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CUBA
NEWS
Yahoo!
Castro accuses Bush of plotting to
assassinate him
HAVANA, 30 (AFP) - Cuban leader Fidel Castro
accused US President George W. Bush of ordering
his assassination and vowed to "go
down fighting" if there was a US invasion.
In a five hour speech, Cuba's 77-year-old
communist president shot down rumours about
his health and heightened his attacks on
the "belligerent behavior" of
the United States and its leader.
"We knew that Mr. Bush had made a
commitment with the mafia of the Cuban-American
Foundation to kill me. I accuse him of this,"
Castro told some 1,000 representatives from
32 nations attending a conference in Havana
against the proposed Free Trade Area of
the Americas.
"This dead man can still talk. This
dead man can make plans. This dead man ...
is not dead yet," Castro said Friday.
Castro has been at the centre of rumours
about his health since the mayor of Bogota,
Luis Eduardo Garzon, said after a recent
visit to Cuba that he had found Castro "very
sick" and "physically limited".
Castro said that Bush had conspired with
the anti-communist Cuban-American community
in Florida to kill him.
Tensions have been rising again between
the United States and Cuba in recent month
with Bush entering into a re-election campaign
and Castro cracking down on the pro-democracy
opposition in the island he has ruled for
45 years.
Castro said that Cuba does not want "a
war (against) Yankee imperialism" but
he insisted that the communist "will
not budge at all from our principles."
The Cuban leader was given thunderous applause
when he said: "I am not asking to survive
a war. I've already done my part and I still
have to do what I have to do. With weapons
in hand, I don't care how I die, but I'm
confident that if they invade us, I will
go down fighting."
He went on "These idiots had better
not believe we're wasting our time, because
we really work at our job. This country
will never give up. It will never lay down
its weapons."
Castro spent much of his improvised address
discussing the history of North and South
America and the world, criticizing "neo-liberal
capitalism" and globalization.
But he also spent 45 minutes reading news
agency reports of what he called "hostile"
statements by senior US officials.
Bush has set up a special government commission
to monitor events in Cuba and at a recent
summit of the Americas in Mexico called
on other leaders to work for a speedy and
peaceful transition to democracy in Cuba.
The US administration has also sought to
increase pressure on Latin American nations
which it considers have been too friendly
with Castro.
Roger Noriega, the US under secretary of
state for Western Hemisphere affairs, recently
accused Cuba of "actions to destabilize
Latin America (that) are increasingly provocative
to the inter-American community."
He has said that the United States will
quickly send aid to Cuba after Castro's
death.
"Castro will not live forever and
there will be democratic change and a democratic
government in Cuba," Noriega said.
"The stakes are very high for us."
Cuba has in turn stepped up island-wide
preparations for any kind of attack from
the United States.
The 130,000 committees of the defence of
the revolution and other local organisations
have been told to "step up revolutionary
vigilance".
The Cuban parliament, highlighting what
it called the "increasing aggressiveness
of the United States" has ordered an
increase in defence spending, which had
been cut in recent years.
Candidates on the Issues: Cuba
By The Associated Press,
Jan 30.
The Associated Press chooses an issue three
times a week and asks the presidential candidates
a question about it. Today's question and
responses:
CUBA: What conditions, if any, would Cuba
have to meet for you to favor dropping the
embargo?
Democrats:
Wesley Clark: "I want to help bring
democracy to the Cuban people, the only
people in the Western Hemisphere who don't
have democratic freedoms. That said, I will
not take steps that reward Fidel Castro.
In general, embargoes have not succeeded
in bringing democracy. It was engagement
and penetration that helped the peoples
of Eastern Europe gain their freedom. If
elected, I would work this problem with
the leaders of the region, work it hard.
As president, I would look at the circumstances
at the time and then act."
Howard Dean: "The U.S. should move
toward the eventual lifting of the trade
embargo with Cuba. But Castro must not be
rewarded for continued human rights violations.
Before I will consider lifting the embargo,
Castro must demonstrate a firmer commitment
to human rights and take steps that promote
the freedom that Cubans have so long been
denied."
Sen. John Edwards: "The goal of our
policy in Cuba must be the promotion of
democracy and human rights. I support sanctions
that target Fidel Castro's regime but help
the innocent Cuban people, allowing trade
for food and medical supplies that help
ease the horrible burdens they suffer. Full
sanctions should not be lifted until Castro
and his brutal regime are gone. At the same
time, along with our allies, we must increase
our support and assistance for dissidents
and democracy advocates inside Cuba who
are struggling to be free."
Sen. John Kerry: "I am not prepared
to lay down conditions at this time for
lifting the embargo, because I believe that
we need a major review of U.S. policy toward
Cuba. That review must be conducted with
other countries in the region, with Cuban
Americans, and, to the best of our abilities,
those in Cuba who are fighting for greater
political liberties."
Rep. Dennis Kucinich: "I strongly
favor ending the embargo on Cuba. Our policy
toward Cuba has created misery for the Cuban
people and has harmed our own national interests.
My administration will work to normalize
relations with Cuba. This will include normal
bilateral trade with Cuba."
Sen. Joe Lieberman: "I would drop
the embargo if Castro steps down and a democratic
government, selected by the people of Cuba,
is allowed to rise. Fidel Castro's regime
is unmatched in its oppression and implacable
in opposing any hint of freedom and democracy."
Al Sharpton: "If we can trade with
China and Russia and others, what is the
difference in terms of policies in dealing
with these countries?"
Republican:
The Bush-Cheney campaign says President
Bush will begin participating in the weekly
issues survey in February.
Their Man in Havana
By John Turrettini. Forbes.com.
Thu Jan 29, 2004
The not-so-secret dirt on Pernod Ricard
is the $40 million in annual profit it splits
with Fidel Castro. Not bound by the U.S.
embargo, the French distiller can play both
sides in this hemisphere's Cold War. Last
year it sold nearly 2 million cases of the
fantastically successful Cuban rum Havana
Club, mainly in Europe, pocketing $170 million
in sales.
This cozy arrangement dates from 1993,
when Castro gave Pernod Ricard a monopoly
on the island's rum. The Cubans supervise
the distilling, which takes place at undisclosed
places on the island, and the French handle
the marketing. How did this pact come to
pass? Patrick Ricard's man in Havana, Alexandre
Sirech, tells it this way: In 1992 a Spanish
bookkeeper reached out to a Pernod salesman
in Madrid suggesting a partnership with
a state-run Cuban company. Weeks later the
French and Cubans hit it off; Patrick jetted
off to Havana in 1993 to meet with the Máximo
Líder himself.
Havana Club had done some business with
Eastern bloc countries. But once the French
stepped in, production ramped up considerably
and sales took off faster than a hijacked
boat; today they are still climbing at a
9% rate. Pernod Ricard goosed sales by building
a rum museum in Old Havana that features
Havana Club-stocked tasting rooms. More
than 5% of the island's 2 million tourists
visited the museum last year.
Fidel hasn't made out badly, either, drawing
an estimated $23 million a year in hard
currency from the venture. (The government
pays no taxes and so can pocket more of
the profits than Pernod.) In terms of exports,
Havana Club is the fourth-biggest moneymaker
for the state, after mining, tobacco and
fishing.
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