Summa radiologist, other physicians to help at meeting in Cuba  1/31/03 Beacon Journal Ohio: AfroCubaWeb has direct knowledge of a Canadian team delivering cancer radiology equipment having to turn back as a result of US pressure, which, if it happened to the US, would be called terrorism.

Cuba Embargo  1/31/03 KXMA, North Dakota: "The [North Dakota] Senate Government and Veteran's Affairs Committee unanimously approved the resolution today. It will now go to the full Senate for a vote. The resolution urges the President and Congress to lift the embargo on the Communist nation." Where is the American Legion and their CANF influenced anti-Cuba stance?

Mas Santos makes offer to talk with Cuba leaders  1/31/03 Miami Herald: "Though Mas Santos excluded Fidel and Raul Castro from the list and has not made an official move to open a dialogue, it was the first time the Cuban American National Foundation chairman has publicly named Cuban officials with whom he is willing to talk -- a very public signal that Cuban exiles are staking a claim in a future political transition… Exiles blasted Mas Santos on radio shows while Cuban opposition leaders from Havana telephoned the foundation with praise, according to CANF… José Vasquez, a welder who came in the Mariel boatlift, said he wasn't moved by any efforts on the part of exile leaders. ''These people should just forget about Cuba already. Let them worry about things in this country, lowering taxes and the cost of living,'' said Vasquez, 36. ``Fidel is just laughing at them.''

Antonio ''Tony'' Calatayud - Miami Mafia - La Mas Fea  1/30/03 AfroCubaWeb: "Tony is a terrorist with a long record of anti-Cuba activities. A Bay of Pigs veteran and a past secretary general of the Directorio Revolucionario Cubano, a terrorist organization, he has been implicated in plots to kill Fidel Castro in Mexico and other acts. He was a major organizer of the Calle 8 march on 1/8/03 in support of the coup plotters in Venezuela. On 1/24/02 he was arrested for 1st degree felony theft (Medicaid) in Florida."

Agriculture Groups Join Cuba Conference  1/30/03 Agriculture Law: "More than 100 U.S. companies, trade associations and regional government organizations will attend the 2003 U.S.-Cuba Business Conference, which is being held in Cancun, Mexico and Havana Feb. 17-19. Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-WA) will be a keynote speaker, addressing the advantages of expanded trade with Cuba. The newly elected lieutenant governor of Kansas, John Moore will also participate in the conference."

Fidel: U.S faces widespread opposition to a war against Iraq  1/30/03 AP: "The vast majority of the world's public opinion opposes this already announced war," Castro told a packed audience of foreign visitors at Havana's convention center in a nighttime speech broadcast live on state-controlled television. "The threat of a war in Iraq has been looming considerably over the world economy, which is currently affected by a serious and deep crisis," said Castro."

Cuba: Major Anti-Narcotics Offensive  1/30/03 Black World Today: "According to the communique, the people involved in the sales of narcotics tend to organise ''their operations out of homes that are rented in violation of the existing regulations'' on letting rooms, which are strict in Cuba. Landlords authorised to let rooms to foreign tourists are obliged to pay taxes and register their guests with the immigration service. ''The police have not bothered us because we have everything in order, but I imagine that those who illegally let rooms are not having a very good time,'' said a man who was standing in line in a bank to pay his taxes."

Danny Glover critica a EE.UU. por embargo a Cuba y posible guerra  1/30/03 Granma: "El actor estadounidense Danny Glover criticó el miércoles a su país por el embargo (bloqueo) económico a Cuba y opinó que los estadounidenses no apoyan una eventual guerra contra Iraq, informó Reuters. Glover llegó a Uruguay, tras asistir al Foro Social Mundial que se desarrolló en Porto Alegre, Brasil, para dictar una conferencia sobre Democracia, cultura y globalización."

