Cuban leader sees no improvement in Cuba-US relations

Cuban leader sees no improvement in Cuba-US relations
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2010-08-02 16:29

HAVANA - Cuban leader Raul Castro said on Sunday that "nothing has
changed" concerning Cuba-US relations despite occasional and limited
bilateral talks on specific topics.

Castro told the parliament that the US blockade against Cuba is still in
place, and the five Cubans jailed in the United States on spy charges
"remain suffering unjust imprisonment."

Hernandez, along with Rene Gonzalez, Antonio Guerrero, Ramon Labanino
and Fernando Gonzalez, was arrested in September 1998 in the US city of
Miami when monitoring actions of anti-Cuba groups.

The five are regarded as heroes in the island country.

Castro said there will not be impunity for enemies of Cuba, despite
Cuba's recent decision to release 53 inmates accused of serving as
mercenaries of Washington.

Cuba has insisted on the release of the five and the end of the 48-year
US trade and economic embargo if Washington wants to improve its
relations with the island country.

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/world/2010-08/02/content_11082654.htm

There Will be No Private Property

Publicado el 08-02-2010

Cuba: There Will be No Private Property

A market economy, which rests on the solid foundations of the right to
private property, will be inexistent in Cuba whose economy is
subordinated, as it has been for more than fifty-one years, to the
communist model –also called socialist– that depends on the
authoritarian whims of brothers Fidel and Raúl Castro. This has been
confirmed, over and over again, by top spokesmen of the regime, most
recently by Raúl Castro himself during statements around the anniversary
of July 26th.

Tourism is the only thing that contributes to help the wrecked Cuban
economy. This is a tourism that exploits the political situation of the
country and that thrives from the tyranny that prevails in the economic
and social fields. The regime decides at will the way in which the
sources of tourism must be managed for the benefit of the dictatorship
with the complicity of foreign investors, especially European hoteliers.
The operation of those hotels only benefits their owners and the Cuban
state, because the labor, that is, those who work in the industry,
receive limited salaries, although perhaps better than those that are
paid for other activities in the country. The Cuban government pays the
employees of those hotels, in agreement with their foreign owners.

Because of its tourist attractions, Cuba receives millions of visitors
from all over the world who go there to benefit from the exploitation of
the natural beauty of the island and the arbitrary advantages that the
tyranny offers those tourists who enjoy there what are the sacrifices
that the Cuban people have been suffering for more than fifty-one years.

In his last speech before the full National Assembly of Cuba, the
so-called President of the "Republic", Raúl Castro, ratified that the
economic model of the tyranny will continue with slight changes that
could be considered "cosmetic", but that fundamentally continue to
characterize a communist totalitarian regime. Moreover, the government's
Minister of Economy, Mariano Murillo, declared that "The economic
categories of socialism, not of the market, will prevail. Centralized
planning will continue, some things will be made lighter. We are not
going to hand over property."

http://www.diariolasamericas.com/noticia/104543/cuba-there-will-be-no-private-property

Can Cuba Turn to Capitalism?

Can Cuba Turn to Capitalism?
03.08.2010 Source: Pravda.Ru

Can Cuba turn to capitalism? It seems that the answer is yes. In any
case, this is what can be concluded from the words uttered by head of
state Raul Castro on August 1.

Speaking on Sunday, the brother of the leader of the Cuban Revolution
said that the country will have an "updated economic model." It will
include restriction of government intervention in private business
development, changes in the tax system, as well as layoff of every fifth
employee working for state enterprises. As it turned out, they are
simply redundant.

So far Cuba had been building socialism, the main economic component of
which is known to be a complete predominance of the public sector in the
economy. Strictly speaking, this is where 95 percent of Cubans are
currently employed.

Moreover, socialism does not entail unemployment. People seem to be
always attached to some company or organization. Now every fifth
employee of state enterprises will lose her job. This is a huge number
as it involves 19 percent of the adult population.

Russia Today: Cuba to take brakes off economy, but not turn off
socialism road

Of course, such changes are fraught with social upheaval. The Cuban
authorities addressed the issue to prevent it from happening. They
promise that all laid off employees will be retrained or reassigned.
However, a question arises: if every fifth job is redundant, then where
can these people be employed? The answer is the private sector.

A small number of entrepreneurs appeared in Cuba in the early 1990s.
Then the socialist camp collapsed, Cuba lost the old Soviet support, and
the United States tightened the embargo of the island. Under these
conditions, Cuba plunged into a severe economic crisis. In order to give
people at least some means of livelihood, the government had to allow
small and medium businesses.

Hairdressers, owners of small cafes and restaurants opened private
institutions, and became very successful. Supporters of "traditional
socialist values" sounded the alarm and forced the government to
introduce restrictions for the "bourgeois." Taxes were raised for the
private businesses and the rules for obtaining licenses were tightened.
As a result, only five percent of Cubans were employed outside of the
public sector.

Now the number of "workers of the capitalist labor" on the island has
markedly increased. Despite this, Raul Castro completely denies that
Cuba has fundamentally changed its entire economic system. According to
him, 55-year-old revolutionary struggle has proven its effectiveness,
and the country will continue to build socialism. He also denied rumors
that a split in the leadership of the country was brewing.

"The unity of leadership in the revolution and majority of the people is
our most important weapon. No matter how much it hurts our enemies, our
unity today is more robust than it has ever been. This unity is
supported by the greatest Socialist Democracy, and a broad discussion
with people on all issues," said Raul Castro.

Yet, it is quite difficult to predict the results of the planned changes.

"I had a chance to visit Cuba both during the Soviet era, and today,"
says Boris Martynov, Deputy Director of the Institute of Latin American,
in an interview with Pravda.ru. "Last time I was there in February (10
years after the first trip). I felt a very significant change.

People I spoke with, including scientists, say that their country is
living in anticipation of major changes. Actually, they are long
overdue. Now the life in Cuba revolves around "convertible peso"
designed for transactions with tourists. You can hardly buy anything
with a "regular peso" that Cubans are get paid with.

"Will coming reforms be too radical? "

"I want to tell to the Cubans: "Guys, do not rush the reform, learn from
other countries!" We need to find the gold Cuban middle to prevent the
impoverishment of millions of people. It is terrible to imagine what
happens if the situation deteriorates.

What will the Cuban capitalism look like? I do not think it is possible
to return to the days of dictator Batista (up to 1959 - Ed.) with
"Miami" plot when Cuban ex-immigrants from Florida will rush to Cuba
with American money. Most likely, there will be a type of state
capitalism (like the ones that already exist in several countries in
Latin America).

Most likely, Cuba will not follow the path of the Soviet Union and even
China. This is due to previous development of the country. The Cuban
Revolution took place under the obvious influence of the nationalists
who are still strong.

In 1961 Havana announced the transition to socialism largely under the
pressure of external circumstances. Then the country was threatened with
U.S. invasion, and Cuba has found protection in the name of the USSR. 30
years later the Soviet Union collapsed, and the socialist system in
Eastern Europe crumbled. As a result, Havana has lost the old Soviet
support.

However, Cuba has not abandoned the idea of socialism. There was a time
when the Cubans were eating grass, but they have not abandoned their
course and survived. And it was then when Cuba was a truly independent
country, and no one imposed their course on it.

"Who do you think can implement such major changes?"

"This is one of the main issues of Cuban politics. Raul announced the
changes, but he is a representative of the old elite. Can he be a
reformer? On the other hand, the Castro brothers are Marxists. What's
wrong with Marxism? Those that profess it, in my opinion, are in
anticipation of a miracle. But miracles do not happen. An entirely
different view on the situation in the economy and the country as a
whole is required to implement real reforms without hurting the
interests of ordinary people.

One more thing: in the next five to ten years, Cuba's current leadership
should completely retire because of its venerable age. Therefore, the
challenge to reform the country will probably be on the shoulders of a
new leader. How will these changes will take place remains an important
issue.

"The Americans are most likely to try to interfere."

