Radio Havana Cuba-02 April 2001 Via NY Transfer News * All the News That Doesn't Fit Radio Havana Cuba - News Update - 02 April 2001 . *AT INTER-PARLIAMENTARY UNION CONFERENCE, FIDEL WARNS OF NEW COLD WAR *PEREZ ROQUE SAYS WHATEVER THE VOTE, CUBA WILL WIN A MORAL VICTORY IN GENEVA *URUGUAYAN LEFT REJECTS U.S. MOVES AGAINST CUBA IN GENEVA *CENTER FOR ADOLESCENTS OPENS IN PINAR DEL RIO *MEXICAN SOLIDARITY GROUP DEFENDS HUMAN RIGHTS IN CUBA *CUBAN YOUNGSTERS PURSUE NATURE CONSERVATION *IN CHIAPAS, AN EXHUBERANT WELCOME HOME FOR ZAPATISTA CARAVAN *COLOMBIAN MEDIA BLAST US THREATS AFTER UN VOTE ON PALESTINIANS *HUGO CHAVEZ WARNS AGAINST A BLIND LEAP INTO AMERICAS FREE TRADE ZONE Viewpoint: *INTER-PARLIMENTARY MEETING OFFERS OPPORTUNITY FOR CONSTRUCTIVE CHANGE . *AT INTER-PARLIAMENTARY UNION CONFERENCE, FIDEL WARNS OF NEW COLD WAR Havana, April 2 (RHC)--At Sunday evening's inauguration of the 105th Inter-Parliamentary Union Conference in Havana, Cuban President Fidel Castro warned of the advent of a new Cold War. Speaking before some 1400 legislators from 120 nations, the Cuban leader accused Washington of encouraging a new and desperate weapons race with its insistence on deploying a space-based anti-missile system. In reference to the U.S. government's unilateral withdrawal from the Kyoto Protocol on global warming, the Cuban leader said the move illustrates the disdain and arrogance with which the White House breaks vital treaties and accords not only in the spheres of peace and international security, but also in the planet's efforts towards sustainable development and ecological balance. Referring to the absence of U.S. congressional representatives at the conference, President Castro said that sincere, intelligent and realistic U.S. legislators are in an evident minority. Founded in 1889, the Inter-Parliamentary Union is the world's oldest multilateral political institution, gathering legislators from 140 countries and representatives from regional Parliaments. The General Secretary of the Inter-Parliamentary Union, Anders B. Johnsson from Sweden, pointed out at a press conference that the meeting is a political event which includes representatives from countries in conflict who can take advantage of the context of the meeting to partake in informal bilateral talks. On the fourth day of the Conference, the coordination committee of the Inter-Parliamentary Union will dedicate a space to women, which will discuss those countries that have not endorsed the U.N. Convention on the elimination of all forms of discrimination against women. This Convention was introduced by the U.N. in 1979 and ratified by Cuba in 1980. At the opening session Ricardo Alarcon, President of the Cuban National Assembly, noted that Cuba had the honor of hosting the 68th meeting of this multilateral political organization 20 years ago in Havana. The 105th Conference closes on Saturday, April 7th. *PEREZ ROQUE SAYS WHATEVER THE VOTE, CUBA WILL WIN A MORAL VICTORY IN GENEVA Havana, April 2 (RHC)--Cuban Foreign Minister Felipe Perez Roque has asserted that whatever the outcome of the vote on an anti-Cuba resolution at the United Nations Human Rights Commission in Geneva, Cuba will obtain a moral victory. The Cuban foreign minister said that in the face of the attempt by Washington, Canada and the European Union to convert the Commission into a tribunal to judge and condemn Third World nations, the Cuban delegation this year felt more sympathy than ever among the other members of this UN agency. Upon returning to Havana Sunday evening following his stay in Geneva,Perez Roque refrained from predicting what the outcome of the vote would be, noting that Washington is applying a great deal of pressureat the Human Rights Commission's 57th session. But, he added, if theU.S. delegation achieves a victory, it will be a swallow victory. The vote on the anti-Cuba resolution is expected to occur sometime between the 15th and the 20th of this month. *URUGUAYAN LEFT REJECTS U.S. MOVES AGAINST CUBA IN GENEVA Montevideo, April 2 (RHC)--The National Broad Front Party, PL, of Uruguay decided unanimously today to reject the maneuvers by the United States against Cuba at the 57th Human Rights Commission session on human rights, due to be held later this month in Geneva, Switzerland. The Uruguayan Left party has lobbied government political parties in the last few weeks to make known their voting intentions in Geneva. However, Government Minister, Didier Operetti has stated that the coalition government under Jorge Batlle needs to study all aspects of the motion before it can make any pronouncements. Some of the