PNB group heads to Cuba with 100 pairs of pointe shoes  1/30/03 King County Journal, Washington: "Pacific Northwest Ballet co-director Francia Russell and principal dancer Patricia Barker next month will visit Cuba as part of a delegation from University of Washington's Center for Women & Democracy. The first such mission last year, with a delegation that included Sen. Maria Cantwell, included a meeting with Cuban ruler Fidel Castro." King County has had its attempt to form a sister county relationship with Cuba postponed thanks to the efforts of the terrorism linked Cuban American National Foundation.

Black farmers to sell food to Cuba  1/30/03 San Francisco Chronicle: "The National Black Farmers Association is working on a deal to sell Cuba $20 million in food ranging from chicken to wheat this spring. John Boyd, head of the group, said more than 10,000 black farmers would benefit from the agreement with Fidel Castro."

Owner: Ferry ready for Cuba  1/30/03 St Petersburg Times: "Matthew Hudson has a ferry with 322 cabins and a huge cargo hold sitting idle at the Port of Tampa for half of every week. And Hudson, owner of the M/V Scotia Prince, thinks lots of Floridians would jump at the chance to visit relatives in Cuba, bringing along boxes of food, clothing and other basic necessities. Thousands travel legally by air each month from Miami, he says. So, Hudson asks, why not let him sail them from Tampa to Cuba and back?"

Rum deal as US bans 'Cuban' Glenfiddich  1/30/03 The Herald, UK: "A SCOTCH malt has been banned from the US - because it was matured in Cuban rum barrels. Glenfiddich Havana Reserve has fallen foul of American legislation which restricts trade with Cuba, even though it is distilled in Scotland. The luxury 21-year-old single malt, which costs £60 a bottle, is produced by William Grant and Sons at its Dufftown distillery in the Highlands, 4000 miles from the sugar cane fields of Cuba."

For Fidel Castro, race matters and is not divisive  1/29/03 AfroCubaWeb: by Pedro Perez Sarduy. This is a presentation from his upcoming spring '03 US visit, as he tracks issues of race & identity in Cuba.

The Wall Street Journal: Miami's Little Havana Finds New Foe in Venezuelan Leader  1/29/03 AntiTerroristas.cu: "But Capt. Garcia, 37, the leader of the Venezuelan Patriotic Junta seems to be hedging his bets. A strapping 6-footer whose close-cut hair is streaked with gray, Capt. Garcia was one of the first military officers to openly defy Mr. Chavez. During last April's abortive military coup against Mr. Chavez, Capt. Garcia was grazed by a bullet on the side of the head as he stormed the presidential palace by a back door. Now Capt. Garcia says he is providing military training for some 50 members of the F-4 Commandos, 30 of them Cuban-Americans, the rest Venezuelans, in a shooting range close to the Everglades. "We are preparing for war," he says. Nevertheless, his movement opposes military coups. "Our struggle is to show the world how Chavez is the enemy of democracy." "

Former Mexican ambassador to Cuba quits leftist party, claiming exclusion  1/29/03 AP: "Pascoe was harshly criticized by party members when he accepted the post of Mexican ambassador to Cuba in the administration of President Vicente Fox, who is a member of the conservative National Action Party. But Pascoe also clashed with Fox's policies. He was asked to step down in October after he sparred with then-Foreign Secretary Jorge Castaneda over Mexico-Cuba relations."

Pharmacist and radio personality accused of Medicaid fraud is released from jail  1/28/03 Miami Herald: La Mas Fea kicks in to save one of their own - "Antonio ''Tony'' Calatayud, a pharmacist, radio personality and prominent Cuban exile arrested last week for Medicaid fraud, was released from jail Tuesday after he posted a $50,000 bond -- one quarter of the original bond amount. Miami-Dade County Judge José Rodriguez lowered the bond from $200,000 based on his ties to the community, said Ed Griffith, a spokesman for the Miami-Dade State Attorney's office. ''He has been here for many years. He has a business. He's not a runner,'' Griffith said. Calatayud, 63 and the owner of Primera Farmacia Latina in Sweetwater, is charged with organized fraud and grand theft. He is accused of filing more than 1,300 false Medicaid claims for prescriptions drugs he never filled and bilking the state out of $290,000."