"As for the Americans, of course, they have not relinquished or
abandoned their attempts to bring the situation in Cuba under their
control. But they will not use force. They have not ventured into this
even in 1990s, when the country lost its former Soviet intercession. And
they will not dare do it now, when the American troops are tied down
fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan."

Sergei Balmasov
Vadim Trukhachev
Pravda.Ru

http://english.pravda.ru/world/americas/03-08-2010/114458-cuba_capitalism-0

Cuba to lay off 1 million 'excess' public sector workers

Cuba to lay off 1 million 'excess' public sector workers
15:44 02/08/2010
RIA Novosti. Anton Denisov

Cuba will start slashing one million excess jobs in the public sector,
Cuban President Raul Castro said on Monday.

"After months of investigations held under a program to renew the Cuban
economic model, the Council of Ministers has adopted a number of
measures aimed at reducing the number of surplus workplaces in the state
sector," Castro told the country's parliament.

The country's leader said that one million workplaces in Cuba are
surplus - some 20% of the country's employable population.

Currently, the vast majority of Cuba's economy is in state hands.
Castro's move is aimed at limiting the number of state workers and
expanding self-employment.

Castro said he would launch new wage and salary regulations early next
year, but did not give specific details.

HAVANA, August 2 (RIA Novosti)

http://en.rian.ru/world/20100802/160040840.html

The Original BACARDI Cuba Libre Celebrates 110th Anniversary

The Original BACARDI Cuba Libre Celebrates 110th Anniversary
BusinessWire · Tuesday, Aug. 3, 2010

BACARDI Rum, the world's favorite and best-selling premium rum,
celebrates the 110th anniversary of the creation of the Original Cuba
Libre. With its refreshing combination of BACARDI Rum and the American
classic Coca-Cola™ and rich historical ties to Cuba, this legendary
drink has withstood the test of time and continues to be enjoyed by
millions of consumers internationally.

The origins of the Original Cuba Libre trace back to Cuba's War for
Independence in 1898, when Colonel Theodore Roosevelt and his regiment,
known as the Rough Riders, along with large droves of Americans arrived
in Cuba. American troops introduced Coca-Cola™ to Cuba, and it soon
became a popular choice for Cubans and Americans alike.

In August 1900, while celebrating victory at the American Bar in Havana,
Cuba, Captain Russell of the United States Army Signal Corps, ordered
his Cuban BACARDI Rum and Coke®, served with a wedge of fresh lime. This
new combination sparked interest from the soldiers around him and soon
the entire bar was drinking one. The Captain proposed a toast, "¡Por
Cuba libre!" in celebration of a free Cuba. The words Cuba Libre –
meaning Free Cuba – had a special political significance, and were
frequently used by Cubans and Americans alike. It seemed quite natural
that the American soldiers selected and applied this popular slogan to
this drink, which they considered indigenous to Cuba, consisting of
BACARDI Rum and Coca-Cola™. The name caught on quickly, and has remained
popular to this day.

"More than 80 billion BACARDI Cuba Libre cocktails have been served
since 1900, and close to 6,000,000 are consumed every day around the
world," said Eugenio Mendez, Global Category Director – Rums for
Bacardi. "The fact that the Cuba Libre cocktail continues to gain
popularity after more than 100 years speaks to the exceptional quality
and great taste BACARDI adds to this iconic drink."

Don Facundo Bacardí revolutionized the world of spirits when he created
BACARDI Rum, known for being an innovator. As the ultimate mixing
spirit, BACARDI Rum went on to become the original rum used to create
legendary cocktails like the Mojito, the Daiquirí, and the Piña Colada.
For nearly 150 years, through eight generations of Don Facundo's
descendants, Bacardi has focused on quality, taste and excellence.

Original Cuba Libre

2 parts BACARDI Rum

4 parts Coca-Cola™

2 lime wedges

Ice cubes

Fill a highball glass with cubed ice. Squeeze and drop a fresh lime
wedge into the glass. Pour in BACARDI Rum and top with chilled
Coca-Cola™, ideally bottled. Stir gently.

Original BACARDI Mojito

2 parts BACARDI Rum

½ fresh lime

12 mint leaves

2 heaped tsp. fine white sugar

Splash club soda

Cut the lime in wedges and place in a large highball glass. Add the
sugar and muddle to release the lime juice. Add the mint leaves and
muddle lightly again to release and combine the flavors. Top up with
crushed ice. Pour BACARDI Rum. Swizzle well with a bar spoon to dissolve
the sugar. Top up with more crushed ice. Add soda water. Stir well again
to combine all the ingredients and garnish with a fresh mint sprig.

BACARDI Hand-Shaken Daiquirí

2 parts BACARDI Rum

1 part fresh lime juice

2 heaped tsp. fine white sugar

Put all ingredients in a cocktail shaker and stir until the sugar
dissolves. Fill shaker with ½ cubed ice and ½ crushed ice and shake
vigorously until chilled. Double strain into a chilled or frozen glass.

BACARDI Piña Colada

2 parts BACARDI Rum

1 ½ parts fresh coconut water blended with some of the flesh

1 part pineapple juice

3-4 chunks fresh pineapple

3 tsp. fine white sugar

Combine all ingredients in a blender with ½ cup of crushed ice. Blend
until smooth. Can be shaken and strained if a blender is unavailable or
a less "smoothie-like" texture is preferred.

For additional recipes, please visit www.bacardi.com.

About BACARDI Rum - BACARDI Rum tops more than 300 awards and is the
world's most awarded rum.

In 1862, in Santiago de Cuba, founder Don Facundo Bacardí Massó
revolutionized the spirits industry when he created the world's first
premium white rum – BACARDI. The unique taste of BACARDI Rum inspired
cocktail pioneers to invent some of the world's most famous drinks
including the Mojito, the Daiquirí and the Cuba Libre. Today, BACARDI
Rum is made in Puerto Rico and Mexico where it is crafted to ensure that
the taste remains the same today as it did when it was first blended in
1862."

http://www.financialpost.com/markets/news/Original+BACARDI+Cuba+Libre+Celebrates+110th+Anniversary/3353115/story.html

Canadian teen stuck in Cuba hits another roadblock

Canadian teen stuck in Cuba hits another roadblock
Published On Mon Aug 02 2010

A Canadian teen who has been stuck in Cuba for three months hit another
roadblock Monday after learning there are still restrictions on his
passport that bar him from leaving the country.

Cody LeCompte, a 19-year-old from Norfolk County, tried to book his trip
home to Canada on Monday after Cuban officials told him last week that
he could go home.

But when a travel agent tried to purchase the ticket, the LeCompte
family was told they still had many bureaucratic obstacles to overcome.

"Cody is absolutely devastated," Danette LeCompte said from Santa Lucia,
where she has been trying to secure her son's release. "He was so
looking forward to going home."

Prohibited from leaving the country since getting into a car accident in
April, Cuban police let LeCompte's family post bail last week on the
condition he return for a trial.

The family obliged, and paid the 2,000 Cuban pesos ($100 Canadian).
LeCompte's uncle, Gary Parmenter, was told by an official at the
Canadian embassy in Havana Monday morning the prosecution had signed off
on the agreement and that Cuba's immigration department just needed to
lift a ban on his passport, which was expected to have been done.

But later in the afternoon, when LeCompte tried to book his trip with a
travel agent in Canada, the teen learned he still wasn't free to go.
Parmenter said a Cuban lawyer explained that in addition to the bail
conditions being approved, a document clearing the passport also needs
to be signed by Cuba's foreign affairs department.

After that happens, the Cuban immigration department must conduct a
review and sign off, Parmenter said, adding there is no assurance that
will happen.

"We've gone through a roller coster ride for three months," Danette
LeCompte said. "It's just another delay on top of everything we've been
through."

It's unclear how long it will take for the approvals to come through,
she said, adding "the problem with Cuba is that you don't get timelines
for anything."

The ordeal began April 29 when the rental car LeCompte was driving was
side-swiped by a pickup truck. The accident sent him, his mother, his
uncle and his uncle's Cuban fiancé to hospital. All have recovered from
their injuries.

