Radio Havana Cuba, December 16, 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 Thursday, December 16, 1999. Today's stories: 1.- CUBAN PRESIDENT FIDEL CASTRO SAYS CASE OF ELIAN GONZALEZ WILL NOT SPARK A BREAKDOWN IN U.S.-CUBA MIGRATORY ACCORDS NOR A MASSIVE FLOW OF UNDOCUMENTED CUBAN IMMIGRANTS TO THE U.S. 2.- AMERICAN COALITION FOR FATHERS AND CHILDREN REJECTS PETITION OF POLITICAL ASYLUM FOR SIX-YEAR-OLD ELIAN GONZALEZ 3.- CUBA AND THE PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF LAOS SIGN AGREEMENT TO EXPAND BILATERAL COOPERATION 4.- NORDIC BRIGADE ARRIVES IN HAVANA 5.- CUBAN HAVANOS S.A. HOPES TO BOOST SALES OF THE WORLD FAMOUS HAND-ROLLED CIGARS CUBAN PRESIDENT FIDEL CASTRO SAYS CASE OF ELIAN GONZALEZ WILL NOT SPARK A BREAKDOWN IN U.S.-CUBA MIGRATORY ACCORDS NOR A MASSIVE FLOW OF UNDOCUMENTED CUBAN IMMIGRANTS TO THE U.S. Havana, December 16(RHC)-- In an interview granted to the U.S. NBC-TV network on Wednesday, Cuban President Fidel Castro stated that the case of a Cuban child being held in Miami will not spark a breakdown in the U.S.-Cuba migratory accords nor a massive flow of undocumented Cuban immigrants to the U.S. The Cuban leader said he had the impression that President Bill Clinton is in favor of returning six-year-old Elian Gonzalez to his father and maternal and paternal grandparents in Cuba. The leader of the Cuban Revolution noted that important sectors of U.S. society believe that the correct and just solution is to return the boy, adding that Cuba's battle is not against the United States, but rather against those opposing his return. At the same time, the Cuban president condemned the psychological pressures and brainwashing to which Elian has been subjected. Fidel Castro pointed to the sophisticated toys with which the child has been surrounded, noting the offensive nature of the insignia of Miami's terrorist Cuban-American National Foundation that has appeared on Elian's shirts. He also abhorred this organization's use of the child in a fundraising banquet to collect campaign contributions for a political party. In further reference to the pressure the child has been subjected to, President Fidel Castro said that his family in Cuba was recently unable to speak with him for more than two days, that the length of phone conversations is limited and that Elian's great uncle in Miami has told his family in Cuba that the child does not want to return. He said this has sparked a great deal of concern among child psychologists in Cuba, asking how long does it take to change the mentality of a six-year-old child. The Cuban leader said children neither live in the past nor the future, but in the present. He said that if the child is retained in Miami, the U.S. government cannot continue to speak of human rights. President Fidel Castro said that Elian's case is another result of the absurd Cuban Adjustment Act, which grants automatic residency to any Cuban who touches U.S. shores. In related news, as a result of the Elian case, Cuban Foreign Minister Felipe Perez Roque has postponed a tour of Europe that was to take him to Denmark, Italy, France and Greece. AMERICAN COALITION FOR FATHERS AND CHILDREN REJECTS PETITION OF POLITICAL ASYLUM FOR SIX-YEAR-OLD ELIAN GONZALEZ Washington, December 16(RHC)-- The Chicago-based American Coalition for Fathers and Children - ACFC -- has strongly rejected a request for political asylum on behalf of six-year-old Cuban Elian Gonzalez, presented in an immigration court in the U.S. state of Florida. The human rights organization expressed firm opposition to what it called a political maneuver to prolong the child's stay in the United States, while consciously blocking the legal process to return little Elian to his father in Cuba. U.S. lawyer Jeffery M. Leving -- hired by ACFC to represent Elian's father, Juan Miguel Gonzalez in U.S. courts -- warned of the possible postponement of a preliminary hearing to review the case, which was initially scheduled for December 23rd in Miami, Florida. Speaking with journalists, Leving explained that in order to hold the hearing, the petition for political asylum must be first denied. ACFC Director, Michael McCormick, insisted that six-year-old Elian should be released immediately and sent back to his father and grandparents on the island. CUBA AND THE PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF LAOS SIGN AGREEMENT TO EXPAND BILATERAL COOPERATION Havana, December 16(RHC)-- Cuba and the People's Republic of Laos signed a protocol on Wednesday, closing the eighth meeting of the Mixed Commission for Bilateral Economic, Scientific and Technological Cooperation. The meeting's agenda focused on expanding bilateral cooperation in fields such as sports, construction and the sugar industry. Participants also explored possibilities for future bilateral exchange in the field of biotechnology. Both delegations expressed satisfaction with the friendly environment of the talks and the mutual understanding of each nations' financial situation. The ninth meeting of the Cuba-Laos Mixed Commission for Bilateral Economic, Scientific and Technological Cooperation has been scheduled for the year 