Radio Havana Cuba, Tuesday, March 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 Tuesday, March 16, 1999. Today's stories: 1.- TESTIMONY IN TERRORISM TRIAL OF SALVADORAN CONTINUES IMPLICATING MIAMI-BASED CUBAN-AMERICAN NATIONAL FOUNDATION 2.- SEVENTH CONGRESS OF UNION OF CUBAN JOURNALISTS CLOSES IN HAVANA 3.- ANOTHER MEDICAL BRIGADE ON ITS WAY TO HELP VICTIMS OF HURRICANE MITCH 4.- TRIBUTE TO THE MEMORY OF RENOWNED U.S. PEDIATRICIAN DOCTOR BENJAMIN SPOCK 5.- CUBAN PRESIDENT SENDS LETTER OF CONDOLENCE TO ANGOLA ON THE DEATH OF FORMER FOREIGN MINISTER 6.- CUBAN MEDICAL PERSONNEL ARRIVE IN NIGER AS PART OF A COOPERATION AGREEMENT 7.- JOINT VENTURES CONTINUE TO INCREASE DESPITE HELMS-BURTON 8.- U.S. WOMEN'S ORGANIZATIONS IN SOLIDARITY WITH CUBAN WOMEN TESTIMONY IN TERRORISM TRIAL OF SALVADORAN CONTINUES IMPLICATING MIAMI-BASED CUBAN-AMERICAN NATIONAL FOUNDATION Havana, March 16(RHC)-- Further testimony in the trial of Salvadoran citizen Otto Rene Rodriguez Llerena has pointed to the Miami-based Cuban-American National Foundation's involvement in the terrorist campaign against Cuba. One witness -- Juan Francisco Fernandez Gomez -- identified himself in court on Tuesday as an agent for Cuban State Security who infiltrated several counterrevolutionary organizations in the United States. Fernandez Gomez said that he was designated to receive the explosives and other devices that Salvadoran Otto Rene Rodriguez Llerena attempted to smuggle into Havana when he was captured in June 1998. Before becoming a State Security agent, Fernandez Gomez took part in counterrevolutionary activities on the island following the triumph of the Cuban Revolution, for which he received a 20-year prison sentence. He said he spent 12 years in prison and later became a member of Cuba's security forces. Fernandez Gomez testified that during the 1980s, he periodically travelled to Miami with visas generously granted by the U.S. Interests Section in Havana -- whose officials also reportedly paid numerous visits to his home. The witness stated that he met with Jose Mas Santos, Vice President of the Cuban-American National Foundation's Executive Board. He said that Mas Santos and other Foundation members -- Dionisio Gonzalo and his brother Pedro, Rolando Borges Paz and Roberto Martin Perez -- were involved in the destabilization campaign against Cuba. The agent who infiltrated Cuban counterrevolutionary groups also named Samuel Martinez Lara and other members of the terrorist organizations Alpha 66 and Omega 7. At the end of Tuesday's court session, the prosecution changed it's original petition -- 30 years in prison -- and is now asking for the death penalty. Prosecuting attorney Enrique Nunez Grillo said that the death penalty was applicable due to the extremely serious nature of the terrorist crimes committed by the accused. During Monday's session of the trial, it was revealed that the man who gave the explosives to Rodriguez Llerena in El Salvador is Cuban-American terrorist Luis Posada Carriles, who has publicly admitted to having organized terrorist attacks against Cuban tourist facilities and his close ties with the Cuban-American National Foundation. SEVENTH CONGRESS OF UNION OF CUBAN JOURNALISTS CLOSES IN HAVANA Havana, March 16(RHC)-- The 7th Congress of the Union of Cuban Journalists is holding its final session in the Cuban capital. The meeting began on Saturday at Havana's International Convention Center and was to have wrapped up Sunday evening, but was extended an extra two days to more fully discuss vital issues. The conflict between ministerial sources and the media emerged in the debates on Tuesday. Delegates expressed their concern over the lack of immediacy that often burdens news reporting and government ministers explained that at times the decision of not releasing some information, such as technological resources or economic data, is based on the need of preserving the country from the ever-pressing surveillance of the United States -- intent on finding loopholes to further re-enforce its aggressions against Cuba. Consensus reached through debates agreed that media executives are responsible according to which media editorial policy to decide its content. President Fidel Castro -- who has been present during all the sessions of the Journalists' Congress, alongside various ministers and other government officials -- urged the Party and government to work jointly with the media to tackle these problems and thus guarantee the best flow of public information between the sources and media outlets. According to participants interviewed by Radio Havana Cuba, the 7th Congress of the Union of Cuban Journalists has covered a wide variety of issues related to journalism in Cuba today. Delegates candidly expressed their views and opinions and have further understood that the impact of radio, TV and print media in Cuba and its current global circumstances exceed the island's boundaries to become a focus of interest of progressive people around the world. ANOTHER MEDICAL BRIGADE ON ITS WAY TO HELP VICTIMS OF HURRICANE MITCH Holguin, March 