All accidents resulting in death or injury in Cuba are treated as
possible crimes and LeCompte was ordered to remain in the country until
the case was resolved.

The family says the situation has cost them $30,000.

Last week, Peter Kent, junior foreign affairs minister, expressed
concern that the investigation was taking too long. He said "the delay
faced by Canadians awaiting resolution of such cases could affect fellow
Canadians' choice of Cuba as a tourist destination."

According to the Department of Foreign Affairs, 108 Canadians have been
arrested or detained in Cuba since 2006; about 10 per cent of the cases
are vehicle-related.

About one million Canadians visited Cuba last year.

Although LeCompte expects to eventually leave Cuba, he will have to
return for his trial, which will determine if he faces any charges. If
found guilty, LeCompte has been told he could face time in a Cuban prison.

http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/transportation/article/843136--canadian-teen-stuck-in-cuba-hits-another-roadblock?bn=1

Cuban cardinal visits U.S. for award

Posted on Tuesday, 08.03.10
Cuban cardinal visits U.S. for award
Cuban Cardinal Jaime Ortega will travel to Washington to receive an
award -- and possibly talk with U.S. officials.
By JUAN O. TAMAYO
jtamayo@ElNuevoHerald.com

Cuban Cardinal Jaime Ortega is making a second visit to Washington, this
time to accept an award and give a speech at the annual conference of
the Knights of Columbus.

But Ortega, who engaged in unprecedented talks with Cuban leader Raúl
Castro, also is trying to meet with U.S. government officials and trade
and business groups based in the capital, Cuba analysts said.

During Ortega's previous visit to Washington, he informed U.S. officials
about the status of the talks that led to a promise to free 52 political
prisoners.

A Knights of Columbus statement said the Catholic organization would
award Ortega its highest award, the Gaudium et Spes Award, during a
dinner Tuesday. The Supreme Convention of the Knights of Columbus runs
from Tuesday to Thursday.

Cuba analysts, who asked for anonymity because they received the
information in confidence, said they were told Ortega would be in
Washington Monday through Wednesday and has been trying to arrange
meetings with officials at the State Department and the White House's
National Security Council.

He also has been trying to arrange meetings with major trade and
business groups based in the Washington area, the analysts added.

``He's definitely trying to make the rounds, trying to make the best of
his time here,'' one analyst said.

Ortega last visited Washington June 22, just days before he announced
that the Castro government had agreed to free political prisoners jailed
since a 2003 crackdown on dissent.

Officials in Washington last month confirmed to El Nuevo Herald that
Ortega had met with Arturo Valenzuela, assistant secretary of state for
Western Hemisphere Affairs, and Rep. Howard Berman, D-Calif., chairman
of the House Foreign Affairs committee.

Berman, who like Valenzuela has not confirmed the meeting, has endorsed
a bill before Congress that would lift the ban on U.S. tourism travel to
Cuba and ease restrictions on U.S. food sales to the island.

The Ortega-Castro talks, with support from the Spanish government, began
in March after government-organized mobs harassed the Ladies in White
during their Sunday marches to demand the release of male relatives
jailed since the 2003 crackdown.

On July 7, Ortega announced that Castro had agreed to free 52 political
prisoners over the next three to four months. Twenty have already been
freed and left Cuba for Spain, along with more than 100 relatives.

Cuba has not released any of the 10 or so political prisoners who have
vowed to remain in Cuba and continue opposition activities.

http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/08/03/1758438/cuban-cardinal-visits-us-for-award.html

Mutual dependence

Posted on Tuesday, 08.03.10
LATIN AMERICA
Mutual dependence
BY CARLOS ALBERTO MONTANER
www.firmaspress.com

In the Cuban city of Santa Clara during the recent July 26 ceremony, the
national anthems of Cuba and Venezuela were played. It was symbolic of
the underlying idea -- Cubazuela or Venecuba.

Hugo Chávez and Fidel -- with the reluctant acceptance of Raúl, who
lacks power to object, although he is convinced that Chávez is a
half-crazy cretin and doesn't understand why his brother loves him so --
have reprised the idea of joining the two countries in a sort of
federation. Their theory, Hugo's and Fidel's, is that the two
revolutions need each other to survive.

To Chávez, Cuba is an inexhaustible source of police intelligence,
political control and administrative example. He doesn't even have to
bother to write a rhetorical speech because it was fabricated for him in
Havana many years ago, using an old Marxist-Leninist script: the
aggressive plunder of the Yanqui empire, the horror of the greedy
capitalists, the market's miserable indifference to poverty, the
struggle of the world's oppressed against the oligarchies, and the rest
of the ideological hogwash typical of the tribe.

By this time, Chávez knows too well that Cuba is an absolute economic
and social disaster, from which anyone who can escape will. But this
``little'' detail counts for a lot less than the immense capacity for
survival that that regime gives him. What he's interested in is to hold
power forever, and there's no doubt that the Castros have that formula.

The progressive pauperization of his country is unimportant to Chávez if
he manages to grow old sitting on the presidential chair. After all,
Fidel also has built an infallible strategy to deal with material
catastrophe: On one hand, he denies it, while on the other he praises
frugality and condemns consumerism.

Suffice it to close one's eyes and slip comfortably into a benevolent
speech about the children being educated and the sick being cured, while
simultaneously savaging the greed of those countries that consume the
planet's dwindling resources. All of a sudden, being and living like a
beggar become an exemplary virtue.

To Fidel, Chávez and Venezuela are a guarantee that the Cuban revolution
will last beyond his death. Fidel does not trust Raúl's abilities. He
knows Raúl is loyal and competent -- but incapable of dreaming big.

Raúl is not a visionary. He does not have grandiose visions or hear the
voices of history. He lacks that glorious megalomaniacal touch, with
paranoid accents, that characterizes the great revolutionaries. Raúl
does not want to change the world, just the cows. He engages in pursuits
as pedestrian as enabling children to gain access to a glass of milk
after they're 7. Sheer ordinariness.

Naturally, there's also the argument of the petrodollars. Venezuela,
like the Soviet Union in the past, is useful to pay for the system's
inefficiency. Cuba can continue to be exquisitely unproductive because
that inability is subsidized by Venezuela in various ways: by sending
crude oil that is never paid for, by paying astronomical sums for
services that are never rendered (or rendered poorly, except for police
advice), and by using Cuba to triangulate purchases.

For example, Venezuela needs a drill to extract crude, or a million
kilos of powdered milk, so it places an order with some phantom
companies in Cuba at an outrageous price. In turn, the companies buy the
product on the international market, for a reasonable price, and keep
the huge profits. In almost all countries in the world that is called
fraud. To Chávez and Fidel, it is an example of internationalist
solidarity paid for by the long-suffering Venezuelans.

What's interesting about this progressive fusion of the two countries is
that it doubles the areas of risk. The Cubans know that the Castros'
exhausted regime depends on a thin biological thread from which two
ailing old men dangle, while the Venezuelans are aware that Chávez has
the support of only 30 percent of the population and the growing
rejection of the rest of the country, an imbalance of forces that could
lead to his departure from power.

If either government plunges into a crisis, it will drag the other to
destruction. For sure.

http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/08/03/1758458/mutual-dependence.html

Fidel Castro leads ceremony unveiling his new book

Posted on Monday, 08.02.10
Fidel Castro leads ceremony unveiling his new book
By WILL WEISSERT
Associated Press Writer

HAVANA -- Fidel Castro presented his new book at a closed-door ceremony
Monday, a work he says contains an autobiographical section and details
a major military victory that sped his rise to power in 1959.

The book, "The Strategic Victory," has yet to be released to the general
public. Organizers of the unveiling ceremony said 3,500 copies would be
made available in coming days and 50,000 copies would eventually be
published.

State television showed images of Castro's appearance at Havana's
convention center, alongside his longtime official biographer, Katiuska
Blanco. Wearing a red, short-sleeve shirt and appearing relaxed, Castro
spoke for more than an hour, largely reading from the book and pointing
out highlights to a crowd that included ex-castaway Elian Gonzalez and
his family.

