Chronicle on Cuba - November 2006

Foreign Affairs

November 1: The human rights branch of the Organization of American States 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 recommended that 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 opinion, stated in two separate reports, likely will have little immediate impact because Cuba has long refused to recognize the commission's decisions. But human rights lawyers say it might lay the groundwork for future legal actions, including suits for reparations, if there's a change of government. The Cuban American Bar Association and the rights group Cuban Democratic Directory acted as plaintiffs for the jailed dissidents. The hijackers, Lorenzo Copello, Barbaro Sevilla and Jorge Martinez, were executed by firing squad on April 11. The family members were never informed of the trial and weren't allowed to see their bodies afterward. (McClatchy Newspapers, 1/11/06)

November 1: Cuba's Parliament President Ricardo Alarcon arrived in Russia after visiting Minsk, Belarus, as part of an extensive working tour of Europe that began in Spain. Alarcon was received at Moscow's Sheremetievo Airport by the president of the Russian Duma's Friends of Cuba group, Vitali Sebastionov, and other officials from the lower house. The Cuban Parliament president will meet with Russian Prime Minister Mijail Fradkov and other Duma leaders. He will also meet with Russian Vice Foreign Minister Sergei Kislyak and the Orthodox patriarch of Russia, Alexey II. (AIN, 2/11/06)

November 1: The Cuban dissident group Assembly to Promote Civil Society, led by Martha Beatriz Roque, called upon governments and international democratic institutions to not “cooperate” with Cuba’s “dictatorial system”. “The governments and democratic institutions of the world should not cooperate with a dictatorial system that has oppressed its people for more than 47 years”, says Martha Beatriz Roque in a letter addressed to the heads of state and of Government attending the XIV Latin-American Summit, which will take place in Montevideo. (EFE, 1/11/06)

November 1: London's mayor is making a surprise trip to Cuba, flying to the capital Havana as part of a week-long tour around Latin America. He is due to attend the 11th World Sport For All Conference in Havana, an event sponsored by the International Olympic Committee (IOC).  It is part of a continuing effort to improve links with Cuba, both in sport and in business, despite the country's diplomatic isolation and continuing US trade embargo. The British Embassy in Havana has not been given full details of Mr Livingstone's itinerary but he is a guest of the Havana municipal authorities and is likely to have meetings with senior officials. (BBC, 1/11/06)

November 2: Cuba attaches great importance to its relations with Pakistan and wants to consolidate these relations. These views were expressed by the Cuban ambassador to Pakistan, Gustavo Machin Gomez while addressing a press conference in a local hotel at Islamabad. The Cuban ambassador said that both countries have had diplomatic relations for the last six months and “we want to improve these relations in all fields”, he added. (Pakistan Tribune, 2/11/06)

November 1: Cuba and China were excluded from the newly created International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC), founded in Vienna with the objective of “speaking with one voice” to tackle the challenges of globalization. The International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU), the former World Confederation of Labour (WCL) and other national trade unions united to form the ITUC. Speaking to the media, secretary general, Guy Ryder, indicated that “where democratic trade unionism does not exist, like in China or Cuba”, these countries are not represented. (EFE, 2/11/06)

November 2: Brian Dijkema, a representative of the Christian Labour Association of Canada, said that “those who gloss over the Cuban government's violation of human rights often portray Cuba as a socialist utopia”, one in which “diminished freedom is merely the small price paid for cradle-to-grave care by the state”. CLAC is an independent Canadian union founded in 1952, and representing 40,000 members across the country.  “Why does the Canadian Labour Congress (CLC) -- a body that professes to be a defender of workers' rights and the "voice of labour" in Canada -- remain one of the last union organizations to support Cuba's one-union, one-party system?”, Dijkema asks. Together with its affiliated unions, the CLC will be hosting an event in Toronto in support of the Cuban government. “The rights of Cuban workers sitting in jail for starting an independent union is not on the agenda”. “When it comes to a choice between human dignity or socialist ideology, the CLC sides with ideology, believing workers are best served by one central authority -- whether in Cuba or in Canada”. (National Post, 2/11/06)

