Radio Havana Cuba-31 July 2000 22:00 Via NY Transfer News * All the News That Doesn't Fit Radio Havana Cuba - News Update - 31 July 2000 22:00 *ROUNDTABLE: CUBAN MEDICAL INTERNATIONALISM IN LATIN AMERICA *BULGARIA'S AGRICULTURE/FORESTRY MINISTER VISITS CUBA *250 LATIN AMERICAN, CARIBBEAN SOLIDARITY ACTIVISTS CURRENTLY IN CUBA *CANADIAN CHE GUEVARA SOLIDARITY BRIGADE CONTINUES ITS VISIT TO CUBA *500 STUDENTS TO ATTEND SPORTS INSTITUTE IN CUBAN INTERNATIONAL PROGRAM *CHINA AND CUBA FORM JOINT VENTURE FOR COOKING AND CULTURE *ISLENOS S.A. ANNOUNCES SHIPMENTS OF MINI CIGARS TO FRANCE AND SPAIN *Viewpoint: A NEW STAGE OF THE VENEZUELAN REVOLUTION BEGINS *ROUNDTABLE: CUBAN MEDICAL INTERNATIONALISM IN LATIN AMERICA Havana, July 31 (RHC)-Monday evening's roundtable discussion focused on Cuban medical internationalism. The roundtable, composed of Cuban journalists, analyzed the impact of the Cuban medical presence in Africa and the Caribbean. Four countries were examined in which Cuba maintains medical missions: Nigeria, Gambia, Equatorial Guinea, and Haiti. All Cuban medical care abroad, as in Cuba, is free of charge. Africa, like most of the Third World, is characterized by extreme poverty-especially in the region's rural zones. In many instances, medical care is inaccessible while, in areas where it is accessible, it is simply unaffordable. Cuban doctors have been sent specifically to such marginalized areas in order to tend to an insurmountable number of patients who, in many cases, have never even seen a physician. In televised interviews with members of remote communities in all four countries, tremendous gratitude was shown towards Cuban doctors. In interviews, conducted via telephone, the chiefs of Cuban medical missions in Africa commented on the success of Cuban medical personal in combating dire medical conditions in their respective countries. Panelists stated that the Cuban medical brigades have made tremendous progress in helping to bring the human consequences of natural disasters, inadequate structural conditions, and the limits of privatized medical care under control. *BULGARIA'S AGRICULTURE/FORESTRY MINISTER VISITS CUBA Havana, July 31 (RHC)-Bulgaria's Agriculture and Forests Minister, Ventzislav Varbabnov is in Cuba on an official visit at the invitation of his Cuban counterpart, Alfredo Jordan. Upon his arrival at Havana's Jose Marti International Airport, Varbanov told journalists that the objective of his trip is to contribute to the revitalization of bilateral relations between the two countries. The Bulgarian Agriculture and Forests Minister said that his government has a special interest in this visit because it will help to get a first hand look at the development of Cuban agriculture and find techniques for cultivating sugar and its derivatives. During his visit, the Bulgarian official is scheduled to sign an important working agreement with Cuba. The delegate added that he is confident in the success of his official visit to the island and that both countries will reach levels of exchange prior to the fall of the former socialist countries of Eastern Europe. *250 LATIN AMERICAN, CARIBBEAN SOLIDARITY ACTIVISTS CURRENTLY IN CUBA Havana, July 31 (RHC)-Over 250 Latin American and Caribbean solidarity activists were welcomed on Monday at the Julio Antonio Mella Camp located on the outskirts of Havana. The brigadistas will remain on the island until August 13th and will do voluntary work in the agriculture sector. The volunteers will visit places of social and economic interest in the provinces of Havana and Sancti Spiritus. With the arrival of this new group, the number of brigadistas amounts to more than 800, from 32 countries, that have come in solidarity with the Cuban people this summer. *CANADIAN CHE GUEVARA SOLIDARITY BRIGADE CONTINUES ITS VISIT TO CUBA Santa Clara, July 31 (RHC)-The coordinator of the 8th contingent of the Canadian Che Guevara Solidarity Brigade, Nino Pagliesa, in the city of Santa Clara on Sunday said that the group's visit to Cuba has a special significance as it coincides with the July 26 celebrations. The solidarity group participated in last Saturday's Open Tribune, held in the Ernesto Che Guevara Plaza, including the participation of Cuban President Fidel Castro. The Cuban leader closed the tribune on the occasion of the 47th anniversary of the attacks, against the Moncada and Carlos Manuel de Cespedes Garrisons, which sparked the beginning of the Cuban Revolution. Pagliesa pointed out that the main priority, of the solidarity group of 38 brigadistas, is to get a first hand look at the reality in which the Cuban people currently live. This includes the effects and damages of Washington's blockade against the island and the Cuban people's struggle to defend their independence