CUBA
NEWS
The
Miami Herald
Rights group calls Cuba on 75 arrests,
3 deaths
By Pablo Bachelet, pbachelet@MiamiHerald.com.
Posted on Wed, Nov. 01, 2006.
WASHINGTON - The human rights branch of
the Organization of American States today
condemned Cuba for jailing 75 dissidents
and swiftly trying and executing three hijackers
during a 2003 crackdown on dissent.
The Inter-American Commission on Human
Rights (IACHR) recommended Cuba free the
prisoners, compensate the victims and their
families and modify its laws to ensure the
independence of the judiciary and the rights
of its citizens.
The IACHR's opinion, issued in two separate
reports, will likely have little immediate
impact because Cuba has long refused to
recognize IACHR decisions. But human rights
lawyers say it might lay the ground for
future legal actions, including suits for
reparations, if there is a change of government
in Cuba.
''As a result of this case, these three
deaths . . . are not anonymous deaths anymore,''
said Claudio Grossman, a law professor at
American University who led a legal team
that argued the hijackers' case. "Their
story should be told by a legitimate organ
with authority.''
The IACHR, widely respected by nongovernment
human rights groups, has been credited with
helping thousands of victims of violations
in the hemisphere obtain redress and prod
OAS member states to improve their human
rights protections.
Cuba argues the commission has no jurisdiction
over Havana because the country was suspended
from the OAS in 1962. It routinely returns
IACHR communications unopened.
The 75 dissidents were sentenced to up
to 28 years in prison after brief trials
on charges generally alleging they were
acting as U.S. agents. The IACHR report
mentions another four dissidents jailed
around the same time. Fifteen were released
later on health grounds.
The three men were executed by firing squads
just nine days after their arrest following
a foiled attempt to hijack a passenger ferry
to Florida. Their swift trial and executions
infuriated international human rights organizations,
many Cuban Americans in Miami and the U.S.
government.
The IACHR regularly condemns Cuba for the
lack of liberties there, and also urges
the United States to end the embargo against
the island. But the panel rarely tackles
specific cases.
In 1996, it condemned Cuba for the 37 deaths
during the 1994 sinking of a Florida-bound
tugboat after it was rammed and sunk by
government vessels. And in 1999 it blamed
Cuba for the 1996 shoot-downs of the two
Brothers to the Rescue planes in which four
people were killed.
The commission argues that Cuba is still
subject to its jurisdiction because it continues
to be part of the 1948 Charter of the OAS
and the American Declaration of the Rights
and Duties of Man of the same year -- the
documents that gave rise to the IACHR in
1959.
However, Cuba is not part of another agreement
in 1969 that created the Costa Rica-based
Inter-American Court of Human Rights, meaning
that neither side can take the IACHR report
to that tribunal for a more binding decision.
The Cuban American Bar Association and
the rights group Cuban Democratic Directory
acted as plaintiffs for the jailed dissidents,
filing their complaint shortly after the
2003 crackdown. They argued the defendants
were forced to use court-appointed lawyers
and were allowed just hours to prepare their
defenses. They were subject to solitary
confinement, beatings and other abuses,
according to the 78-page report.
The IACHR says Cuba also denied the defendants
their right to a fair and public trial and
humane treatment in jail, among other violations.
It also condemned Cuba for laws that limit
the rights of freedom of expression and
opinion.
The commission berated Cuba for not using
''a judicial approach'' to prove the charges
against the dissidents. It cites one case
where a flier listing generally recognized
human and civil rights was used as proof
to show the defendant was seeking to destabilize
the country.
The Venezuelan representative on the IACHR,
Freddy Gutiérrez, wrote the sole
dissenting opinion, saying the legal arguments
were ''weak and inconsistent'' and that
Cuba's 1962 suspension meant the country
had no representation in the OAS.