Farm leader invited to Cuban trade conference  1/28/03 Tri-City Herald, Washington State: "Agriculture advocates want to have a Mid-Columbia representative join a trade delegation being led by Sen. Maria Cantwell to Mexico and Cuba in February. Mel Anason, a Prosser-area farm leader, has been invited to join a group from the state at the annual United States/Cuba Business Conference Feb. 17-19 in Cancun and Havana."

Call for release of Cuban political prisoners in United States in Forum  1/26/03 Granma: "PORTO ALEGRE, Brazil - Gloria La Riva, the U.S. human rights activist, announced here today a campaign to break the wall of silence concealing the unjust sentences handed down for political reasons to five Cubans incarcerated in the United States."

PHARMACY OWNER ARRESTED FOR STEALING $290,000 IN MEDICAID FUNDS  1/24/03 Attorney General, Florida: "Attorney General Charlie Crist and Miami Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle today announce the arrest of Antonio Calatayud, 63, owner of Primera Farmacia Latina Inc. on felony charges of Medicaid fraud." Calatayud led a demonstration against Chavez in Calle 8. Following in the footsteps of another Miami Mafiosi, Miguel Recari, pal of Jeb Bush, responsible for the largest Medicaid fraud in US history. Calatayud was secretary general of the Directorio Revolucionario Cubano back in the 70s, was a Bay of Pigs veteran, and helped organize an attempted hit on Castro in Mexico.

Terrorism on credit  1/24/03 Granma: Under MBNA cover - "Members of the Miami mafia who are linked to terrorist activities are using up-to-the-minute methods to line their pockets, under the ever-lucrative pretext of fighting against the Cuban Revolution, with total impunity and with the benevolent collaboration of El Nuevo Herald. Eugenio Llamera with terrorist Pedro Rodríguez Medina, founder of the WFCFPP, one of the organizations hiding behind the USA Cuba Financial Funds Inc. credit card firm. Under the title "Credit cards to help Cuban dissidents," the sweetened neo-colonial version of The Miami Herald reported on January 2 that "Cuban dissidence and the exiles’ cause have found a new ally in the credit card," guaranteeing customers "that with every purchase made using the card a percentage of the amount will go directly to aid needy Cubans outside of the island and even internal dissidents." … The real face of the project is immediately apparent when the daily mentions the names and titles of the founders of the USA-Cuba financial fund: Alex Sardiñas, who established the fund "alongside Marta Lima, president of the World Federation of Former Cuban Political Prisoners, and Eugenio Llamera, former director of Cuban Unity." Eugenio Llamera, currently head of the Pan-American Foundation for Democracy, an unknown faction, is a notorious member of Miami extremist circles. During the 1960s he was a preeminent member of the terrorist Democratic National Unity Party (DNUP), alongside notorious criminals like Frank Sturgis, a CIA operative involved in the Watergate scandal, and Rolando Masferrer, one of dictator Fulgencio Batista’s most bloodthirsty henchmen. Over a long period, the DNUP organized numerous terrorist attacks against Cuban territory. The group even had its own training camp in the Everglades swamps and had the support of up to 150 mercenaries. In 1993, Llamera’s name appeared in the "Report on the question of the use of mercenaries as a means of violating human rights" presented by Enrique Bernales Ballesteros, UN special rapporteur."

QUIENES SOMOS - Antonio Calatayud, el dirigente y Director de Proyecto Cuba  1/24/03 Plan Maceo: Antonio Calatayud's page on the Plan Maceo site shows the hoodlums and crooks of the Miami Mafia (La Mas Fea) desecrating the venerable Maceo name. Calatayud was just arrested for stealing $290,000 in Medicaid funds in a scheme reminiscent of Bush pal Recarey's more massive HMO fraud.

Brothers to the Rescue founder wins default judgment against Cuba  1/24/03 Sun Sentinel, South Florida: "If Basulto collects on a judgment, the money likely will come out from the millions of dollars in frozen Cuban assets held in the United States. That may be difficult, however. The U.S. government released $97 million of those funds to the fliers' families four years after they received their judgment in federal court, but Ana Margarita Martinez, the wife of the spy, has not been able to gain access to those funds."