members of the government coalition of the Colorado Party and the National Party told Prensa Latina that they are sure that Uruguay will abstain in Geneva. The Uruguayan Foreign Ministry received the Czech Vice Foreign Minister Martin Palous who traveled to Uruguay to ask for support for the motion that condemns Cuba for human rights violations. U.S. Senator Jesse Helms also sent a representative to the Uruguayan President looking for that country's vote against Cuba in Geneva. This pressure from the U.S. can be seen as part of their battle to alienate Cuba from other Latin American counties. *CENTER FOR ADOLESCENTS OPENS IN PINAR DEL RIO Pinar del Rio, April 2 (RHC)--An crisis center for adolescents has been opened in the municipality of San Cristobal in province of Pinar del Rio. The center will focus on vulnerable groups of young people and provide education programs on topics such as alcoholism, violence and sexually transmitted diseases. The center's location and training programs have already been set up with health personnel, educators and group leaders who will work with the youngsters and put up notices about events in the local discotheque. This initiative is part of a movement, Municipalities for Health, started in Vueltabajo area of Pinar del Rio with the participation of representatives from both the City and province of Havana and the Isle of Youth. Doctor Isabel Castaneda, specialist from the National Center for Health Promotion, said that so far 79 municipalities out of 169 have joined the movement to promote health education using existing resources in the locality. *MEXICAN SOLIDARITY GROUP DEFENDS HUMAN RIGHTS IN CUBA Mexico City, April 2 (RHC)--The Magdelena delegation of the Mexican solidarity with Cuba movement held a day of solidarity with Cuba on Sunday. During the day, the delegates announced that they were against the anti-Cuban resolution that will be presented at the Human Rights commission in Geneva. More than 100 people, including students, writers and artists, declared in a press statement, that the motion, due to be presented by Poland and the Czech Republic, under the auspices of the United States, was an unjust motion. They added that it was part of the ongoing aggression by the U.S. against Cuba. During the day diplomats Miguel Angel Andres Arias and Eladio Inglesias from the Cuban Embassy in Mexico, gave workshops and lectures on Human Rights and democracy in Cuba. They also gave a presentation on the U.S. sponsored invasion at Playa Giron in 1961, which could be seen as the first defeat of the United States in Latin America. *CUBAN YOUNGSTERS PURSUE NATURE CONSERVATION Santa Clara, April 2 (RHC)--The concrete contributions that can be made to preserve the environment by the Cuban Young Technical Brigades was the theme of a national workshop in the Province of Santa Clara last weekend. More than 200 young people debated and analyzed how to confront environmental conservation, the lessening of contamination and the need for education about the damage done to the environment worldwide. Experts and specialists from the Institute of Hygiene, Epidemiology and Microbiology from the City of Havana and the Department of Plant Biotechnology at the Central University of Las Villas led the workshops. The Botanic Gardens and the Center for Environmental Studies of Cienfuegos also contributed to the discussion. During the workshop, the secretaries general of the local branch of the Young Communist League and the Polo Scientific Center of Villa Clara held a special meeting to discuss their work projects for the next year. *IN CHIAPAS, AN EXHUBERANT WELCOME HOME FOR ZAPATISTA CARAVAN Mexico City/Oventic, April 2 (RHC)--Thousands of Zapatista rebels in Chiapas Sunday enthusiastically received the 24 comandantes of the Caravan of Indigenous Dignity following its historic 20-day visit to Mexico City. The Zapatista leaders first arrived in San Cristobal de las Casas and then continued to the liberated Zapatista town of Oventic. Rebel commander Marcos told the indigenous activists that peace has yet to arrive, but that peace is now possible and they have to take care of that possibility. Though much still remains, he said, there are now less obstacles, and peace with justice and dignity is closer at hand. The Zapatista leaders today began an informative tour of Chiapas, to bring the rank and file up to date on what was achieved in Mexico City, where they were received by the full floor of the country's lower house of Congress. The next step in the renewed Chiapas peace process will be the contacts between the rebels and government negotiators to