Lorenzo Copello, Bárbaro Sevilla
and Jorge Martínez were executed
by firing squad on April 11. The family
members were never informed of the trial
and were not allowed to see the bodies afterwards.
OAS agency blasts Cuba for rights violations
The human rights branch
of the Organization of American States condemned
Cuba for the arrest of 75 dissidents and
for three killings, the first specific condemnation
in seven years.
By Pablo Bachelet, pbachelet@MiamiHerald.com.
Posted on Thu, Nov. 02, 2006.
Informe
Nº 67/06 / Oscar Elías Biscet
y Otros / CIDH
Informe
Nº /06 / Lorenzo Enrique Copello y
otros / CIDH
WASHINGTON - The human rights branch of
the Organization of American States Wednesday
condemned Cuba for jailing 75 dissidents
and swiftly trying and executing three hijackers
during a 2003 crackdown on dissent.
The Inter-American Commission on Human
Rights (IACHR) recommended Cuba free the
prisoners, compensate the victims and modify
its laws to ensure the independence of the
judiciary and the rights of its citizens.
The IACHR's opinion, issued in two separate
reports, will likely have little immediate
impact because Cuba has long refused to
recognize IACHR decisions. But human rights
lawyers say it might lay the ground for
future legal actions, including suits for
reparations, if there is a change of government.
TELLING THEIR STORIES
''As a result of this case, these three
deaths . . . are not anonymous deaths anymore,''
said Claudio Grossman, a law professor at
American University who led a legal team
that argued the hijackers' case. "Their
story should be told by a legitimate organ
with authority.''
The IACHR, widely respected by nongovernment
human rights groups, has been credited with
helping thousands of victims of violations
in the hemisphere obtain redress and prod
OAS member states to improve their human
rights protections.
Cuba argues the commission has no jurisdiction
over Havana because the country was suspended
from the OAS in 1962. It routinely returns
IACHR communications unopened.
The 75 dissidents were sentenced to up
to 28 years in prison after brief trials
on charges generally alleging they were
acting as U.S. agents. The IACHR report
mentions another four dissidents jailed
around the same time. Fifteen were released
later on health grounds.
HIJACKERS KILLED
The three men were executed by firing squads
just nine days after their arrest following
a foiled attempt to hijack a passenger ferry
to Florida. Their swift trial and executions
infuriated international human rights organizations,
many Cuban Americans in Miami and the U.S.
government.
The IACHR regularly condemns Cuba for the
lack of liberties there, and also urges
the United States to end the embargo against
the island. But the panel rarely tackles
specific cases.
In 1996, it condemned Cuba for the 37 deaths
during the 1994 sinking of a Florida-bound
tugboat after it was rammed and sunk by
government vessels. And in 1999 it blamed
Cuba for the 1996 shoot-downs of the two
Brothers to the Rescue planes in which four
people were killed.
The commission argues that Cuba is still
subject to its jurisdiction because it continues
to be part of the 1948 Charter of the OAS
and the American Declaration of the Rights
and Duties of Man of the same year -- the
documents that gave rise to the IACHR in
1959.
However, Cuba is not part of another agreement
in 1969 that created the Costa Rica-based
Inter-American Court of Human Rights, meaning
that neither side can take the IACHR report
to that tribunal for a more binding decision.
The Cuban American Bar Association and
the rights group Cuban Democratic Directory
acted as plaintiffs for the jailed dissidents,
filing their complaint shortly after the
2003 crackdown. They argued the defendants
were forced to use court-appointed lawyers
and were allowed just hours to prepare their
defenses. They were subject to solitary
confinement, beatings and other abuses,
according to the 78-page report.
The IACHR says Cuba also denied the defendants
their right to a fair and public trial and
humane treatment in jail, among other violations.
It also condemned Cuba for laws that limit
the rights of freedom of expression and
opinion.
The commission berated Cuba for not using
''a judicial approach'' to prove the charges
against the dissidents. It cites one case
where a flier listing generally recognized
human and civil rights was used as proof
to show the defendant was seeking to destabilize
the country.