November 3: Cuban Vice President Carlos Lage leads his country’s delegation to the 16th Ibero-American Summit taking place in Montevideo, Uruguay, at a level of Heads of State and Government. The Cuban representation is also made up of Deputy Foreign Ministers Abelardo Moreno and Alejandro Gonzalez, and Cuba’s ambassador to Uruguay Marielena Ruiz Capote. According to the approved agenda, the Summit will debate issues like Migration for a Shared Development. (Prensa Latina, 3/11/06)

November 3: Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Alexy II said that he might pay a visit to Cuba in 2007, to consecrate the opening of a Russian Orthodox Church in the Caribbean country. After a meeting in Moscow with the head of Cuba's parliament, Ricardo Alarcon, the Russian Orthodox leader said: "The president of the National Assembly of Cuba informed me that the construction of an Orthodox Church in Cuba is developing actively." "The construction could be completed by the end of next year," Patriarch Alexy II said. "Because of this, I have been invited to visit Cuba for the consecration and the opening of this church."  The Cuban official, widely considered a possible successor to Fidel Castro, is currently on an official visit to Russia on an invitation from Boris Gryzlov, the speaker the lower house of parliament. He met with Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Fradkov and discussed the implementation of bilateral agreements reached during the premier's visit to Cuba in September. Alarcon will address lawmakers in the State Duma on the United States' economic blockade of Cuba. (Novosti, 3/11/06)

November 3: The UNESCO “King Sejong” Literacy Prize 2006 was formally handed over to the Latin American and Caribbean Cuban Pedagogical Institute (IPLAC in Spanish). An international jury from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), on literacy and education for young people and adults has given the prize as recognition to the creation of the literacy teaching method Yes, I Can (Yo Sí Puedo). This Cuban method is already applied in a number of countries where the results have been exceptionally good. Its values and effectiveness were also recognized in the last session of the Executive Board of UNESCO. (Granma, 4/11/06)

November 3: Cuba's most prominent dissident said in an open letter issued in Havana that it is regrettable that the people of this Communist-ruled island are excluded from the annual Ibero-American Summits. "The people of Cuba are excluded from these summits because there is no recognition at (the meetings) of their right to their rights," Oswaldo Paya, the 2002 recipient of the European Parliament's Sakharov Prize, said in the document released to coincide with the gathering of leaders from Spain, Portugal and Latin America getting under way in Montevideo. According to the dissident, "there has never been an agreement in favor of the rights of Cubans (at these meetings); indeed the lack of freedom and democracy in Cuba has never even been discussed." [Mensaje de Payá a la Cumbre Iberoamericana] (EFE, 3/11/06)

November 4: Emigration is a right that must be respected, Cuban Vice President Carlos Lage said at the 14th Ibero-American Summit. The main topic of the Summit was Migration and Development.  "It is unfair and cruel to be forced to emigrate and leave homeland and family behind in order to provide food, healthcare and education to your children", Lage said. [Address by Carlos Lage] (AP, 4/11/06)

November 4: Cuban Vice President Carlos Lage blasted US moves to build a new fence along the border with Mexico in the harshest of a series of criticisms aimed at Washington during the 16th annual Iberoamerican summit. ''The wall on the Mexican border and the hunting of immigrants is proof, if any at all is needed, of the disdain of the mighty for those who are not,'' said Lage, who led the island's delegation at the summit that included Spain, Portugal, Andorra and 19 Latin American countries. Lage said barriers are being erected to keep unwanted migrants out of the developed world, but added that ''there are no forced repatriations'' of doctors, technical experts and teachers who are lured away for higher wages unattainable in their homelands. ''On the contrary, there are plans and programs to draw them in,'' said Lage, adding that the flood of illegal migration will always continue from poor to rich countries as long as ''neoliberal'' free market policies are in force. Lage also said the European Union and the United States had the ''most restrictive'' migratory policies in the world. [Address by Carlos Lage] (AP, 4/11/06)

November 5: The Ibero-American Summit of Heads of State and Governments, held in Montevideo, Uruguay, reiterated its opposition to the US economic blockade of Cuba, just three days before the UN general assembly was scheduled to vote once again on a Cuban resolution demanding the lifting of the unilateral measure. The Summit’s rejection of the US measure was stated in its Final Declaration, which opposed the implementation of legislations and actions that run contrary to international law. (ACN, 6/11/06)