verify the dismantling of seven military bases in Mexico's southern-most state. *COLOMBIAN MEDIA BLAST US THREATS AFTER UN VOTE ON PALESTINIANS Bogota, April 2 (RHC)--Media outlets in Colombia have expressed outrage over Washington's threats against that nation following Colombia's vote at the United Nations Security Council in favor of deploying an international force to protect Palestinian civilians. After Washington's Security Council veto last Thursday against the motion -- its first veto in four years -- Under Secretary of State for the Middle East, Edward Walker, stated that Colombia's vote will have consequences. State Department spokesman Richard Boucher added that Washington is disappointed about Colombia's vote at the highest level. On Sunday, the influential Colombian news daily El Tiempo called the U.S. government's statements an unacceptable threat more in tune with the times of colonialism that with the modern epoch of international cooperation and interdependence. The news daily El Espectador called the threats the policy of an empire with respect to its vassals, denouncing what it called Washington's arrogance. Colombian President Andres Pastrana today called an emergency meeting of the Foreign Ministry's Advisory Commission, as legislators of the Andean nation call on the executive to issue a strong response to Washington's posture. *HUGO CHAVEZ WARNS AGAINST A BLIND LEAP INTO AMERICAS FREE TRADE ZONE Caracas, April 2 (RHC)--Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has asserted that moving up the creation of a free trade zone of the Americas would constitute the beginning of a process of disintegration for the weakest countries of Latin America and the Caribbean. The upcoming Third Summit of the Americas in Quebec is planning to propose a regional free trade zone in the year 2003 instead of 2005. During his weekly radio program, Chavez said that Venezuela's position is shared by Brazil, and that this will be at the center of his talks with Brazilian President Fernando Henrique Cardoso during his one-day official visit to Brazil on Tuesday. The Venezuelan president said Latin America and the Caribbean are not prepared to compete with the much more powerful U.S. and Canadian neighbors, two countries, he added, that subsidize their agriculture and provide their producers with technical and credit facilities. He said economic integration processes should develop step-by-step and should be carefully measured. Viewpoint: *INTER-PARLIMENTARY MEETING OFFERS OPPORTUNITY FOR CONSTRUCTIVE CHANGE Representatives of the parliaments of some 120 countries are meeting for the second time in Havana. The majority of the more than 1500 representatives participating in the Inter-Parliamentary meeting are here, not as part of the normal work, but to learn how others from other countries think, to learn about their problems and their aspirations. Though some of the world's problems appear to have no solution, solutions must be found if we are to continue living together on this planet Earth. The elected officials, who are meeting this week in Havana, bear much of the burden to find the answers that will make it possible for us all to live together in a sustainable world. We can say to them that we will continue supporting our sisters and brothers in the Third World, that we will continue demonstrating to the rich and powerful that there are more important things than money and luxury: which is something that Cuban have learned after having resisted a blockade for the past 40 years and an economic crisis for the past 10 years. Those were words spoken by Cuban President Fidel Castro recently in a meeting with the island's top athletes, during which Cuba's best 100 athletes of the 20th Century, were honored. Of those 100 top Cuban sports figures, only ten were from the past, before the triumph of the Revolution in l959 and 90 came out of the island's new society. Today, the world is polarized into two large blocks: the smaller part made up by the rich, who only represent one fourth of humanity. The other 75 percent or some 4.5 billion people, have as their only fortune their labor and their will to survive. However, within that massive number of human beings, many millions lack the most basic necessities, which would allow them to live with dignity and hope. That is why, rather than trying to destroy each other, we must work together now to make the changes that justice and humanity are calling out for. (c) 2001 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 ================================================================= nytcari-04.02.01-20:28:31-12186