Radio Havana Cuba-28 April 2000 Via NY Transfer News * All the News That Doesn't Fit Radio Havana Cuba - News Update - 28 April 2000 -MIAMI POLICE CHIEF RESIGNS AFTER MAYOR'S CRITICISM OF RESCUE OPERATION -HUNDREDS OF INVITED GUESTS TO PARTICIPATE IN MAY DAY ACTIVITIES -INTERNATIONAL MEETING ON WOMEN AND TRADE UNIONISM UNDERWAY IN HAVANA -MEETING ON WOMEN AND COMMUNICATIONS REJECTS BLOCKADE, DETENTION OF ELIAN -Viewpoint: THE ONLY DEFENSE AGAINST THE IMF AND ITS DEVASTATING POLICIES MIAMI POLICE CHIEF RESIGNS DUE TO MAYOR'S CRITICISM OF ELIAN RESCUE OPERATION Miami, April 28 (RHC)-- The Miami Chief of Police, William O'Brien, denounced Mayor Jose Carollo and resigned due to the mayor's criticism of the Elian Gonzalez rescue operation. O'Brien said he refused to work as police chief of a city with such a destructive mayor who insists on creating divisions within the city's different ethnic groups. With 25 years on the police force, O'Brien said he resigned because Carollo is a divisive force, because Cuban-Americans need someone to blame, and because he has received numerous phone calls supporting his action in the case. Mayor Carollo, who cannot fire the chief of police, instead fired the person who can -- City Manager Donald Warshaw, who refused to remove O'Brien. O'Brien's resignation coincides with the first public statements of the immigration official, James Goldman, who led the team that took Elian from his kidnapper's home in Miami. Goldman said he and his agents felt surrounded by a dangerous environment almost as soon as they pulled up to the Miami relative's home. Explaining the need for firearms, Goldman told the ABC TV program "Nightline" that he and his team had intelligence reports that indicated that many of the protesters outside the Miami home had prior gun convictions, and that many have belonged to anti-Cuban terrorist organizations like Alpha 66. He said the INS had been monitoring activities from a house behind the Miami residence, had infiltrated the protesters outside the residence and had taken aerial photographs -- asserting that most of the people who constantly entered and left the house had criminal records for a variety of crimes, many of which were committed with the use of firearms. The immigration official said the operation was conducted with efficiency and with the necessary demonstration of force, without using excessive force. Goldman said his greatest satisfaction, the image that will remain etched in his memory, is the moment when Elian and his father embraced. HUNDREDS OF INVITED GUESTS TO PARTICIPATE IN MAY DAY ACTIVITIES Havana, April 28 (RHC)-- The General Secretary of Cuba's Workers Confederation, Pedro Ross Leal, said Friday in Havana that nearly 400 invited guests will participate in the May Day activities throughout the island. Among those activities on International Worker's Day, the Cuban capital will host a massive gathering in Havana's Plaza de la Revolucion and similar gatherings in 14 of the country's provinces and municipalities. This year's celebration will replace the traditional marches and are aimed at denouncing Washington's blockade against Cuba and demanding the return of six- year-old Elian Gonzalez, who continues to be detained in the United States despite being in the custody of his father. INTERNATIONAL MEETING ON WOMEN AND TRADE UNIONISM GETS UNDERWAY IN HAVANA Havana, April 28 (RHC)-- An international meeting on Women and Trade Unionism on the Threshold of the Third Millenium began its sessions on Friday at Havana's International Convention Center. More than 400 women labor activists from 16 countries -- including Canada, the United States, Argentina and China - are taking part in the event. The two-day meeting was organized by the Cuban Workers Confederation (CTC) and the Federation of Cuban Women (FMC) as part of activities to mark International Worker's Day. Participants in the international encounter Women and Trade Unionism on the Threshold of the Third Millenium are discussing issues of common interest such as economic rights of women and the legal status of women workers, women's social and political rights, the international struggle to change the current situation of women, child labor and trade unionism, gender and the environment. 4th IBERO-AMERICAN MEETING ON WOMEN AND COMMUNICATIONS UNANIMOUSLY REJECTS WASHINGTON'S BLOCKADE AGAINST THE ISLAND AND THE CONTINUED DETENTION OF ELIAN GONZALEZ Havana, April 28 (RHC)-- Participants in the Fourth Ibero-American Meeting on Women and Communications, which concluded on Thursday in the Cuban capital, unanimously rejected Washington's nearly 40 year blockade against the island and condemned the detention of six-year-old Elian Gonzalez in the United States. The event's final declaration was approved by more than 100 participants from some 12 countries, who discussed communications strategy, sexist language and the images of women in the mass media. The document rejects Washington's economic, commercial and financial blockade against Cuba as an expression of violence, which has caused the loss of over 67 billion dollars. Viewpoint: A STRONG, UNITED FRONT: THE ONLY DEFENSE AGAINST THE INTERNATIONAL MONETARY FUND AND ITS DEVASTATING ECONOMIC POLICIES In Ecuador, popular protests continue against the International Monetary Fund -- the lending agency responsible for imposing its neo-liberal economic policy on almost all Latin American governments, bringing nothing but increased poverty and dependence. But the international lending agency doesn't have a mind of its own. It must be remembered that it is the United States that controls whatever the IMF or the World Bank does. It is in Washington where they decide if the IMF grants loans or credits. And if the governments affected by the IMF's decisions do not obey its dictates, Washington is the one that implements sanctions and pressures. The current situation of popular unrest is not limited to Ecuador. These problems have also appeared in a number of Latin American countries and they will continue to arise if current IMF economic policy continues to be implemented. Brazil, with an area of over 8 million square kilometers and a population of 168 million people, is a clear example of this. Neo-liberal economic policies have not yielded any positive results for the vast working majority, in spite of the country's colossal natural resources. Paradoxically, the South American giant's exports are far lower than Holland's, one of the smallest countries in Europe. But if we take a look at the Central American region, the situation is even worse -- where entire populations continue to live in the way they did early in the 20th century. The vast majority of those countries are in poorer conditions than Cuba before the Triumph of the Revolution in 1959. Honduras, Guatemala, El Salvador and Nicaragua are the worst, with perspectives of social improvement nowhere on the horizon and ever-growing instability that could at any moment lead to serious social unrest. It's clear that for them, the only way out is cooperation and joint action with countries of the South. This kind of cooperation would significantly relieve the tremendous pressure imposed on them by the group of rich nations led by the United States. The South Summit, recently held in Havana with representatives from over 120 countries, was an important step towards presenting a strong and united front. (c) 2000 Radio Habana Cuba. 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