Radio Havana Cuba-11 May 2000 Via NY Transfer News * All the News That Doesn't Fit Radio Havana Cuba - News Update - 11 May 2000 -COURT OF APPEALS IN ATLANTA HEARS ORAL ARGUMENTS IN ELIAN GONZALEZ CASE -UN HIGH COMMISSIONER FOR REFUGEES COMES OUT IN FAVOR OF GLOBAL SOLIDARITY -CUBAN MEDICAL GROUP IS WELCOMED BY BELIZE'S HEALTH MINISTER -PRESIDENT OF THE CANARY ISLANDS ON OFFICIAL VISIT TO CUBA -TOBACCO PRODUCTION CONTINUES ON THE RISE -FIRST REGIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL AND COMMUNICATIONS WORKSHOP UNDERWAY -COUNCIL FOR RESEARCH DEVELOPMENT IMPRESSED WITH CUBA'S SCIENTIFIC KNOWLEDGE -PINAR DEL RIO DEFEATS HAVANA'S INDUSTRIALES; READY TO FACE DEFENDING NATIONAL CHAMPS, SANTIAGO DE CUBA -Viewpoint: THE BIG BUSINESS OF TRAFFICKING HUMAN BEINGS COURT OF APPEALS IN ATLANTA HEARS ORAL ARGUMENTS IN ELIAN GONZALEZ CASE Atlanta, May 11 (RHC)-- The Elian Gonzalez case arrived at the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta today. U.S. government attorneys and those representing the child's great-uncle in Miami, Lazaro Gonzalez, were given approximately 20 minutes to present their oral arguments. The government also allowed Gregory Craig, the lawyer representing Elian's father, Juan Miguel, to use part of their allotted time. Experts almost unanimously agree that Elian's distant relatives in Miami can only prolong the dispute and that eventually the child and his immediate family will return to Cuba. Observers contend that the petition for an asylum hearing by the boy's kidnappers in Miami -- based on the claim that the child will be persecuted and indoctrinated in Cuba -- does not meet the requirements established to grant asylum. Stephen Legomsky, an immigration law expert at Washington University in St. Louis, said proving that Elian will be persecuted would be difficult at best, since he is adored in Cuba. And, he said, it will not be easy to prove that a six-year-old child -- who is too young to have political ideas -- will be indoctrinated. In terms of an eventual Supreme Court appeal, Alex Aleinikoff, professor at Georgetown University Law Center and a former INS general counsel, said that decades of Supreme Court rulings favor parental rights over those of children and that Elian's case should be no exception. An article in today's edition of the Los Angeles Times points out that if the court rules that Elian must be given an asylum hearing, his fate would be in the hands of the Immigration and Naturalization Service -- the agency that has ruled three times that the boy should not be permitted to apply for asylum. An asylum hearing, however, is a process that takes two to three months. UN HIGH COMMISSIONER FOR REFUGEES COMES OUT IN FAVOR OF GLOBAL SOLIDARITY Havana, May 11 (RHC)-- Visiting United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Japanese Sadako Ogata, has called for the globalization of solidarity during a lecture at the University of Havana on the challenges for the protection of refugees. Sadako Ogata arrived in Havana on Tuesday, beginning an official visit at the invitation of Cuban authorities. This is the first visit of a UN High Commissioner for Refugees to Cuba since the creation of that UN agency in 1951. The UN official pointed to war, political repression, violence, poverty, social exclusion and environmental degradation as the main causes for an increased refugee crises worldwide over the past several decades. She also referred to the positive as well as the negative impact of globalization. In that sense, she said that while the free circulation of goods and capital have created wealth, employment opportunities and a better life for some, the rapid movement of investment capital in and out of certain regions have led to major financial crisis during the last decade. The search for quick profits and other factors have also contributed to social destabilization and, as a result, increased poverty for the poorest strata of society. The UN High Commissioner for Refugees stressed the importance of promoting what she called global solidarity. "It's of utmost importance that we convince political leaders worldwide to integrate global solidarity into the system of values on which their action is based. It may sound abstract and you may also ask why it's necessary. I have two answers. First, because it responds to the compelling moral imperative of sharing with those who are less fortunate. Second, because the larger the number of people living a relatively secure life, the more secure everyone will be. Global solidarity contributes to overall human security. The efforts made by Cuba to maintain adequate public services in the key areas of education and health and, I should add, in providing protection to refugees are exemplary". CUBAN MEDICAL GROUP IS WELCOMED BY BELIZE'S HEALTH MINISTER Belmopan, May 11 (RHC)-- Belize's Health Minister, Jose Coye, personally welcomed the fifth group of a Cuban medical team which arrived in that country as part of Cuba's Integral Health Plan for Central America. The group of 34 -- most of them specializing in the nursing sector, along with six medical professionals -- brings the number of Cuban doctors and health technicians working in Belize to 107. Belician health authorities say that Cuba's assistance is extremely valuable and will allow the Central American country to improve the quality of its health services, which are undergoing a reform process. The Cuban internationalist health professionals offer their support with highly-qualified personnel, mainly in the area of community medicine. The medical team has also helped to reinforce the country's major hospitals with specialists in gynecology, neurology, ophthalmology, and, most recently, nursing. PRESIDENT OF THE CANARY ISLANDS ON OFFICIAL VISIT TO CUBA Havana, May 11 (RHC)-- The President of the Canary Islands, Roman Rodriguez, will meet with Cuba's Tourism Minister, Ibrahim Ferradaz, to evaluate cooperation projects in the field of