Radio Havana Cuba-20 October 2000 Via NY Transfer News * All the News That Doesn't Fit Radio Havana Cuba - News Update - 20 October 2000 . *INT'L CHAMBER OF COMMERCE CONDEMNS WASHINGTON'S ECONOMIC WAR ON CUBA *BRITISH PARLIAMENTARIANS VISIT CUBA *CUBANS CELEBRATE CUBAN CULTURE DAY *CUBA-CHINA AGREEMENT PERMITS *CUBANS TO PURCHASE CHINESE COLOR TVs IN INSTALLMENTS WITH PESOS *JURISTS' ASSOCIATION MEETING WINDS UP IN HAVANA *CUBAN NURSING PERSONNEL HIGHLY ACCLAIMED *Viewpoint: CUBA CELEBRATES NATIONAL CULTURE DAY . *INT'L CHAMBER OF COMMERCE CONDEMNS WASHINGTON'S ECONOMIC WAR ON CUBA Havana, October 20 (RHC)-- The President of the International Chamber of Commerce, Adnan Kasar, reiterated on Friday that his organization condemns Washington's economic aggressions against Cuba and, in particular, new legislation passed by the U.S. Congress -- tightening its blockade against the island. During the inauguration of the Latin American Meeting of the International Chamber of Commerce on Thursday, Kasar explained that Havana was selected to host the meeting in honor of Cuban President Fidel Castro's determination to defend Cuba's independence, despite the country's economic difficulties. The vice president of the International Chamber of Commerce and president of the U.S. International Trade Council, Richard McCormick, called for an end to Washington's blockade against Cuba and noted that the latest aggression on the part of various ultra right-wing congress people is disappointing and an example of the negative influence exerted by the U.S. presidential campaign. During the opening ceremony, Cuban Vice President Carlos Lager characterized the recently approved legislation as "morally unacceptable" -- noting that media sources are claiming that Washington is 'easing' its blockade against Cuba. Participants at the regional meeting of the International Chamber of Commerce focused their debates on the current obstacles to economic development in Latin America, attracting investment and increasing trade. *BRITISH PARLIAMENTARIANS VISIT CUBA Havana, October 20 (RHC)-- British parliamentarians from the House of Commons' Health Commission visited Cuba's Health Ministry on Friday. The British delegation is scheduled to tour a family doctor's office, the Leonor Perez Maternal Home, a health rehabilitation center and the Pedro Kouri Tropical Medicine Institute, all located in Havana. The British lawmakers, who are visiting the island at the invitation of the Cuban National Assembly, will also tour the provinces of Pinar del Rio and Matanzas. *CUBANS CELEBRATE CUBAN CULTURE DAY Havana, October 20 (RHC)-- Cubans are celebrating Cuban Culture Day in the eastern city of Bayamo -- where the national anthem was sung for the first time 132 years ago. A huge gala celebration dedicated to Cuban Culture Day will be held in Bayamo, which has been declared a National Monument. More than 130 students from art schools across the island will perform in the festivities. Also in Bayamo, the 7th Fiesta of Cuban Culture got underway on Friday and will run through the 25th. Among the activities will be a meeting of historians, in which participants will discuss Cuban nationality in the new millennium. *CUBANS TO PURCHASE CHINESE COLOR TVs IN INSTALLMENTS WITH PESOS Havana, October 20 (RHC)-- Cuba's Granma newspaper published an article on Friday reporting on an agreement with China to purchase one million color televisions, of which 70 percent will be sold in Cuba's national currency -- the peso -- rather than the U.S. dollar. The Cuban government will offer interest-free credit to workers, helping them to pay for the TV sets over a period of 60 months. The rest of the television sets, adds the Granma article, will be used in schools, cultural centers and other institutions. The official note published in Granma newspaper reports that the agreement with China will permit the island to develop its own production of televisions, since nearly half of the sets will be assembled on the island, using Chinese and Cuban components. The official note points out that the objective of the agreement, rather than being commercial or economic, is strictly educational, cultural and recreational, aimed at extending to all Cuban families access to high-quality television and the benefits of Cuban culture. *JURISTS' ASSOCIATION MEETING WINDS UP IN HAVANA Havana, October 20 (RHC)-- The 12th Conference of the American Jurists Association and the 15th Congress of the International Democratic Jurists Association, wound up on Friday in Havana. During the event's closing session, Cuban Vice President Carlos Lage briefed delegates on the island's current situation and perspectives for the economy. Some 1000 jurists from 50 countries met at Havana's International Convention Center in four working commissions. For five days, the delegates debated issues including peace and international security, the State and its rights in a globalized economy, democracy and human rights. Meanwhile, the General Secretary of the International Democratic Jurists' Association, Jutendra Sharma, reiterated the organization's solidarity with the Cuban people who -- in his words -- "have been submitted to Washington's economic war against the island for the last 40 years." *CUBAN NURSING PERSONNEL HIGHLY ACCLAIMED Havana, October 20 (RHC)-- Cuban Health Ministry official Belkis Feliz Escalona says that the scientific and human capabilities of Cuban nurses is highly acclaimed in countries where they are offering their services free of charge. Some 250 nursing professionals are currently working in a number of Latin American and African countries -- among them Haiti, Guatemala, Belize, Botswana and Gambia. The tasks of Cuban nurses include taking patients' blood pressure and handling complex life-support systems, as well as monitoring community epidemiology. *Viewpoint: CUBA CELEBRATES NATIONAL CULTURE DAY One of the most important aspects of the Cuban Revolution has been the development of culture, which began nearly 40 years ago with an unprecedented national literacy campaign. Thousands of students, some as young as 12 years old, taught campesinos to read and write in the most remote areas of the island -- while opening up schools for children under a new system of education, accessible to all. Universities were quickly established in all of the island's provinces and major cities and higher education ceased to be a luxury only attainable by the upper classes. On this National Day of Cuban Culture, October 20th, millions of Cubans are participating in a new series of exciting radio and television courses on art and literature -- both at home and in classrooms across the nation. This grassroots dissemination of culture is another unprecedented initiative of the Cuban Revolution, designed to benefit the people by promoting culture. An educated human being cannot be tricked with false intellectualism, with name-dropping or titles. Education REAL education -- has to do with developing one's intellectual capacities, to be able to construct and assimilate one's own images and concepts. When we speak of "mass culture," we are not referring to the so-called "culture of the masses" or the globalized reproduction of easily digested, homogenized images and stereotypes. In fact, it is just the opposite: an authentic democratization of information and of the most genuine cultural values, which take into account our national cultural identity. This true knowledge guards against the seduction of mere symbols and enriches our lives. It is in this spirit that Cubans are today celebrating their National Day of Culture. (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-8302 2000-Oct-21 02:59:43