RHC Weekend-12 May 2001 Via NY Transfer News * All the News That Doesn't Fit Radio Havana Cuba - News Update - 12 May 2001 . *FIDEL WINDS UP VISIT TO MALAYSIA *20,000 RALLY IN PINAR DEL RIO ON US POLICY, MUMIA, PANAMA *GUATEMALAN RIGHTS GROUPS SAYS NUN'S MURDER WAS POLITICAL *TALIBAN DECLARES WAR ON MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS *POLICE HQ ATTACKED IN GHANA FOLLOWING STADIUM TRAGEDY *ALARMING INCREASE REPORTED IN DESTRUCTION OF AMAZON JUNGLE *LAYOFFS DUE TO POWER BLACKOUTS SPARK STRIKES IN BRAZIL *VENEZUELAN PRESIDENT HUGO CHAVEZ BEGINS 20-DAY FOREIGN TRIP . *FIDEL WINDS UP VISIT TO MALAYSIA Kuala Lumpur, May 12 (RHC)--President Fidel Castro, on Saturday completed his second and final day of an official visit to Malaysia. In a ceremony at his palace in Kuala Lumpur, Sultan Salahuddin Abdul Aziz Shah awarded the Cuban leader the Supreme Order of the National Crown, the highest decoration in Malaysia. The Sultan congratulated Cuba on its achievements and on its important role in the world today. The Cuban leader for his part praised the remarkable advances that Malaysia had made in so short a period of time in the nation's history. He said that rather than being a country of myths and mysteries, Malaysia was actually a nation of great natural riches, of a hard-working and devoted people, firmly maintaining its sovereignty and well on the road to development. Fidel Castro said that indeed, Malaysia was an example to many other nations. Following a visit to the highest building in the world, the Twin Towers of the petroleum giant Petronas, the Cuban leader and his delegation wound up their visit to Malaysia. *20,000 RALLY IN PINAR DEL RIO ON US POLICY, MUMIA, PANAMA Havana, May 12, (RHC)--Some 20,000 people gathered on Saturday morning in the western Cuban province of Pinar del Rio demanding an end to the US Cuban Adjustment Act, the blockade against Cuba and Washington's economic war against the island. Cuban Defense Minister Raul Castro headed this Saturday's "Open Tribune," held in a football field in Bahia Honda. The giant rally featured as speeches by children, workers, students and others. Some condemned Panama's refusal to extradite Luis Posada Carriles to Cuba. Posada Carriles is wanted in connection with a plot to assassinate Cuban president Fidel Castro and other terrorist acts. Demonstrators also called for the release of US political prisoner and journalist Mumia Abu Jamal, who has been on Death Row in the United States for the past 18 years. *GUATEMALAN RIGHTS GROUPS SAYS NUN'S MURDER WAS POLITICAL Guatemala City, May 12 (RHC)--The Unified Association of Guatemalans said today that the US nun Barbara Ann Ford was shot to death last Saturday because she was working with the nation's poor. In a press release, the Association said that although the country's police are still insisting that Ford's death was a common crime, it was clear that she was assassinated for political reasons. According to witnesses, Ford was shot while resisting an attempt to steal her vehicle. However, the vehicle was found a short time later only four blocks away from the scene of her murder -- a clear indication, the Association said, that the motive was not robbery. Other religious and human rights organizations concur. Ford had been working with the marginalized and poor in Guatemala since 1978. At the time of her death, she was affiliated with the History Recuperation Project. The Project seeks reconciliation between Guatemalans following the devastating years of civil war in which more than 300,000 lost their lives. However, the Project also attempts to maintain a record of the past in the memory of the living, in order to prevent such events from reoccurring. The Project places the blame for the majority of deaths and other human rights abuses squarely on the shoulders of the military, and it is for this reason that most people feel Ford was targeted and assassinated. *TALIBAN DECLARES WAR ON MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS Havana, May 12 (RHC)--In Afghanistan, the ruling Taliban authorities have begun to destroy musical instruments and punish those who miss their prayers. Following the destruction of ancient statues of Buddha, the first batch of musical instruments were burned yesterday in Talogan, the capital of the province of Takhar. The owners of the instruments were