The Miami Herald.
Friday, August 24, 2001
Belgium foreign minister meets with Castro, later with dissidents
HAVANA (AP)-- Belgium's foreign minister met with opponents of Fidel
Castro's government Friday after a late night dinner with the Cuban president to
discuss relations between the European Union and the communist island.
Foreign Minister Louis Michel, whose country holds the rotating EU
presidency, sat down for breakfast Friday morning with four of Cuba's best known
government opponents.
There was no immediate information about what was discussed at the breakfast
with the government opponents.
The opponents were: economist Marta Beatriz Roque and attorney Rene Gomez
Manzano of the so-called "Group of Four''; Oswaldo Paya Sardinas, of Cuba's
Christian Liberation Movement; and Gerardo Sanchez, of the Cuban Commission of
Human Rights and Reconciliation.
After discussing Belgium's relations with Cuba late Thursday, Castro told
reporters: "I have always seen them as good and in the future they have to
be better.''
But Castro declined to comment on Cuba's relations with the EU, which have
been ticklish since several European countries joined a United Nations vote to
condemn the communist country for its human rights record. Castro said that was
an issue to be dealt with by foreign ministers.
The Cuban leader, dressed in a formal dark suit and tie, then accompanied
Michel to dinner at his headquarters on Revolution Plaza.
Michel's three-day visit to this Caribbean island, which winds up Friday,
has been described in Europe as a mission to smooth over Cuba-EU relations.
Other EU representatives who arrived here with Michel on Wednesday, were
Spanish state secretary Miguel Angel Cortes Martin and a representative for the
union's External Relations Commissioner Christopher Patten.
European nations last year backed a motion that condemned Havana at the U.N.
Human Rights Commission in Geneva. Cuban officials immediately responded by
canceling a trip to the EU and later said they would not participate in the
union's aid-and-trade pact with developing countries.
Earlier this week in Brussels, a spokesman for Michel said that the EU
representatives would try to restart a dialogue with Cuba.
Signaling that that Havana remains sensitive about the EU, the Cuban Foreign
Ministry issued a three-paragraph communique Wednesday afternoon, characterizing
the trip as a visit by the Belgian foreign minister - not a EU mission.
While Michel was accompanied by representatives of other EU countries or
institutions, a "so-called troika'' of EU officials "has not been
invited to Cuba,'' the communique said, referring to media reports about the
visit.
Cuba last year withdrew its application to join the EU's pact with the
world's poorest countries following the rift over human rights policies.
Joining the group of former European colonies in Africa, the Caribbean and
the Pacific would give Cuba trade preferences with the EU. Cuba is a former
Spanish colony.
Nevertheless, some EU nations said they would withhold any trade perks for
the communist country because of its human rights record.
Cuba already does about 40 percent of its trade with EU nations. More than
half of the government's joint ventures with foreign companies involve capital
from those countries.
In March, the European Commission provided 8 million euros (dlrs 7.4
million) in humanitarian aid for Cuba, aiming to improve living conditions for
elderly and disabled people on the island.
The EU gave Cuba 17 million euros (dlrs 15.6 million) in aid last year. It
provided a total of 78 million euros (dlrs 71.8 million) in humanitarian aid in
Cuba from 1993 to 2000.
Organizers of show say they feared Castro 'thugs'
By Sara Olkon. solkon@herald.com
It wasn't just Miami exile groups that posed a safety threat to the Latin
Grammys, according to academy head Michael Greene. He said he also feared the
work of Cuban leader Fidel Castro's agent provocateurs.
"[Castro] could have very easily sent thugs in to turn what could have
been a peaceful protest into something -- all he's got to do is get five people
with rocks and batteries and it suddenly erupts,'' the president and CEO of the
national and Latin recording academies, told The Herald.
In a subsequent interview, Greene explained that he had been told "a
hundred times'' that Cuban agents might whip up the demonstrators.
"All I was doing was repeating what city officials told me,'' he said.
The idea of "spies among us'' comes during a year when five agents from
Havana were convicted of espionage. During the highly charged trial, evidence
was introduced that showed FBI agents had intercepted messages from Cuba asking
its agents to stir up trouble among exile groups.
Officials at the Cuban Interests Section in Washington, D.C., could not be
reached.
In other interviews, Greene has focused on the possible behavior of Miami's
Cuban exiles as the principal reason for moving the show from Miami to Los
Angeles.
"We want this to be the greatest, most wonderful experience and
celebration for all of [the nominees] in their lives,'' Greene said in an
interview with the Hollywood Reporter published Tuesday. "And what it was
turning into, especially with the reneging on the security zone, was [that] we
were being set up to basically be a political platform for Cuban dissidents.''
Before the show was pulled, Miami police said they had provided a plan to
ferret out "provokers.''
In light of the timing, Pedro Freyre, an attorney and Cuban-American
activist, called Greene's take about Castro "thugs'' disingenuous.
"At this stage in the game to come up with that one rings a little
hollow,'' Freyre said. "I think having pulled the plug at this late a date,
they are coming up with every conceivable reason for not doing it here.
