Radio Havana Cuba-27 April 2000 Via NY Transfer News * All the News That Doesn't Fit Radio Havana Cuba - News Update - 27 April 2000 -FOUR CLASSMATES OF ELIAN GONZALEZ ARRIVE IN THE UNITED STATES -U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT BETRAYS GOOD FAITH, SETTING UP ABSURD OBSTACLES -11th CIRCUIT COURT OF APPEALS DENIES KIDNAPPERS ACCESS TO ELIAN GONZALEZ -CUBAN PRESIDENT FIDEL CASTRO CONDEMNS MANEUVERS BY MIAMI MAFIA -JUAN MIGUEL GONZALEZ FILES MOTION CLAIMING SOLE CUSTODY -TWO FLORIDA FISHING BUDDIES WON'T BE SAILING TOGETHER SOON -MASSIVE MOBILIZATION IN CUBA TO CELEBRATE INTERNATIONAL WORKER'S DAY -CUBA AND PANAMA SIGN COOPERATION AGREEMENT -LIBERIAN MINISTER OF HEALTH VISITS CUBA -DELEGATION OF U.S. FARMERS WRAPS UP VISIT TO CUBA -INTERNATIONAL SYMPOSIUM ON CUBA'S PHARMACEUTICAL ACHIEVEMENTS SET FOR HAVANA -Viewpoint: CUBA'S WEAPONS AGAINST THE LIES: TRUTH AND UNITY FOUR CLASSMATES OF ELIAN GONZALEZ ARRIVE IN THE UNITED STATES Havana, April 27 (RHC)-- Cuban President Fidel Castro saw off a group of schoolmates, their parents and a physician at Jose Marti International Airport -- on their way to visit Elian Gonzalez and his family. The U.S. State Department granted entry visas to four classmates and accompanying parents early Thursday morning, at the same time refusing to approve visas for a larger group of psychologists, doctors and other schoolmates. The Cuban leader criticized the refusal, saying that the State Department was setting up all kinds of obstacles and difficulties. Fidel Castro also noted that the visas that were approved were only for 15 days, preventing a stable, school-like environment for Elian. The leader of the Cuban Revolution insisted that it was absolutely necessary to send more classmates and physicians to be with Elian, helping him catch up with schoolwork and renew relations with his friends. He said that this was an essential part of Cuba's efforts to make sure the six-year-old boy recovers from the traumatic experiences of the past several months when he was held in Miami. U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT BETRAYS GOOD FAITH, SETTING UP ABSURD OBSTACLES Havana, April 27 (RHC)-- During a live, televised roundtable discussion Thursday evening, the moderator read an official statement by the Cuban government, strongly criticizing the obstacles imposed on the group of classmates who will accompany Elian Gonzalez during the appeals process in the United States. According to the statement, Elian's cousin and pre-school teacher -- who arrived in the U.S. on Wednesday -- were held up in Washington due to bureaucratic obstacles and were not able to immediately travel to Wye Plantation, where the six-year-old is staying with his family. Among the obstacles is a restriction placed on officials of the Cuban Interests Section in Washington, DC -- prohibiting Cuban officials from traveling more than 25 miles from the U.S. capital. The Wye Plantation is located some 60 miles from Washington. The official Cuban government statement noted that the U.S. State Department is doing everything possible to cut off communications between Cuban diplomatic personnel and Elian and his family. It was also revealed that the U.S. State Department, upon the group's arrival in Washington, confiscated medicines being carried by Elain's doctor -- Caridad Ponce de Leon -- and warned her that she could not practice medicine in the State of Maryland because she was not properly licensed in the United States. All of these absurd obstacles and difficulties, combined with recent statements by Secretary of State Madeleine Albright -- affirming that Washington's hostile policy toward Cuba would continue unaffected by the case of Elian Gonzalez -- constitutes a betrayal of good faith, shown by Juan Miguel, his attorney and Cuban diplomats in Washington. 11th CIRCUIT COURT OF APPEALS DENIES KIDNAPPERS ACCESS TO ELIAN GONZALEZ Atlanta, April 27 (RHC)-- The 11th Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta has rejected a petition by the Miami relatives of Elian Gonzalez to have unlimited access to the six-year-old boy. The court also refused a request by the kidnappers to name a "neutral guardian" for the boy. However, the court accepted a proposal by the U.S. government that regular reports be submitted on the boy's emotional health to ensure his well-being. The court also upheld a previous ruling which prohibits Elian from being taken to any facility with diplomatic immunity, to make sure that the boy remains in the United States during the appeals process. The 11th Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta, with jurisdiction over all judicial cases in Florida, has yet to rule on a petition by the Miami relatives to push the INS into considering a petition for political asylum presented on behalf of Elian against his father's wishes. CUBAN PRESIDENT FIDEL CASTRO CONDEMNS MANEUVERS BY MIAMI MAFIA Havana, April 27 (RHC)-- Cuban President Fidel Castro has condemned the desperate