Radio Havana Cuba-17 April 2000 Via NY Transfer News * All the News That Doesn't Fit Radio Havana Cuba - News Update - 17 April 2000 -NEW, DESPERATE MANEUVERS TO HOLD ELIAN GONZALEZ IN MIAMI -WASHINGTON: WORLD'S GREATEST HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATOR -DRY-RUN ELECTION TEST SUCCESSFUL -THE EURO WILL GIVE CUBA NEW FINANCIAL POSSIBILITIES -Viewpoint: BOLIVIA - GROWING DISCONTENT WITH NEO-LIBERAL POLICIES NEW, DESPERATE MANEUVERS TO HOLD ELIAN GONZALEZ IN MIAMI Havana, April 17 (RHC)-- The kidnappers of six-year-old Elain Gonzalez are trying to invent new excuses to continue holding the young boy against his father's wishes. According to an editorial in today's edition of Trabajadores, the so-called "King of Dirty Campaigns" of the Cuban American National Foundation, Armando Gutierrez, now insists that the main reason why Elian's kidnappers in Miami are holding the boy is because Juan Miguel Gonzalez used to beat his wife and son. Today's edition of the newspaper gives ample information on the good relations between Elian's mother and father -- information which was confirmed by the U.S. Justice Department and a survey carried out by the U.S. Associated Press News Agency -- interviewing neighbors from Elian's hometown of Cardenas. Juan Miguel Gonzalez, who is currently in the United States to gain custody of his son, firmly rejected the story aimed at ruining his reputation. During an interview on CBS television over the weekend, Juan Miguel affirmed that his son's kidnappers in Miami are trying to make him look like a bad father before public opinion. The article lists all the maneuvers and legal appeals being used by the kidnappers to hold Elian, including calls in Miami that Juan Miguel go to the United States to pick up his son -- concluding that after more than a week in Washington, Juan Miguel has still not been allowed to see his son. WASHINGTON: WORLD'S GREATEST HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATOR Havana, April 17 (RHC)-- This morning's edition of Trabajadores states that while the United States is presented in Geneva as a defender of human rights, millions of people in that country are constantly suffering human rights violations. The Cuban newspaper recalls that at a recent U.S. Mayor's Conference, held last December, it was revealed that the number of homeless people continues to increase each year. It was also revealed that in San Francisco alone, 169 people died of exposure to the elements and diseases associated with extreme poverty last year. The newspaper article refers to the dramatic violation of human rights of Latinos in the United States, where three children under one year of age die every 24 hours, six out of ten children drop out of school, 50 percent of Hispanic youth are unemployed and nearly 40 percent of young people in Latino communities suffer from emotional problems. DRY-RUN ELECTION TEST SUCCESSFUL Havana, April 17 (RHC)-- Tests were carried out throughout the country yesterday, checking equipment for next Sunday's municipal elections. According to election officials, the trial-run was successful and everything is ready for actual voting on April 23rd. According to this morning's edition of Trabajadores, the tests checked equipment and mechanisms which will be used during Sunday's elections. Voters will go to the polls and elect municipal delegates to the Cuban Parliament, also known as the Assemblies of People's Power. THE EURO WILL GIVE THE ISLAND NEW FINANCIAL POSSIBILITIES Havana, April 17 (RHC)-- The President of Cuba's Central Bank, Francisco Soberon, said today that Cuba is confident that the Euro currency will improve the country's financial possibilities. The Cuban official said that the island has been renegotiating its foreign debt with several European countries, among them Italy and the UK, adding that groundwork is also being laid for an agreement with Germany. Soberon spoke with reporters during a news conference in Havana, analyzing the country's economic situation. The president of the Central Bank affirmed that external financing is still one of the main problems affecting the island. He recalled that Cuba lost some 265 million dollars last year as a result of fluctuating prices on the international market, although the prices for Cuba's exports of nickel rose. The president of Cuba's Central Bank said that sugar production this year is expected to rise to four million tons, while nickel production will increase to some 74,000 tons. Francisco Soberon told reporters that Cuba's economy should increase from four to 4.5 percent this year, as well as see an increase in productivity and a 20 percent increase in tourism. The main foreign investors in Cuba are Spain, Canada and Italy -- primarily in tourism, oil and telecommunications. Viewpoint: BOLIVIA - GROWING DISCONTENT WITH NEO-LIBERAL POLICIES In Bolivia, after ten days of popular protests, demonstrations and strikes that left five people dead, 76 injured and economic losses exceeding 50 million dollars, the government and the Confederation of Bolivian Campesinos reached an agreement on Friday. According to the agreement, the government pledges to comply with the demands made by the campesinos over the next three months. However, the situation has not improved. The state of siege decreed by President Hugo Banzer on April 8th is still in effect and protests continue with campesinos blocking roads near La Paz, the Bolivian capital. The social unrest that began in Cochabamba when the administration attempted to increase water prices was just the spark that lit the fire of popular discontent with the economic policies of Hugo Banzer. After 15 years of neo-liberal policies, the promise that the social costs would be temporary has been exposed as a big lie. Now, the Bolivian people are suffering the consequences of an experiment for which they were never consulted. Although the neo-liberal changes implemented in 1985 stopped hyperinflation and resulted in an increase of the Gross Domestic Product, they did not translate into an improvement in the people's quality of life. On the contrary, they brought more unemployment, social exclusion and lower salaries. After signing the agreement, Hugo Banzer claimed that peace had returned to Bolivia, but continued popular discontent tells another story. (c) 2000 Radio Habana Cuba. 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