Radio Havana Cuba-28 May 2002 Via NY Transfer News * All the News That Doesn't Fit Radio Havana Cuba - News Update - 28 May 2002 . *NOBEL LAUREATE CRITICIZES URUGUAY FOR BREAKING TIES WITH CUBA *IMPROVED OUTLOOK SEEN FOR CUBA'S ECONOMY *NEW YORK CITY'S CENTER FOR CUBAN STUDIES TURNS THIRTY *REPRESENTATIVES FROM SISTER CITIES TO MEET DURING EXPO-CARIBE 2002 *TENSIONS BETWEEN PAKISTAN AND INDIA CONTINUE TO RISE *WORLD POWERS ACCUSED OF FUELING ASIAN CONFLICT WITH WEAPONS SALES *CARIBBEAN FEARS EFFECTS ON REGION'S FARMERS OF US AGRO SUBSIDIES *SOME GOVERNORS SUPPORT DUHALDE ON IMF DEMANDS, BUT SENATE RESISTS *RISING CHORUS OF PALESTINIANS CALL FOR MORE SUICIDE ATTACKS AGAINST ISRAEL *EXTREMIST JEWISH SETTLERS INDICTED FOR PLOTTING TO BLOW UP GIRLS' SCHOOL *Viewpoint: NEW TENSIONS IN ASIA CONCERN ENTIRE PLANET . *NOBEL LAUREATE CRITICIZES URUGUAY FOR BREAKING TIES WITH CUBA Montevideo, May 28 (RHC)-- The 1980 Nobel Peace Prize Winner, Adolfo Pérez Esquivel, has strongly criticized Uruguay for breaking diplomatic relations with Cuba. During the inauguration of a seminar in the Uruguayan capital, the Argentine intellectual said that Montevideo has now completely joined Washington's aggressive campaign against Havana. Speaking at the educational seminar "City and Education," Adolfo Pérez Esquivel said that the United States has been trying to isolate Cuba for more than 40 years -- "a difficult task now because people know how to open their eyes." The Nobel laureate criticized the decision of Uruguayan President Jorge Batlle to break relations with Havana, which he said puts Montevideo in a very negative position with respect to the rest of Latin America. Pérez Esquivel stressed that despite U.S. threats and pressures -- and an occasional government selling out to Washington -- Cuba is an important member of the regional community. *IMPROVED OUTLOOK SEEN FOR CUBA'S ECONOMY Camagüey, May 28 (RHC)-- Economic growth this year in Cuba should prove to be better than last year -- but improvements will continue to be slow. José Luis Rodríguez, Cuba's Economy and Planning Minister, delivered a lecture at the University of Camagüey -- in which he examined the island's future economic perspectives. Cuba's economy and planning minister noted that restrictions related to the energy sector will continue, primarily due to the fact that the price of oil will continue to be high -- ranging from 25 to 30 dollars a barrel on the world market. In addition, sugar -- one of Cuba's most important exports -- will continue to see low prices. With the present rate of about six cents per pound, economic forecasts are predicting that the price of sugar will dip even lower. José Luis Rodríguez said that a recovery of the tourist industry is expected over the next few years and that by the end of 2005, the island expects to annually welcome at least three million visitors. Also reviewing the nickel industry, the Cuban economy and planning minister noted that while the world market price is currently high, nickel trading is very volatile. Rodríguez said that another aspect affecting Cuba's economic future concerns credits obtained by the island, which come with very high interest rates. The lecture at the University of Camagüey is part of a program by high-ranking Cuban government officials to provide students and professors with the most up-to-date information on their areas of responsibility. *NEW YORK CITY'S CENTER FOR CUBAN STUDIES TURNS THIRTY New York, May 28 (RHC)-- The Center for Cuban Studies has just celebrated its 30th birthday. Located in Manhattan, the Center was established on May 19th, 1972, with the presentation of the Cuban film "Memorias del Subdesarrollo" ("Memories of Underdevelopment"). Among the activities to commemorate another anniversary of the Center for Cuban Studies IS the inauguration of a photo and poster exhibit entitled "30 Years: A Work in Progress." According to the director of the Center, Sandra Levinson, the purpose of the institution is to promote the Cuban Revolution and its culture. Besides making art collections, films and other materials from Cuba available to the public, the Center for Cuban Studies also publishes a quarterly magazine called "Cuba Update." *REPRESENTATIVES FROM SISTER CITIES TO MEET DURING EXPO-CARIBE 2002 Santiago de Cuba, May 28 (RHC)-- During the upcoming International Fair Expo-Caribe 2002, slated for June 9-14, mayors and business representatives will come together from sister-cities to Santiago de Cuba. According to organizers of the Fair, the event will also celebrate the 487th anniversary of Santiago de Cuba, founded in June, 1515. A number of cities in Latin America and Europe have sister-city relationships with Santiago de Cuba, including: Rio and Parana (Argentina), Puerto Antonio (Jamaica), Cartagena de Indias (Colombia), San Bartolome de Tirajana (Grand Canaries, Spain), Santiago de los Caballeros (Dominican Republic) and Caracas (Venezuela). Santiago de Queretaros (Mexico), Santiago de Compostela (Spain), La Mantin (Martinica), Palermo (Italy), Villa Terol (Gran Canaria), Oakland (California, U.S.) and Naples (Italy) are also sister-cities to Cuba's second most important trade center. 