Radio Havana Cuba-24 May 2002 Via NY Transfer News * All the News That Doesn't Fit Radio Havana Cuba - News Update - 24 May 2002 . *ARGENTINE SENATOR DECRIES HIS COUNTRY'S VOTE AGAINST CUBA IN GENEVA *CUBA "AN INSPIRATION FOR COUNTRIES FIGHTING FOR SELF-DETERMINATION" *VACATIONERS CAN NOW USE EUROS AT VARADERO BEACH *EXPO-CARIBE SET FOR NEXT MONTH IN SANTIAGO DE CUBA *ARGENTINA'S CONGRESS AGAIN DEFIES PRESIDENT DUHALDE AND THE IMF *US-RUSSIA NUCLEAR WEAPONS REDUCTION TREATY UNDER FIRE AS A SHAM *AFTER SUBPOENA, WHITE HOUSE RELEASES DAMAGING ENRON DOCUMENTS *VENEZUELA'S DICTATOR-FOR-A-DAY ESCAPES HOUSE ARREST, SEEKS ASYLUM IN COLOMBIA *PENTAGON ADMITS TESTING CHEMICAL, BIOLOGICAL WEAPONS ON US TROOPS *LONDON EXHIBITION ON BRITAIN'S COLONIAL PAST STIRS CONTROVERSY AND PROTEST *Viewpoint: A PILLAR OF NEOLIBERALISM . *ARGENTINE SENATOR DECRIES HIS COUNTRY'S VOTE AGAINST CUBA IN GENEVA Buenos Aires, May 24 (RHC)-- Argentine Senator Eduardo Menem has again rejected his government's vote against Cuba at the UN Human Rights Commission in Geneva, calling the vote "purely political." Speaking with Prensa Latina News Agency in Buenos Aires, the lawmaker recalled that he and other legislators supported a Senate-approved statement asking that the president abstain from any resolution condemning Cuba during last month's vote. He said that congressional representatives in the House followed the Senate, while a number of provincial parliaments, councils and other administrative organizations joined trade unions and community organizations in urging Buenos Aires to abstain. Nevertheless, President Eduardo Duhalde ignored the demands and supported the anti-Cuba resolution in Geneva. The Argentine senator and brother of former president Carlos Menem affirmed that the vote was nothing more than a vendetta against Havana, promoted every year by Washington at the Human Rights Commission. He added that the resolution had more to do with U.S. domestic issues than foreign affairs -- noting that Washington has always responded favorably to pressures from the right-wing Cuban-American lobby in Miami. Referring to the U.S. economic blockade of Cuba, Argentine Senator Eduardo Menem said that no one can defend Washington's measures against Havana -- adding that the blockade has absolutely no justification whatsoever. *CUBA "AN INSPIRATION FOR COUNTRIES FIGHTING FOR SELF-DETERMINATION" Havana, May 24 (RHC)-- Cuba is a source of inspiration for countries that fight for independence and self-determination, according to the General Secretary of India's Marxist Communist Party, Harskishan Singh Surjeet. During a visit to Havana, the Indian political leader noted that Washington constantly attacks the Cuban Revolution because of its example to Third World nations. He said that the United States will never forgive Cuba for carrying out a successful revolution more than 40 years ago -- leaving the U.S. orbit and establishing a socialist economic system. The general secretary of the Indian Marxist Communist Party said "Washington tries to impose its will on the rest of the world, using its economic and military power" -- as demonstrated in their recent attacks against Afghanistan. Harskishan Singh Surjeet said that the White House has manipulated the tragic events of last September 11th, declaring a so-called "war on terrorism" -- when it is really an effort to impose the power of U.S. monopolies all over the world. In order to fight that power, the Indian Communist leader affirmed that unity is the key. He pointed out that New Delhi has a long tradition in the Non-Aligned Movement, an organization that he said "must be revitalized to face the latest U.S. reactionary offensive." *VACATIONERS CAN NOW USE EUROS AT VARADERO BEACH Varadero, May 24 (RHC)-- Vacationers to Varadero Beach can now spend their Euros at most major hotels and tourist facilities. According to an announcement by Cuba's Tourism Ministry, 12 hotels and the Matanzas Tropicana Night Club now accept payment in Euros. Speaking with reporters, Tourism Minister Ibrahim Ferradaz said the use of the Euro at Varadero Beach was the first step to gradually expand acceptance of the European currency at all of the island's tourist resorts. Cuba is currently launching an advertising campaign to inform European visitors that they can now use their currency for food and lodging, recreation and other services. Germany sends the most tourists to Varadero -- more than Italy, France, Spain and Britain. Some 300 million Europeans have access to the Euro. *EXPO-CARIBE SET FOR NEXT MONTH IN SANTIAGO DE CUBA Santiago de