Cuban National Assembly invitation to US Cuba Sister Cities (USCSCA) Conference, 3/30/03 - 4/6/03  1/24/03 USCSCA: "People interested in gathering information and pursuing sustainable relations between our peoples working to explore, begin, build, develop, strengthen or expand people-to-people fellowships between our communities using the universal and internationally respected model of sister cities are urged to attend this important encounter. Cuba enjoys over 800 sister city relationships, internationally, twenty within the United States, and many communities are engaging in this grassroots process."

New Policy Report Calls for Immediate Steps Toward Principled Engagements with Cuba  1/23/03 Center for National Policy: "A bipartisan advisory group, which includes voices from prominent Miami Cuban Americans, issued a report today calling for the Bush Administration, Congress and the Cuban government to begin a ‘negotiated normalization’ process and recommended several specific steps the U.S. itself should initiate immediately, including allowing more travel and humanitarian sales. "Despite the diverse perspectives of our members, we agree that principled engagement should replace isolation as the core of U.S. policy toward Cuba," former U.S. Ambassador to Mexico James R. Jones, who chaired the Cuba Policy Advisory Group under the auspices of the Center for National Policy in Washington, said. "Our national interest and security require we begin a dialogue with Cuba." The report, entitled "U.S. - Cuba Relations, Time for a New Approach," critiqued what it called a shift in 2002 to a more restrictive policy on travel licensing for U.S. citizens and U.S. entry to Cuban citizens. "Both of these steps go in the wrong direction. They reduce the exchange of ideas between Americans and Cubans and undermine the goal of greater openness on the island."

U.S. – Cuba Relations - Time for a New Approach  1/23/03 Center for National Policy: full text of the report

U.S. bipartisan group urges easing of Cuba embargo  1/23/03 Forbes: "The bottom line is that we agreed that the time is now for engagement, not isolation," said James R. Jones, a former ambassador to Mexico and chair of the Cuba Policy Advisory Group. The think tank works under the auspices of the Center for National Policy, a Washington bipartisan, non-profit organization. "This is a common sense report," said Kansas Republican Sen. Pat Roberts, a member of the Senate intelligence committee. "There's support in Congress for this," he told the news conference unveiling the report."

Havana Holdings Home Page  1/23/03 Havana Holdings: Panama based web site - "A capital investment company specializing in investment opportunities in Cuba. Shareholders from around the world (including the United States) can now invest in a company specializing in the vast opportunities present in Cuba. Investors' money is directed through The Harris Organization, thereby protecting investors from potential retaliation by various governments."

SU student to represent Seattle in Cuba  1/23/03 Seattle Spectator: "Seattle University will have a representative in this year’s US/Cuba Sister Cities Association Conference in La Havana, Cuba. Representing SU and the United States is Jessica Burns. Burns is a third-year Matteo Ricci College humanities and finance student from Renton, Wash. She was recently chosen as a delegate for the 2003 Every Women’s Delegation to Cuba. The EWD, created by Cindy Domingo, is an organization comprised of women from various racial, social and economic backgrounds, who describe themselves as an anti-racist movement fighting to end the U.S. embargo against Cuba."

Sherritt proposes debt/equity swap for Cuban unit  1/23/03 Toronto Globe & Mail

Upstate Congressman Wants Cuba Commerce  1/23/03 WSTM, NY: "An upstate congressman says more New York farmers should be able to sell their products to Cuba in the future. Maurice Hinchey, an Ulster County Democrat, visited Havana last week to speak with Cuban officials about trade and other issues. Hinchey told a Binghamton radio station (WNBF) that some New York apple growers recently have shipped their fruit to Cuba. He said the Cubans with whom he spoke had high praise for New York's apples, saying "they're the best."… Hinchey said his Cuba trip was organized by a group called Pastors for Peace."