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. *TENSIONS BETWEEN PAKISTAN AND INDIA CONTINUE TO RISE New Delhi, May 28 (RHC) -- The government of India has termed as "disappointing and dangerous" Monday's televised speech by Pakistani military leader, General Pervez Musharraf, warning that it had only increased tensions over Kashmir. There are reports of widespread anger in New Delhi over Musharraf's speech, in which he warned that Pakistan's people would "shed the last drop of their blood" to defend their country against "the enemy" -- referring to India. And though Pakistan's military leader said he would not allow his country to be used as a staging area for insurgents who want to drive India out of the disputed Kashmir region, India said he failed to keep a similar pledge four months ago. At the time, 2,000 militants in Pakistan were arrested, but according to some intelligence and military experts 1,200 of them have been freed and the insurgents' camps have partly revived. Musharraf said nothing in his speech Monday about a new domestic crackdown on extremist groups. And while vowing not to aid extremists, he said Pakistan would never give up the struggle for Kashmir's independence. India's Deputy Foreign Minister Omar Abdullah said there was nothing to work with in the speech, that Musharraf has "categorically told the world" that as far as he's concerned there's nothing he needs to stop. While Indian Foreign Minister Jaswant Singh stated that his country cannot continue to be penalized for its patience, on Tuesday Pakistan successfully test-fired another land-to-land missile -- the third in a series of tests carried out since Saturday. *WORLD POWERS ACCUSED OF FUELING ASIAN CONFLICT WITH WEAPONS SALES London, Stockholm, May 28 (RHC) -- World powers trying to defuse the stand-off between India and Pakistan are standing accused of fueling the conflict by selling billions of pounds of sophisticated weaponry to both sides. Over the past decade, Russia, China, France and Britain have supplied New Delhi and Islamabad with the bulk of their weaponry, while the United States is the only large weapons exporter that unilaterally imposed an arms ban on the two sides after they tested nuclear weapons in 1998. The four other countries calling for an end to hostilities are permanent members of the United Nations Security Council. And while British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw carries out intense diplomatic and mediation efforts in Pakistan, London's defense ministry Tuesday insisted that Britain will continue exporting weapons to Pakistan and to India. The affirmation follows reports that 70 British lawmakers from across the political spectrum have signed a proposal demanding that the government stop an upcoming sale to India of 66 Hawk training aircraft at a cost of some $1.480 billion. According to the British news daily The Guardian, some legislators are asserting that Britain shouldn't use the logic of drug dealers who say they are merely selling what someone else would sell anyway. According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, which monitors global military sales, diplomatic efforts to prevent war between Pakistan and India were unlikely to succeed until an embargo was enforced and the regional arms race brought to a halt. *CARIBBEAN FEARS EFFECTS ON REGION'S FARMERS OF US AGRO SUBSIDIES Georgetown, Guyana, May 28 (RHC) -- Trade ministers from the 15 countries of the Caribbean Community said Monday they were concerned about negative effects from the recently approved U.S. farm bill that gives billions of dollars in subsidies to American farmers. The ministers' two-day meeting in Guyana came just days after both Argentina and Brazil said they would challenge the U.S. bill at the Geneva-based World Trade Organization, arguing that the bill would badly hurt their economies. The bill authorizes $190 billion in spending on U.S. farmers over the next 10 years -- a $73.5 billion increase over existing