November 5: Uruguayan officials met Cuban vice-president, Carlos Lage Davila, at the University of Montevideo to express their solidarity with the island. Mr. Lage brought a message of Fidel Castro to the Uruguayan people. He also said the leader of the Cuban Revolution is recovering quickly and will keep on his fight for justice across the world. University President Rodrigo Arozarena said that his school cultivates Latin America solidarity and thanked Cuba for its contribution to the Uruguayan healthcare system. The secretary of the Uruguayan Students Federation, Marino Exposito, and Dr. Valeria Lavie, a graduate from the Havana-based Latin American School of Medicine, were also on hand. (ACN, 6/11/06)
 
November 5: The UK can learn from Cuba's Olympic achievements, Mayor of London Ken Livingstone said. Mr Livingstone visited Cuba as part of a Latin America tour. He said he wanted to find out how the Caribbean island "engaged their young people in sport". "Though Cuba's only got a fifth of the population of Britain, it gets as many medals in the Olympics as we do," he told a sports congress in Havana. He also attended a cricket match as part of a drive to develop the sport. "Clearly they're doing something right here about engaging their young people in sport, and that's what I'm really interested in finding out about." (BBC, 5/11/06)

November 6: The 2006 Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI), launched by Transparency International (TI), points to a strong correlation between corruption and poverty, with a concentration of impoverished states at the bottom of the ranking. Countries with a significant worsening in perceived levels of corruption include: Brazil, Cuba, Israel, Jordan, Laos, Seychelles, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia and the United States. Countries with a significant improvement in perceived levels of corruption include: Algeria, Czech Republic, India, Japan, Latvia, Lebanon, Mauritius, Paraguay, Slovenia, Turkey, Turkmenistan and Uruguay. [2006 Corruption Perceptions Index] (AP, 6/11/06)

November 7: Cuba likes the idea of leftist Daniel Ortega back in the presidency of Nicaragua, an outcome that appeared likely as ballots were counted in the Central American nation.  Cuban Vice President Carlos Lage said a victory by Ortega, a Sandinista former revolutionary and ex-president of Nicaragua, represents both a triumph for Latin America and a defeat for the United States.  "This is a victory of great transcendence for Nicaragua, for Latin America and it is a political defeat" for the government of the United States, Lage said. The Cuban said only "spectacular fraud" could keep Ortega from winning in the first round. He said a Sandinista presidency in Nicaragua reinforces "the trend in favor of progessive forces" in Latin America, which has seen several leftist or left-leaning governments win power in recent years. Some of them, such as President Evo Morales' Bolivia, are aligned with Cuba and leftist-governed Venezuela on many issues against the United States. (EFE, 7/11/06)

November 8: The Internet enemies list numbers 13: Belarus, China, Cuba, Egypt, Iran, Myanmar, North Korea, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Tunisia, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Vietnam. These are the countries singled out by the press freedom group Reporters Without Borders as the worst culprits for systematic online censorship. ''No one should ever be prevented from posting news online or writing a blog,'' said the Paris-based group, Reporters Sans Frontieres in French, which taps more than 100 journalists who are ''keeping us informed.'' (The New York Times, 9/11/06)

November 8: Cuba honoured the 89th Anniversary of the October Socialist Revolution with a ceremony at the International Soviet Soldier Mausoleum in Havana, Granma daily reported. With a military ceremony, Cuba’s Revolutionary Armed Forces paid tribute to the troops that rose up against the Russian Czar 89 years ago. Wreaths in the name of the Revolutionary Armed Forces Ministry, the Cuban Institute of Friendship with the Peoples and the embassies of Russia, Ukraine, Byelorussia, and Kazakhstan were laid at the International Soviet Soldier Mausoleum. (Prensa Latina, 9/11/06)

November 8: Cuba celebrated Daniel Ortega's return to Nicaragua's presidency. Fidel Castro, a key backer of Ortega's radical Sandinista government in the 1980s, sent congratulations published on the front page of the Communist Party daily Granma, saying the Nicaraguan election "fills our people with joy, at the same time filling the terrorist and genocidal government of the United States with opprobrium." (AP, 8/11/06)