sanctioned, according to the state Radio Shariat. Twenty one persons were punished for missing their prayers and another 41 arrested for possessing musical cassettes. Eighty men were punished for cutting their beards in violation of the strict religious code imposed on the population by the Taliban. The punishment for such a misdemeanor is usually 15 days in prison. *POLICE HQ ATTACKED IN GHANA FOLLOWING STADIUM TRAGEDY Accra, May 12 (RHC)--In the wake of the tragedy in Ghana in which 127 soccer spectators were crushed to death in a stampede caused by police intervention in a fight, hundreds of people have attacked a police commissariat. Following the funeral of 25 of the victims of last Wednesday's disaster, a crowd raised barricades and stormed the police headquarters in the capital, Accra. The police have been blamed for the deaths because, reacting to a disturbance, they closed the doors of the stadium and then fired tear gas into the crush of 70,000 spectators. The resulting panic caused the deaths. The president of Ghana, John Kufuor, has ordered a three-day period of national mourning. He has also promised substantial financial recompense to the families of those killed and added that the government will pay the medical expenses of those injured and needing treatment. *ALARMING INCREASE REPORTED IN DESTRUCTION OF AMAZON JUNGLE Rio de Janeiro, May 12, (RHC)--Cutting down the Brazilian Amazon jungle has increased by 15% in the past two years, bringing about serious ecological consequences. An official government report to be released on Monday shows that in l999 and 2000 some 20,000 square kilometers of forest were felled, compared to 17,000 in the two years before. According to the Jornal do Brazil, which published the study, the rate of deforestation of the Amazon has become a measure of government failure to sufficiently protect the environment. The official report reveals that, unlike previous eras when big landowners and usurpers burned and cleared immense areas and were easily detected by spy satellites, the current destruction is occurring in many small and medium-sized areas of jungle, making detection more difficult. *LAYOFFS DUE TO POWER BLACKOUTS SPARK STRIKES IN BRAZIL Rio de Janeiro, May 12, (RHC)--Some 25,000 metal workers from 134 big enterprises in Sao Paulo announced on Saturday that they would hold a series of work stoppages next week. The Brazilian workers are angered over layoffs and electrical outages programmed by the government. The metal workers are planning to start their walkouts on Tuesday. Gripped by an energy crisis requiring blackouts of up to six hours a day beginning June 1st, businesses are warning that they will be forced to lay off workers and shorten the workday. Some businesses have come to agreements with unions on salary reductions in keeping with shorter hours. However, it is estimated that the six months of rationing planned by the government to achieve a 20% cut energy consumption will force some 850,000 workers off the job. *VENEZUELAN PRESIDENT HUGO CHAVEZ BEGINS 20-DAY FOREIGN TRIP Caracas, May 12, (RHC)--Venezuela's president, Hugo Chavez has begun a 20-day foreign trip to seven nations. On Thursday, the president told the nation he was considering declaring a state of emergency to deal with problems that he said require special measures. Chavez explained that traditional remedies may not be sufficient to combat corruption, poverty and economic problems facing Venezuela. He noted that he would continue examining the situation during his trip, said that he may submit a state of emergency plan to a referendum. President Chavez's tour begins in Russia, where he is scheduled to meet with Vladimir Putin and to sign a series of cooperation agreements. From there the Venezuelan president will proceed to Iran. The Venezuelan leader will also visit China for the second time during his administration. Chinese president Jiang Zemin was in Venezuela last month. He will then make a private visit to India and Bangladesh, and winds up his trip in Indonesia. Chavez will meet in Jakarta with the Group of 15 to continue consolidating south-south cooperation and where the leadership of the organization will be turned over to Venezuela. (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 ================================================================= rhc-eng-5120 2001-May-13 09:38:53