Radio Havana Cuba, Monday, June 21, 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 Monday, June 21, 1999. Today's stories: 1.- CUBAN PRESIDENT FIDEL CASTRO ATTENDS SUNDAY'S EVANGELICAL SERVICE AT HAVANA'S JOSE MARTI REVOLUTION SQUARE 2.- PASTORS FOR PEACE LEADER HIGHLIGHTS GROWING SUPPORT IN THE U.S. FOR LIFTING WASHINGTON'S BLOCKADE AGAINST CUBA 3.- CUBA OFFERS TO SEND 2000 DOCTORS TO YUGOSLAVIA 4.- HAITIAN PRESIDENT RENE PREVAL MEETS WITH STUDENTS IN CUBA 5.- MEETING OF CUBA-NAMIBIA JOINT COMMISSION UNDERWAY 6.- BEATLEMANIA HITS HAVANA CUBAN PRESIDENT FIDEL CASTRO ATTENDS SUNDAY'S EVANGELICAL SERVICE AT HAVANA'S JOSE MARTI REVOLUTION SQUARE Havana, June 21(RHC)-- Cuban President Fidel Castro attended Sunday's evangelical service at Havana's Jose Marti Revolution Square as part of the month-long Protestant celebrations held across the island. Also present at the service was the Reverend Lucius Walker, Director of the U.S. religious/solidarity organization Pastors for Peace and members of the 9th U.S.-Cuba Friendshipment Caravan as well as religious leaders from the United States, Canada and Latin America. Believers and non-believers alike took part in the evangelical celebration under the slogan of Love, Peace and Unity. The General Secretary of the U.S. National Council of Churches, Joan Brown Campbell, highlighted her organization's solidarity with the Cuban people and said that the National Council of Churches would continue to work for an end to the U.S. blockade against the island. For his part, the Reverend Lucius Walker stated that despite being threatened with a 55,000 dollar fine for travelling to Cuba, members of the 9th Pastors for Peace Caravan were committed to express their solidarity with Cuba. The sermon at Sunday's evangelical worship service was delivered by Reverend Pablo Oden Marichal, President of the Cuban Council of Churches. Rev. Marichal recognized the enormous sacrifices of the Cuban people during the current difficult economic situation and said he is sure that they will continue more united than ever as a people and a nation -- with honor, independence, self-determination and sovereignty. PASTORS FOR PEACE LEADER HIGHLIGHTS GROWING SUPPORT IN THE U.S. FOR LIFTING WASHINGTON'S BLOCKADE AGAINST CUBA Havana, June 21(RHC)-- The leader of the U.S. religious solidarity organization Pastors for Peace, the Reverend Lucius Walker, has highlighted the growing support in the United States for the lifting of Washington's blockade against Cuba. In an interview granted Sunday to the Cuban newspaper Juventud Rebelde, the Reverend Walker said he believed that the nine Pastors for Peace deviances of the blockade have helped to create this shift in U.S. public opinion. He pointed to a recent Gallup poll showing that 71 percent of the American population is in favor of normal U.S.-Cuba relations. The Pastors for Peace leader said he believed that his organization has also contributed to the increase in the number of U.S. legislators opposed to the blockade, pointing out that recent legislation to that effect introduced on the floor of Congress has garnered the support of 138 lawmakers. In response to a question concerning the difference between the Cuba of today and the Cuba of several years ago, Reverend Walker stated he has seen -- in his words -- "a marvelous economic recovery despite Cuba's special economic period." The Pastors for Peace leader reiterated his organization's dedication to working for an end to the U.S. blockade of Cuba and the worldwide struggle for peace and justice. CUBA OFFERS TO SEND 2000 DOCTORS TO YUGOSLAVIA Havana, June 21(RHC)-- Cuba is ready to send 2000 doctors to Yugoslavia, to provide their services free-of-charge. The offer was officially presented to the United Nations in a letter delivered to UN Secretary General Kofi Annan by Cuban Deputy Minister of Foreign Relations Jorge Bolanos. Upon his return to Havana from New York where he met with the UN secretary general, the Cuban deputy minister said that Kofi Annan praised the proposal, adding that the Cuban health personnel would work under the United Nation's system. HAITIAN PRESIDENT RENE PREVAL MEETS WITH STUDENTS IN CUBA Santiago de Cuba, June 21(RHC)-- Visiting Haitian President Rene Preval met today in Santiago de Cuba with students from his country who are taking preparatory courses to register at the School of Medicine in that province. Some 119 Haitian young people are already studying as part of a program developed by the Cuban government to help improve the health care systems of Central America and the Caribbean, devastated by Hurricanes Georges and Mitch late last year. During the fourth day of his visit, President Rene Preval also toured the Expo-Caribe Fair in Santiago de Cuba. Over the weekend, Preval and Cuban President Fidel Castro examined the current status of bilateral cooperation, particularly in the area of health. The visit of the Haitian president will end tomorrow, Tuesday. MEETING OF CUBA-NAMIBIA JOINT COMMISSION UNDERWAY Windhoek, June 21(RHC)-- The Fifth Meeting of the Cuba-Namibia Joint Commission for Bilateral Economic Cooperation began Monday in Windhoek, the capital of Namibia. One of the issues being raised is the possibility of bilateral cooperation in the health sector, as well as an analysis of prospective business opportunities in the production of medicines and vaccines. Cuba and Namibia have had a long history of bilateral cooperation: since 1990, more than 500 Cuban professionals have offered their services in Namibia -- 438 of them in the health sector. Also over the past ten years, 1265 Namibian students have graduated from Cuban educational centers. BEATLEMANIA HITS HAVANA Havana, June 21(RHC)-- A new establishment called Club Beatles Soul opened in Havana's Miramar neighborhood over the weekend, with the music of the famous English group that has always been very popular in Cuba. Operating once-a-month in the newly-restored Discoteca Balneario Universitario, the club is geared toward offering affordable entertainment for Havana's youth and will feature music, dancing, children's groups, competitions and movies -- all about the Beatles. The new club is located on the beach, only one block away from the famous Copacabana Hotel. The discotheque itself will be fully-operational by September. The first Beatles Night is scheduled for July 17th and will feature a group from the Havana suburb of Alamar who perform a good rendition of John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. The lead-singer is the son of a Cuban diplomat who caught his Beatle Fever while living in England. [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 rhc-eng-12070 1999-Jun-21 20:50:42