November 8: The UN General Assembly voted overwhelmingly to urge the United States to end its 45-year-old trade embargo against Cuba.  It was the 15th straight year that the 192-member world body approved a resolution calling for the US economic and commercial embargo against Cuba to be repealed "as soon as possible." Delegates in the General Assembly chamber burst into applause when the vote in favor of the resolution flashed on the screen — 183 to 4 with 1 abstention. That was a one-vote improvement over last year's vote of 182 to 4 with 1 abstention. Joining the United States in voting "no" were Israel, Marshall Islands and Palau, while Micronesia abstained. (AP, 8/11/06)

November 8: The UN General Assembly voted against an Australian amendment to the UN Secretary General’s report on the US embargo against Cuba. The assembly adopted a resolution to take "no action" on the Australian amendment, which meant it could not be added to the Cuban draft. The "no action" resolution was adopted by a vote of 126 to 51 with 5 abstentions. The Australian amendment called on Fidel Castro's government to free political prisoners and respect human rights. Australia's UN Ambassador Robert Hill said his country has consistently voted to oppose the US embargo while expressing "concerns about the state of human rights and political freedoms in Cuba." But the embargo continues, and Australia proposed the human rights amendment in hopes that if Cuba met its obligations, "we would not need to return to this issue every year," he said. Cuban Foreign Affairs Minister Felipe Perez Roque called Australia the "lackeys" of the United States for introducing the amendment, which he claimed was drafted in Washington. He said Australia "does not have the moral authority to attempt to refer to the human rights situation in Cuba," calling the Australian government "an accomplice to US imperialism." He cited Australia's readiness to follow Washington's lead in the Pacific and its deployment of troops to support the US during the Vietnam war. Hill retorted that "the price of speaking up and asking for nothing more than is reasonable is to be abused by the Cuban minister with false allegations and offensive language." "It's no wonder others are not prepared to take such actions but it does underline the necessity for an amendment of this type," he said. (AP, 8/11/06)

November 8: The efforts to strengthen bilateral relations between Qatar and Communist Cuba is on an accelerated pace. A joint high committee, set up for cooperation between Qatar and Cuba, signed six separate agreements on behalf of the two countries in Havana revealed Ernesto Soberon Guzman, Third Secretary of the Cuban embassy at Doha.  Speaking to the press, Guzman said the agreements include the promotion of education and scientific knowledge, broadcasting, aviation, sports and amendments in taxation and customs law. The joint high committee will also discuss possibilities of tapping Cuba's emerging tourism sector and food processing industry, Guzman said. Qatar and Cuba also have plans for cultural exchange. (The Peninsula, 8/11/06)

November 9: Cuba is the fifth Latin America country with respect to human development, ahead of countries like Mexico and Brazil, according to the Human Development Report 2006 released in Cape Town, South Africa, by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP). [UNDP Human Development Report: Cuba] (EFE, 9/11/06)

November 9: Cuba's best-known dissident urged member nations of the UN Human Rights Council to demand the release of all Cuba's political prisoners, a day after the world body's General Assembly voted against a similar measure. Oswaldo Paya, whose signature drive for democracy in 2002 gained him international attention and prompted the government to declare socialism in Cuba "irrevocable," said he was lodging letters urging the motion at several Havana embassies for countries on the 47-nation Human Rights Council.  "It's scandalous that this is not a scandal," he said of Cuba's imprisonment of political activists. Paya said his Christian Liberation Movement is against the trade embargo, and glad the world is pressuring the United States to lift it. But just as important for Cubans, he said, are freedom of expression and the right to choose their political and economic systems. "They are denying Cubans the right to have rights," he said of countries who fail to recognize this need. "We need international solidarity, and moral support." (AP, El Nuevo Herald, 9/11/06)

November 9: The Ladies in White movement, made up of women relatives of “the 75” dissidents sent to prison in the spring of 2003, informed the vice-president of the European Parliament, Edward McMillan-Scott, of the problems that prisoners of conscience face in Cuba. In a communiqué, the Ladies in White expressed the “horrible prison conditions to which political prisoners and prisoners of conscience are subjected”. (El Nuevo Herald, 9/11/06)

