Radio Havana Cuba-30 October 2000 Via NY Transfer News * All the News That Doesn't Fit Radio Havana Cuba - News Update - 30 October 2000 . *CUBA AND VENEZUELA SIGN IMPORTANT BILATERAL ACCORDS *SOUTH AFRICAN VICE PRESIDENT CONCLUDES VISIT TO CUBA *CUBA AND ST. PETERSBURG SIGN COOPERATION AGREEMENT *U.S. TRADE UNION PASSES RESOLUTION AGAINST WASHINGTON'S BLOCKADE *CUBAN CAPITAL MARKS ITS 481st ANNIVERSARY *SOLIDARITY WITH CUBA ACTIVITIES IN FULL SWING IN ECUADOR *VENEZUELA'S REGIONAL ASSISTANCE AN EXAMPLE OF LATIN AMERICAN UNITY . *CUBA AND VENEZUELA SIGN IMPORTANT BILATERAL ACCORDS Caracas, October 30 (RHC)-- Visiting Cuban President Fidel Castro attended a solemn ceremony in Caracas on Monday, signing agreements that grant Havana preferential treatment and long-term credit in the sale of Venezuelan oil to the island. Fidel Castro and his Venezuelan counterpart Hugo Chavez also agreed that Cuba would contribute material aid to Caracas in the fields of education and agriculture. A commission was created that will meet every year to reexamine the accords signed today and seek further areas of cooperation between both countries. The house in which Cuban National Hero Jose Marti lived while in Caracas will also be converted into a cultural center to promote study in the teachings and ideas of Simon Bolivar. President Hugo Chavez used the occasion to award Fidel Castro with the Order of Simon Bolivar. During a joint news conference in Caracas Monday afternoon -- transmitted live by satellite and over the Internet -- the leader of the Cuban Revolution stated that he had come to Venezuela to seek cooperation, friendship and to enrich his experiences. Fidel told reporters that he had learned a great deal over the past four days, calling his official visit one of the most emotional of his life. Referring to the revolutionary process underway in Venezuela and the importance of its leader, Hugo Chavez, the Cuban president stated "we both need each other in our struggle to bring about our dream of a unified Latin America." *SOUTH AFRICAN VICE PRESIDENT CONCLUDES VISIT TO CUBA Havana, October 30 (RHC)-- South African Vice President Jacob Zuma concluded a six-day official visit to Cuba over the weekend. Cuban Communist Party Political Bureau members Juan Almeida Bosque and Jose Ramon Balaguer saw off the South African Vice President at Jose Marti International Airport. Jacob Zuma, who is also the Vice President of the African National Congress (ANC), signed an agreement with the Cuban Communist Party, highlighting the determination "to continue working towards strengthened bilateral solidarity, friendship and cooperation between South Africa and Cuba." During his stay, the South African leader and his delegation visited centers of historical and social interest, as well as oil plants and tourism facilities in central Matanzas province. The vice president of the African National Congress thanked Cuba for its medical cooperation in South Africa's most remote areas. He also reiterated his country's strong rejection of the U.S. blockade against Cuba and promised to continue to urge Washington to re-consider its anti-Cuba positions. *CUBA AND ST. PETERSBURG SIGN COOPERATION AGREEMENT Havana, October 30 (RHC)-- Cuba and the Russian city of St. Petersburg have signed a cooperation agreement in areas such as the economy, health, education, culture and tourism. The agreement is in the result of a visit to Cuba of the governor of St. Petersburg, Vladimir Yakovlev. The aim of the visit is to analyze, with Cuban authorities, the possibility of increasing bilateral exchange between Cuba and St. Petersburg, given that the Russian city has the largest maritime and commercial port in the Federation. The Russian official termed the accord as truly historical, aimed at boosting exchange and cooperation between Havana and St. Petersburg. *U.S. TRADE UNION PASSES RESOLUTION AGAINST WASHINGTON'S BLOCKADE Washington, October 30 (RHC)-- The Union of Radio, Electronics and Electricity Workers of the United States has passed a resolution condemning Washington's blockade of Cuba. The resolution, which was on the agenda of the union's 65th Annual Convention, also urges members to work for an end to the blockade. In the resolution, the union activists call on their government to respect the legitimate right of the Cuban people to self-determination, to put an end to all interventionist policies, as well as to stop U.S. political and military harassment, "which have so badly damaged Washington's relations with Latin America." The document also calls on Washington to move towards normalizing bilateral relations with Havana. The U.S. trade union considers that the blockade runs against the interests of workers, both in Cuba and the United States. The document also notes that both Democrats and Republicans continue to promote free trade with governments that allow starvation wages and that those same politicians refuse to trade with Cuba, a potential market for U.S. exports. The resolution points out that such a punitive, old-fashioned policy damages the U.S. and other Latin American countries that have trade relations with Cuba and obstructs the economic development of nations in