maneuvers by Miami's Cuban-American mafia -- stating that due their constant delaying tactics, Elian Gonzalez is still not home in Cuba. The Cuban leader spoke with reporters on Wednesday after touring the accommodations where Elian Gonzalez will temporarily stay upon his return from the United States. The Cuban leader explained that the area, a government-owned guest house for youth located near the sea in the Havana neighborhood of Miramar, has been equipped with comfortable surroundings for the six-year-old and his family, as well as his classmates and child care specialists. According to the Cuban president, the accommodations will help the young boy to psychologically readjust to society after having spent several long months in a hostile situation. Child care experts agree that after having witnessed the tragedy of his mother drowning and being subjected to emotional pressures and a circus atmosphere in Miami, young Elian Gonzalez will need time to psychologically recover from the ordeal. Fidel Castro reiterated that when Elian returns to Cuba with his family, he will not be the object of mass demonstrations, but will be given the time necessary to begin a healing process. JUAN MIGUEL GONZALEZ FILES MOTION CLAIMING SOLE CUSTODY Washington, April 27 (RHC)-- The father of six-year-old Elian Gonzalez has requested that the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta consider that he is the only person who can legally represent his son. The attorney for Juan Miguel Gonzalez, Gregory Craig, entered the legal motion on Wednesday, at the same time calling on the appeals court to remove Lazaro Gonzalez, the boy's great-uncle in Miami, as his representative. According to legal experts, the motion reaffirms that Juan Miguel, as Elian's father, has legal custody and that only he can speak for his son. Observers close to the case believe that a positive ruling by the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals on this new motion would essentially take the legal wind out of the sails of the boy's kidnappers in Miami. On Monday, the U.S. Justice Department petitioned the Atlanta appeals court to dismiss the political asylum request filed on the young boy's behalf by his great-uncle. The legal brief stated that there is no evidence that the six-year-old helped to prepare or even understood an application for political asylum that bears his scrawled signature. TWO FLORIDA FISHING BUDDIES WON'T BE SAILING TOGETHER SOON Miami, April 27 (RHC)-- One of the two fishermen who found Elian Gonzalez floating off the coast of Florida five months ago has harshly criticized the boy's kidnappers in Miami. Sam Cianco told reporters that he believes that Juan Miguel Gonzalez is a truly sincere person and expressed his admiration for Elian's father, whom he met shortly after his arrival in the United States two weeks ago. Cianco stated that Elain's distant relatives in Miami are -- in his words -- "100 percent wrong." He also criticized the other fisherman, his cousin Donato Dalrymple -- saying that he has used the young boy in an attempt to get fame and personal glory. Dalrymple has closely attached himself to the kidnappers in Miami and was in the residence where Elian was being held on Saturday when INS agents raided the house to take him to his father. Sam Cianco said that the actions of his cousin and former friend have separated them for good. MASSIVE MOBILIZATION IN CUBA TO CELEBRATE INTERNATIONAL WORKER'S DAY Havana, April 27 (RHC)-- Cubans from all walks of life will come together on Monday, May 1st, at Havana's Jose Marti Revolution Square to celebrate International Worker's Day. A note in Thursday's edition of the Cuban newspaper Granma reports that Havana residents will also take part in anti-imperialist open tribunes in all of the capital's municipalities. The marches and rallies will demand an end to legal and political maneuvers in the United States, designed to delay the return to Cuba of six-year-old Elian Gonzalez. During the May 1st activities, the Cuban people will also raise their voices to demand an end to U.S. anti-Cuba laws -- the Cuban Adjustment Act, the Helms-Burton and the Torricelli Laws -- as well as Washington's nearly 40-year economic, financial and trade blockade against the island, aimed at undermining the Cuban Revolution. It is anticipated that this year's May Day march and rally will be the largest ever in Cuba. Some 3500 trade unionists and other guests from around the world have been invited to observe the huge march -- including outstanding Cuban workers and renowned foreign personalities. More than 400 invited guests are already in Cuba. CUBA AND PANAMA SIGN COOPERATION AGREEMENT Havana, April 27 (RHC)-- Cuba and Panama have signed a bilateral cooperation agreement in the areas of health, education, energy, tourism, fishing, trade and agriculture. The protocol was signed in the framework of the first meeting of the Cuba-Panama Inter-Governmental Mixed Commission. Panama's Minister of Finances