Radio Havana Cuba, November 3, 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 Wednesday, November 3, 1999. Today's stories: 1.- HAVANA COURT UPHOLDS MULTI-BILLION DOLLAR LAWSUIT AGAINST THE UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT FOR 40 YEARS OF TERRORIST AGGRESSIONS 2.- CUBA'S ECONOMIC GROWTH RATE COULD BE HIGHER THAN EXPECTED 3.- HAVANA'S INTERNATIONAL TRADE FAIR A HUGE SUCCESS 4.- CUBA AND HOLLAND SIGN INVESTMENT AGREEMENT 5.- BRITISH MINISTER RATIFIES OPPOSITION TO HELMS-BURTON LAW 6.- FIRST BRITISH ROCK BAND PERFORMS IN CUBA 7.- NATIONAL PHOTOGRAPHY EXHIBIT AWARDS PRESENTED HAVANA COURT UPHOLDS MULTI-BILLION DOLLAR LAWSUIT AGAINST THE UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT FOR 40 YEARS OF TERRORIST AGGRESSIONS Havana, November 3(RHC)-- A provincial court in Havana has upheld a 181 billion 100 million dollar lawsuit against the United States government for 40 years of terrorist aggressions against the island. The lawsuit was filed by eight Cuban mass organizations representing 3478 Cubans killed and 2099 incapacitated as a result of Washington's attacks against the Cuban Revolution since 1959. Trial proceedings in the case were held in July and transmitted live on Cuban national television. The hearings saw dramatic testimony from those who were wounded in U.S.-sponsored armed attacks against Cuba, the family members of those killed and members of Cuban security forces who participated in the fight against U.S. terrorism against the island. Aside from testimonies, the Havana court was presented with abundant documentary evidence -- including declassified CIA documents -- concerning the Bay of Pigs invasion, the support of counterrevolutionary bandits in the Escambray Mountains, biological warfare carried out against the island, the sabotage bombing of a Cuban civilian airliner off the coast of Barbados in 1976 and the 1997 rash of terrorist bombs against Cuban tourist installations -- among a long list of terrorist actions directly organized and financed by Washington. The lawsuit grants an average 30 million dollars in compensation for the family members of each Cuban killed in such actions, and an average 15 million dollars for each Cuban wounded and incapacitated. The sentence also grants nearly 35 million dollars in retribution for the cost that Cuban society as a whole has had to assume as a result of the terrorist actions. And the Havana court has demanded a public apology from the United States government "for the moral damage it has inflicted on this nation and its people." Havana has admitted that Washington is not likely to respect this judicial decision. But Cuban President Fidel Castro stated recently that the importance of the process is that it serves as a reminder for the Cuban people and the world of the decades of aggressions against the island, carried out by Washington. CUBA'S ECONOMIC GROWTH RATE COULD BE HIGHER THAN EXPECTED Havana, November 3(RHC)-- The Cuban economy could grow higher than expected this year, according to the Director of the Havana-based Center for Studies on the Cuban Economy, Juan Triana. The Cuban expert said that the country's GNP could be five percent by the end of the year, far above the predicted 2.5 percent. The Cuban economist based his prediction on the fact that the island's economy grew by 6.1 percent during the first six months of 1999 thanks to the positive results of tourism -- the so-called smokeless industry in Cuba -- as well as other sectors such as sugar and oil. The expert added that Cuban finances remain healthy, given recent salary increases which have benefited Cuban workers in the areas of health, education, the media, the justice system and the police. HAVANA'S INTERNATIONAL TRADE FAIR A HUGE SUCCESS Havana, November 3(RHC)-- The largest trade fair in Cuba -- FIHAV '99 -- continues in Havana as a bridge to promote business contacts between Latin American and Caribbean business executives. The fair is being attended by 1746 foreign firms from 60 countries, including firms from 34 Latin American and Caribbean nations. According to Cuba's Deputy Foreign Trade Minister Estrella Madrigal, FIHAV provides an excellent opportunity to reach new agreements that favor the island's traditional and new exports. She added that Cuba's recent admission into the Latin American Integration Association -- ALADI -- opens a new door to Cuba's objective of joining its geographic context, since it allows Latin American markets to have more access to Cuban products and vice-versa. CUBA AND HOLLAND SIGN INVESTMENT AGREEMENT Havana, November 3(RHC)-- Cuba and Holland signed an investment protection and promotion agreement in the Cuban capital which, according to experts, places bilateral relations at the highest level in the last few years. Observers say that the agreement opens the way to broader economic links between the Caribbean island and the European country. The document was signed by Cuban Foreign Investment and Economic Cooperation Minister Marta Lomas and Holland's Minister of Economy and Trade, Yerrit Ybema, who is winding up a working visit to the Caribbean island. While on the island, the first Dutch government official to visit Cuba in the last 20 years met with eight Cuban ministers and toured Havana's International Trade Fair. Trade between Cuba and the Netherlands currently stands at 200 million dollars, but the Dutch minister's visit points to an even greater increase of bilateral exchange. BRITISH MINISTER RATIFIES OPPOSITION TO HELMS-BURTON LAW Havana, November 3(RHC)-- Britain's Minister of State for Scotland, Brian Wilson, has ratified London's opposition to the U.S. Helms-Burton Law, aimed at further tightening its stranglehold of Havana. Wilson told reporters in the Cuban capital that the anti-Cuba legislation violates international law and called it "a political vendetta and a counterproductive measure." The British official highlighted the growing interest of business executives in his country to increase and upgrade economic relations with Cuba. Brian Wilson is visiting the island on the occasion of Havana's International Trade Fair, where British participation has increased 50 percent over last year. FIRST BRITISH ROCK BAND PERFORMS IN CUBA Havana, November 3(RHC)-- For the first time in 40 years, a rock band from the United Kingdom is performing in Cuba. "Shooglenifty" will rock Havana's National Theater with its unique style. An initiative of the British Council and the Cuban Music Institute, the singers arrived on the island as part of the British delegation attending the trade fair. Following their performance at the National Theater, "Shooglenifty" will perform at the House of Music, where the Buena Vista Social Club musicians, Irakere and Ivan Links have performed. The group is from Scotland and combines traditional Celtic tunes with modern sounds. NATIONAL PHOTOGRAPHY EXHIBIT AWARDS PRESENTED Havana, November 3(RHC)-- Cuban photographer Raul Canibano Ercilla is the winner of the Grand Prix of the 1999 National Photography Exhibit. The artist was awarded the prize for the series "Tierra Guajira" or "Country Land," which demonstrates strong visual images with impeccable clarity. The National Photography Exhibit includes 120 works of 35 artists. The second prize went to young photographer Ricardo Elias, for a series dedicated to the blind and visually-impaired and the third went to Eduardo Hernandez for "De la Gelida dureza de los filos" or "Around the Cold, Hard Edges." The National Photography Exhibit, which is sponsored by the Belle Arts National Council, provides a space for the island's photographers. [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-9214 1999-Nov-03 20:10:32