Radio Havana Cuba-2 May 2000 Via NY Transfer News * All the News That Doesn't Fit Radio Havana Cuba - News Update - 2 May 2000 (Distributed 3 May 2000) -ELIAN GONZALEZ CASE CONTINUES TO DEEPEN POLITICAL CRISIS IN MIAMI -NEIGHBORHOOD DELEGATES ELECTED IN SECOND ROUND OF ELECTIONS -PALESTINIAN DELEGATION ON WORKING VISIT IN HAVANA -CUBAN COMMUNIST PARTY DELEGATION TOURS ASIA -FIRST INTERNATIONAL CONGRESS ON ANIMAL BREEDING OPENS IN HAVANA -CUBAN AND URUGUAYAN ECONOMISTS EXCHANGE VIEWS IN MONTEVIDEO -AND IN SPORTS... -Viewpoint: PUERTO RICO TO U.S. NAVY: HANDS OFF VIEQUES! ELIAN GONZALEZ CASE CONTINUES TO DEEPEN POLITICAL CRISIS IN MIAMI Miami, May 3 (RHC)-- The Elian Gonzalez case continues to deepen Miami's political crisis following a judicial decision to put on hold Mayor Joe Carollo's firing of his city manager. Last week, Carollo fired City Manager Donald Warshaw because the mayor was unable to fire Police Chief William O'Brien for his role in the Elian Gonzalez rescue operation. Warshaw was the only city official who could fire O'Brien, but refused to do so. And O'Brien surprisingly resigned, calling Miami's mayor divisive and destructive. But now the city manager has brought charges against Carollo, whom he accused of firing him for refusing to obey orders to commit criminal acts. And in a city that many say Cuban-Americans have converted into one of the most corrupt in the world, Mayor Carollo is in turn accusing Warshaw of corruption. Meanwhile, The New York Times published an article today looking into why the Republicans are backing away from their indignation over seizure of the six-year-old boy, suggesting that the Republicans have finally come to understand that their reaction to the Elian case could be a enormous political miscalculation. An article by Lizette Alvarez stated that after a barrage of fiery rhetoric critical of the Justice Department's raid, descriptions of "jack-booted thugs" and "storm troopers" -- in reference to the federal agents who entered the Miami home -- have been all but muted in the last few days. According to the article, Republican members of Congress are looking at public opinion surveys showing that most Americans agree with Attorney General Janet Reno's decision to raid the house, disagree with Elian's distant Miami relatives seeking to prevent his return to Cuba, and criticize congressional attempts desire to once again dredge up the details of the raid. The columnist wrote that Republican members also recognize the political danger of hearings, which tend to become overly-partisan and often paint Republicans as overzealous. The article quoted Senator Olympia Snowe, Republican from Maine, who said she and other colleagues were worried that hearings would be viewed as just more posturing on a case that many feel has already been overly-politicized. 14,685 NEIGHBORHOOD DELEGATES ELECTED IN SECOND ROUND OF ELECTIONS Havana, May 3 (RHC)-- 14,685 neighborhood delegates were elected across the island in the second round of local elections carried out on Sunday. This second round was held in neighborhoods where candidates had not garnered more than 50 percent of the votes in the first election. Only one electoral district in the eastern town of El Salvador, located in the province of Guantanamo, will have to go to a third round. Some 20.9 percent of those elected are women and 9.4 percent are younger than 30 years of age, while 48.8 percent were re-elected. In terms of women represented in local governments, this is the highest figure reached to date. In the first revolutionary elections in 1976, women represented only eight percent of local delegates. On May 7th, delegates from each of the country's municipalities will meet to form municipal assemblies, for a term of one-and-a-half years. On that occasion, the president and vice president of the municipal parliament will also be elected. PALESTINIAN DELEGATION ON WORKING VISIT IN HAVANA Havana, May 3 (RHC)-- A Palestinian delegation is currently on a working visit in Havana. The delegation is headed by Fuad Rizik, a member of the Political Bureau and head of the Department of International Relations, and Naim el Ashaab, a member of the Palestinian Advisory Council. The visitors were received by Jose Ramon Balaguer, member of the Cuban Communist Party's Political Bureau. During a meeting at the headquarters of the Cuban Communist Party's Central Committee, the Palestinian guests offered information on the struggle of the Palestinian people under the complex conditions of occupation. Members of the delegation also thanked the Cuban people for their solidarity with the Palestinian cause. The situation in the Middle East was also analyzed, where the intolerance of Israel, supported by the U.S. government, is obstructing a solution that will lead to a real and lasting peace, desired by most peoples in the area. CUBAN COMMUNIST PARTY DELEGATION TOURS ASIA Vientiane, May 3 (RHC)-- The visit of a delegation of the Cuban Communist Party has been highlighted by the Laotian press. The delegation is being led by the head of the Party's Ideological Department, Rolando Alfonso. The Cuban delegation, after meeting with Cubans working in the Democratic Republic of Laos and members of the Cuban embassy, was received by Osakan Thammatheva, member of the Popular