"Could you have an agent provocateur in the crowd? Yes, you could. We
are not paranoid. There are plenty of people in Miami who take their direction
from Havana.''
Lisandro Pérez, a sociologist at Florida International University,
was dubious of the theory.
"I think there are plenty of people who make themselves look bad,'' he
said. "I think this notion of blaming Castro for everything here is the
easy way out. When someone steps out of line, throws a battery or something,
then it's Fidel.''
Herald staff writer Jordan Levin contributed to this
report.
Greene on moving the Grammys
Michael Greene, president of the National Academy of Recording Arts and
Sciences, has cited several reasons for moving the Latin Grammys from Miami to
Los Angeles.
Greene's published statement, Monday: "Further, the Academy was made
aware that protesters had secured tickets to the show and were organizing a
disruption to the live telecast itself.''
CNN, Tuesday: "And the story has to be the music, the story has to be
the nominees, the little group from Uruguay or the regional Mexican singer who
comes up here. I mean, if all of the cameras are centered on all of these
protesters and people potentially throwing eggs and yelling obscenities at our
Cuban guests or whatever, all of a sudden it's not about the music, it's not
about celebrating the nominations.''
L.A. Times, Tuesday: "Our nominees from Cuba would have been singled
out, and potentially there could have been major risks for them. Instead of it
being the happiest day of [an honoree's] life, it could have been one of the
most perilous.''
Hollywood Reporter, Tuesday: "We want this to be the greatest, most
wonderful experience and celebration for all of [the nominees] in their lives,''
Greene said. "And what it was turning into, especially with the reneging on
the security zone, was [that] we were being set up to basically be a political
platform for Cuban dissidents. That's not what the show is about. We just
weren't going to put up with it.''
NPR 'Morning Edition,' Tuesday: : "We could no longer guarantee the
secure zone for our guests. There are so many unknowns that you have to make
sure they're not going to be shouted at or shot at or anything else.''
Interview by 'Access Hollywood' Tuesday, aired on NBC: "We just need to
be sure they're kept at a safe distance 'cause my problem isn't really even with
the Cuban American protest groups. My problem is people that get in the middle
of those -- could even be Castro thugs -- that come over and they try to make
those groups look bad.''
NY Daily News, Wednesday: Greene said watching videotape of the Los Van Van
demonstration was one of the biggest factors in his decision.
"If it were just me, I'd walk through that gantlet and not bat an eye
at it. But there's a lot of fragile regional practitioners who come from the
mountains and places like that. And I wouldn't put them through that.''
Compiled by Herald Researcher Elisabeth Donovan.
Cuban ballet plans dropped
Grammys pullout sways organizer
By Gail Meadows. gmeadows@herald.com
Tentative plans to bring the National Ballet of Cuba to Miami Beach this
fall have been canceled in the wake of the Latin Grammys' decision to leave
town.
Judy Drucker, impresario of the Concert Association of Florida, had made
inquiries with the Jackie Gleason Theater about booking dates in late November
and early December for the ballet, one of the world's premier dance troupes. But
after the music awards show decided to return to Los Angeles because of concerns
over Cuban exile protests against the possible presence of entertainers from
Cuba, Drucker had a change of heart.
"I'm certainly not going to do it now,'' Drucker said by phone from New
England, where she's vacationing. "It's upsetting. We're the only city in
the nation that doesn't have freedom of expression.''
The 50-member troupe under the direction of Alicia Alonso makes regular
trips to the United States. This year's national tour begins Oct. 8 and has
stops scheduled in Tucson; Seattle; Minneapolis; Chicago; Washington, D.C.; New
York; Norfolk, Va.; Amherst, Mass.; Berkeley, Costa Mesa, Sacramento and Palm
Desert, Calif.; and Newark and New Brunswick, N.J.
Drucker had spoken about bringing the ballet company to Miami Beach with
Jane Herman of ICM Artists in New York, who books the troupe.
Herman said she thought the troupe's Miami Beach appearances "would
have sold out, maybe even double, triple, quadruple.''
Earlier this year, Drucker had tested local sensitivities in a low-key way
by presenting the American Ballet Theatre, which features Cuban dancer José
Manuel Carreño as the star.
His appearance drew no protests, and Herman predicted that's exactly what
would have happened had Drucker put on the Cuban ballet.
Herman recalled a threat against the company two years ago in New York that
went nowhere.
"Someone called for a permit to protest, and the city cordoned off the
streets,'' Herman said. "Not one single person showed up.''
Grammy chief's motives suspected
By Daniel Chang. dchang@herald.com
The man who pulled the trap door on the Latin Grammys in Miami this week
plays saxophone, owns two expensive homes in California, makes more than a
million a year and, depending on whom you ask, possesses the management style of
a passionate visionary or an arrogant, erratic, power-hungry leader.
Michael Greene's last-minute decision to take the second annual awards show
-- and the $35 million it was expected to generate for Miami -- back to Los
Angeles leaves local politicians, arts leaders and business people feeling
bewildered and betrayed.
Greene, 52, who refused repeated requests for an interview, says he pulled
out of Miami because of security concerns and because he did not trust Miami
Mayor Joe Carollo and other city officials to keep their word on a security
agreement said to have been reached in June.
