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By Weekly Archive On Jun 18, 2008

Chávez
in Havana

A
service by the Radio Progreso Alternativa Havana Bureau.

"Raúl
at the helm and Fidel alive and well, thinking, writing and advising
on strategic guidelines that are very important for Cuba and Our
America," said Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez upon his
arrival at Havana’s International Airport on June 16.

The
Venezuelan leader is in Havana on a working visit to evaluate the
existing relations and agreements between both nations. He will also
discuss with Raúl and Fidel Castro — the latter labeled as
the "father of all revolutionaries” by him — the
international situation marked by high oil prices, and the food and
environmental crises.

In
his declarations to the press, President Chávez said that
Cuban and Venezuelan leaders are part of the same team, but stressed
that each process "has its own characteristics."

Fidel
and Raúl with Chávez

Cuban
TV showed a video of the second meeting of Fidel Castro with
presidents Raúl Castro and Hugo Chávez. In the
audio-less footing, Fidel is shown standing in a garden while holding
a lively conversation with Chávez and brother Raúl.

In
its Wednesday, June 18 edition, the daily Granma reported that during
the meeting, on June 17, which lasted an hour and a half, the three
leaders "exchanged ideas on several issues, particularly about
the impact of the crisis of food prices and the manner in which our
countries should deal with it. They consider the issue of strategic
importance and a problem of national security. The three agreed that
the main battle will be to increase food production and determined
that one way to achieve it is to boost joint projects in that field."

Previously,
President Chávez had said that "A few days ago I received
a note from Fidel in which he wrote about the worsening of the
energy, food and financial crises the world is in, besides the
increase of poverty, famine and other critical situations due to
climate change and other threats."

According
to Chávez, "Fidel calls the present situation the mother
of all crises, and in short it is a crisis of ideas, of governments,
of the capitalist model in general."

President
Chávez returned to Venezuela on Tuesday, June 17, and was seen
off by Cuban President Raúl Castro at Havana’s International
Airport.

Cuba
sends U.S. citizen back to the U.S.

A
press release by the Cuban Foreign Ministry reported that the Cuban
government decided on June 13 to deliver Leonard B. Auerbach to the
U.S. after a request by the United States government.

Auerbach,
a U.S. citizen, is wanted in his country for a sexual crime against a
minor and for possession of child pornography.

The
Cuban press release said that "Auerbach was arrested in Cuba on
May 7 after receiving information supplied by U.S. authorities.
During the subsequent investigation by Cuban authorities it was found
that Auerbach entered Cuba on April 8 by way of Mexico in order to
–according to his declaration — escape from U.S. justice. He had in
his possession photographs of a pornographic character.

“Since
it was found that during his stay in Cuban territory Auerbach did not
commit any crime, and since the crimes for which he is accused in the
United States are of a felonious nature and severely persecuted in
our country, including the collaboration with other countries, it was
decided to deliver the aforementioned citizen to his country of
origin."

Sentences
were of a political nature

Speaker
of Cuban Parliament Ricardo Alarcón harshly criticized the
U.S. government in Cuba’s TV program "The Round Table.”
Alarcón said that the "unfair and harsh sentences"
to five Cuban antiterrorists who have been jailed for ten years in
U.S. prisons are the result of demands by the Executive branch.

As
proof of his claim, Alarcón stressed the existence of several
people sentenced in the U.S. for espionage and terrorism who were
given, at most, 12 years in prison. For the Cuban parliamentary
leader this is evidence of the malice of the Bush administration
against Cuba.

Alarcón
showed a letter that over half a million Canadian students sent
President Bush demanding the liberation of René González,
Antonio Guerrero, Gerardo Hernández, Ramón Labañino
and Fernando González. The letter has been ignored by the
mainstream media.

"It
is our duty to keep on fighting for the liberation of these five
fellow countrymen," Alarcón said.

The
Cuban Five, as they are known internationally, were judged in Miami
and given sentences that range from 15 years to life imprisonment for
informing the Cuban government about the terrorist plots that
counterrevolutionary exile organizations based in the U.S. execute
with total impunity.

Light
bulbs in exchange for food

World
Data Service (WDS) reported that "Cuba will sell Argentina four
million energy saving light bulbs and will buy wheat, corn, oats,
barley, beef, poultry, fish, oil, flour, fruit, dairy products and
pasta."

According
to WDS, after the agreement was signed between Argentinean President
Cristina Fernández and Cuban Ambassador Aramís Fuentes,
Fernández said, "We are trading the technological ability
that Cuba supplies in relation to the rational use of light bulbs for
food, where we Argentineans have a very important role as world
exporters."

Nickel:
Number one money earner

With
a production of 76,000 tons of nickel plus cobalt, the industry
displaced tourism as the country’s biggest money earner.

The
figure, in dollars and cents, was not revealed, but according to the
National Statistics Office (ONE), tourism revenues in 2007 amounted
to $2.2 billion.

At
the eastern region of the island, particularly in the province of
Holguín, Cuba has the second largest nickel reserve in the
world. Cubaníquel, the state owned enterprise, plans
investments that in the short term would raise production to 100,000
tons a year.

Operation
against Illegal Manufacturing

A
June 17 report by the National Information Agency (AIN) said that as
part of an offensive against "social indiscipline in City of
Havana, 13 clandestine workshops and 10 warehouses were closed down
through the action of the provincial government, the National
Revolutionary Police, and the support of the people."

According
to AIN, Guillermo Pérez, an official of the Council of
Provincial Management, said that in the operation large quantities of
plates, dishes and hair pins were found, as well as machinery for the
manufacturing of plastic and aluminum products.

Pérez
also said that the 50 persons involved were fined between 500 and
2,000 pesos, and "10 were indicted for ‘illicit economic
activity’."

The
actions were carried out by the Ministry of the Interior’s Operative
Group against Social Indiscipline which has received popular support.