VENEZUELA DEFENDS
The Venezuelan representative on the IACHR,
Freddy Gutiérrez, wrote the sole
dissenting opinion, saying the legal arguments
were ''weak and inconsistent'' and that
Cuba's 1962 suspension meant the country
had no representation in the OAS.
Lorenzo Copello, Bárbaro Sevilla
and Jorge Martínez were executed
by firing squad on April 11. The family
members were never informed of the trial
and were not allowed to see the bodies afterwards.
Sports agent charged with smuggling
Cuban ballplayers
A California sports agent
was arrested and charged in a conspiracy
to smuggle Cuban baseball players -- a case
that industry insiders say reveals the dark
side of a thriving business.
By Casey Woods, Kevin Baxter
And Frances Robles. frobles@MiamiHerald.com.
Posted on Wed, Nov. 01, 2006.
A California-based sports agent was arrested
Tuesday, charged in federal court in Miami
with financing and organizing a scheme to
smuggle Cuban baseball players from the
communist island to the United States.
Baseball agent Gustavo ''Gus'' Dominguez
of Total Sports International is accused
of hiring four men to help him get 19 Cubans
off the island on Aug. 22, 2004, including
several who are now U.S. minor-league baseball
players. The voyage also included three
children only identified by their initials.
Dominguez's Beverly Hills company represents
some 50 players, including pitcher Jason
Simontacchi, former Marlin Greg Colbrunn
and Cuban defectors Eddy Oropesa and Andy
Morales. Dominguez has said he represents
38 Cuban defectors.
Industry insiders say the case reveals
the dark underbelly of the business of representing
Cuban defectors. Where player representatives
once assisted Cubans in the act of defecting
once they were outside Cuba -- as agent
Joe Cubas did when he spirited former Marlin
Liván Hernández away from
the national team during a trip to Mexico
in 1995 -- agents have in recent years begun
working closely with or even recruiting
smugglers to get the players off the island.
At least 100 Cuban players have defected
since 1991. Although the smuggling operations
have been an open secret for years in the
baseball community, it is the first time
an agent has been charged with a crime.
The indictment accuses Dominguez of depositing
$50,000 into an account at the California-based
Commercial Capital Bank to finance the operation.
The indictment says he rented an apartment
in Woodland Hills, Calif., in late July
2004. Four days later, co-defendant Geoffrey
Rodrigues loaded 22 Cubans onto a 28-foot
boat in Cuba. The boat was intercepted by
Customs and Border Protection.
A month later, co-defendant Roberto Yosvany
Hernandez went back to Cuba to pick up another
19 Cuban nationals -- many of them from
the first aborted trip.
''Mr. Dominguez has never been in trouble
before. He is a successful businessman in
California,'' said Susan Dmitrovsky, attorney
for Dominguez. "I believe he will prevail
in this case.''
According to the indictment, co-defendants
Rodrigues and Hernandez operated go-fast
boats used in the two smuggling ventures.
Aides Ramón Batista and Guillermo
Valdez allegedly transported the players
from Florida to California in a rented van.
Batista provided meals and clothes, using
money Dominguez provided, the indictment
said.
Among the players was Francisely Bueno-Trueba,
a pitcher with the Atlanta Braves' minor-league
affiliate in Mississippi; Osbek Castillo-Pérez,
a pitcher with the Arizona Diamondbacks'
minor-league team in Missoula, Mont.; Allen
Guevara-Pérez, a pitcher from Havana;
Osmany Masso-Arredondo, who was drafted
by the Arizona Diamondbacks in June but
did not sign; and Yoankis Turino-Montalno,
a pitcher for the Lincoln, Neb., Saltdogs
of the independent American Association.