Cuba, May 24 (RHC)-- Plans are gearing up for the International Fair Expo-Caribe 2002, slated for June 9-14 in Santiago de Cuba. According to organizers of the Fair, business people from the Dominican Republic will outnumber representatives from the other twenty countries that have confirmed their participation so far. A spokesperson from the Cuban Chamber of Commerce told reporters that a big delegation from the most important business organization in France is also planning to attend the Expo-Caribe Fair. More than 35 French corporations and banks will be taking part in the activities at Expo-Caribe 2002. The Fair provides an excellent opportunity for business people to display their products and exchange ideas with their counterparts from the Caribbean and other parts of the world. Expo-Caribe will also be the site of business negotiations and contract signings. *ARGENTINA'S CONGRESS AGAIN DEFIES PRESIDENT DUHALDE AND THE IMF Buenos Aires, May 24 (RHC) -- Argentina's Lower House of Parliament has again defied President Eduardo Duhalde and the International Monetary Fund, despite Duhalde's threat to resign if lawmakers didn't bow to IMF demands. Following the president's threat, Congress held a special session Thursday on repeal of the Economic Subversion Law -- designed to prosecute corrupt corporate executives and bankers. The IMF is demanding repeal of the law since last year American and European executives and firms were targeted in cases of multi-million dollar capital flight from Argentina. The credit institution believes that the financial crimes clauses in the law pose a risk of prosecution for foreign banks. But with 102 votes in favor and 99 against, the Lower House approved a minority proposal to reform the 1974 law but not repeal it -- which would also be unacceptable for the IMF. Now the Senate will reportedly have to approve the reforms or scrap them completely. In seven hours of debate, the most heatedly discussed issue was the possible impunity for dozens of bankers who have been brought up on charges under the Economic Subversion Law if the legislation is repealed. While the left and center-left were the most vociferous in condemning the move to repeal, charging that Congress was gathering with an IMF pistol at their heads, even allies of the Duhalde administration rejected the move. One Radical Civic Union lawmaker pointed out that bankers are not the victims, but the causes of Argentina's current crisis. In his first reaction early Friday, the Argentine president said he was angry, but that he wasn't planning to step down. *US-RUSSIA NUCLEAR WEAPONS REDUCTION TREATY UNDER FIRE AS A SHAM Washington, Moscow, May 24 (RHC) -- The nuclear weapons reduction treaty signed Friday in Moscow by Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President George W. Bush continues coming under fire as a sham. Peace Action, the US's largest peace and disarmament organization, charged late Thursday that the new treaty is about as useful as a sieve is for containing water. Peace Action executive director Kevin Martin stated that "instead of liquidating the nuclear legacy President Bush is, at best, only rearranging it." Martin noted that the treaty doesn't require any weapons to be destroyed, but merely set aside in storage -- affirming that the Bush administration's penchant for unilateralism indicates that the majority of the weapons eliminations promised under the treaty will never come to pass. Also noting that there is no timeline or enforcement protocol for weapons elimination, Martin pointed out that each country can take up to ten years and do little or no actual elimination. Greenpeace Friday accused Moscow and Washington of doing everything possible to blur over what it called the treaty's "significant defects." The international ecology organization also noted that the document does not legally bind either side to destroy even one warhead, missile, airplane or submarine and allows for the development and deployment of new nuclear weapons. Greenpeace said the treaty representas a preservation of the nuclear weapons status quo. Other critics have pointed out that the treaty also allows for either country to withdraw from the agreement for any reason on three months' notice. *AFTER SUBPOENA, WHITE HOUSE RELEASES DAMAGING ENRON DOCUMENTS Washington, May 24 (RHC) -- The White House has begun releasing documents on the Enron collapse that reveal how officials mobilized to minimize the damage to the Bush administration, reported Friday The Washington Post. The documents were released after the White House was subpoenaed by