It was the second time Gonzalez, who was 6 when he was at the center of
a nasty international custody battle pitting Cuba against the United
States and who is now 16, was at a public event where Castro turned up.

When he was through reading, Castro took some historical questions from
the crowd, then signed copies of the book.

Castro, whose 84th birthday is Aug. 13, has made a string of near daily
public appearances of late, after staying almost completely out of the
public eye since undergoing emergency intestinal surgery in July 2006.
He ceded power to his younger brother Raul on a temporary basis, then
and stepped down as president for good in February 2008.

Fidel has not been seen publicly with Raul and has skipped major
political events, such as Sunday's session of Cuba's parliament or last
week's celebration marking Revolution Day, the top holiday on Cuba's
official calendar. But he has been popping up in other, unlikely places,
from a meeting with Cuban ambassadors at the foreign ministry to the
dolphin show at the Havana aquarium.

"I thought that this work wouldn't happen. We've been working on it a
long time, and now I received this surprise," Castro said at the book
reading.

He said he was surprised the book is being released so quickly, in just
a matter of weeks after he completed it.

The author of numerous books, Castro already completed and released
another volume since his health crisis, writing on Cuba's role in
attempts to broker peace between Colombia's government and rebel groups
that have waged a decades-long civil war in that country.

The new book runs nearly 800 pages and includes maps, photos and
illustrations of the weapons that his bearded rebels used during an
important battle in 1958 that saw Castro's forces prevail over thousands
of government soldiers in the isolated and rugged Sierra Maestra
mountains in Cuba's east.

That victory paved the way for dictator Fulgencio Batista to flee Cuba
the following New Year's Day.

The lengthy excerpts Castro read Monday talked about the 1958 military
battle.

Castro says his latest book also contains details about his early life.
A possible memoir by Cuba's top revolutionary has long intrigued those
in publishing circles, but exactly what Castro has been willing to
reveal in his autobiographical section remains to be seen.

Castro has said he is already working on a follow-up book.

http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/08/02/1758414/fidel-castro-leads-ceremony-unveiling.html

Cody can go home, Cuba finally says

Cody can go home, Cuba finally says
By CHRIS DOUCETTE, Toronto Sun
Last Updated: August 2, 2010 2:02pm

SANTA LUCIA, CUBA - Finally, some good news for Cody LeCompte.

With only 24 hours remaining until the next flight leaves from nearby
Camaguey and still no word on whether he'd be allowed to leave Cuba, the
Simcoe teen and his family were beginning to lose hope.

But just before noon Monday, the 19-year-old's uncle, Gary Parmenter,
received a call from an official at the Canadian embassy in Havana — a
call the family has been waiting anxiously for since last Wednesday.

"Cuban officials have now signed off on his bail conditions and release
order," Parmenter told the Sun moments after learning his nephew's more
than three months of detention was nearing an end.

"The paperwork has now been sent to Cuba's immigration department and we
just have to wait for them to lift the hold on Cody's passport that
prevents him from travelling," the teen's uncle said.

Cody has been stranded in the Communist country since April 29 when he
was broadsided by a dump truck while driving a rental car.

Cody, his mom, a cousin, and the cousin's fiancee — a local woman — were
all badly hurt.

Under Cuban law, any accident involving a tourist in which a Cuban
national is seriously injured is treated as a criminal matter, meaning
the tourist can't leave the country until the investigation and, if
necessary, the trial are completed.

"This is just wonderful news," Danette said of the latest development in
her son's release.

"I really wasn't expecting this today."

The single mother, who was also in the car at the time of the crash, has
been in Cuba with her son for most of the last three months and has
racked up $30,000 trying to get Cody home.

Aafter the accident, there was serious concern the teen could land in a
Cuban prison for up to three years, even though he maintains it wasn't
his fault and he was never charged with anything.

"I'm very, very relieved," Danette said. "It's unbelievable, after all
this time, to think tomorrow could finally be the day."

In the wake of intense scrutiny from the media and upset Canadians
across the country, the Harper government finally stepped in last
Tuesday and strongly urged the Cubans to expedite Cody's case.

The next day, a deal was worked out allowing Cody to leave Cuba as long
as he paid $2,000 Pesos bail and agreed to return if there's a trial.

The LeCompte family has just been waiting for officials in Havana to
sign off on the deal and they were beginning to doubt it would be done
in time for them to fly home Tuesday.

"I can't believe it," Cody said. "I honestly didn't think it was going
to happen this week. I figured there would be some other delay."

"I can't wait to get back home on Canadian soil!"

chris.doucette@sunmedia.ca

http://www.torontosun.com/news/torontoandgta/2010/08/02/14900246.html

Cuban refugee in Spain gives up hunger strike

Posted on Monday, 08.02.10
Cuban refugee in Spain gives up hunger strike
BY JUAN O. TAMAYO
jtamayo@ElNuevoHerald.com

A Cuban refugee in Spain has ended a hunger strike after getting a new
Spanish government promise that he will get residency and a work permit
-- 15 months after he was first promised them.

Jorge Alberto Pérez Fernández said a senior Interior Ministry official
told him the government had agreed to grant him legal status, though the
documents will be issued next month because the government comes to a
virtual halt during the August vacation period.

``I told him that words can be carried away by the wind, and he sent a
written note'' containing the promise of permanent residency, a work
permit and access to Spain's social security system, Pérez told El Nuevo
Herald by phone.

The 42-year-old architect from the eastern town of Banes went on a
hunger strike July 19 to protest the Spanish government's failure to
meet its promise to grant him residency and a work permit within six
months after his arrival in June 2009.

Pérez fled Cuba on a small boat but was picked up by the U.S. Coast
Guard on April 16, 2008, and taken to the Navy base in Guantánamo
because his dissident activities supported his fear of persecution if he
was returned to Cuba.

He and seven other Cubans who had arrived in Guantánamo under similar
circumstances were flown to Spain on June 8, 2009. They carried letters
from the U.S. State Department saying the Spanish government had
promised to grant them political asylum or residency in a maximum of six
months.

The seven others received immigration documents, but Pérez, who settled
in Spain's Canary Islands, was denied political asylum. His later
request for temporary residency was also denied, as was his appeal.

He was an undocumented migrant who could not legally work, and the
initial financial aid arranged by the U.S. State Department through a
Washington-based nonprofit, about $700 a month, ran out after six months.

Spanish officials never explained the reasons behind the denials, said
his Cuban-born lawyer in Madrid, Gustavo Fuentes.

Pérez's case cast a shadow over the Spanish government's promises to
grant the best immigration status possible to the 20 recently released
Cuban political prisoners who have arrived in Madrid with more than 100
relatives.

Pérez said he quickly cautioned some of the new arrivals to carefully
consider what kind of status they wanted -- and then fight to make sure
the Spanish government met its promises.

http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/08/02/1757596/cuban-refugee-in-spain-gives-up.html

Cuba a prison masquerading as a nation

Cuba a prison masquerading as a nation
By Ian Robinson
Last Updated: August 2, 2010 2:00am

Hmm.

Looking for a vacation spot. Gotta have sun and sand and beaches. Cheap
would be good.

Let's see. Is there a repressive police state lacking in anything
resembling rule of law as I know it that I could go to? Some place with
a political system endorsed by Hollywood celebrities like self-loathing
American Michael Moore and Jew-baiter Oliver Stone?

For tens of thousands of Canadians every year, Cuba is the answer to
that question.

One of them is a kid from Simcoe, Ont., who, after three months, is
expected to finally be free to leave Cuba Tuesday because he committed
the "crime" of being hit by another driver while behind the wheel.

A cousin and his Cuban fiancee were in the vehicle Cody LeCompte was
driving, and the fiancee was injured but has since recovered. But
because a Cuban citizen was injured in the crash, Cuban law says Cody
couldn't leave unless he proves his innocence.

Cuban law is weird like that. They even have legislation on the books
allowing the government to throw you in prison for "dangerousness." You
don't have to commit an actual crime.

So Cody ran up insane, five-digit hotel bills while he waited for the
wheels of Cuban "justice" to turn.