Cuba gains popularity as study destination  1/22/03 Badger Herald, Madison: "Cuba, a United States adversary since an embargo was placed on the island 40 years ago, is gaining growing attention from U.S. students looking to study overseas. More than 900 U.S. students traveled to the country, located 90 miles south of Florida, during the 2000-01 academic year… The University of Wisconsin is participating in a new study-abroad program beginning next fall where students will travel to the University of Havana in Cuba. Students engaging in this program will take regular courses offered by the university as well as an advanced Spanish course."

United Kingdom seeks to increase relations with Cuba  1/22/03 Granma: "LORD Colin Moynihan, the new British president of the UK-Cuba Initiative has carried out a rigorous schedule of visits in Havana… The main themes of conversation between the distinguished visitor and Cuban leaders were the strengthening of business interests and investments between the two nations. Founded in 1995, the body’s executive includes representatives from NGOs, UK government officials, academics and members of parliament."

Cuban Government Releases List Of 'Terrorists'  1/22/03 NBC 6, Miami: "Nowhere to be found, however, is Jose Basulto. who has often been labeled a terrorist by Cuba. The same goes for Ramon Saul Sanchez, who certainly carries a high profile in the exile crowd." Errors of omission?

Cuba to continue revitalising Non Aligned Movement  1/22/03 New Straits Times, Malaysia: "Cuba, which will assume the presidency of the Non-Aligned Movement in 2006, hopes to continue Malaysia’s objective of revitalising the movement to become an effective counter-balancing force against prevailing unilateralism in international affairs."

Castro inaugurates Cuba's largest tourist hotel complex  1/21/03 AP: "The $100 million complex was completed in 22 months, using Cuban capital and construction workers with technical assistance by the French firm Bouygues, Castro said. It will be managed by the Gaviota S.A., one of the Cuban government's numerous tour operators."

Anti-Castro militants say Cuban spy shot in Havana  1/21/03 Sun Sentinel, South Florida: "This gentleman declares in Miami that he ordered an attempted assassination that, according to him, was carried out in Havana," Alarcón said. "Has [the FBI] called him so he could explain how it is possible that someone publicly acknowledges the organization of an assassination carried out in another country?" Frómeta, a spokesman for the Comandos F-4 members in Cuba, said the attempt on Roque's life was carried out by members of a clandestine anti-Castro cell on the island. In the United States, members of the group obey the nation's laws, he said." And RICO does not cover this?

Santa Cruz County and Guamá Municipio Sign Partnership Agreement  1/21/03 USCSCA: The first US Cuba Sister County, others to follow, despite the efforts of CANF and their narcoterrorist allies - "When Santa Cruz County residents decide to do something, an unreasonable embargo and travel ban just can’t stop ‘em! Believing the people of Cuba are our natural neighbors and we have a right to get to know them, the people of Santa Cruz County developed a partnership with a comparable community on the beautiful Santiago coastline. A delegation of 30 Santa Cruz and Monterey County residents, ages 16 to 86, including Congressman Sam Farr, visited Guamá in early January, 2003 to develop projects and collaborate on mutually beneficial activities. Guamá has many features similar to coastal Santa Cruz County and sustains itself on tourism and agriculture, so the match seemed appropriate."

Elian Gonzalez's Dad Elected in Cuba  1/20/03 ABC News: "More than 97 percent of Cuba's voters elected all 609 candidates who ran uncontested for parliament, including the father of Elian Gonzalez, Cuba's elections officials said Monday."

Democracy for Cubans and Americans  1/20/03 Counterpunch: "For Cubans the last century was a long struggle for nationhood and national dignity. They had extensive experience with the multiparty system under US tutelage in the first part of the century, when they were a virtual US plantation (by the 1950's over 75% of Cuban economic production property was owned or controlled by US commercial interests). They have learned from bitter experience that their continued liberation depends entirely on their national unity whereas political division makes them vulnerable to manipulation and economic domination by US businesses and their former rulers who now live in US as part of the Cuban-American community."

Médicos cubanos participarán en un programa de atención a chiapanecos  1/19/03 La Jornada, Mexico: "Al menos 200 médicos del Ministerio de Salud Pública de Cuba llegarán a Chiapas en los próximos días para coadyuvar a superar el rezago en la materia, que cobró mayor notoriedad con el escándalo de los 32 bebés muertos en un hospital de Comitán."

