Radio Havana Cuba-23 October 2000 Via NY Transfer News * All the News That Doesn't Fit Radio Havana Cuba - News Update - 23 October 2000 . *HAVANA TO TAX US-CUBA PHONE CALLS IN REPRISAL FOR FREEZE ON CUBAN FUNDS *HAITIAN PRESIDENT PRESIDES OVER 3rd CUBA-HAITI INTERGOVERNMENTAL GATHERING *PRESIDENT OF PORTUGUESE PARLIAMENT PRAISES CUBA'S SOCIAL ACHIEVEMENTS *IBERO AMERICAN HEALTH MINISTERS CONDEMN WASHINGTON *CUBA AIDS MONGOLIAN CAMPAIGN AGAINST RATS *THOUSANDS DANCE TO LOS VAN VAN IN GUANAJUATO, MEXICO *CUBA FURTHER DEVELOPS HEALTH SERVICES USING "TELEMEDICINE" *HOUSING HIGH ON IBERO-AMERICAN SUMMIT AGENDA . *HAVANA TO TAX US-CUBA PHONE CALLS IN REPRISAL FOR FREEZE ON CUBAN FUNDS Havana, October 23 (RHC) -- The government of Cuba has announced that it will slap taxes on U.S.-Cuba phone calls in reprisal for Washington's freezing of Cuban funds. The text of legislation passed by Cuba's Council of State and reproduced in the official news daily Granma states that Cuba will apply a tax equivalent to 10 percent of the basic rate per minute on calls between the U.S. and Cuba, including those carried out through third countries. The legislation, says the newspaper, will be in effect until Washington returns all the Cuban funds illegitmately frozen in the United States. The document recalled that the U.S. Congress recently authorized the freezing of funds belonging to the Cuban telecommunications firm ETECSA to comensate the family members of the terrorist organization Brothers to the Rescue whose aircraft were shot down after having repeatedly violated Cuban airspace during a period of several years. Cuba pointed out that on numerous occasions Cuban authorities informed U.S. authorities of these violations and of the possible consequences. The text of the legislation also states that in the face of any attempt by U.S. authorities to impede, freeze or confiscate the income deriving from this tax, Cuba reserves the right to adopt the pertinent measures -- including totally cutting off direct and indirect telephone communications between Cuba and the United States. The funds this new tax will generate will be earmarked to the purchase of medical equipment, medicines and raw material to produce medicines, above and beyond Cuba's annual spending in foreign currency for the medical attention of the Cuban population. *PRESIDENT OF PORTUGUESE PARLIAMENT PRAISES CUBA'S SOCIAL ACHIEVEMENTS Havana, October 23 (RHC)-- The President of the Portuguese Parliament, Antonio de Almeida Santos, praised on Monday in Havana the advances of the Cuban Revolution in the fields of health, education and culture. During a meeting with the head of International Relations of the Central Committee of the Cuban Communist Party, Jose Ramon Balaguer, the Portuguese parliamentarian learned about the Cuban electoral process and the island's economic recovery. The Portuguese parliamentarian, who is in Cuba at the invitation of the National Assembly met with the First Deputy Foreign Minister, Jorge Bolanos and with students of the Colleges of Law, Philosophy and Literature of the University of Havana. *IBERO AMERICAN HEALTH MINISTERS CONDEMN WASHINGTON Havana, October 23 (RHC)--Ibero American Health Ministers condemned this past weekend Washington's blockade against Cuba. The condemnation was included in a final declaration that will be presented in next month's Ibero American Summit of Heads of State and Government to be held in Panama. The document says that Ibero American Health Ministers oppose the measures and actions that impeeds any nation access to food and medicine. The Cuban ambassador to Panama, Carlos Zamora said that all of the Ibero American representatives unanimously condemned the US anti-Cuba policy which deprives the Cuban people of food and medicine. *CUBA AIDS MONGOLIAN CAMPAIGN AGAINST RATS Havana, October 23 (RHC)--Cuba is helping Mongolia in its campaign to erradicate rats in both the countryside and cities thanks to the island's donation of an effective Cuban raticide called Biorat. Cuba's ambassador to Mongolia, Pedro Tapanes Moran, visited the region of Uvurkhangai last week where Biorat is being used and confirmed its effectiveness. The rodenticide was applied under the direction of a Cuban specialist from the island's Pharmaceutical Laboratories, Dr. Aramis Ribero, who began the campaign in the district of Bayan-Undor, which is considered to be the cradle of Mongolian civilization. Mongolia, which has a major cattle economy, has experienced serious problems in the countryside with rats which have affected some 50 million hectares. Biorat is a biological agent proven extremely effective against rats and has been successfully used in various Central American nations. Cuba donated the raticide on the occasion of the 40th anniversary of establishing diplomatic relations with Mongolia on December 7th. *THOUSANDS DANCE TO LOS VAN VAN IN GUANAJUATO, MEXICO Havana, October 23 (RHC)-- The Cuban salsa group, Los Van Van performed on Sunday in the Mexican city of Guanajuato during the 28th Cervantino International Festival. With a packed outdoor concert, the Los Van Van closed the occasion moving thousands of people to dance to their popular tunes. Under the direction of