This is kind of ironic, because the trip was a gift from Cody's mom to
reward him for getting into college.

So much for the old college fund.

Apparently, he faced the prospect of three years in a Cuban jail.

You do not want to spend time in a prison in Cuba.

According to Human Rights Watch, rape is common, with the full
co-operation and connivance of staff. Prisoners in particular disfavour
can expect to be deliberately placed in cells with prisoners with
contagious diseases such as tuberculosis. Broken bones go untreated. Raw
sewage runs along the floors and meals are sometimes as meagre as a cup
of sugared water. Starvation is a weapon used against prisoners as is
long-term solitary confinement. In the dark.

For some reason, the political left has long had a love affair with
thuggish regimes at war with their own people. Young folks who can't
read or think are still wearing T-shirts emblazoned with the face of Che
Guevara, the Cuban doctor turned mass murderer who begged for his life
before Bolivian troops turned out his lights. They don't realize
celebrating Che is like wearing a T-shirt endorsing Heinrich Himmler.

Cuba is a prison masquerading as a nation and we travel there at our own
risk and it is naive to think that just because they love our travel
dollars, they aren't willing to mess us over individually. It's been
reported that the only reason Cody's being sprung at all is because the
Canadian government reminded the Cubans of that fact.

In the interest of full disclosure, a long, long time ago, I took a
Cuban vacation.

My only excuse is that I was young and ignorant and had achieved the
political development of a 10-year-old ... which is to say I was still
voting NDP — although in my defence at least it was Ed Broadbent NDP,
not Jack Layton NDP.

I didn't realize that when I spent my money in Cuba, I was signing the
paycheques for the guards who were raping and abusing political
prisoners whose only crime was wanting what I already had ... freedom. I
was subsidizing an honest-to-God, old-school police state. I was helping
buy the barbed wire and manacles.

I hope Cody LeCompte gets home safe. I'm thankful he will never see the
inside of one of Cuba's prisons.

And I sincerely hope his story serves as a cautionary tale. If you won't
take Cuba off your destination list because the thought of subsidizing
torture is abhorrent to you, maybe you'll do it because you're too
scared to go there.

ian.robinson@sunmedia.ca

http://www.ottawasun.com/comment/columnists/2010/07/30/14882401.html

Cuba reduces budget deficit in 2009

Cuba reduces budget deficit in 2009
Published on Monday, August 2, 2010

HAVANA, Cuba (ACN) -- Cuba reduced the budget deficit approved by the
Parliament in 2009 by 826 million pesos and increased revenues, though
slightly, reported the Committee on Economic Affairs to the National
Assembly of People's Power.

Chairman of this Committee Osvaldo Martinez recalled that this went on
through successive adjustments in the economic plan and reductions of
the expected growth In real terms, we reached 4.9 percent of GDP, better
than what was approved and even more than the deficit of 6.7 percent of
GDP in 2008, Martinez stated in his speech at the plenary session.

He explained that the 0.8 percent growth in the revenues allowed
covering the small increase in unplanned expenditure, and a
redistribution to cover wage increases in education, to acquire
agricultural products to replace imports, and to support actions for the
recovering of the damages caused by the 2008 hurricanes.

Martinez said one of the factors that affected a better performance of
the economy was the people lagging behind in payments for the household
appliances sold to them that amount to over 650 million pesos.

On expenditure, Martinez praised its reduction by 1.8 percent "which
expresses a positive trend and those efforts to save should be increased".

He also expressed concern about the negative subsidy for losses to
government enterprises, amounting to 602 500 000 pesos, added to the
over 3 billion pesos in losses accumulated in the last three years,
which prevent them from making payments.

Finance and Prices Minister Lina Peraza said recalled that the budget
deficit for 2009 was of a little over 3 billion pesos and explained that
71 percent of the budgeted expenditure is concentrated in education,
health, safety and welfare, culture and sport.

She clarified that even though the budget was settled with favorable
results the control of resources is still insufficient for monies to be
used on real needs, while there is a lack of transparency in the
accounting records.

She lashed weak management, extended indiscipline and the bad habit of
wasting counting on the government to provide further.

http://www.caribbeannetnews.com/article.php?news_id=24078

Cuba expands private sector against malaise - Summary

Cuba expands private sector against malaise - Summary

Havana - Cuba took another step Sunday to expand its private sector,
announcing that people will be allowed to operate small business and
hire workers and that its large state employee roster would be whittled
down.The measures, announced by President Rau

Posted : Mon, 02 Aug 2010 02:16:41 GMT
By : dpa

Havana - Cuba took another step Sunday to expand its private sector,
announcing that people will be allowed to operate small business and
hire workers and that its large state employee roster would be whittled
down.

The measures, announced by President Raul Castro at a session of the
National Assembly, come as the Caribbean island grapples with economic
malaise.

"The Council of Ministers has agreed to expand self-employment as a
possible alternative for redundant workers," Castro declared.

Castro, who has ruled Cuba since his brother and legendary revolutionary
leader Fidel Castro fell ill in 2007, said that the "enormous roll" of
state employees would be reduced in stages, starting this year. He did
not mention numbers, but in April the president said 1 million of the 5
million state employees were redundant.

Castro also warned political opponents that the recent decision to
release 52 political prisoners should not be interpreted as an
invitation to subvert the country. "Those who attempt to endanger our
independence will not escape with impunity," Castro said.

Economic Minister Marino Murillo Jorge, speaking on the sidelines of the
assembly, declared that the economic measures were adjustments to the
socialist economy, and that Cuba would never adopt a free market economy.

The economic measures are a "structural change" in Cuba's socialist
economy, Castro said, made in the interest of "preserving and
developing" the social system and "making it sustainable in the future."

The assembly discussed a variety of current economic woes, from poor
productivity and bureaucracy to corruption, with some of the blame put
on the global economic recession and natural weather disasters.

Sugar and coffee production, two of the mainstays of Cuba's export
economy, are both dramatically down.

Castro also criticized the "paternalistic" attitude toward work and said
Cuba has to erase the notion that it is the only country in the world
where it is possible to "live without working."

In Cuba, 95 per cent of the economy depends on the state. After the
collapse of the Soviet Union in the early 1990s, Cuba lost its mainstay
of economic support, and Cuban authorities authorized some small businesses.

But the government later stopped granting company licenses to individuals.

Castro said economic results for the first half of 2010 were
"encouraging" and emphasized the increase in the number of tourists.

http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/news/337511,sector-malaise-summary.html

Cuba eyes more self-employment as layoffs loom

Cuba eyes more self-employment as layoffs loom
AFP
by Carlos Batista Carlos Batista – Sun Aug 1, 9:37 pm ET

HAVANA (AFP) – With government plans afoot to slash as many as one
million jobs -- or 20 percent of communist Cuba's work force -- from
state payrolls, President Raul Castro said he would allow more small
private businesses.

The economy, 95 percent of which is currently in state hands, does not
have the ability to absorb such vast numbers of jobless. Castro's move
aims to try to reduce the socioeconomic fallout, but it will be an
uphill battle.

The Council of Ministers "agreed to expand the range of self-employment
jobs, and their use as another alternative for workers who lose their
jobs," Castro said as he gave a closing address at a biannual session of
the National Assembly.

After the crash of the former Soviet bloc, Cuba's cash-strapped
government in the 1990s approved a wide range of self-employment.
Positions such as beauticians, dog groomers, small restaurant owners and
even lighter refillers were legalized as long as workers got licenses
and paid taxes.

But social resentment spread when some workers, particularly in small
private restaurants, achieved dramatic levels of success.

The government began increasing taxation and regulation, and decreasing
license-granting, until the self-employed sector was largely rendered
paralyzed, like the rest of the economy.

Cuba has no regular access to international funding; it depends heavily
on the cut-rate oil it gets from Venezuela in order to keep its fragile
economy afloat. Tourism earnings and remittances from emigres also are
key pillars of the Cuban economy.

Inefficiency is rampant and wages are woefully low.

Cubans' hopes had been running high that some change was coming to allow
some economic opening in the Americas' only one-party communist regime.