''Though this case involves a Beverly Hills
sports agent and talented baseball players,
it is remarkably similar to the human smuggling
operations that [Immigration and Customs
Enforcement] encounters every day,'' ICE
Assistant Secretary Julie L. Myers said
in a statement. "The ringleaders put
the lives of illegal immigrants at risk
and sought to profit from their labor. It
is unfortunate that those who claim to support
Major League Baseball taint America's pastime
with these illegal human smuggling operations.''
The U.S. Attorney's Office said the agent
immediately began training and conditioning
the baseball players, failing to present
them to Customs and Border Protection for
immigration processing.
Cuban-American baseball agent Juan Iglesias
said he is often approached by the families
of Cuban players, asking for a hand in getting
their relatives off the island.
'My answer is always the same: 'When he
gets to the U.S., have him call me,' ''
Iglesias said. "That's heavy-duty stuff.
More things can go wrong than can go right.''
Agent Joe Kehoskie said he's surprised
it took so long for someone to be arrested.
''I don't want to gloat about someone else
being arrested,'' Kehoskie said, "but
it seems like in recent years the [business
of representing] Cuban defectors has turned
into a smuggling business.''
Dominguez was released from jail Tuesday
after posting a $25,000 corporate surety
bond. Batista posted a $15,000 bond.
The indictment charges all five defendants
with a conspiracy to bring immigrants illegally
into the United States, illegally transporting
them in violation of law, and concealing
and harboring them from detection.
Dominguez, Rodrigues and Hernandez are
separately charged with smuggling the Cubans,
and Rodrigues is charged with assaulting
Customs and Border Protection marine interdiction
agents. Dominguez, Batista, and Valdez are
accused of transporting, concealing and
harboring from detection undocumented immigrants.
The smuggling conspiracy carries a maximum
penalty of five years in prison, and a maximum
fine of $250,000, the U.S. Attorney's Office
said. The assault of a federal officer carries
a maximum penalty of 20 years' imprisonment
and a $250,000 fine.
The charges of smuggling, transporting,
harboring and concealing undocumented immigrants
each carry a maximum penalty of 10 years'
imprisonment and a maximum fine of $250,000.
Herald writer Andrea Torres contributed
to this report.
Raúl Castro takes his own path
Fidel Castro transferred
power in Cuba three months ago, and the
government led by his brother Raúl
has proved it can hold up without him.
By Frances Robles, frobles@MiamiHerald.com.
Posted on Wed, Nov. 01, 2006.
Three months after Cuban leader Fidel Castro
handed the reins of power to his brother
Raúl, triggering shocking uncertainty
on both sides of the Florida Straits, there
are early but important signs that Raúl
has taken a different track than Fidel.
Raúl's few speeches have stuck to
issues like worker productivity and corruption
rather than to Fidel's firebrand denunciations
of Yankee imperialism. Two Cabinet members
have been replaced, and the government has
announced a potentially critical plan to
study flaws in the communist system. In
August, he signaled a willingness to work
closer with the United States.
Another difference between the two brothers:
no massive street marches to mark this anniversary
or protest that U.S. action; no revolutionary
hoopla to welcome a new shipment of Chinese
buses or rice-cooking pots.
Overall, Fidel's younger brother appears
to be taking a wait-and-see approach on
more significant changes: wait until Fidel
dies, and see what he will be able to do.
''Announcing any kind of policy shift would
be upstaging Fidel,'' said William LeoGrande
of American University. "Before doing
something like that, they would wait until
Fidel was back and had blessed it.''
The stunning July 31 announcement that
Fidel Castro was so sick with an intestinal
ailment that he had ''temporarily'' surrendered
his powers for the first time in 47 years
sparked waves of speculation about his much
less charismatic brother's ability to for
Cuban and Cuban-American Studies maintain
control of the island.
But during his three months in charge,
Raúl has defied naysayers and proved
that the system could survive with the 80-year-old
Fidel on the sidelines -- alive but looking
thin and sickly in the latest video released
last weekend.