programs. Richard Bernal, head of the Barbados-based Regional Negotiating Machinery, said the United States was giving the wrong signal while pushing smaller economies in the hemisphere to open their markets by 2005 under the Free Trade Area of the Americas arrangement. Caribbean rice and sugar producers, for example, fear their exports to the United States could be reduced or their earnings lessened, as the subsidies would allow American farmers to sell produce at prices vastly lower than theirs. Concern has also been expressed for farmers in Africa. According to the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy in the US state of Minneapolis, millions of small farmers will be put out of business in Africa and will have to move to cities and become part of the unemployed labor pools. Subsidies to American farmers are expected to contribute to global overproduction of basic crops that will drive down world commodity prices and make it more difficult for small, unsubsidized Third World farmers to compete. According to Neil Harl, director of the Center for International Agriculture Finance at Iowa State University, the US is making decisions that affect the entire world, yet the rest of the world doesn't have much of a say. *SOME GOVERNORS SUPPORT DUHALDE ON IMF DEMANDS, BUT SENATE RESISTS Buenos Aires, May 28 (RHC) -- Embattled Argentine President Eduardo Duhalde has received an important boost from 12 of 14 ruling party provincial governors who Monday told him that they supported the International Monetary Fund demands for the abolition of the Economic Subversion Law and agreed in general terms to push ahead with spending cuts. But the desperate president is coming up against stiff opposition in the Senate. Though Duhalde has a 40-seat majority in the 72-member Senate, 8 members of his ruling party have announced that they won't repeal the Economic Subversion Law -- which in recent years has facilitated the prosecution of important corporate executives, notably bankers, on charges of money laundering and tax evasion. One of the dissident lawmakers, Senator Jorge Busti, charged Tuesday that the IMF is blackmailing Argentina in an effort to save some of its friends who have been targeted by the anti-corruption law. Twenty-three opposition Senators have already announced that they will vote against repeal of the legislation, while others belonging to the Radical Civic Union -- which holds two cabinet posts and until now has supported Duhalde -- say they will follow suit. The Duhalde administration, however, still believes it can pull a rabbit out of the hat by exerting pressure based on the apocalyptic warning that Argentina's crisis is speeding ahead at 100 miles per hour and time is ticking away. Meanwhile, foreign banks in Argentina have suffered another series of attacks by irate citizens whose savings accounts have been frozen. Four banks with mixed Spanish and French capital, and one with Canadian capital, were assaulted in the early morning hours of Tuesday. One of the banks was completely burned down -- forcing firemen to evacuate nearby homes -- while others in diverse regions of Argentina had windows smashed in and automatic tellers destroyed. Argentines daily demonstrate outside the banks, which are retaining some $20 billion in savings accounts. Protesters in Buenos Aires demanding the return of their savings engaged Monday in several violent clashes with police. *RISING CHORUS OF PALESTINIANS CALL FOR MORE SUICIDE ATTACKS AGAINST ISRAEL Ramallah, Gaza, Tel Aviv, May 28 (RHC) -- Monday's suicide bomb attack in a Tel Aviv suburb came amid a rising chorus of Palestinian calls for more such attacks against Israel. The bombing was the fourth in a week's time, while dozens of others have been attempted. Hassan Nasrallah, the leader of Hezbollah, said last weekend that if Palestinians stopped using the suicide bomb weapon Israeli civilians will feel safe but Palestine will remain occupied. He said that if their existence in this life means to be humiliated, they prefer to die a thousand times. In Gaza, Sheik Ahmed Yassin, the spiritual leader of the militant organization Hamas, called on those appealing for a halt in suicide bombings to first appeal for a stop to Israeli occupation -- adding that if Israeli crimes stop the attacks will stop. Recent surveys indicate that more than 70 percent of the Palestinian population supports the attacks. Public support for the bombers was reportedly evident this weekend at a rally in Ramallah in support of a Palestinian militant leader who has been imprisoned by Israel for the past