But the Castro government ruled out the possibility of a sweeping turn
toward capitalism.

"One cannot speak of reforms," said Economy Minister Marino Murillo.

"We are studying an updating of the Cuban economic model in which
socialist economic priorities will be at the forefront, and not the
market," he stressed, in a message sure to disappoint many on the island
desperately weary after years of hardship and almost no economic or
political change.

By 2009, there were just 148,000 people out of a work force of five
million who were legally self-employed.

Raul Castro, 79, said he would launch new wage and salary practices
early next year. He did not give details.

Three months ago he gave a green light for a test-run privatization of
barber and beauty shops.

Under the limited program, the state now rents out shops to workers who
used to live mainly on tips and work at home on off hours. Now stylists
are able to set their own prices, and are working at improving service.
Stylists pay for a license, their rent, social security plus electric
and water bills.

Legislative committees have been looking at whether privatization can be
expanded in food businesses, long plagued by insufficient supply, high
prices, and major problems in the distribution chain, from rampant theft
to spoilage.

Castro took the reins from his ailing brother Fidel Castro four years
ago, saying he wanted to boost production. But the Cuban government has
not made bold policy shifts able to achieve the gains it wants.

So far the government has handed fallow land to Cubans willing to farm
it, and has ended the equal scale for salaries for all workers across
industries.

But workers still make an average of around 20 dollars a month.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20100802/ts_afp/cubaeconomylegislaturepolitics_20100802013741

Cuba to Cut Workers and Relax Business Rules

Cuba to Cut Workers and Relax Business Rules
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: August 1, 2010

HAVANA (AP) — The Cuban government will scale back controls on small
businesses, lay off unnecessary workers and allow more self-employment,
President Raúl Castro said Sunday, major steps in a country where the
state dominates nearly every facet of the economy.

But Mr. Castro, speaking at the opening session of Parliament, also
scoffed at what he said was media speculation that Cuba planned sweeping
economic changes to dig itself out of a financial crisis. "With
experience accumulated in more than 55 years of revolutionary struggle,
it doesn't seem like we're doing too badly, nor that desperation or
frustration have been our companions along the way," he said.

About 95 percent of all Cubans work for the government, a sector Mr.
Castro called "considerably bloated." Those who are laid off, he said,
will be retrained or reassigned.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/02/world/americas/02cuba.html

Raúl Castro to allow Cubans more private sector jobs

Raúl Castro to allow Cubans more private sector jobs

Leader says prohibitions on licences and commercialisation will be
rolled back in effort to reduce 'bloated' state sector

More Cubans will be allowed to work for themselves and hire their own
workers, the country's president has said, while ruling out wholesale
reform of the communist economy.

Raúl Castro, who was speaking to parliament at the opening of its
biannual session, said the steps were aimed at creating jobs as the
government seeks to cut jobs from the public sector over the next five
years.

About 95% of all Cubans work for the government and Castro suggested
that as many as one in five state employees were redundant in what he
called a "bloated" state sector.

Castro said those left out of work would be retrained or reassigned to
other jobs but warned that few sectors would be immune to cuts. While
sketchy, his comments signalled a liberalisation of the economy at a
time of financial crisis. Raúl Castro took power from Fidel, first
temporarily, then permanently, in July 2006. He has a reputation for
being more pragmatic than his brother.

Castro made only limited references to Fidel, who did not attend the
session. Fidel also missed the recent celebration of Revolution Day. His
brother and successor attended that event but did not speak – the first
time since 1959 that a Castro did not deliver a speech on Cuba's most
important official holiday.

The new measures eliminate "various existing prohibitions for the
granting of new licences and the commercialisation of some production,
giving flexibility to the hiring of labour", Castro said.

He did not say how many people would receive self-employment licences. A
substantial but unknown number of Cubans work privately without a licence.

Similar moves were taken in the 1990s when Cuba's economy went into
freefall after the collapse of its benefactor, the Soviet Union. Fidel
took steps to improve efficiency in agriculture and allowed barbers and
taxis to operate more like small businesses, but many licences were not
renewed as the situation improved.

For the past two years hard economic times have forced Cuba to cut
imports, freeze the Cuban bank accounts of foreign businesses on the
island and delay paying its bills.

Analysts say the reforms announced by Castro are marginal.

"These are reforms on the margin that don't address the fundamental
inefficiency of the Cuban economy," Christopher Sabatini, of the Council
of the Americas thinktank in Washington, told Reuters.

Paolo Spadoni, of Tulane University, said it was "a positive signal" but
"the key issue is how many people will be allowed to become
self-employed and in what sectors"

He said Cuba, which has a population of 11 million, had only 143,800
legal self-employed or "cuentapropistas" at the end of 2009.

On US-Cuba relations, Raúl said "in essence nothing has changed" since
Barack Obama took office.

"Although there's less rhetoric and there are occasional bilateral
conversations about specific and limited topics, in reality the embargo
continues," he said, referring to the longstanding US trade bans against
Cuba.

As for the planned release of 52 political prisoners in a deal last
month with the Catholic church, Raúl described all of them as
"subversives" working for the US. So far 20 of the 52 have been freed
and sent to Spain. He said this was not a concession to foreign
pressure, but a "sovereign decision in strict adherence" to Cuban laws.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/aug/02/raul-castro-cubans-private-working

Raul Castro says state will reduce economic role

Posted on Sunday, 08.01.10
Raul Castro says state will reduce economic role
By WILL WEISSERT
Associated Press Writer

HAVANA -- Raul Castro said Sunday that his government will scale back
controls on small businesses, lay off unnecessary workers and allow more
self-employment - significant steps in a country where the state
dominates nearly every facet of the economy.

Cuba's president, however, squashed notions of a sweeping overhaul to
the country's communist economic system in response to the financial
crisis it faces.

"With experience accumulated in more than 55 years of revolutionary
struggle, it doesn't seem like we're doing too badly, nor that
desperation or frustration have been our companions along the way," the
president said.

Castro spoke before parliament, which opened its biannual session
without Fidel Castro, who has made a slew of recent public appearances
of late but missed another chance to share a major public stage with his
younger brother.

Instead, lawmakers got Raul, who said authorities will "update the Cuban
economic model," suggesting reforms could be on the horizon. Cuban
officials plan to reduce state control of small businesses, authorize
more Cubans to become self-employed and build a new tax structure that
will compel state employees to contribute more.

About 95 percent of all Cubans currently work for the government and
Castro has suggested that as many as one in five state employees are
redundant. He promised job cuts, calling for "the reduction of work
forces that are considerably bloated in the state sector."

Castro said those left out of work would be retrained or reassigned so
as not to stay unemployed, but also said warned that few sectors would
be immune to job-cuts.

While he offered no specifics, his comments on economic and employment
reform could mean a lot in Cuba, where many had hoped the government of
Raul Castro could embrace small economic openings after he took power
from his brother, first temporarily, then permanently, in July 2006.

The president's announcements were similar to comments before the
session began by Economy Minister Marino Murillo, who spoke to reporters
about a pilot program that has turned some state barber shops over to
their employees and let them set their own prices while paying rent.

Murillo said such projects would be extended to other sectors of the
economy, adding that "we are of the belief that the state has to step
back on certain activities."

He also said that allowing outright private ownership was out of the
question, however.

"We can't call them reforms. We are studying a modification of the Cuban
economic model," Murillo said. He added that officials will ensure that
"the values of socialism come first, not the market."

"We will continue following centralized planning," he said, "but we will
loosen up on a group of things."

Cuba has pledged to release 52 political prisoners as part of a deal
with the island's Roman Catholic Church, and 20 have been freed so far -
heading into exile in Spain with their relatives. But Castro said that
despite the deal, "there will not be impunity for the enemies of the
homeland."

Raul Castro made only limited references to Fidel, who also missed the
recent celebration of Revolution Day. Raul attended that event but did
not speak - the first time since 1959 a Castro did not deliver a speech
on Cuba's top official holiday.

Fidel Castro remains a member of parliament, but his chair to the right
of Raul was empty Sunday. He has not appeared publicly alongside his
brother since undergoing emergency intestinal surgery and stepping down
four years ago.