the Caribbean Basin. Finally, the resolution approved by the Union of Radio, Electricity and Electronics Workers in the U.S. states that the labor organization would continue fighting "for dignified, truly democratic relations between nations of this hemisphere, based on peace and mutual respect." *CUBAN CAPITAL MARKS ITS 481st ANNIVERSARY Havana, October 30 (RHC)-- The Cuban capital is marking its 481st anniversary next November 16th with a series of international events, highlighting the ever-growing world solidarity movement with Havana. Celebration activities include the 8th Ibero-American Seminar on Urban Management and Planning, scheduled from November 6th through the 9th, with the participation of representatives and experts from some dozen countries and the 10th Ibero-American Symposium on Tourism, set for November 8th through the 10th at the Neptuno-Triton Hotel Complex, also here in the Cuban capital. Participants at the conference will address issues such as the inclusion of cultural values and heritage in tourist packages, local information systems and strategies for city and local development and the environment. During this time, Havana will also be the location of the 8th Solidarity and Cooperation Encounter between City Councils and Havana, set for November 13th through the 15th. Mayors, deputies and other high-ranking officials from some 20 nations will tour a variety of municipalities here in the Cuban capital, as well as centers of historical interest to learn about the Cuban government's efforts to maintain sustainable development for the benefit of city residents. *SOLIDARITY WITH CUBA ACTIVITIES IN FULL SWING IN ECUADOR Quito, October 30 (RHC)-- Preparatory activities for the Second World Meeting of Solidarity with Cuba are in full swing in Ecuador. Over the weekend, a solidarity activity was held in Quito with the participation of Ecuadorian delegates who will attend the conference in Havana, slated for November 10th through the 14th. Also on hand were deputies, political leaders and other personalities from both nations, including the Business Attaché of the Cuban Embassy, Raul Rojas. Organized by Ecuador's Coordinating Committee in Solidarity with Cuba (CESC), the activity closed a session of the CESC's National Council, which analyzed three documents related to themes that will be discussed by work commissions during the Havana encounter. The President of the Ecuadorian Coordinating Committee in Solidarity with Cuba, Gustavo Rodriguez, called on participants to strengthen solidarity with the Caribbean island. He stated that such solidarity is important at this time, when Washington is now plotting new aggressions against the noble and heroic people of Jose Marti, Fidel Castro and Che Guevara. Viewpoint: *VENEZUELA'S REGIONAL ASSISTANCE AN EXAMPLE OF LATIN AMERICAN UNITY Venezuela is currently the president of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, OPEC. The South American nation has assumed the role at a difficult time, when the prices of crude have soared to the highest in years -- sparking serious problems in the Third World. On the other hand, for the industrialized nations, which derive tremendous profits from speculating on oil and its derivatives, the high prices -- rather than causing difficulties -- are a source of profits, which are obtained without having to extract a single barrel of oil themselves. It is in sales and speculation on the stock market where the huge oil transnationals make most of their money. But the members of the OPEC, as Venezuela has demonstrated, are able to help alleviate the great burden being borne by the undeveloped nations in their struggle to obtain fuel. With special prices and deferred payments, or exchanges for other products or services, many Third World nations will be able to more easily meet their fuel needs. Beginning on Monday, Cuba -- without having asked -- becomes one of the countries that receive special terms for the acquisition of petroleum. The agreement will be a great help to Cuba, which has been economically blockaded for nearly 40 years by successive U.S. administrations, bent on destroying its social-political system. For a number of years now, Cuba has been developing its own oil industry and is already producing half of the country's electricity needs by using domestic oil and natural gas. Cuba's enemies are fuming over the island's agreement with Venezuela and the visit to that country by a large Cuban delegation headed by President Fidel Castro. The Cuban leader made it clear while speaking to the Venezuelan Parliament and at other times during the visit: although the Cuban Revolution and the Venezuelan government of Hugo Chavez have chosen separate paths in order to achieve their objectives, Cuba's 40 years of experience could be of value to Venezuela. That type of relationship between Latin American countries has been inspired by the unifying thought of Simon Bolivar and Jose Marti; the idea of forging a single force capable of saving Latin America from the neo-liberal economic globalization -- Washington's latest instrument of international domination. (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-17866 2000-Oct-31 03:14:49