Raúl Castro, Cuba's defense minister
for nearly five decades, has long been known
to strive for institutional efficiency.
The military he runs is a respected institution
that is the engine behind much of the nation's
economy.
But some Cuba experts say it remains unclear
whether Raúl has either the acumen
or political backing to run the country
in the long run.
''They have demonstrated that nothing has
changed,'' said Andy Gómez, a senior
fellow at the University of Miami's Institute
for Cuban and Cuban-American Studies. "The
key issue is: How long can Raúl keep
it together?''
Gómez added that when Fidel dies,
Raúl will be forced to make a modicum
of changes in hopes of buying himself at
least six months before Cubans start making
strong demands for improvements in their
daily lives.
Cubans on the island are largely concerned
about low wages, high prices, food shortages
and decrepit housing. If Raúl is
able to make at least a start toward improvements,
he is unlikely to face massive street unrest,
experts agree.
CALLING THE SHOTS
For now, many experts believe Fidel, despite
his infirmity, is still calling the major
shots. Amid speculation about cancer, Fidel's
illness remains a state secret.
''He's very much involved . . . It may
not be minute to minute, but certainly day
to day,'' Gómez said.
Fidel Castro said he remains in close touch
during a video he released Saturday to quash
talk that he had died.
Among the surprise moves experts say must
have been the work of the ailing Fidel:
the appointment of former interior minister
-- and reputed Raúl rival -- Ramiro
Valdés as minister of communication.
American University Professor Philip Brenner
said among the most dramatic, if subtle,
changes was an Oct. 21 announcement that
an academic committee would study the system
for flaws that fuel corruption and inefficiencies.
Previously, such widespread problems were
blamed on people, not the system.
Cuban media reports quoted some of the
academics as raising the possibility of
introducing market competition to increase
efficiency.
''This is very dramatic,'' he said. "I'd
say this was one of two or three very significant
things that mark a revitalization.''
KEEPING LOW PROFILE
Experts said the academic research team
also was indicative of Raúl's low-key
style of seeking a consensus -- a far cry
from Fidel's autocratic approach to management.
Compared to his brother's showmanship, Raúl
has given only a handful of public addresses
in the three months.
''The most interesting thing is that he
hasn't been more of a public figure,'' LeoGrande
said. "Being president requires symbolic
leadership and demands a more public presence
than being vice president. I'm surprised
he hasn't come to grips with that.''
Raúl will likely continue his backstage
approach, at least until he has a clearer
sense of Cuba's future, experts say.
''At the end of the day, Fidel is still
the president,'' LeoGrande said. "Even
if he has turned over power to Raúl,
he's still the jefe.''
Translation: Fidel's the boss.
OAS human rights branch condemns Cub
By Pablo Bachelet, pbachelet@MiamiHerald.com.
Posted on Wed, Nov. 01, 2006.
WASHINGTON - The Inter-American Commission
on Human Rights said Wednesday Cuba committed
multiple violations when it imprisoned 75
dissidents and swiftly tried and executed
three hijackers during a 2003 crackdown
on dissent.
The decision by the commission, a branch
of the Organization of American States (OAS),
will likely have little immediate impact
on the 61 dissidents still in jail or the
relatives of the three hijackers because
Cuba has not recognized previous commission
decisions.
But human rights lawyers say it could lay
the groundwork for reparations if there
is a change Cuba's government.
The commission, an independent branch of
the 34-member OAS, is widely respected among
non-government human rights groups and has
been credited with helping thousands of
victims of violations in the hemisphere
obtain reparations from governments.
Cuba argues the commission has no jurisdiction
over Havana because the country was suspended
from the OAS in 1962. It routinely returns
IACHR communications unopened.
The 75 dissidents were sentenced to up
to 28 years in prison after brief trials
on charges generally alleging they were
acting as U.S. agents. Fourteen were later
released on health grounds.