On Friday, Fidel addressed a Communist youth meeting attended by former
castaway Elian Gonzalez, who is now 16. The ex-president has also turned
up everywhere from discussions with Cuba's diplomatic corps to the
dolphin show at Havana's aquarium.

On Sunday, he met with Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi instead of
attending the session of parliament with his brother.

Outside Cuba, debate has intensified over who is guiding major
government policy following the sudden media blitz by Fidel - who had
almost completely disappeared from public view until recently. Such
questions are far less common on the island, but it is not clear whether
Fidel and Raul are deliberately not appearing together in order to make
a statement about who is in control.

Raul, meanwhile, made a point of saying Sunday that his government is as
unified as ever.

He said it is not a false unanimity that excludes honest discrepancies,
"but one that promotes discussion of different ideas, and always with
the same goals of social justice and national sovereignty."

http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/08/01/1756529/fidel-castro-absent-as-cuban-parliament.html

CUBA AT THE CROSSROADS IN THE 21st CENTURY

CUBA AT THE CROSSROADS IN THE 21st CENTURY
02-08-2010.
Joaquín P. Pujol

(www.miscelaneasdecuba.net).- Introduction

In this paper I will attempt to summarize how some Cuban economists
within the island view how the economic situation has been evolving and
some of the policy measures that have been advanced to solve existing
problems.

Full text (22 pages):
http://www.miscelaneasdecuba.net/media/Web1/ECONOMIA1.doc

http://www.miscelaneasdecuba.net/web/article.asp?artID=29172

Catholic Publication Urges Greater Freedom in Cuba

Catholic Publication Urges Greater Freedom in Cuba

HAVANA – A magazine published by the Catholic Archdiocese of Havana is
calling for "fewer restrictions on individual and collective freedoms"
on the communist-ruled island in the interest of achieving
"comprehensive development."

"There are no reasons that can explain the limitations on the exercise
of freedom, nor any arguments that make the excess of unhealthy
bureaucratic controls right," Palabra Nueva editor Orlando Marquez says
in an article posted Friday on the magazine's Web site.

"There are no words or ideology that can defend or justify economic and
social formulas whose inefficiency has long been demonstrated and
unnecessarily suffered," the article continues.

In his opinion, Cubans aspire "to greater development and more
opportunities," which makes it necessary for citizens to be freed "of
excessive controls" in order to develop personal projects.

That, according to Palabra Nueva, would also be beneficial for the Cuban
government since "it would be relieved of unnecessary economic,
bureaucratic and ideological burdens."

Marquez says that Cuba has to focus on "what works and what doesn't
work, preserve the benefits achieved in these years and eliminate
counterproductive policies," instead of "reducing the dilemma to
'capitalism' vs. 'socialism,' the favorite trick of those resistant to
change and political pharisees."

"We must dare to go our own way. Maybe it's enough to take the first
step to discover that the road isn't that rocky, that excessive controls
create more problems than they're supposed to avoid," the Palabra Nueva
article says.

The Catholic Church and the Raul Castro government opened in May an
unprecedented process of dialogue that bore fruit with the Cuban
regime's commitment to progressively release the 52 political prisoners
that were still behind bars of the 75 dissidents jailed in the crackdown
of March 2003.

That dialogue includes other topics to do with the nation's social and
economic situation, according to Cardinal Jaime Ortega, Cuba's Catholic
primate.

http://www.laht.com/article.asp?CategoryId=14510&ArticleId=361495

New tourists take heed of Cody's case

New tourists take heed of Cody's case
By CHRIS DOUCETTE, Toronto Sun
Last Updated: August 1, 2010 2:05am

SANTA LUCIA, CUBA — As Cody LeCompte anxiously awaits the end of his
Cuban vacation from hell, dozens of other Canadians have just arrived on
the tropical island eager to begin their holiday in the sun.

A busload of new tourists pulled in early Saturday to the Gran Club
Santa Lucia, the same resort where the Simcoe teen has been detained for
over three months.

It seems most, but not all, are aware of Cody's plight, having heard the
story in the news over the last week or so.

And while it was too late for this bunch to change their travel plans,
many said they would not be renting a car in the Communist country after
hearing the 19-year-old's story.

"Although, there was one man I met in the hotel lobby who was planning
to rent a car until he overheard me talking on the phone to the Canadian
embassy," said Danette LeCompte, who is over $30,000 in debt from trying
to get her son home.

That man is just one of many Canadian tourists who may be spared a
similar fate to Cody thanks to the single mom.

"I've been telling everyone I meet not to rent a car while they're
here," Danette said. "I just don't want anyone else to have to go
through what we've been through."

Many Canadian tourists have started conversations with the LeComptes
about Cody's story not knowing who they are.

And they are stunned when they find out.

"Oh my God! That's you?" one man from North York said to Cody, after the
teen's uncle, Gary Parmenter broke the news.

It's too early to tell how Cuba's tourism industry will be affected, if
at all, in the wake of Cody's story.

"I have had hotel staff tell me though that they've had a lot of
cancellations," Danette said.

Cody has been detained in Cuba since the end of April because of an
accident that wasn't even his fault.

Although the teen's story has been talked about across the country
recently, Montreal native Isabelle Ledoux, 35, hadn't heard anything
about it until she bumped into Danette at the resort.

Ledoux said she has been to Cuba nine times, so she is well aware of the
perils of rental cars.

"We really need to make sure everybody knows about this so it doesn't
happen to anyone else," she said. Ledoux said even though she arranged
her trip to Cuba online, she received a notice in the mail with a list
of warnings on it.

"If my travel agent had told me about these Cuban laws (that can leave a
tourist detained indefinitely), we never would have rented a car,"
Danette said.

chris.doucette@sunmedia.ca

http://www.torontosun.com/news/torontoandgta/2010/07/31/14890386.html

Fidel Castro absent as Cuban parliament opens

Posted on Sunday, 08.01.10
Fidel Castro absent as Cuban parliament opens
By WILL WEISSERT
Associated Press Writer

HAVANA -- Cuba's parliament opened one of its twice-annual sessions
Sunday without its most famous member - Fidel Castro, who once again
missed a chance to share the public stage with his younger brother Raul
despite a string of recent appearances.

The 83-year-old Fidel has not been seen publicly with Raul, who took
over Cuba's presidency, since he stepped down first temporarily and then
permanently four years ago. He also missed a July 26 celebration of
Revolution Day, despite widespread anticipation that the former leader
might show up.

The elder Castro remains a member of parliament, but his chair to the
right of Raul was empty on Sunday. Cuban legislators convene twice a
year and usually do little more than unanimously approve small reforms
put forward by Cabinet ministries and resolutions criticizing the United
States.

Outside Cuba, debate has intensified recently over who is guiding major
government policy following the sudden media blitz by Fidel - who had
almost completely disappeared from public view since emergency
intestinal surgery in July 2006. Such questions are far less common on
the island, but it is not clear whether Fidel and Raul are deliberately
not appearing together in order to make a statement about who is in control.

On Friday, Fidel addressed a Communist youth meeting attended by former
castaway Elian Gonzalez, who is now 16. The ex-president has also turned
up everywhere from discussions with Cuba's diplomatic corps to the
dolphin show at Havana's aquarium.

And after many months of official photographs from his convalescence
that inevitably showed him wearing multicolored track suits, Fidel
Castro has taken to wearing an olive-green shirt and fatigues similar to
the military uniform that was his trademark during his nearly half
century in power - though the latest incarnation is devoid of military rank.

Castro may have skipped the regular parliamentary meeting in favor of
attending a special session in coming days - that he himself called - to
discuss the threat of a nuclear war pitting the United States and Israel
against Iran, further fueled by tensions between North and South Korea.

In a series of essays published by state media, Castro has been
suggesting for weeks that such a conflict could spark widespread global
destruction, though it's unknown if he would personally attend or not.

Before Sunday's parliament session began, Economy Minister Marino
Murillo spoke briefly to reporters about a pilot program that has turned
some state barber shops over to their employees and let them set their
own prices while paying rent.