Republicans preserve ban on travel to Cuba  1/18/03 Boston Globe: "Senate Republicans, flexing their new political muscle on Capitol Hill, have quietly killed language in a sweeping spending bill that would have effectively ended the ban on American travel to Cuba… Angry supporters of lifting the ban, alerted to the language change in the 1,052-page bill, said Senate leaders were inappropriately using a massive spending bill to further their agenda. The move ''allowed people to stand up and do the right thing'' in public, ''but do the wrong thing behind the scenes,'' said Senator Patrick Leahy, Democrat of Vermont. Democrats complained that quashing the Cuba initiative was part of a pattern by the new GOP majority to use the massive spending bill to further the Republican political agenda."

Lo que The New York Times oculta a la opinión pública norteamericana  1/18/03 Granma: "El pasado 5 de enero el diario norteamericano The New York Times publicó un artículo del periodista Timothy Golden que aludía algunas de las acusaciones más calumniosas de la administración norteamericana contra la Isla, incluyendo denigrantes alusiones a los Cinco patriotas cubanos encarcelados en Estados Unidos; un calco de las imputaciones fundamentales presentadas en su contra por la Fiscalía del sur de la Florida… Añadió que sorprende la firma que acompaña ese artículo, porque el señor Golden es una persona que sabe más de ese tema que lo que escribió en el texto… Con el afán de profundizar en su investigación, contó Alarcón, el periódico envío a Cuba a uno de sus más sagaces periodistas, Timothy Golden, quien sostuvo (12 de agosto de 1998) una larga conversación con el Comandante en Jefe Fidel Castro, quien en víspera de un viaje a República Dominicana sacrificó su tiempo y lo atendió, poniendo a su disposición información sobre las actividades de los terroristas de Miami. Era, sustancialmente, el mismo expediente entregado al FBI en La Habana. Golden, que permaneció dos semanas más en la capital cubana, se entrevistó con oficiales de la Seguridad del Estado, con cinco detenidos por actividades terroristas dentro del territorio nacional, y con Percy Alvarado (el agente Fraile), que publicó recientemente un libro sobre su infiltración "como terrorista" en la FNCA... Golden, aseguró Alarcón, fue la única persona del planeta que supo lo que nuestro pueblo y el mundo conoció siete meses después con relación al agente Fraile. Como colofón de aquella primera visita, el periodista tuvo tres horas de entrevista con el compañero Alarcón." All the news that's fit to print.

NEW YORK TIMES DOES ABOUT-FACE ON OCTOBER 26 ANTI-WAR COVERAGE  1/18/03 International Answer: Published around 10/30/02, this details the storyof how mass anger in the US over a NYT article belittling antiwar protests led to a rewriting of the story, something sorely needed in the case of Cuba and its counterterror spying on the Miami Mas Fea.

Elian's Father Up for Election in Cuba  1/18/03 NYT: "The father of Elian Gonzalez, President Fidel Castro, an Olympic track medalist and a popular folk singer are on the ballot for Cuba's parliament in Sunday elections."

UA group to arrive in Cuba Monday  1/18/03 Tuscaloosa News: "A group from the University of Alabama will arrive in Cuba on Monday, looking for ways to open relations with the small island nation. The group is made up mostly of deans and professors, who will meet with their counterparts at the University of Havana. The payoff is hoped to be a series of academic exchanges between the two universities and shared ideas about academics and economics."

Cuba regrets that United States will not sign anti-drugs agreement  1/17/03 AP: "The most significant presence of drug traffickers is in the territorial waters between the island and the United States. “For some years now, Cuba has been preparing to fight and win the battle against drugs and those promoting them,” explained Díaz, who also informed that in the last three years, 30,000 specialists have received training on narcotics control and prevention."