personnel training and the exchange of technology. Upon his arrival in Havana on Tuesday, the President of the Canary Islands characterized the island's investments as intelligent, especially in the tourism sector. During Roman Rodriguez' stay in Cuba, he is also scheduled to donate medical supplies to the Leonor Perez Maternal Hospital and participate in the inauguration of a cigar factory. The president of the Canary Islands offered his country's cooperation to the more than 11 thousand descendents of his islands living in Cuba, promising greater efforts in favor of that immigrant community. He also said that among his visit's major objectives are to stimulate the presence of companies from the Canary Islands in Cuba and exchange ideas with local authorities. TOBACCO PRODUCTION CONTINUES ON THE RISE Havana, May 11 (RHC)-- Cuba's President of the National Association of Small Farmers, ANAP, Orlando Lugo Font, said that conditions are favorable on the island to increase tobacco production by 10,000 tons during the year, despite a drought that has hit areas of the country. The increase of tobacco production has been possible due to the extension of the production to all of the other provinces on the island and increase of new areas in the traditional zones like western Pinar del Rio, Havana, central Sancti Spiritus and Villa Clara. The 9th Congress of the National Association of Small Farmers will get underway next Monday, with 800 delegates and 200 invited guests. One of the main issues to be discussed at the Congress will be the development of the agricultural sector on the island. FIRST REGIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL AND COMMUNICATIONS WORKSHOP UNDERWAY Sancti Spiritus, May 11 (RHC)-- The First Regional Environmental and Communications Workshop is underway in the central Cuban city of Sancti Spiritus, with the participation of representatives from surrounding provinces. Cuban specialists are debating the issue of environment and communications in today's world. During the two-day event, participants exchanged ideas on environmental problems and the mass media -- examining the treatment of those issues on radio and television, as well as in the written press. The meeting, which is sponsored by the Ministry of Science, Technology and the Environment and the Association of Cuban Journalists, is part of efforts to contribute to environmental conservation measures. COUNCIL FOR RESEARCH DEVELOPMENT IMPRESSED WITH CUBA'S SCIENTIFIC KNOWLEDGE Havana, May 11 (RHC)-- A high-ranking member of the Council for Research Development, based in Geneva, told reporters in Havana that her organization is impressed with the level of scientific knowledge attained in Cuba. Mathias Korter, a Swiss scientist who is currently visiting the island, said that he deeply admires Cuba, adding that despite its economic difficulties, the island had made tremendous scientific and social achievements. During his participation in the Symposium on the Impact of Science in Technological Innovation, Korter said that the event has provided a good opportunity to discuss future cooperation between the Council for Research Development and Cuba. PINAR DEL RIO DEFEATS HAVANA'S INDUSTRIALES; READY TO FACE DEFENDING NATIONAL CHAMPS, SANTIAGO DE CUBA Pinar del Rio, May 11 (RHC)-Pinar del Rio defeated Havana's Industriales 8 to 5 -- qualifying them for the finals against the defending champions Santiago de Cuba. Pinar del Rio catcher Yosvani Madera was the most valuable player of the night with a triple and homerun -- scoring six of the eight runs for the team. Now Pinar del Rio will face the strong-hitting team of Santiago de Cuba on Saturday for the finals of the National Baseball Series. Viewpoint: THE BIG BUSINESS OF TRAFFICKING HUMAN BEINGS Human trafficking continues to rise, as the free market becomes the imposed model for global trade. Increasing, South-to-North migration makes it easy for dealers who run a well-organized mafia, with control over borders and custom regulations. Merchandise and raw materials are guaranteed free circulation across frontiers, but the poor populations of the Third World meet inflexible legal restrictions and material barriers that force them to make risky attempts to leave their impoverished countries, seeking work opportunities in the very nations that have raped their local economies. The globalization of economies and communications allows the spread of vice and crime, resulting in a world order that holds greed as its First Commandment. Although human trafficking is an international business, the situation along the U.S. southern border stands out among the most critical. Human dealers, known as "coyotes," place the lives of tens of thousands of Latin Americans at risk every year. Most of the immigrants are of Mexican origin and suffer great hardships in their attempts to cross the heavily guarded and monitored U.S. border. Over the years, the number of people killed in attempts to cross the border to improve their lives has continuously increased. To stop human trafficking in the area, the U.S. government has built huge metal walls, set up wired fences, militarized the border zone and even ordered border patrol agents to shoot violators. A while ago, a border patrol guard shot a fleeing 15-year-old boy as he attempted to climb BACK into Mexico. These guards are armed with modern weapons as well as the most sophisticated means for tracking and detection. Poverty leaves few choices, if any. Undocumented immigrants in the United States are condemned to the worst jobs -- most of them in agriculture. They work from dusk to dawn for such low pay that no U.S. citizen would even consider such work. Making big money from other people's poverty and desperation has turned into a new and profitable source of income, which can only be compared to the drug trade and the illegal trafficking of weapons. (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-24478 2000-May-12 00:12:36