Yahoo! August 7, 2000
'Conference for a Free Cuba' Offers First Open Forum To Discuss Internal Opposition Movement in Cuba
Press Release. Monday August 7, 7:31 am Eastern Time. SOURCE: Cuban Democratic Revolutionary Directorate.
What: "Conference for a Free Cuba: Coming Together for a Common Strategy"
When: Saturday, Sept. 9, 8:30 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Where: Radisson Hotel, Brass Menagerie Ballroom, 711 N.W. 72 Avenue., Miami, Fla.
Who: Sponsored by the
Directorio and open to the public
MIAMI, Aug. 7 /PRNewswire/ -- The first conference to cover the internal opposition movement in Cuba in depth and exclusively, "Conference for a Free Cuba: Coming Together for a Common Strategy,'' will take place Sept. 9 at the Radisson Hotel in Miami, announced today the Cuban Democratic
Revolutionary Directorate ("Directorio'').
Free and open to the public, the day-long event will feature speakers on various sides of the topic: former dissidents from Cuba, leaders of Cuban- American organizations, international activists, journalists, and legislators from the U.S. and abroad. Speakers and panelists will pose points for
discussion and lead a general debate. In addition, the event will showcase "Steps to Freedom,'' a documentary film of the opposition made with footage from inside Cuba.
Maritza Lugo Fernandez, Nestor Rodriguez Lobaina, Dr. Oscar Elias Biscet, Berta Antunez Pernet -- these are just a few of the many prominent figures at the center of this vital movement in Cuba. The opposition grows larger and more diverse each day, spanning the length of the island and
including groups with different political and social tendencies, ranging from human rights efforts to farming cooperatives and associations of independent journalists. Each organization with its unique focus nevertheless expresses a wish shared among them all -- that the government respect their
right to exist.
Through nonviolent resistance, these groups are forging a civil society and paving the way for democracy in Cuba. Their leaders have called for help from abroad. "Conference for a Free Cuba'' aims to give them a voice outside the country.
About the Directorio
The Cuban Democratic Revolutionary Directorate ("Directorio'') is an organization of a new generation of Cubans working for democracy in Cuba. Founded in 1990 at the International Congress of Young Cubans for a Free Cuba in Miami Beach, the Directorio is a grassroots effort in direct
support of the opposition, maintaining that the primary agents of democratic change are in Cuba. Members range in age from their mid-20s to early 40s.
With "Conference for a Free Cuba,'' the Directorio will celebrate its 10th anniversary.
To register for the event, please call 305-279-4416 or e-mail, drdc5@directorio.org.
For more information, please contact Orlando Gutierrez or Janisset Rivero, both of the Directorio, 305-279-4416, or e-mail, drdc5@directorio.org.
Guevara Photographer Fights Vodka Ads
LONDON, 6 (AP) - Wearing a tilted beret, his eyes defiantly gazing on righting the next injustice, the famous image of Ernesto "Che'' Guevara is a universal icon for revolution.
And while the photograph of the Cuban revolutionary's face has been plastered on everything from T-shirts to computer screens, the photographer who took the famous shot 40 years ago is only now claiming copyright to it.
Alberto Diaz Gutierrez, 71, who lives in Cuba, is suing an advertising agency for using the image to promote vodka, the Guardian newspaper reported Monday.
Gutierrez photographed the Latin American icon during a memorial service in Havana, Cuba. The steely image - a favorite in student dormitories worldwide - was recently used in an advertising campaign to promote Smirnoff vodka.
In a claim filed in London's High Court, Gutierrez accused advertising agency Lowe Lintas and picture agency Rex Features of trivializing the photo's historical significance by superimposing it with a hammer and sickle motif. The advertisement - for spicy vodka - used a chili pepper to depict
the sickle.
"To use the image of Che Guevara to sell vodka is a slur on his name and memory. He never drank himself. He was not a drunk and drink should not be associated with his immortal memory,'' The Guardian quoted Gutierrez as saying in an interview from Cuba.
Gutierrez, who also goes by the professional name Alberto Korda, said he may travel to London to testify during the case, which is expected to be heard in September.
The photo was taken March 5, 1960, at a memorial service for more than 100 crew members of a Belgian arms cargo ship, killed in an attack for which Cuba blamed counterrevolutionary forces aided by the United States. Gutierrez, a news journalist, was assigned to cover the ceremony.
Guevara played a central role in Cuba's 1959 revolution alongside Castro.
When Guevara was later killed by the Bolivian army in October 1967, he was hailed a martyr to the revolution. The photo has since become a rallying image for various movements.
Spokesmen for Lowe Lintas and Rex Features were not immediately available for comment Monday.
Head: Sotomayor Failed Drug Test
STOCKHOLM, Sweden 4 (AP) - Javier Sotomayor was accused of failing more than one test for cocaine by a top track official who says the Cuban high jump champion should not have been cleared to compete at the Sydney Olympics.
"I know that he tested positive a few times,'' Arne Ljungqvist, vice president of track's governing body, told the Swedish news agency TT on Friday. "I think that he should still be suspended.''
Sotomayor was banned for two years after testing positive for cocaine during the Pan American Games in Winnipeg, Manitoba, last year.
On Wednesday, his suspension was reduced to one year by the IAAF, meaning that Sotomayor could resume competing immediately and enter the Olympics next month.
At a rally later that day in Cuba, Sotomayor was greeted by the warm applause of hundreds of athletes, coaches, their relatives and President Fidel Castro himself.
The 32-year-old Cuban, the only man to jump 8 feet, has been training regularly in Havana. He is considered a favorite in Sydney despite his long break from competition.
Ljungqvist said Sotomayor tested positive again for cocaine after onsite testing while training. It was not immediately clear from the TT report where that test took place.
"I knew about that test,'' Ljungqvist said. "And it's possible that there are more test results showing the same thing.
"The decision to let him compete again is like a hit in my face,'' said Ljungqvist, who says he may resign from the IAAF.
"It's not fun to work right now. I can understand the public thinking that it's strange that we allow doped athletes to compete again.''
On Wednesday, Sotomayor said he was "happy, but not totally satisfied'' with the IAAF's decision. The governing body cleared him to compete but did not exonerate him from drug use.
Sotomayor is a two-time world champion, the world record-holder and the 1992 Olympic champion.
Sotomayor, backed by Castro and Cuban sports authorities, has maintained his innocence and suggested he was set up by someone trying to harm the communist country's reputation.
"I want to keep trying to clean up my image,'' Sotomayor said then. "That is my goal.''
Sotomayor's coach, Guillermo De la Torre, said he was pleased the high jumper would be able to compete, but lamented that the decision "assumes that he had consumed that disgusting substance.''
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