November 9: Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez inaugurated the Second Venezuelan International Book Fair (FILVEN) with Cuba as its guest of honor. In the large outdoor space of the Parque del Este where the fair is taking place, the Venezuelan leader was presented with a collection of newly published titles released by the Bolivian Alternative for the Americas Cultural Fund. These included a biography of Venezuelan National Hero Francisco de Miranda written by historian Carmen Bohorquez, an essay by Cuban historian Francisco Pividal regarding the anti-imperialist ideas of Simon Bolivar, The Golden Age by the Cuban National Hero Jose Marti, an anthology of Marti’s essays on the Americas, and an essay on the life and work of Marti by Cintio Vitier. (Granma, 10/11/06)

November 11: Cuba’s Foreign Ministry urged the UN Security Council to condemn the "criminal act" committed by Israel against Palestine civilians in Gaza Strip and the West Bank, it was reported. A note issued by the Cuban chancellery and published in Granma daily reads Cuba "has been following, with deep concern and indignation, the atrocities committed by the Israeli government in Gaza and the West Bank" since June. [Declaración del Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores] (Prensa Latina, 11/11/06)

November 12: Spanish lawmakers Guillermo Mariscal Anaya and Carlos Salvador Armendariz met in Havana with members of the Ladies in White, a group formed by the wives and relatives of imprisoned Cuban dissidents. The Spaniards are on a private visit to the communist island and met with the Ladies in White after the group's traditional walk down the Cuban capital's Quinta Avenida to demand the release of their incarcerated loved ones, the organization said in a communique. "The Ladies in White are grateful for the great encouragement represented by the moral support for the Cuban prisoners of conscience and political prisoners, and their relatives, and they asked (the Spaniards) to relay to the Spanish people the affection of their Cuban brothers," read the communique. (EFE, 13/11/06)

November 13: Chinese Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing reiterated in Beijing his country’s will of reinforcing friendship and cooperation with Cuba. The minister made these statements after welcoming Cuban Deputy Foreign Minister Marcos Rodriguez, who arrived in China on an official visit. According to diplomatic sources, Li Zhaoxing also expressed satisfaction at how bilateral relations and the strengthening of the Cuban economy are continuing. (Prensa Latina, 13/11/06)

November 14: During the Congress on Biotechnology Havana 2006 that took place in the Cuban capital, the 1988 German Nobel Prizewinner for Chemistry, Robert Huber, expressed interest in maintaining an active relationship with the island, in order to promote scientific and business opportunities in the development of medicines to treat autoimmune diseases. The Congress, which has generated a lot of expectations in the scientific community as it is attended by over 600 delegates from at least 40 countries, has been a window on Cuba’s efforts in research and development in the field of tropical and autoimmune diseases. (Global Insight, 14/11/06)

November 15: Cuba and Venezuela recently signed an agreement on mutual representation for the collective management of royalties of writers, which was named as a very important step in the integration of the region. The document is part of the integration mechanisms fostered by the Venezuela-led Bolivarian Alternative of the Americas (ALBA), said Francisco Sesto, the culture minister in the South American country. The agreement grants the two countries with the full authority to manage the promotion, representation and the administration of royalties of their respective writers, who will be able to become members of the Latin-American Literary Agency and its Venezuelan counterpart. (ACN, 15/11/06)

November 15: Fernando Remirez de Estenoz, head of the International Relations Department of the Cuban Communist Party’s Central Committee, met with Spanish political leaders. Remirez de Estenoz arrived in Madrid from Portugal, where he took part with 63 delegations in the International Meeting for Communist Parties in Lisbon.  His agenda in Spain included meetings with the president of the Spanish Communist Party, Felipe Alcaraz, and with the coordinator of the Spanish political party Izquierda Unida, Gaspar Lamazares. Remirez de Estenoz is accompanied by Cuban Ambassador to Spain Alberto Velazco San Jose. (Prensa Latina, 15/11/06)

November 15: Eight Cubans who left from the southern coast of Havana on board a makeshift raft arrived in Panama, after an ordeal at sea that took them to the coasts of the Gulf of Mexico, where they were picked up by a German cargo ship. The cargo ship that brought them to Panama “saved them from dying” in Mexican waters, the Cubans highlighted. (AFP, 15/11/06)