Revolutionary Party of Laos. The Laotian newspaper "Pasasson" published a front-page story about the arrival of the Cuban delegation. Shortly after their arrival, the delegation visited the Kaysone Phomvihane Memorial. In related news, a cable issued in Hanoi by Prensa Latina News Agency reports on the continuation of the Cuban delegation's tour of Asia. Scheduled for today is an encounter with Vietnamese political leaders. The Cuban delegation, led by Rolando Alfonso and accompanied by the island's ambassador to Vietnam, Fredesman Turro, held a work session on Wednesday with an official from the Vietnamese ideological and cultural commission, Dao Duy Quat. Over the weekend, the Cuban delegation will tour Ho Chi Minh City and then leave for their next destinations: Cambodia and China. FIRST INTERNATIONAL CONGRESS ON ANIMAL BREEDING OPENS IN HAVANA Havana, May 3 (RHC)-- Cuban and foreign experts are now gathering in Havana for the lst International Congress on Improved Animal Breeding. Participants in the event will debate issues related to bovine reproduction, artificial insemination, cloning and biotechnology. Members of a French group that are pioneers in cloning, a Canadian researcher that has developed important work with DNA for paternity techniques and a group of five professors from the University of Georgia in the United States are among the 80 personalities invited for the event. The International Congress on Improved Animal Breeding will also cover themes such as in vitro fertilization and genetics and will include a Cuba-Venezuela workshop on cattle raising that will focus on food and forage resources for bovine species. CUBAN AND URUGUAYAN ECONOMISTS EXCHANGE VIEWS IN MONTEVIDEO Montevideo, May 3 (RHC)-- A group of 30 Cuban economists are attending a 45-day course in Montevideo, Uruguay. The course was inaugurated on Tuesday, following an industrial, scientific and economic cooperation accord signed between Havana and Montevideo and financed by the Swedish agency of International Cooperation for Development. The Uruguayan-Cuban course is theoretical and practical and will serve Cuban participants to exchange experiences with Uruguayan professionals and academics. Among the course's main themes are macroeconomic management, social security systems, the performance of individuals and public enterprises, as well as the banking system. AND IN SPORTS... Havana, May 3 (RHC)-- In the national baseball series/semi-final play offs, Pinar del Rio had a decisive victory over Industriales at Havana's Latin American Stadium last night. More than 40,000 fans were on hand for the decisive game. Pitcher Jose Ariel Contreras -- with his formidable control, speed and skills -- didn't let the Industriales do much, even playing as the home team. Contreras was superb and allowed only six hits along with nine strike outs and three walks. Pinar finally scored six runs and Industriales managed only two. Pinar del Rio and Industriales are taking part in the Western League's semi-finals and the winner will be the best of seven. So far, Pinar has two victories and Havana was only one. In the meantime, in the Eastern division, Santiago de Cuba -- the current champ -- is just one game away from getting its ticket for the finals. Since the beginning of the play-off series, Santiago is undefeated. Beating Camaguey three straight games in quarter finals, Santiago de Cuba now accumulates three victories against Granma in semi-finals. Viewpoint: PUERTO RICO TO U.S. NAVY: HANDS OFF VIEQUES! The possible removal of demonstrators who have occupied the U.S. Navy's live-fire target range on Vieques for over a year has reached a climax with the arrival of two warships. The warships carried over 1000 troops to Vieques with the clear message that they would be used to enforce the Navy's will against the overwhelming majority of Puerto Ricans, thousands of whom are ready to resist their forced removal. Although the U.S. Navy's plan has the support of the governor of Puerto Rico, fishing industry workers, religious activists, students and public workers have vowed to form a human-shield to prevent a repeat of the death of a Puerto Rican last year who was accidentally killed during a bombing exercise. If the U.S. government removes the demonstrators, it would likely have major social and political repercussions. The people of Puerto Rico will be galvanized into action and Bill Clinton will need to face the fact that the largest Hispanic-voting bloc in the U.S. could seriously affect Hillary Clinton's chances in her New York Senate campaign. The face-off can only cause trouble for Washington in an election year. The health hazards of military exercises to the people of Puerto Rico have never been fully discussed. The U.S. military has the unfortunate habit of leaving human disasters in its wake. Witness the use of depleted uranium in Iraq and Kosovo, the seriously contaminated former military bases such as Fort Ord in California, and who knows what type of atmospheric dangers. The people of Puerto Rico -- and especially the 10,000 residents of Vieques-- are being willfully ignored, their lives placed in danger and their land made unusable for generations to come. Their voices must be heard. (c) 2000 Radio Habana Cuba. 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