Cuba accuses US of aiding terrorism  1/17/03 New Zealand Herald: "HAVANA The president of Cuba's parliament said on Thursday (Friday NZT) that the sale in Florida of a small plane taken from the island by a defector was just the latest example of the United States aiding and abetting terrorism. "The sale ... is another demonstration of the US authorities' engagement with anti-Cuban terrorism," Ricardo Alarcon said at a Havana news conference. On November 11, a Cuban pilot snatched the government-owned plane, flying seven of his relatives from the Caribbean island to Key West, 145km north of Havana. The United States ruled the act a defection and granted those involved asylum. Cuba called it air piracy and demanded the return of the aircraft and its passengers."

Riley Housewright, Microbiologist, Dies at 89  1/17/03 NY Times: "One of Dr. Housewright's projects in the 1960's was developing agents that could kill or incapacitate large numbers of Cubans in preparing for an invasion of Cuba. In an interview for the book "Germs: Biological Weapons and America's Secret War" (Simon & Schuster, 2001), written by Judith Miller, Stephen Engelberg and William J. Broad, reporters for The New York Times, he said such an action would be "a good thing" because it would save American lives. "It was not the same as putting an atomic bomb down their throat, which would have been just as easy or easier to deliver," he said. "It was a humane act." Dr. Housewright was scientific director of the United States Army Biological Laboratories at Fort Detrick, Md., from 1956 to 1970, when President Richard M. Nixon banned offensive biological weapons." Su nombre era en la prenda de Padillo.

From Cuba, seeking trade relations  1/17/03 St Petersburg Times: "From the port to agribusiness leaders, Cuba's highest-ranking diplomat in Washington did some important networking in Tampa this week. Dagoberto Rodriguez Barrera held a round of informal meetings with business people, including a number with ties to the port and local agricultural interests… Q: Earlier this month you were quoted as saying Cuba would not increase its purchases of U.S. agricultural products unless there were "significant changes" in U.S. law. Do you see trade continuing if there are no changes? A: We will keep buying at current levels, which has been about $260-million since November 2001, because it is good for Cuba and good for the American farmer. But for us it is very difficult to increase the amount of money we're using for this purpose unless there are changes in banking regulations between the two countries. Now we have to send the money to a bank in Europe before the U.S. seller can release the goods. That is a very unusual way to develop a trade relationship. For us, in many ways it's a sacrifice to pay in cash. We don't have a large reserve of cash. If there were changes in the travel restrictions, it would generate more dollars to buy more food."

END CUBA EMBARGO  1/17/03 USA Today: "But this business would be considerable. Recent studies demonstrate that the embargo hurts American companies, causing Americans to miss out on billions of dollars in potential trade with Cuba."

Cuba, But Not Its People, Still Gives the Church Short Shrift - Parish Life Growing, 5 Years After Papal Visit  1/17/03 Zenit, Italy: The Vatican might want to reflect that they have yet to elimate all traces of non-Christian religions and will never do so. Cuba experienced an kidnapee influx of 50% of its 19th century immigration, with all that this implies in the influence and development of African religions. The rim of an emigration always conserves the past in ways that are different from la Metropole, so the Yoruba are now different from Oyo and Egbado, though maybe not from Oshogbo, while the Bantu remember the large Mayombe forest on the Angola - Congo border, where visitors travel for thousands of miles to visit certain places.

Castro nemesis forced aside in White House shuffle  1/16/03 Chicago Sun Times: "Fidel Castro has hit his target. From the moment President Bush nominated Reich, the Cuban dictator worked to block him. Committed to eventual regime change in Havana, the Cuban-born Reich symbolized refusal to normalize U.S.-Cuban relations without democratization by Castro. Getting rid of Reich marked partial triumph for State Department professionals. It was only partial because the Foreign Service officers, backed by Secretary of State Colin Powell, could not place one of their own as Reich's successor. Reich's fate was complicated by international and domestic factors. In the Western Hemisphere, radical regimes in Venezuela and Brazil have ended Castro's isolation. In the United States, George W. Bush would not be president today were it not for the Cuban-American vote in Florida."