The other mayor, Miami-Dade County's Alex Penelas, said Greene lied when he
said he had not decided on an alternate plan for protesters.
"He called me back,'' Penelas said, "and told me the decision had
not been announced and -- then I saw it on TV. I don't know how much earlier it
had been recorded but it was prerecorded.'' Penelas said he hasn't talked to
Greene since.
"I feel let down. I feel I was used,'' Penelas said. "I feel
people weren't totally straight with me. That's not just Michael Greene. I feel
there were other players in the academy who were not totally straightforward.''
What's more, Penelas said he suspects Greene had ulterior motives for
pulling the Latin Grammys out of Miami.
Though he declined to speculate about what, others think it was money, plain
and simple. When city leaders first lobbied the Recording Academy to bring the
Latin Grammys to Miami in February, Greene talked about his financial concerns.
"The Latin Grammys are not a big money-maker,'' he said. "The
Latin Academy is struggling to open up offices all over the world, and it is
highly unlikely that we would go to Miami if it were going to cost, in this
case, at and above an extra $1 million to do the show there as opposed to doing
it in L.A.''
Some locals think Greene decided to pull the Latin Grammys from Miami before
the protest site became an issue.
Miami City Manager Carlos Gimenez said Grammy officials never initiated a
dialogue with the city or exile groups. No one from the city, other than the
Police Department, had dealt with Grammy organizers, even after the Recording
Academy came out against Gimenez and Carollo's plan to move protesters closer to
the Grammy site.
CONFRONTATIONS
Gov. Jeb Bush touched on what he said was Greene's history of
confrontations. "This seems to be a tendency of his. I think his hometown
must be Los Angeles, if I was going to guess, because he did this to New York
and now he's doing it to Miami.''
Bush was referring to a 1998 confrontation between Greene and New York City
Mayor Rudolph Giuliani, whose city hosted that year's Grammys. Reportedly,
Greene berated and threatened a deputy of Giuliani's. The mayor demanded an
apology and Greene supposedly sent a bouquet of flowers and a written apology.
Giuliani reportedly insisted on a personal apology. Greene refused. The
Recording Academy has not held a Grammy ceremony in New York since.
Greene, the son of a big-band leader from Atlanta, got his start in the
music industry in the 1970s as a saxophone and keyboard player. After releasing
two albums that were poorly received, he worked in recording studios and cable
TV stations.
He joined the Recording Academy in 1985 as an unpaid Atlanta chapter
president; three years later, the academy board of trustees elected him
president of the organization. He is credited with lifting the annual ceremony
from a minor industry show to a global event watched by millions.
Under his management, the Recording Academy increased the value of the
show's telecast rights. He sold those rights in 1996 to CBS for more than five
years at $100 million.
He is now paid well for his labor.
Although he asserts that the Latin Grammys lose money, his own pay as head
of the Recording Academy and its charitable arms, including the MusiCares
Foundation, hit $750,000 in 1997. Fringe benefits added another $75,000,
according to tax records for 1998 -- plus a bonus of more than $1 million from
the Recording Academy.
IRS NOTIFIED
According to the Los Angeles Times, the California attorney general's office
took note of Greene's compensation in February 1998. It notified the Internal
Revenue Service.
The criminal investigative arm of the IRS and the Justice Department probed
Greene's personal finances and the tax records of the academy. But no charges
were filed at the probe's conclusion in April 2000. The Times quoted unnamed
government sources as saying the IRS continues to review Grammy records for
possible tax violations and that Greene could still face civil penalties.
Greene's compensation compares favorably with the CEOs that run the Emmys
and the Oscars. The Academy of Television Arts & Sciences paid its chief
executive, James L. Loper, $175,000 in 1995-96. That same year, the Academy of
Motion Picture Arts & Sciences paid its chief executive, Bruce Davis,
$157,000.
Greene owns a $1.5 million home in Malibu and a second $1.8 million home in
Southern California's Topanga Canyon, according to public mortgage information.
Perhaps the most extensive documentation of Greene's management style
appeared in The Times in a series published between 1998 and 2000.
Among the allegations: Greene pitched a recording of his own music to record
executives whose acts were up for performance slots in the 1997 Grammy telecast;
Greene's staff withheld a $300,000 check in May 2000 that was mistakenly sent to
the academy by RCA Records but made out to the Musicians' Assistance Program
charity; and Greene warned Time Warner in 1999 that it should prepare for "short
and long term ramifications'' for refusing to contribute songs to a charitable
fundraising CD sponsored by the academy.
The academy and its charities raise money in a variety of ways, including
black-tie galas, promotional events such as the Night at the Net celebrity
tennis tournament and selling the rights to educational programs such as the
Leonard Bernstein Center for Learning, an educational model created by the
renowned composer that integrates the arts and academics.
The School District of Broward County paid the academy $50,000 to implement
the learning model at Fort Lauderdale's Parkview Middle School, said Leslie
Brown, director of Broward's magnet schools program.
Herald staff writers Jay Weaver, Charles Rabin and
Elaine De Valle contributed to this report.
Copyright 2001 Miami Herald | 