The three men were executed by firing squads
just nine days after their arrest following
a foiled attempt to hijack a paseenger ferry
to Florida. Their swift trial and executions
infuriated international human rights organizations,
many Cuban Americans in Miami and the U.S.
government.
Cuba accused of slavelike labor deal
Cuban shipyard workers
say they were forced to work as modern slaves
at a Curacao ship repair company
By Frances Robles. frobles@MiamiHerald.com.
Posted on Sat, Oct. 28, 2006 in The Miami
Herald.
The Cuban government conspired with a Curacao
ship repair company to provide practically
slave labor fixing up vessels, including
Miami-based cruise ships, and kept workers
under harsh conditions, a lawsuit filed
in U.S. District court in Miami alleges.
The civil suit filed before Judge James
Lawrence King alleges that up to 100 Cuban
shipyard workers are forced to work against
their will at Curacao Drydock Co., a ship
repair company with an agent in Delray Beach,
Klattenberg Marine Associates.
The suit, filed by three workers who escaped
and now live in Florida, alleges they were
ordered to work 16-hour shifts for $16 a
month, a low wage common in their native
Cuba.
''We started work at 3 in the afternoon
and kept working until 7 a.m. the following
day,'' plaintiff Alberto Justo Rodríguez
told The Miami Herald. "We worked in
the worst, most uncomfortable parts of the
ship. Where nobody wanted to go -- that's
where they sent the Cubans.''
112 HOURS A WEEK
According to the suit, the men often worked
112 hours a week.
Their wage amounted to 3 ½ cents
an hour.
The suit was filed two months ago and was
first reported Friday by The Associated
Press.
Rodríguez, a former shipyard worker
in Cuba, was summoned to the Ministry of
Transportation in 2001 for a mandatory transfer
to Curacao. Upon arrival on the Caribbean
island, he says, his passport was seized.
He and up to 100 other Cubans worked on
a joint venture with the Cuban government
and Curacao Drydock, a company that does
shipyard repair, including work for U.S.-based
cruise lines, oil companies and shipping
firms.
The joint venture between the Cuban government
and Curacao Drydock has Cuba providing the
workers for the company, providing a source
of cash for the Cuban government, the suit
alleges.
Curacao Drydock, the suit alleges, knew
the Cuban workers were being held against
their will.
A written statement provided by Curacao
Drydock attorney Matt Triggs to The Miami
Herald says many of the suit's allegations
are directed at the Cuban government.
''There are allegations, however, regarding
the health and safety of our employees that
are of great concern to Curacao Drydock
Co.,'' the statement said, stressing that
the company has safety measures in place.
"Nevertheless, the company is undertaking
a full investigation of the allegations.''
The suit claims the men were forced to
labor in sweltering weather and dangerous
conditions, like hanging from scaffolds.
When Rodríguez broke his foot and
ankle in 2002 while scraping rust from the
hull of a ship, he was sent home to heal
-- and then ordered back after his recovery.
The suit claims plaintiff Luis Alberto
Casanova once suffered an electric shock
but was forced to finish his shift despite
bleeding from his tongue.
The workers' supervisors were other Cubans,
including a nephew of Cuban leader Fidel
Castro, the suit alleges.
''They always told us if we didn't work,
they'd throw us out of the country, fire
us and send us to jail,'' Rodríguez
said. "Really, we were slaves. We didn't
have a voice or a vote.''
FORCED VIEWING
On time off, Rodríguez said, they
were forced to watch videos of political
speeches, marches and the Cuban government
Mesa Redonda -- Round Table -- TV news shows.
He escaped in 2004 and now works odd jobs
in Hialeah.
The suit was filed by Miami Beach lawyer
John Andres Thornton under the Aliens Tort
Act, which allows foreigners to file civil
suits in U.S. federal courts when an international
law has been violated.
Curacao Drydock has asked the judge to
dismiss the complaint for lack of jurisdiction.
The suit seeks unspecified damages. No
trial date has been set.