2001 in Vientiane, the Laotian capital. NORDIC BRIGADE ARRIVES IN HAVANA Havana, December 16(RHC)-- Cuban Vice President Jose Ramon Fernandez praised the presence on the island of over 100 brigadistas making up the 33rd Contingent of the Nordic Brigade. Since 1970, members of the Nordic Brigade have traveled to the island to do volunteer work in sectors like agriculture and construction as a way of expressing support for the Cuban people and their Revolution. During a ceremony held at the Cuban Institute of Friendship with the Peoples (ICAP), the Cuban vice president expressed his satisfaction with the fact that an ever-increasing number of sensitive people from around the world are visiting Cuba to take a first-hand look at the island's reality, defying disinformation campaigns launched by Western media outlets. CUBAN HAVANOS S.A. HOPES TO BOOST SALES OF THE WORLD FAMOUS HAND-ROLLED CIGARS Havana, December 16(RHC)-- The Cuban tobacco company Havanos S.A. has signed a letter of intent, granting 50 percent of its stocks to the Altadis Group -- the leading cigar selling company in the world. The Altadis Group is the result of a merger between the Spanish company Tabacalera and the French company Seita. The protocol between Havanos and Altadis guarantees increased sales of the Cuban cigar on the world market. So far this year, Havanos S.A. has already sold 140 million cigars around the world and has plans to sell another 10 million by the end of this year. CUBA AND SWITZERLAND RATIFY BILATERAL COOPERATION AGREEMENT Havana, December 16(RHC)-- Cuba and Switzerland have ratified a 1954 bilateral trade agreement, demonstrating the excellent relations that exist between the two nations. The protocol, renewed every year, was re-signed Wednesday by Cuban Deputy Foreign Relations Minister Angel Dalmau and the Business Attache of the Swiss Embassy in Havana, Urs Berner. Berner said that the ratification is further evidence of his government's interest in expanding and strengthening bilateral cooperation with Cuba. ----------------------------------- RADIO HAVANA CUBA'S VIEWPOINT THURSDAY, 16 DECEMBER 1999 In a televised news conference on Tuesday in Havana, Cuban Parliament President Ricardo Alarcon gave a detailed explanation of the current state of relations between the United States and Cuba in the area of migration. In his TV appearance, the leader of the Cuban parliament made it clear that Washington has not abided by important aspects of the migration agreements signed between the two countries five years ago. For its part, Cuba has complied with its commitment to take all measures possible to put an end to illegal mass migration which, for economic reasons, has occurred on several occasions -- encouraged by the special treatment granted by U.S. authorities to Cuban immigrants. Cuba also pledged not to take reprisals against illegal immigrants returned by the United States after they are rescued at sea by the U.S. Coast Guard. The president of the Cuban Parliament said that the United States has been complying with its commitment to grant 20,000 visas a year to Cubans who wish to emigrate to that country. Alarcon pointed out, however, that the Cuban Adjustment Act is an obstacle to normal migratory relations between the two countries. The Cuban Adjustment Act grants special treatment to Cubans who touch dry land, offering them automatic residence and job permits. The case of six-year-old Elian Gonzalez is also a serious obstacle to the positive development of bilateral relations since the Cuban people have taken to the streets to demand his immediate return to his father and grandparents in Cuba. Elian Gonzalez is the child held by the United States government against the will of his father despite the fact that the father's claim for the return of his child has been legally proven. U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service officials met in Cuba with the child's father in Cardenas, his hometown, where they obtained the necessary documents to conclusively prove that he is Elian's father -- including the child's birth certificate, the father's marriage certificate and statements by neighbors, the boy's classmates and school staff and the father's co-workers. The United States, however, has not yet made a final decision on the case. Ignoring international, U.S. and Cuban laws that require that the child should be with his father, the Miami-based anti-Cuba mafia is doing everything possible to legalize the kidnapping of the child, against the will of his closest relatives who live on the island. Legal petitions have been filed in U.S. courts, aimed at depriving a six-year-old boy of the love, warmth and protection of his legitimate father. Elian Gonzalez is being held by distant relatives in Miami, who are overwhelming the child with hypocritical expressions of affection, expensive toys and trips to amusement parks in an attempt to confuse him and get him to reject his true family. But sooner or later, Elian must be released because the law is on his side. -30- [c] 1999, 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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