month. During the rally a large crowd cheered the Al Aqsa Brigades, which have claimed responsibility for several recent suicide attacks. And as Israeli troops launched another incursion into the northern town of Jenin, experts were predicting more such attacks. According to Martin Kramer, a researcher at Tel Aviv University's Dayan Center for Mideast Studies, "there is a production line" for suicide bombers waiting to be deployed. *EXTREMIST JEWISH SETTLERS INDICTED FOR PLOTTING TO BLOW UP GIRLS' SCHOOL Jerusalem, May 28 (RHC) -- Four extremist Jewish settlers have been charged by an Israeli court with plotting to blow up an Arab girls' school in Jerusalem a month ago, but one Israeli human rights organization has accused the country's security forces of largely turning a blind eye to violence by Jewish settlers against Palestinians. Investigators said the group was planning to bomb the school just as the pupils lined up during morning assembly. In March, Israeli police discovered a bomb at a boys' school in east Jerusalem that was exploded after children had been evacuated. But according to a report by the Israeli human rights organization B'Tselem, six Palestinians have been killed by settlers during the last six months and only two of the deaths are being investigated. The report affirms that since the Palestinian uprising began, Jewish settlers have stoned Palestinians' cars, rioted in their towns and villages -- setting fire to at least one mosque -- and shot and beaten them. Some 200,000 Jewish settlers live in the West Bank and Gaza, but their presence there is illegal under international law. *Viewpoint: NEW TENSIONS IN ASIA CONCERN ENTIRE PLANET Once again the consequences of colonialism and its capricious division of the world, are disturbing international stability and are the source of tension that could unleash a conflict that would affect all of us. In l947 when British colonialism was forced to concede independence to India and Pakistan, the territory of Kashmir was arbitrarily divided up; three-fourths was placed under Indian control and a third was given to Pakistan. And, just as in other parts of the world where such partitioning has occurred, war was the immediate consequence of the artificial maneuvering. Since that time New Delhi and Islamabad have faced off in three major conflicts; in 1947, 1965 and 1971. But skirmishes and other clashes, which could have had dire consequences, have been frequent like in 1999, when nuclear weapons were on the point of being employed. In addition to the brutal partition, there are other ingredients involved in the disagreements. For example there is the religious question since Indian Kashmir is the only province in the country where the majority of its ten million inhabitants are Moslem, an argument used by Pakistan to call for a total annexation of the region. And for that reason, Islamabad has taken advantage of the liberation movement that has emerged in Kashmir, which seeks to gain independence from both countries. This has been very difficult because there are also interests outside the region which have influenced the situation and continue to do so. The deployment of international troops, controlled by the United States after its war against Afghanistan, in a good part of central Asia is one those complications. It is clear that the US alliance with Pakistan has provided that country with increased military clout as evidenced by Pakistan's two ballistic missile tests last Saturday, a factor which has qualitatively upped the level of tension in the region. In fact, ever since India and Pakistan became nuclear powers in 1998, the situation has taken a dangerous turn not only for the millions directly involved in a possible conflict, but also for the entire world, which would be irremediably affected by a nuclear confrontation there. It is also important to note that apart from the question of Kashmir, there are other points of conflict between the two nations. One of those sore points is the seemingly impossible task of agreeing on maritime limits in the Sir Creek River estuary, which separates the Indian province of Gujarae from Pakistan's Sindh province and where huge oil and gas reserves are believed to exist. Meanwhile the whole world is closely watching the events unfold in Asia with the hope that reason will prevail and a fourth war between the two countries can be avoided and that the specter of colonial designs will serves as a lesson to humanity in this new century. (c) 2002 Radio Habana Cuba, NY Transfer News. 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