composer and bass player Juan Formel, the Cuban group sang some of its greatest hits such as "Sandungera," "Temba, Tumba, Timba," "El Negro Esta Cocinando" and many more to an audience that did not stop dancing despite a light but steady rain which fell for almost one hour. Over one thousand artists from 35 countries performed in the Cervantino International Festival in Guanajuato from October 6th to the 22nd in which people were able to enjoy music, dance, theater, opera, painting, photography, and sculpture. *CUBA FURTHER DEVELOPS HEALTH SERVICES USING "TELEMEDICINE" Havana, October 23 (RHC)-- Cuba will increase the use of televised operations and medical information to further develop public health on the island. In statements to Prensa Latina news agency, the Director of Informatics at the Health Ministry, Maria Vidal, and a specialist in televised operations, Enrique Landeiro, outlined the advances of the project that links 15 hospitals on the island. Vidal said that Cuba has recognized the concept of so-called telemedicine, proposed by the World Health Organization. It also includes health services in distant areas where health professionals can use information and communication technology to exchange information for the treatment and prevention of illnesses. The Cuban expert added that among some of the benefits of telemedicine is the significant reduction of costs for the health sector, as well as the community and population which do not have to travel to Havana for certain treatments. Health professionals in the most remote areas of the country are in permanent contact with other areas of the island in order to keep up with the latest technology. Using national and international reference centers, tele-medicine can guarantee equal access to information like primary health to highly specialized medicine. Cuba has already achieved the World Health Organization's goal -- "Health for All in the Year 2000" -- with important health achievments placing the island among the countries with the best health results in the world. *HOUSING HIGH ON IBERO-AMERICAN SUMMIT AGENDA The 10th Ibero-American Summit is slated for next month in Panama City. In preparation for this important meeting of heads of state and government, officials from 26 countries met in the Panamanian capital recently to discuss the current problems of housing. The Ministers of Housing from Latin America and the Caribbean revealed that 65 percent of the region's poor are living in the cities. Given the poor conditions in the countryside, many campesinos have moved to the cities -- which has created a very precarious situation in the urban areas. Large numbers of families are barely existing -- because it would be very difficult to say that these people are really living -- in terrible, deteriorating conditions, with extreme health problems. Many try to eke out an existence by selling things on the streets -- what is known as "the informal economic sector." Prostitution and other social ills accompany the poverty which grips our Americas. During the meeting to prepare the way for the way for the 10th Ibero-American Summit in Panama City, it was also revealed that the urban population has risen by more than 74 percent in recent years. These overcrowded conditions in the cities of Latin America and the Caribbean have caused an overbearing strain on social services, with shortages of water and an excess use of electrical and other services. Unfortunately, many governments are not able to earmark sufficient funds to confront these uncontrollable social problems. Latin America and the Caribbean are also under enormous pressure to pay an unpayable foreign debt -- which has grown to unbelievable proportions. Just the annual payment on the debt alone absorbs a large portion of national budgets. Housing construction and urban development are, therefore, only a dream... to be realized in the distant future, if at all. The privatization of many State-owned firms has taken the responsibility for housing and other services out of the hands of the governments -- making it virtually impossible to build new housing and provide for the basic needs of the people. Cuba, on the other hand, is quite a different story. Not only have tens of thousands of houses and apartments been built in recent years, but water and electrical services have actually improved... when in other areas of Latin America and the Caribbean, services have deteriorated. This is due to the fact that it is the Cuban people who control their destinies; they are the owners of the resources of the island. And Cuba makes every effort to share the resources it has with those less fortunate in the region, as well as other Third World countries. The sending of doctors and medical personnel to Latin America, the Caribbean and Africa -- to offer their services free of charge -- is further evidence of Cuba's internationalist solidarity. But even the most generous offer of Cuba's selfless example cannot resolve the world's huge problems created by social injustice and the unequal distribution of wealth. Only radical social change can accomplish that! (c) 2000 Radio Habana Cuba, NY Transfer News. 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