November 16: Zanzibar’s President Amani Abeid Karume arrived in Cuba on an official visit. Karume’s agenda includes talks with Cuba’s Council of State Vice President Esteban Lazo and top officials from the Agriculture and Culture Ministries. During his first day on the Caribbean island, the visitor met with Deputy Foreign Minister Yilian Jimenez, to whom he expressed admiration for the country’s development. Karume praised Cuba’s collaboration with his nation in the health field, terming as “excellent” relations existing between both states, which date back to 1982. (Prensa Latina, 16/11/06)

November 16: The President of the Cuban parliament Ricardo Alarcon highlighted the friendship and cooperation ties between his nation and the Panamanian people. In his intervention at the 10th Inter-parliamentary Meeting of both countries taking place in the Cuban capital, Alarcon pointed out that Panama carries the idea of the Latin American unity and solidarity in its blood. He recognized the Panamanian National Assembly for the support to the five Cubans imprisoned in the United States and also referred to the recovering of the Canal as an overwhelming victory. For his part, Elias Castillo, president of the Panamanian National Assembly, expressed confidence on upcoming measures to strengthen the inter-parliamentary relations, demanded the end of the US blockade and thanked the Caribbean nation for its support. (Prensa Latina, 16/11/06)

November 16: The European Parliament decided to send a delegation to Cuba to deliver a prestigious human rights award to a group of women - wives, mothers and daughters of political prisoners - who were barred by the Communist regime from traveling to France to receive it. Last year's Sakharov Prize was awarded to the Women in White. When the Castro regime denied the activists permission to travel to this city that is the seat of the EU legislature, the women asked the body to send representatives to Havana to give them the prize there. The decision to do so was made during a conference of the heads of parties represented in the body. (EFE, 16/11/06) 

November 16: The Paraguayan government decided to take in seven Cubans who requested to remain in the country as refugees, said the foreign ministry. The Cubans arrived in Asunción on board a flight from Sao Paulo. (Reuters, 17/11/06)

November 17: Cuba ratified a motion on behalf of the Non Aligned Movement that rejects and condemns the selectivity and double-standard policy in the promotion and protection of the human rights. Cuban Delegate Luis Alberto Amoros, representing the country chairing the NAM Coordination Bureau at the UN, highlighted the position of the Movement at the Third Commission of the General Assembly. The intervention of the Cuban diplomat was encouraged by the presentation of projects of resolution against the NAM by the US, the European Union and others. (Granma, 18/11/06)

November 20: The Cuban Workers Union (CTC), the only legal union on the island, accused the newly created International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) of being “exclusive” and of being a supporter of neoliberalism. The Cuban union’s reaction came after the ITUC’s decision not to include the Cuban union in that organization. (EFECOM, 20/11/06)

November 20: Panama's parliamentary leader Elias Castillo highlighted the level of bilateral links between the top legislative body of Cuba and that of his country. Castillo praised his meeting in this capital with his Cuban counterpart Ricardo Alarcon and the island's top legislative members, and stressed that as a result of those talks, an accord was inked to reinforce inter-parliamentary relations. Alarcon, who is in Panama, is due to meet President Martin Torrijos, First Vice President Samuel Lewis Navarro and the Panama-Cuba Parliamentary Group, as well as visit the Latin American Parliament sub-regional office, among other activities. (Prensa Latina, 20/11/06)

November 21: Most of the 35 nations at a key meeting of the UN nuclear watchdog agency have agreed to deny Iran technical aid for a plutonium-producing reactor, diplomats said. Four participating diplomats said that Tehran's requests for International Atomic Energy Agency aid on seven other nuclear projects would be approved under the tentative agreement, but help building the Arak heavy-water reactor would be denied. The board hopes to reach consensus. But in the event of a vote forced by Iranian allies such as Cuba, the four diplomats said, the necessary majority of IAEA board members -- 18-- support the agreement. One diplomat said that more than 20 had agreed to the plan. (The New York Times, 21/11/06)

November 21: The Spanish Secretary of State for Latin America, Trinidad Jiménez, declared herself in favour of maintaining relations based on respect and “permanent and free-flowing” dialogue with Cuba, “as the only way of being where Spain must be, in the event that changes come about”. (EFE, 21/11/06) 