a Senate committee -- the first time lawmakers launched such a move since the Enron scandal erupted last year. In the days before Enron filed the largest bankruptcy case in history, reported the Post, Bush counselor Karen P. Hughes talked to press secretaries throughout the executive branch about how to handle news media calls about the company. The deep ties between Enron and the Bush administration are evident in documents that include three phone conversations between former Enron chairman Kenneth Lay and Bush's senior adviser Karl Rove, while it was also revealed that White House officials launched a series of previously undisclosed e-mail and conference call consultations that included the Council of Economic Advisors, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. The Washington Post noted that until now, administration officials had portrayed Enron's financial troubles as a distant and even technical matter that was not their immediate concern, noting how on November 28 White House press secretary Ari Fleischer brushed off an Enron-related question and told anyone else with similar questions to ask the Treasury Department. The Post reported that the Houston energy trading company pursued a broad agenda with the Bush administration, which is believed to have favored its largest campaign contributor in drawing up the nation's energy program -- what critics have called "payback for corporate polluters." *VENEZUELA'S DICTATOR-FOR-A-DAY ESCAPES HOUSE ARREST, SEEKS ASYLUM IN COLOMBIA Caracas, May 24 (RHC) -- Venezuela's dictator-for-a-day during the attempted rightwing coup against President Hugo Chavez has requested asylum at the Colombian embassy in Caracas. Business leader Pedro Carmona was somehow able to avoid police surveillance of his house arrest. Carmona eluded police surveillance one day after a Venezuelan appeals court decided to revoke his house arrest and send him to jail as investigations into the attempted coup continue. The district attorney's office had objected to the house arrest, noting that only suspects over the age of 70 can benefit. In recent testimony before a congressional investigative committee, Carmona denied that he had participated in a coup, claiming that he was filling a vacuum of power after President Chavez resigned, though admitting that Chavez never publicly announced his resignation and that there was no such document with his signature. Carmona also rejected accusations of having become a dictator, saying that he is and always has been a democrat -- despite having annulled the constitution and dissolved Parliament and the judiciary. Observers are now waiting to see if Colombia grants Carmona political asylum, and how Colombia-Venezuela relations will evolve if it does. In Venezuela, the opposition business leader faces between 12 and 24 years in prison on charges of usurpation of functions and rebellion. *PENTAGON ADMITS TESTING CHEMICAL, BIOLOGICAL WEAPONS ON US TROOPS Washington, May 24 (RHC) -- The Pentagon has admitted for the first time that chemical and biological weapons were tested on US Navy ships in the 1960s, and -- 40 years later -- said anyone who was harmed could be eligible for health benefits. The Defense Department Thursday said that four tests in the Pacific from 1964 to 1968 used either the deadly nerve agent sarin, the nerve gas known as VX, or a biological toxin. The Defense Department agreed two years ago to begin releasing details about the tests and contacting participants after pressure from Congressional Representative Mike Thompson and veterans involved in the tests. The tests also reportedly used chemicals and bacteria meant to simulate weapons, as well as fluorescent or radioactive chemicals used as tracers. One type of bacteria used to simulate germ weapons was later found to cause infections, and a separate test where that germ was sprayed on the coastal city of San Francisco is believed to have caused an infection that killed a man. The Pentagon has acknowledged using chemical and biological simulants before, but has not admitted using the actual weapons agents themselves. Sarin, the deadly nerve gas used by a cult to kill a dozen people in a Tokyo subway in 1995, was used in a 1964 test off the Hawaiian coast. The Pentagon said that both sarin and a chemical simulant were also sprayed onto the USS George Eastman and injected into the ship's ventilation system. *LONDON EXHIBITION ON BRITAIN'S COLONIAL PAST STIRS CONTROVERSY AND PROTEST London, May 24 (RHC) -- An exhibit in London on a British colonial company has stirred a great deal of controversy and