Murillo said such projects would be extended to other sectors of the
economy but did not elaborate, saying only that "we are of the belief
that the state has to step back on certain activities."

"We can't call them reforms. We are studying a modification of the Cuban
economic model," Murillo said. He added that officials are looking to
"update the Cuban economic model, where the values of socialism come
first and foremost, not the market. We will continue following
centralized planning, but we will loosen up on a group of things."

http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/08/01/1756529/fidel-castro-absent-as-cuban-parliament.html

Cuba's parliament discusses economic plight

Cuba's parliament discusses economic plight
Posted : Sun, 01 Aug 2010 15:44:15 GMT
By : dpa

Havana - Cuba's parliament, the National Assembly, met Sunday to discuss
the country's current economic situation and possible reforms, in the
presence of President Raul Castro.

Although he has made eight public appearances in the past two weeks,
former leader Fidel Castro, 83, was not at the meeting of 600 deputies.

The assembly discussed progress on a variety of current economic woes,
from poor productivity, bureaucracy to corruption, with some of the
blame put on the global economic recession and natural weather disasters.

Sugar and coffee production, two of the mainstays of Cuba's export
economy, are both dramatically down.

When Raul Castro took over rule of the Caribbean communist island from
his brother two years ago, a raft of reforms and initiatives were
promised, but a proposed experiment to allow hairdressers and taxi
drivers to earn money privately appears to have been culled, after
Vice-President José Ramón Machado said he would not allow such
"improvisations."

http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/news/337491,parliament-discusses-economic-plight.html

Cuba says will ease state's role in economy

Cuba says will ease state's role in economy
Sun Aug 1, 2010 2:42pm EDT

* Cuban minister: Cuba "updating" not reforming economy
* State "doesn't have to be in charge of everything"
* Says no to markets, private property, market socialism
By Nelson Acosta

HAVANA, Aug 1 (Reuters) - The Cuban government plans to reduce its role
in small businesses, but continue to direct a centralized economy that
eschews markets and private property, a Cuban official said on Sunday.

Economy Minister Marino Murillo said the communist-led island is
"updating," not reforming its fragile economy and does not plan to copy
the market socialism of China or Vietnam.

"We are of the opinion that today the state has a group of activities it
must get out of. The state doesn't have to be in charge of everything,"
he told reporters at a meeting of the National Assembly.

"The state has to be in charge of the economy, of the most important
things," Murillo said.

He cited the example of small barber shops, where barbers have been
allowed for several months to lease their chairs and charge their own
prices, within limits, instead of having the state run the entire
enterprise.

That kind of change "must be extended to other services," Murillo said.

Cuba has been in the grips of an economic crisis the past two years that
has forced it to cut imports, freeze the Cuban bank accounts of foreign
businesses on the island and hold off on paying its bills.

Murillo said the Cuban government is looking at ways to modernize the
island's economy, but that "one cannot speak of reform."

"It's an updating of the economic model where the economic categories of
socialism, not the market, will take priority," he said.

"It lightens a group of things of the economic model, but we are not
going to hand over property," Murillo said.

The government, which controls 90 percent of the economy, owns most
things on the Caribbean island.

EXPECTATIONS OF CHANGE

When Raul Castro replaced older brother Fidel Castro as president in
2008, there were expectations of change in one of the world's last
communist economies.

Many thought that Raul Castro was less of a communist ideologue than his
brother and would move toward opening the economy as communist-run China
and Vietnam have done.

Many Cubans have said they are anxious for changes that will allow them
to make more money.

They receive social benefits such as free medical care and subsidized
food rations, but the average monthly salary is equivalent to $18.

Raul Castro, 79, has tweaked the system with such things as allowing
barbers and taxi drivers to function more like small businesses, but
thus far avoided major changes.

When asked by reporters about the possibility Chinese or
Vietnamese-style changes, Murillo said, "I think the Cuban model is a
very Cuban model. We cannot copy what many people in the world do."

"We can't forget that the most powerful country in the world is our
enemy," he said, referring to the United States.

The United States and Cuba have had hostile relations since the 1959
Cuban revolution that put Fidel Castro in power and transformed the
island into a communist state.

The United States has maintained a trade embargo against Cuba for 48
years, which the Cuban government blames for many of its economic woes.

Raul Castro was set to speak later in the day to the National Assembly
session.

Fidel Castro, 83, is a member of the assembly, but did not attend
Sunday's session. His chair, which is next to his brothers, has been
empty since he fell ill in July 2006.

(Editing by Jeff Franks and Eric Beech)

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSN0123538320100801

La Asamblea Nacional aprueba la creación de las provincias Artemisa y Mayabeque

La Asamblea Nacional aprueba la creación de las provincias Artemisa y
Mayabeque
Domingo 01 de Agosto de 2010 18:51 Agencias

La Asamblea Nacional del Poder Popular aprobó este domingo las
modificaciones a la Ley de la División Político-Administrativa, vigente
desde julio de 1976, entre las cuales se incluye la creación de las
provincias de Mayabeque y Artemisa, asentadas fundamentalmente en el
territorio que ha ocupado hasta ahora La Habana, informó la agencia
estatal Prensa Latina.

Artemisa abarcará los municipios de Caimito, Guanajay, Mariel, San
Antonio de los Baños, Güira de Melena, Alquízar y Bauta, además de los
territorios pinareños de Bahía Honda, Candelaria y San Cristóbal. La
capital de esta provincia será la localidad que le da nombre.

Mayabeque tendrá su capital en San José de las Lajas y estará integrada
por los municipios de Santa Cruz del Norte, Jaruco, Madruga, Nueva Paz,
San Nicolás, Güines, Melena del Sur, Batabanó, Quivicán y Bejucal.

Ambas provincias "tendrán la encomienda de producir alimentos para
satisfacer su demanda y apoyar a la Ciudad de La Habana", indicó Prensa
Latina.

Según la agencia, tras los cambios Ciudad de La Habana recuperará su
nombre histórico —La Habana—. A la capital se le agregará el lado este
de la meseta del Cacahual.

Las modificaciones aprobadas hacen además desaparecer el municipio de
Varadero, en la provincia de Matanzas, el cual se incorpora al de
Cárdenas, "en tanto la Península de Hicacos queda bajo la atención
directa del Consejo de Ministros por su importancia para el desarrollo
económico de la nación", dijo Prensa Latina.

Por último, el municipio de Manuel Tames asimila parte de sus vecinos
Guantánamo y Yateras y traslada su capital para el consejo popular de
Jamaica.

El país quedará dividido en 15 provincias y 168 municipios, entre ellos
el de la Isla de la Juventud.

La ley comenzará a regir desde su publicación en la Gaceta Oficial.

Aprobado un nuevo proyecto de ley de Seguridad Vial

La Asamblea Nacional aprobó también un nuevo proyecto de Ley de
Seguridad Vial, informó la estatal Agencia de Información Nacional.

El Ministro de Transporte, César Ignacio Arocha, afirmó que los
accidentes del tránsito "constituyen la quinta causa de muertes en Cuba,
lo cual obliga a actualizar las regulaciones existentes, en aras de
reducir la tasa de mortalidad y las consecuencias de las transgresiones
de ese tipo".

Dijo que "otras prioridades con vistas a este propósito" son "el
mejoramiento de la red vial y del estado técnico de los vehículos, así
como el incremento de las campañas de educación y de las medidas contra
quienes conducen bajo los efectos del alcohol".

El diputado José Luis Toledo, presidente de la Comisión de Asuntos
Constitucionales y Jurídicos, dijo que en los últimos meses se
realizaron audiencias públicas y reuniones en comunidades y centros
laborales.

Explicó que la imposición de multas, y el sistema de puntos acumulados
por los infractores, fue el tema que más opiniones generó, por las
deficiencias o irregularidades de instrumentación.

http://www.diariodecuba.net/cuba/81-cuba/2652-la-asamblea-nacional-aprueba-la-creacion-de-las-provincias-artemisa-y-mayabeque.html