and the Economy, Eusebio Vergara Carrut, expressed satisfaction with the agreement and praised Cuba's collaboration with his country. Cuba is currently the six largest buyer in the Panamanian Free Zone, where trade operations generate over 10 billion dollars a year. LIBERIAN MINISTER OF HEALTH VISITS CUBA Havana, April 27 (RHC)-- Liberian Health Minister Peter Colleman is in Cuba on an official visit, designed to boost bilateral cooperation with Havana in the area of health. Colleman expressed his appreciation for the work being done by Cuban health professionals in Africa and praised the island's integral health program -- calling it an example to be followed throughout the world. During his stay in Cuba, which concludes on Saturday, the Liberian minister of health is scheduled to meet with his Cuban counterpart, Dr. Carlos Dotres. The African dignitary will also visit the Hermanos Ameijeiras Hospital and the Pedro Kouri Institute of Tropical Medicine, both located in the Cuban capital. DELEGATION OF U.S. FARMERS WRAPS UP VISIT TO CUBA Havana, April 27 (RHC)-- A delegation of some 20 farmers from the U.S. state of Texas ended a three-day visit to Cuba on Wednesday. The visit was aimed at promoting dialogue as well as getting a first-hand look at Cuban agriculture. The U.S. delegation -- headed by the President of the Texas Farm Bureau, Donald Patman, and U.S. Congressman Charles Stenholm -- met in Havana with officials from Cuba's Ministry for Foreign Trade and the Central Bank, as well as representatives from agricultural cooperatives and farmer's associations in Cuba. The visitors came out in favor of ending Washington's nearly 40-year blockade against Cuba and called on the U.S. government to authorize the sale of food and medicine to the Caribbean island. INTERNATIONAL SYMPOSIUM ON CUBA'S PHARMACEUTICAL ACHIEVEMENTS SET FOR HAVANA Havana, April 27 (RHC)-- Havana will host an International Symposium to review Cuba's achievements in the pharmaceutical industry in the 1990s. Scheduled from May 9th through the 11th, the event will focus attention on the vaccines, medicines and medical equipment produced in Cuba over the past decade. The encounter is also aimed at reviewing Cuba's achievements in the area of biotechnology. The Head of the Science and Technology Office of the Cuban Health Ministry, Erick Martinez, announced that 250 research projects by Cuban experts will be submitted for discussion during the international symposium. Viewpoint: CUBA'S WEAPONS AGAINST THE LIES: TRUTH AND UNITY Thanks to its colossal resources, coupled with the most reactionary elements in today's world, the United States has managed to spread a plethora of lies and slander against Cuba across the planet. Our nation does not have the vast and powerful amount of material resources -- such as, for example, the means of communication and transmission -- to oppose this campaign of disinformation. As a result, much of the propaganda disseminated by Washington to create negative public opinion with respect to our political, economic and social system goes unchallenged. Cuba's only weapons against these maneuvers are the truth and the unity of its people who, in spite of today's hardships, are always ready to defend their sovereignty despite the consequences. The strength of the Cuban Revolution and its solidarity with the peoples of the Third World is based on this unity. Cuba has done much more for the Third World than all those countries put together who recently condemned the Revolution in the UN Human Rights Commission for alleged violations of human rights. Some of the countries that were pressured to vote against Havana in Geneva have experienced Cuba's actual humanitarianism and solidarity first-hand. They have been happy to improve their defective health and education programs, using Cuban doctors and teachers provided free-of-charge. There are 110 million children on this planet that do not attend school -- not one of them is Cuban. In those same countries that condemned our Revolution, there are millions of children living in the streets and forced into prostitution. Cuba's infant mortality rate is one of the lowest in the world and those who are born mentally or physically disabled receive all the necessary attention in special schools, without paying a single cent. All this would not be possible in a nation where human rights are not respected and protected. Our enemies will never be able to hide this truth. Neither will they be able to prevent our people from defending their principles and continue to demonstrate the true virtues of humanity. (c) 2000 Radio Habana Cuba. All rights reserved. ================================================================= NY Transfer News Collective * A Service of Blythe Systems Since 1985 - Information for the Rest of Us 339 Lafayette St., New York, NY 10012 http://www.blythe.org e-mail: nyt@blythe.org ================================================================= rhc-eng-2190 2000-Apr-28 03:29:11