Chronicle on Cuba - April 2005

Highlights

Domestic Affairs: Fidel Castro’s government pays its last respects to Pope John Paul II. Cubans elect municipal assemblies in local elections.

Economy: Cubans experience the second revaluation of the "convertible peso" in less than a month. The worst Cuban sugar harvest in a century nears its conclusion, with output not expected at much more than 1.3 million tonnes of raw sugar. Fidel Castro announces an increase in the island's minimum wage, more than doubling salaries of nearly 1.7 million Cuban workers. Cuba and Venezuela sign trade agreements for over $400 million, and PDVSA (Petróleos de Venezuela) opens an office in Havana for its transactions in the Caribbean.

Foreign Affairs: The United Nations Commission on Human Rights backs a US sponsored resolution on the situation of human rights in Cuba.Fidel Castro harshly criticizes the European Union and Mexico for voting against Cuba at the UN Human Rights Commission. Raúl Castro pays an official visit to China, Laos, Malaysia and Vietnam. The European Union's legislative branch expresses its dissent with the executive over policy toward Cuba. Venezuelan president Hugo Chávez and Fidel Castro strengthen their political and economic ties.