even some protest. The British news daily The Guardian reported Friday that the British Library's new exhibition on the East India Company is depicted as showing "how the work of 11 men, from a cold, wet and then relatively poor country, paved the way for what is now called 'globalization,'" while the exhibit's principal sponsor, Standard Chartered Bank, called it "the courageous, creative and truly international legacy of the East India Company." But the article went on to comment on how the company was the biggest drug trafficker of all time, responsible for the deaths of 17 million Chinese from opium addiction. After depicting how the colonial firm plundered India -- imposing policies that caused a famine that killed 10 million people, dispossessing 20 million small landowners, and bleaching the plains of India with the bones of Indian cotton weavers -- The Guardian wrote that perhaps in ways the British Library never intended, the exhibit does offer an apt precedent for the current commercial order. Pointing to the Chinese tea bought with Indian opium. and the British textiles made from cotton grown in India that bought slaves in west Africa. who were sold in the Americas for gold and silver invested in England -- where the sugar harvested by the slaves encouraged a booming market for the tea from China -- The Guardian noted that the big winners sat in the City of London, while the more numerous losers could be found in every corner of the globe. *Viewpoint: A PILLAR OF NEOLIBERALISM The anti-globalization movement continues to gain strength despite the fact that US president George Bush, in the heat of his world anti-terrorist war, is attempting to stamp out any protest against the unjust world economic order. The International Monetary Fund is among the favorite targets of anti-globalization demonstrators around the world, because they view neo-liberalism as a symbol of social injustice. A recent IMF decision regarding Ecuador confirms the suspicions of labor organizations, ecologists, indigenous peoples and other sectors active in the movement against globalization. The IMF, an international symbol of capitalism, taking advantage of the difficult financial and social situation in which Ecuador finds itself, negotiated a $240 million loan which the lending institution demanded not be used to improve basic services. The IMF insisted that Ecuador refrain from earmarking just ten per cent of its earnings on the sale of oil to improve its health and education systems. Though the amount involved is paltry, just $11 million in the year 2003 and $40 million in 2006, IMF executives refused to listen to government pleas to improve the lot of the majority of Ecuadorans. In fact, one of the essential Monetary Fund requirements is that the government reduce social spending to ridiculously low levels and apply drastic fiscal "reforms" like those implemented in Argentina, the consequences of which we are all know. IMF demands, that Ecuador eliminate money earmarked for health and education services, specify that the funds must be reserved only for payment of the foreign debt. If not, credit negotiations will promptly end. Problems between the people and the International Monetary Fund are easy to understand given the numerous campaigns the anti-globalization movement has organized in favor of forgiving the foreign debt and reforming the World Bank and IMF. The huge protest in the US city of Seattle in l999 during the World Trade Organization Meeting there marked the take-off of a movement that gathered more than 50,000 protestors. The demonstrations in Seattle condemned the WTO, World Bank and International Monetary Fund for turning into the flagships of neoliberal globalization. In the year 2000 more than 20,000 gathered in Washington DC to protest during the IMF and World Bank Assemblies and in 2001 the movement interrupted the holding of the World Social Forum in the Swiss city of Davos, where the world's most powerful and rich had gathered. Anti-globalization activists were also in New York this year, during the recent meeting of the Davos forum. And they were present in the latest session which was held in the Brazilian city of Porto Alegre. It is clear that activists the world over are determined to continue denouncing the effects of neoliberal globalization and the work of the international credit agencies in their role as pillars propping up the rich and powerful as they steal the riches and labor from the ever-expanding poor majority. (c) 2002 Radio Habana Cuba, NY Transfer News. 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