOLIDARITY ACTIVISTS DONATE AMBULANCE TO CUBA Santa Clara, December 14(RHC)-- A group of Japanese solidarity activists have donated an ambulance to be used in the central city of Santa Clara. The ambulance includes an electrocardiogram machine and oxygen supplies along with other medical equipment for emergency services in Santa Clara which has a population of over 250,000 inhabitants. INTERNATIONAL MEETING OF MURALISTS OPENS THURSDAY IN SANTIAGO DE CUBA Havana, December 14(RHC)-- The 4th International Meeting of Muralists will be inaugurated on Thursday in eastern Santiago de Cuba with the participation of artists from Europe and Latin America. The Inter-Nos 99 meeting will be dedicated to the 485th anniversary of the founding of that eastern city. One of the objectives of the meeting is to promote mural painting and create new cultural-tourism attractions. The murals reflect issues related to the protection of the environment and images of Santiago de Cuba on the threshold of the next century. VICE PRESIDENT CARLOS LAGE REACHES COOPERATION AGREEMENT WITH VIETNAM Hanoi, December 14(RHC)-- Cuban Vice President Carlos Lage has reached a cooperation agreement with Vietnam in the field of tourism. The document was signed by the General Director of Vietnam's Tourism Administration, Vo Thi Thang, and Cuba's ambassador in that Southeast Asian nation, Fredesman Turro Gonzalez. Referring to the text of the accord, the Cuban official said that it is a useful instrument to exchange experiences in the field of tourism. The Cuban vice president also talked with Vietnamese officials about the island's economic situation. He said that the most difficult moments for the Cuban economy were after the collapse of the former Soviet Union and socialist countries in Eastern Europe. The Cuban leader pointed out that the island has undertaken economic reforms without renouncing its socialist principles. 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