CUBA
NEWS
Yahoo!
Castro brands US and Forbes magazine
'liars and slanderers'
HAVANA, 25 (AFP) - President Fidel Castro
branded the US government and Forbes magazine
as "liars and slanderers," and
demanded an apology for saying he had amassed
a personal wealth of 900 million dollars.
"They have to ask for an apology of
the world public opinion for their lies
against the Cuban revolution. They cannot
remain silent. They must speak up,"
Castro told a live radio and television
broadcast.
Earlier this month, Forbes said Castro
after 47 years in power had become the seventh
wealthiest ruler in the world, having stashed
away 900 million dollars by skimming profits
from a Havana convention center, retail
conglomerate Cimex and vaccine and pharmaceutical
products firm Medicuba.
In response Castro, who turns 80 in August,
a day later vowed to resign from office
"if they prove that I have an account
abroad."
"We are waiting for the liars and
slanderers to respond," he said late
Wednesday. "But weeks have gone by
and they haven't uttered a word.
"They've painted themselves into a
corner," he said, adding that world
opinion at least required an explanation
for "having been duped for so long."
Appearing with Castro on television, British
leftist MP George Galloway said that Cubans
were the only people in the entire world
whose leader was penniless.
The fiery Scottish politician, a vocal
critic of the war in Iraq, formerly represented
British Prime Minister Tony Blair's Labour
Party but now represents his own left-wing
Respect party.
British lawmaker praises Cuba's Castro
By Andrea Rodriguez, Associated
Press Writer . May 25, 2006.
HAVANA - An outspoken British lawmaker
appeared on Cuban television praising Fidel
Castro as a "lion" of world politics
and defending the Cuban leader against a
magazine report naming him one of the world's
wealthiest rulers.
George Galloway, on an unannounced visit
to Havana, showered Castro with praise in
his Wednesday night appearance on the communist
government's daily public-affairs program
"Mesa Redonda," or "Round
Table."
"No responsible person in the world
believes that Fidel Castro has a personal
fortune of $900 million," Galloway
said, referring to the wealth Forbes magazine
attributed to Castro.
The lawmaker, who formed the Respect Party
after he was thrown out of the Labor Party
for urging British soldiers not to fight
in Iraq, himself has been the target of
financial allegations. He has denied persistent
accusation that Saddam Hussein's regime
allocated millions of barrels of oil in
his name as part of a huge fraud in the
prewar U.N. oil-for-food program.
Investigators of the oil-for-food program
and a U.S. Senate subcommittee inquiry both
accused him of receiving money.
In its May 5 "Fortunes Of Kings, Queens
And Dictators" article, Forbes put
Castro seventh in a list of 10 world leaders
with "lofty positions and vast fortunes."
Forbes said it assumed Castro has economic
control over a network of state-owned companies,
including El Palacio de Convenciones, a
convention center near Havana; the retail
conglomerate Cimex; and Medicuba, which
sells vaccines and other pharmaceuticals
produced in Cuba. The article also referred
to rumors of Castro having "large stashes
in Swiss bank accounts."
Castro has called the report "rubbish"
and said he'll resign the day critics prove
he has money in foreign accounts.
Castro sat in on Wednesday night's "Round
Table," which lasted seven hours. He
again defended himself, in what's becoming
a full-fledged government campaign to discredit
the report.
"The Cubans are the only people in
the entire world who have a leader who can
say that he doesn't possess one dollar to
his name," Galloway said.
Forbes said Thursday that it stood by its
reporting, and had not factored possible
foreign bank accounts into its estimate.
Cubans off to good starts
By Jorge L. Ortiz, USA Today,
May 25, 2006.
Cuban baseball made an impression against
the pros by reaching the final of the World
Baseball Classic in March. Now two products
of the Cuban system are getting a chance
to prove they belong in the majors.
Los Angeles Angels first baseman Kendry
Morales, 22, went 4-for-10 in his first
two games, including a home run in his debut
Tuesday to help his club end a six-game
losing streak.
"Things have gone well for me so far,
which gives me more confidence," switch-hitting
Morales said by phone after going 1-for-5
in Wednesday's 8-5 win against Texas.
Right-handed pitcher Alay Soler, 26, like
Morales a Cuban defector, made his first
major league start Wednesday for the New
York Mets. He left after six innings with
a 4-3 lead against Philadelphia but didn't
get the decision as the Mets beat the Phillies
5-4.
Morales and Soler both went through protracted
ordeals to reach the majors.
After being banned from playing in his
country in 2003 following rumors that he
intended to defect, Morales attempted to
escape from Cuba eight times, finally succeeding
June 8, 2004.
Like Soler, he established residency in
the Dominican Republic, which allowed them
to avoid being subjected to baseball's draft,
thereby enhancing his negotiating position.
Soler defected in November 2003 and signed
a three-year, $2.8 million deal with the
Mets in 2004, but he didn't start pitching
for the organization until this spring because
of problems securing proper documentation
and issues with his former agent. He was
1-0 with a 2.75 ERA in three starts for
Class AA Binghamton (N.Y.) before being
called up.
Morales watched the Cuban national team,
for which he hit cleanup at 19, parlay its
brand of fundamental play into a second-place
finish in the WBC, behind Japan. He said
some of his former teammates would like
to join him playing stateside but haven't
been able to leave Fidel Castro's communist
regime.
|