16(RHC)-- The first medical brigade from eastern Holguin province is on its way to Central America to offer its services to the victims of recent devastating hurricanes. The First Secretary of the Communist Party in Holguin, Jorge Luis Sierra, talked with Cuban health specialists about the complex mission which includes obstetricians, X-ray technicians and laboratory experts. During the farewell ceremony, held with family members of the medical brigade, Sierra urged the physicians to become ambassadors of human solidarity. This medical brigade will offer its services to the Central American and Caribbean nations that were hardest hit by Hurricanes Mitch and Georges. TRIBUTE TO THE MEMORY OF RENOWNED U.S. PEDIATRICIAN DOCTOR BENJAMIN SPOCK Havana, March 16(RHC)-- Havana's William Soler Pediatric Hospital paid tribute on Monday to the memory of renowned U.S. pediatrician and peace activist, Doctor Benjamin Spock. On hand during the ceremony to mark the first anniversary of his death was Dr. Spock's widow, Mary Morlan, and his former personal doctor, Patrick McArthur. On behalf of Cuban pediatricians, the President of the Council of Scientific Societies of Cuba's Health Ministry, Jose Jordan, spoke about the man who revolutionized the concept of children's care. He pointed out that many in Cuba still follow Dr. Spock's theories on the care of children and praised the advice that his books have offered parents and other pediatricians. The Cuban doctor also referred to Dr. Benjamin Spock's work to stop U.S. aggression against Vietnam, as well as in favor of lifting Washington's economic blockade of Cuba and the normalization of relations between the U.S. and Cuba. Jose Jordan added that the renowned U.S. doctor visited Cuba in 1993, bringing with him medical donations and meeting with Cuban health officials and children. During the homage to Dr. Benjamin Spock at Havana's William Soler Pediatric Hospital, the Cuban doctor read the letter of condolences that Cuban President Fidel Castro sent to Mary Morlan last year upon learning of the death of her husband. In the letter, the Cuban President referred to the renowned U.S. pediatrician as -- in his words -- "an extraordinary human being." CUBAN PRESIDENT SENDS LETTER OF CONDOLENCE TO ANGOLA ON THE DEATH OF FORMER FOREIGN MINISTER Havana, March 16(RHC)-- Cuban President Fidel Castro has sent a letter of condolences to the Angolan government on the occasion of the death of Angola's former Foreign Minister Venancio de Moura. The text of the letter states that the Cuban people have lost a true friend, "whose constant struggle for the well-being of Angola will never be forgotten." The Cuban leader also referred to de Moura's efforts to strengthen the historically friendly and fraternal relations that have united both countries, stressing that his example will help maintain those strong ties. CUBAN MEDICAL PERSONNEL ARRIVE IN NIGER AS PART OF A COOPERATION AGREEMENT Niamey, March 16(RHC)-- Thirty Cuban doctors have arrived in Niger to begin working in various hospitals in that African nation. This is the first group of a total of 130 medical personnel that will arrive in Niger over the next several weeks as part of a bilateral cooperation accord. The Cuban health specialists, among them a large number of women, traveled to the African country on board the plane of Niger's President Ibrahim Mainasare Bare, returning after a five-day official visit to the island. It is hoped that the presence of Cuban doctors and nurses in Niger will improve health care in the country, which is one of the poorest on the African continent. According to the latest statistics, less than 30 percent of the population in Niger has access to health care. JOINT VENTURES CONTINUE TO INCREASE DESPITE HELMS-BURTON Havana, March 16(RHC)--Eighteen new international economic associations have been created in Cuba so far this year, according to a report from Cuba's Ministry of Foreign Investment and Economic Cooperation. The report, read during a meeting by Cuban Vice President Carlos Lage, reveals that there are 373 joint ventures in the country and over half of them were created after the anti-Cuba Helms-Burton Law went into effect. After pointing out that Spain and Canada are among Cuba's main trading partners, the Cuban vice president confirmed that the decision to open to foreign investment on the island has been effective. U.S. WOMEN'S ORGANIZATIONS IN SOLIDARITY WITH CUBAN WOMEN New York, March 16(RHC)-- U.S. women's organizations based in New York have held a number of activities in solidarity with Cuban women, outlining their achievements despite the difficult conditions imposed by Washington's economic blockade against the island. During one activity, a representative of the U.S. group Radical Women, Emily Woo Yamasaki, characterized the achievements of Cuban women as brilliant, while the representative of the Dominican Friends of Cuba, Rosina Rodriguez, spoke about the situation of women in Cuba, comparing it to her country.  [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-2273 1999-Mar-16 20:20:28