Co-plaintiffs Fernando Alonso Hernández
worked in Curacao from 1995 until he fled
in January 2005. He and the third plaintiff,
Luis Alberto Casanova, who worked in Curacao
from 2002 until 2005, now work in shipyards
in Tampa.
One of the plaintiffs, Thornton said, now
makes in an hour what he used to get in
a month.
Cuba examining socialism for flaws
The Cuban government
has launched a study with a surprising focus:
What about socialism causes people to steal?
By Frances Robles. frobles@MiamiHerald.com.
Posted on Thu, Oct. 26, 2006.
In the wake of an unusual investigation
by Cuban state journalists into public employees
who regularly cheat customers, Havana has
announced an even more surprising response:
a study of what's wrong with the entire
system.
But the study won't be all. New rules aimed
at cracking down on widespread fraud at
state businesses will take effect Jan. 2,
the Communist Party newspaper Granma reported
Wednesday.
Together, the two announcements appear
to hint at what some experts say could be
a significant change in policy in the wake
of Fidel Castro's surrender of power --
an acknowledgement that perhaps the root
cause of Cuba's workplace fraud is a flaw
with its socialist system.
POLICY SOLUTION
''This is different. They are not saying
it's greed'' that causes corruption, said
Cuba expert Philip Peters, of the Lexington
Institute, a Virginia think tank. "They
are saying it's not just a few bad apples.
It's the system. They are putting the public
on notice that they are looking for a policy
solution.''
Raúl Castro, who assumed his brother's
powers after Fidel Castro announced July
31 that he had undergone emergency intestinal
surgery, has been portrayed by some Cuba-watchers
as willing to reform the island's communist
system.
This week's announcements came on the heels
of a three-part series in the Communist
youth newspaper, Juventud Rebelde. In a
remarkably unusual piece of journalism for
Cuba's state-controlled media, reporters
went undercover to restaurants, taxis and
shoe repair shops to show how customers
were routinely cheated. Beer mugs were not
filled to the top, sandwiches were light
on ham, taxi fares were too high and repair
shops charged more than state-set prices.
While the Oct. 1 article did not stress
the meager wages that often drive Cubans
to pilfer from their state employers, it
quoted workers as saying it was unfair to
judge them when the government failed to
provide the supplies needed to conduct business.
The shoe repairman, for example, was buying
his own thread and adjusting prices to make
up for his investment.
On Tuesday, the newspaper followed up with
a story reporting that a group of Cuban
experts would study the issue of ''socialist
property'' -- the communist system under
which the government owns and operates virtually
all enterprises on the island.
The study will be led by specialists from
the Cuban Philosophy Institute ''as a scientific,
multidiscipline investigation that cannot
be economic alone,'' the newspaper added.
It did not say when the study would be completed.
''I think we are probably at the verge
of a new policy shift,'' said St. Thomas
University economics professor Maria Dolores
Espinosa. "Maybe they are looking at
mixing some amount of market and moral incentives.
Right now the only reason to work in Cuba
is to steal. Otherwise, people would not
be working.''
Florida International University professor
Jorge Salazar-Carrillo cautioned, however,
that the Cuban government periodically criticizes
itself with great fanfare -- and then does
little to address the problem.
''It's the same old thing: 'We have to
stop this somehow,'' ' Salazar-Carrillo
said. "They try to control it, and
it gets worse and worse and worse.''
He said Cuba's black market economy is
so strong that it would take impossibly
drastic measures to stop it.
''I don't think this is going to fly at
all,'' he said. "It's not going to
happen.''
NEW RULES
But the Cuban government seems determined
to crack down on the internal theft and
other labor inefficiencies that have plagued
state enterprises for decades.
Wednesday's Communist Party newspaper Granma
said rules will take effect Jan. 2 "intended
to strengthen the established order, educate
the workers and deal with indiscipline and
illegalities in the performance of labor.''
