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, February 4, 1999. Today's stories: 1.- CUBAN PRESIDENT FIDEL CASTRO RETURNS HOME FOLLOWING VISIT TO VENEZUELA FOR INAUGURATION OF PRESIDENT HUGO CHAVEZ 2.- CUBAN VICE PRESIDENT CARLOS LAGE RECEIVES EXPRESSIONS OF CONFIDENCE FROM SPANISH BUSINESS COMMUNITY 3.- PEDAGOGY '99 CONTINUES AT HAVANA'S INTERNATIONAL CONVENTION CENTER 4.- CUBAN NATIONAL BALLET COMPANY BEGINS U.S. TOUR 5.- MEDICAL BRIGADE FROM EASTERN GRANMA PROVINCE IN HAITI 6.- ALMOST HALF A MILLION CUBAN CHILDREN WILL BE IMMUNIZED AGAINST POLIO CUBAN PRESIDENT FIDEL CASTRO RETURNS HOME FOLLOWING VISIT TO VENEZUELA FOR INAUGURATION OF PRESIDENT HUGO CHAVEZ Havana, February 4(RHC)-- Cuban President Fidel Castro returned home early Thursday morning following a visit to Venezuela for the swearing-in ceremony of President Hugo Chavez. The Cuban leader's last activities in Venezuela were a more than five hour speech before some 3000 students and professors at the Central University and an encounter with nearly 300 Venezuelan business executives. Before an enthusiastic crowd of students and academics, President Castro said "one has a right to have hope" -- in reference to Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez's promise of a resurrection of Venezuelan society. He warned, however, that the people should not expect rapid solutions to the country's many problems. The leader of the Cuban Revolution pointed out that between 1997 and 1998, Venezuela's exports fell by 6 billion 100 million dollars, while the price of oil -- the country's principle source of income -- dropped by almost half during that same period. He also pointed to the 40 percent of Venezuela's budget earmarked for foreign debt payments, as well as the country's grim unemployment rate. Most of the speech, however, was dedicated to the hegemonic position of the United States -- which, said Fidel Castro, "will not last forever" -- and to the International Monetary Fund -- which he compared to "the kiss of death". The Cuban leader said neo-liberalism is on its death bed, "almost ready for an autopsy." Fidel Castro recalled his first visit to Venezuela -- just days after the overthrow of dictator Fulgencio Batista in January 1959. He said that the speech he delivered then was almost completely dedicated to the liberation struggle in Latin America and particularly the struggle in the Dominican Republic against the dictatorship of Leonidas Trujillo. "Today," he stated, "we cannot talk about freeing a people or saving one country; now we must talk about saving and liberating all of humanity." The Cuban leader urged the young students to get involved in the struggle, stating that the task of saving the world is theirs. Referring to the challenge presented by a mighty superpower and a unipolar world, Fidel expressed his confidence that the battle to change the world can be won. At twelve midnight, the Cuban president gathered with some 300 Venezuelan business executives, apologizing for having made them wait. He promised that their conversation would continue in Havana at his invitation, although he held an informal exchange of ideas and opinions until 4 o'clock Thursday morning. Many of those present asked questions about Cuba's economic opening, its new duty free zones and different sectors of the Cuban economy. The encounter was sponsored by the Venezuela-Cuba Chamber of Commerce, founded three years ago. The business representatives accepted the Cuban leader's invitation to visit Havana, saying they would come soon not only to continue talks, but to also get involved in specific business projects with the island. CUBAN VICE PRESIDENT CARLOS LAGE RECEIVES EXPRESSIONS OF CONFIDENCE FROM SPANISH BUSINESS COMMUNITY Madrid, February 4(RHC)-- Visiting Cuban Vice President Carlos Lage Thursday received expressions of confidence in the immense investment possibilities in Cuba. In a gathering with more than one hundred business executives, the President of the Superior Council of Spain's Chamber of Commerce, Jose Manuel Fernandez, said that the normalization of bilateral relations -- which both Madrid and Havana agreed are excellent -- will benefit from commercial ties between the two countries. In reference to Cuba's recent announcement that beginning in July, the island will conduct its financial transactions in the new Euro currency, Lage told the business executives there should not be only one foreign currency with monetary power. The Cuban vice president praised Spain's role in Cuba's tourism sector -- which he called "the engine of the Cuban economy" -- pointing out that of a total of nearly 30,000 hotel rooms on the island, 7000 are administered by Spanish firms. Close to 20 large Spanish firms have expressed interest in investing in Cuba or expanding their current investments. Lage also met Thursday with Spanish Foreign Minister Abel Matutes. Matutes reiterated Spain's willingness to participate in a Cuban health care project for Central America, aimed at significantly reducing the number of children who die every year in that region from curable diseases. PEDAGOGY '99 CONTINUES AT HAVANA'S INTERNATIONAL CONVENTION CENTER Havana, February 4(RHC)-- Cuba's Minister of Culture, Abel Prieto, spoke to the over 5000 delegates to the International Conference Pedagogy '99, taking place at Havana's International Convention Center. The Cuban official spoke about the island's cultural policy, national identity and the quality of Cuban education. During Wednesday's sessions, Cuba was selected to be the site of an International School for Spanish-Language Education which will soon be opened in Havana based on an agreement between UNESCO's regional office and Cuba's Ministry of Education. Cuban Education Minister Luis Ignacio Gomez said that after the recent passage of a law in Brazil, making Spanish a second official language in the country, that South American nation needs some 220,000 Spanish teachers and that Cuba is willing to assist in their training. CUBAN NATIONAL BALLET COMPANY BEGINS U.S. TOUR Havana, February 4(RHC)-- Cuba's National Ballet Company will perform in Centennial Hall in Tucson, Arizona on Thursday night as part of a U.S. tour that will also take them to several other U.S. cities. Audiences will be treated to performances of the ballet classic "Giselle" with the choreography of Alicia Alonso, Director and founder of Cuba's National Ballet. The renowned ballet troupe will also perform in the McCullum Theater in the California city of Palm Desert, the Wiltern Theater in Los Angeles and in Berkeley, Seattle, Cleveland, Minneapolis and Newark. Cuba's National Ballet Company performed in the U.S. last year and received outstanding reviews from the public and media. MEDICAL BRIGADE FROM EASTERN GRANMA PROVINCE IN HAITI Havana, February 4(RHC)-- A Cuban medical brigade of 31 health workers from the eastern province of Granma is in Haiti where they will offer their services for two years. The First Secretary of the provincial Communist Party, Amado Hamut, said the medical brigade's mission is a humane task that will be carried out in an outstanding manner. The brigade includes doctors, third-year medical students, surgeons, radiologists, laboratory and x-ray technicians and nurses. The Cuban medical team in Haiti will develop a program aimed at saving up to 20,000 lives each year. There are currently Cuban health personnel from eastern Granma province working in several Central American nations severely affected by Hurricane Mitch. ALMOST HALF A MILLION CUBAN CHILDREN WILL BE IMMUNIZED AGAINST POLIO Havana, February 4(RHC)-- All Cuban children under three years of age will receive the first dose of the anti-polio vaccine on February 19th and will receive a second dose one month later. Children under nine years of age will receive a booster shot next month. Polio was eliminated in Cuba in 1962 in a mass vaccination campaign. The entire Cuban population under 53 years of age is currently protected against polio. Before the triumph of the Cuban Revolution, an annual average of 300 children were victims of polio. It is estimated that by the year 2000, polio could be completely wiped out, thanks to the efforts of the World Health Organization, the Pan American Health Organization and other international institutions. In Latin America, the last case of polio was reported in Peru in 1994. [c] 1999, 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