Cuba names new envoy to Eastern Caribbean  1/16/03 Jamaica Observer: "Ambassador Portella, who succeeded Lazaro Cabezas, the Cuban diplomat who spent 17 years as ambassador in the Caribbean, said he had the good fortune to establish personal relations with a number of Caribbean Community government leaders, ministers and officials while serving his country in various capacities. These included assignments to the European Union, Permanent Representative to the International Group for Nickel in The Hague and director of commerce for Latin America and the Caribbean in Cuba's Ministry of Foreign Trade. With 10 years of service in Europe and involvement in negotiations that extended to the new Cotonou Agreement between the EU and the African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries, ambassador Portella also participated in negotiations for the inter-governmental Mixed Commissions with Latin America and Caricom. He is the recipient of a number of official awards such as the Medal for Internationalist Combatant in Angola; Medal of Literacy; Medal for the 40th anniversary of the Revolutionary Armed Forces."

Bush Extends Lawsuit Restriction on Cuba  1/16/03 Newsday: "President Bush notified Congress on Thursday that he will maintain for another six months a measure barring lawsuits by Americans who saw their property in Cuba confiscated by Fidel Castro."

Cuba, China Sign Cooperation Accord  1/16/03 People's Daily, China: "Chinese and Cuban firms also signed contracts on China's purchase of Cuban nickel and sugar, and a letter of intention on Chinese investment in Cuba."

Caribbean nations meet in Cuba on drug trafficking  1/16/03 Reuters: "Fifteen Caribbean-sea countries began a United Nations-sponsored meeting in Havana on Thursday to fight drug abuse and the use of the area to ship 40 percent of the narcotics entering the United States and 65 percent entering Europe."

Panel says death of Castro wouldn't end communism  1/16/03 Sun Sentinel, South Florida

Guerrillero»	«Pinar del Río
El Habanero»	«La Habana
Tribuna de La Habana»	«Ciudad de La Habana
Girón»	«Matanzas
Vanguardia»	«Villa Clara
5 de Septiembre»	«Cienfuegos
Escambray»	«Sancti Spíritus
Invasor»	«Ciego de Ávila
Adelante»	«Camagüey
26»	«Las Tunas
La Demajagua»	«Granma
Ahora»	«Holguín
Sierra Maestra»	«Santiago de Cuba
Venceremos»	«Guantánamo
Victoria»	«Isla de la Juventud

Radio Ciudad de La Habana	Radio Metropolitana
Tiempo 21	Radio Cadena Habana
Radio Sancti Spíritus	CMHW Villa Clara
Radio Victoria	Radio Ciudad del Mar

Bohemia	Habanera
Giga	Temas
Prisma	Negocios en Cuba
Alma Mater	Caimán Barbudo
Mujeres	La Jiribilla
La Gaceta de Cuba	Zunzún
Avances Médicos de Cuba	Travel Trade Cuba
Somos Jóvenes	Opus Habana
Tricontinental	Cine Cubano
Revolución y Cultura	Cuba Internacional
Ciencias de la Información	Salsa Cubana
Juventud Técnica	Pionero
Opciones	El economista
Notinet	El Fénix
Orbe	Senderos

Ceniai	IslaGrande
Infocom	Cubaweb
Infomed	Citmatel
Archivo Nacional	Cubaciencia
Cubanic	Cubarte
Cienfuegos	UPEC
Redsolar	Gobierno cubano
Sitio de Elián	Cuba demanda
Cuba contra el bloqueo	CubAhora
Sitio del Ajedrez en Cuba	Marinas Puertosol
Directorio Turístico de Cuba	Ballet Nacional de Cuba
Casa de las Américas	NO al ALCA

Cuba in the News
Archive: 1/16/03-1/31/03

List of Cuban provincial papers and other sites

Contacting AfroCubaWeb

Copyright © 1997 AfroCubaWeb, S.A.

Cuba in the News Archive: 1/16/03-1/31/03

List of Cuban provincial papers and other sites

Contacting AfroCubaWeb

Copyright © 1997 AfroCubaWeb, S.A.

Cuba in the News
Archive: 1/16/03-1/31/03