Among the rules: No wasting time on the
job. Workers must report theft, damages
and losses and should work their whole shift.
No pornography or games can be downloaded
on work computers.
''There must be a scientific method to
organize society economically and politically
so it may function better,'' the paper quoted
Ernesto Molina, consulting professor of
the Department of Economic Disciplines and
Management Techniques at the Superior Institute
of International Relations, as saying. "What
we must not do is to allow the market to
transform the economic structure of this
country all by itself.''
Miami Herald translator Renato Pérez
contributed to this report.
Radio and TV Martí begin aircraft
broadcasts
By Pablo Bachelet, pbachelet@MiamiHerald.com.
Posted on Thu, Oct. 26, 2006
WASHINGTON - Radio and TV Martí
have officially launched their new aircraft-based
broadcasts with a program sure to please
their Cuban audiences -- baseball's World
Series.
The new G1 twin turboprop, based in Key
West, is to be airborne between 6 and 11
every night except Sunday in an attempt
to bypass Cuban government jamming of the
stations' previously stationary broadcasting
facilities.
After several weeks of testing, the aircraft
officially began beaming the regular Martí
broadcasts Tuesday, starting with Game 3
of the World Series between the St. Louis
Cardinals and the Detroit Tigers.
Although Cubans could rarely view the previous
land-based broadcasts because of the government
jamming, anecdotal evidence suggests some
have been receiving the airborne transmissions,
especially outside the Havana area, said
the stations' chief of staff and spokesman,
Alberto Mascaro.
''We did have some reports in the last
few weeks of reception,'' he said in a telephone
interview during a trip to Washington.
The Bush administration hopes the aircraft,
which replaces broadcasting blimps once
tethered in the Florida Keys but destroyed
by hurricanes, will prove a more robust
platform for defeating the Cuban jamming.
Some Cuban-American activists have long
lobbied for the shift to aircraft.
But the aircraft is still restricted to
flying within U.S. airspace to avoid violating
international broadcasting regulations.
Some Cuban-American lawmakers are pushing
the administration to let the plane fly
in international airspace, which would make
it even harder on the Cuban jammers.
The Cuban government has argued that all
Radio and TV Martí broadcasts are
illegal.
Last week, Cuba's acting ambassador before
the United Nations, Ileana Núñez,
told the General Assembly that on Aug. 11,
Cuba detected simultaneous broadcasts from
two aircraft in the 213 MHz frequency that
interfered with island stations.
Mascaro said the new aircraft is broadcasting
on TV's Channel 20 frequency and will not
broadcast Radio Martí on the FM frequency.
The plane is also capable of broadcasting
live Martí signals.
U.N. will slam trade embargo, Cuban
predicts
Posted on Wed, Oct. 25,
2006.
WASHINGTON - (AP) -- American hostility
toward Cuba has reached ''unprecedented
levels'' under the Bush administration,
a senior Cuban official said Tuesday. He
predicted that the U.N. General Assembly
will deliver a sharp rebuke of U.S. policies
in a resolution next month.
Cuba's chief diplomat in Washington, Dagoberto
Rodríguez, said the world assembly
will denounce the U.S. trade embargo against
Cuba, as it has each year since the early
1990s.
''The longest running and most ruthless
blockade ever known to mankind will be rejected
again,'' Rodríguez said, noting that
182 countries voted to end ''this cruel
and genocidal policy'' last year.
He said the United States pursues regime
change in Cuba and seeks to annex the island.
The Bush administration says it is seeking,
through a policy of economic denial and
other means, a peaceful transition to democracy
on the island.
In response to a question about the possible
reinstatement of Fidel Castro, Rodríguez
said, "His health has been improving
every day. He will soon be assuming his
duties as president.''
A month ago, Foreign Minister Felipe Pérez
Roque said Castro will take charge on Dec.
2. He relinquished power to his brother,
Raúl, on July 31 after reportedly
undergoing intestinal surgery.
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