and sovereignty. *500 STUDENTS TO ATTEND SPORTS INSTITUTE IN CUBAN INTERNATIONAL PROGRAM Havana, July 31 (RHC)-The first 500 students to attend the International Sports Institute in Havana will arrive this week as part of a Cuban cooperation program in Latin America, the Caribbean and Africa. The program will include renowned Cuban sports professionals, who will train students at the sports institution, involving the participation of some one thousand 500 students each year. The School is internationally recognized for Cuba's successes in the sports field. The Sports School has some 34 thousand instructors and over a hundred sports cooperation agreements signed between Havana and 78 nations, with the objective of training athletes from the lower economic resources. *CHINA AND CUBA FORM JOINT VENTURE FOR COOKING AND CULTURE Bejing, July 31 (RHC)-Representatives from China and Cuba on Monday signed an agreement for the creation of a joint venture center for Cuban cooking and culture, named "Linda Habana," which has planned to open its doors next September at the Sheraton Hotel in the Chinese capital. Cuba's Domestic Trade Minister, Barbara Castillo, and Cuban Ambassador, Alberto Rodriguez Aruge, assisted in the signing of the accord in which negotiations lasted roughly one year. The accord includes a cultural recreation complex with Cuban food, music, dances and arts and crafts, reflecting the historic ties between the peoples of Cuba and China. According to Cuba's Domestic Trade Minister, the accord reflects the advanced stage of bilateral relations between both countries. September 28th, the day the complex will be inaugurated, will mark the 40th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Cuba and China. *ISLENOS S.A. ANNOUNCES SHIPMENTS OF MINI CIGARS TO FRANCE AND SPAIN Havana, July 31 (RHC)-The Islenos S.A. Cigar Company -COTAIS-announced on Monday that they will soon move the first shipment of 400 thousand mini cigars to France. Another shipment of 800 thousand mini cigars will go to Spain. French cigar smokers will be able to taste the mini cigars that COTAIS elaborates from a selection of the best Cuban cigar leaves. The Vice President of the Cuban-Spanish joint enterprise, Nestor Delgado, explained that the summer is the best time of year to launch new products in France, while in the case of Spain, fall appears to be more opportune. Cuban economic experts added that this is only the beginning. Commercialization will be extended to all of Europe, and to other parts of the world, where the consumption of now legendary Habanos has taken root. *Viewpoint: A NEW STAGE OF THE VENEZUELAN REVOLUTION BEGINS Although it took no one by surprise, the news that Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez won Sunday's elections has dominated the headlines of the world's major news dailies and renewed the enthusiasm of the vast majority of the Venezuelan people. Chavez achieved a landslide victory despite continued maneuvers by his adversaries -- led by big business, media transnationals and even some former comrades-in-arms who participated alongside him in the failed 1992 military coup. Chavez's 5th Republic Movement and allies took 13 of the 23 governorships up for grabs during Sunday's elections, as well as the mayoral race for Caracas, the capital. Further evidence of the Venezuelan people's rejection of the old, traditional political parties came with the news that most of the seats in the country's Legislative Assembly went to the Patriotic Coalition led by Hugo Chavez. The COPEI and Democratic Action Party, which alternated in power for over 40 years, plunged 80 percent of the country into extremely poverty. Following official confirmation that he had won the election, Hugo Chavez addressed tens of thousands from a balcony of the presidential palace. During his speech, which extended into the early morning hours of Monday, the re-elected Venezuelan president announced that on August 2nd, his administration will promote a series of economic and social measures aimed at eliminating large landed estates and guaranteeing free education and health services. More interested in guiding his nation toward economic recovery than engaging in a political confrontation -- and without abandoning the ideas of Latin American hero Simon Bolivar, the cornerstone of Chavez's movement -- the re-elected Venezuelan president has called on the Venezuelan people to help him remove the neo-liberal economic model. With their eyes on the prize, the Venezuelan people will work to create truly humanistic socio-economic structures that, for the first time, benefit the poor and dispossessed classes. (c) 2000 Radio Habana Cuba, NY Transfer News. 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-23032 2000-Jul-31 22:31:42