November 21: Cuban Permanent Ambassador to the UN Rodrigo Malmierca called unbearable Security Council failure to react to Israeli attacks on Palestine and Lebanon. At a debate on the situation at the Middle East, including Palestine, Malmierca criticized Security Council passivity towards such flagrant violations. He reaffirmed Cuba’s support to a just, peaceful solution to the Israel-Palestine conflict and the Palestinian people’s right to a sovereign and independent state with East Jerusalem as capital. Malmierca recalled that since the Security Council meeting on October 19 the situation in the Middle East further deteriorated, namely in the Palestinian occupied territory. (Prensa Latina, 21/11/06)

November 23: Advisor to Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez and ex Minister of Foreign Affairs Alí Rodríguez submitted his credentials as the new Venezuelan ambassador to Cuba. According to a report issued by Cuban official daily Granma, Rodríguez was welcome during a ceremony on the eve by Vice-President Juan Almeida Bosque, a high-ranking military usually responsible for diplomats' accreditation. A 69-year-old economist, the Venezuelan chief of mission is also an expert in hydrocarbons. He will succeed Adán Chávez. The brother of President Chávez had been in charge of the embassy since 2004. (El Universal, 23/11/06)

November 23: The 7th session of the Cuba-Belarussia Joint Cooperation Commission wound up in Minsk with the signing of a document aimed to protect accords on higher education, civil aeronautics, and radio and television. The commission gave particular attention to issues linked to transportation and current negotiations on the production of vaccines and medicines as well as Cuba's experiences in the field of biotechnology. A Byelorussian delegation is expected to travel shortly to the Caribbean island to conclude negotiations on this last topic. (Prensa Latina, 23/11/06)

November 23: Bolivia's President Evo Morales is scheduled to kick of a world tour on November 26, which will take him to The Netherlands, Nigeria and Cuba, the Bolivian Foreign Ministry announced. The Bolivian head of state is scheduled to arrive in Cuba December 1st to take part at national celebrations, on December 2nd, to mark the 50th anniversary of the Revolutionary Armed Forces and the 80th Birthday of Fidel Castro. (ACN, 23/11/06) 

November 23: European mayors, NGO representatives and members of solidarity-with-Cuba groups agreed to carry out cooperation projects with Havana province after concluding a four-day meeting in solidarity with the Cuban region. The nearly 200 delegates from the Iberian Peninsula, the Canary Islands and Italy, who attended the 13th Conference in Solidarity with Havana, pledged to make material donations to be used in fields such as education, healthcare, culture, and water resources. The donations will be used to repair schools, healthcare centers, homes and aqueducts. (RHC, 24/11/06)

November 23: The Cuban government announced a donation of four ophthalmological hospitals to Honduras. An agreement on this donation was signed by Hondura’s Health Minister, Yeny Meza, and by the Cuban Ambassador to Tegucigalpa, Elías Alberto Polanco González.  According to the agreement, the clinics will be located in Tegucigalpa, in El Progreso —departament of Yoro—, Juticalpa —in Olancho— and San Marcos de Ocotepeque. (Notimex, 23/11/06)

November 24: Guyana's Minister of Foreign Trade and International Cooperation Henry Jeffrey thanked Cuba for having cancelled his country's foreign debt with the island. During the final session of the 23rd Cuba-Guyana Joint Commission held in Havana, Henry Jeffrey and Marta Lomas, Cuban minister of Foreign Investment and Economic Cooperation, penned an accord exempting the English-speaking South American nation from paying its debt to the Cuban government. (ACN, 24/11/06)

November 24: Some of the countries most popular with Canadians as holiday destinations have refused to help Ottawa fight off a bid by Iran to condemn Canada's record on human rights. In a showdown at the United Nations, Cuba joined Iran and four other countries supporting Tehran's call for the world body to censure Canada over its treatment of native Canadians and immigrants. Against the backdrop of the US trade embargo against Cuba, Canada has provided considerable political and economic support for Cuba over the years, despite the island's internationally documented lapses in respecting human rights. Canadian tourists have made Cuba one of their top five destinations. Statistics Canada figures show 517,900 Canadians visited Cuba last year, spending more than $457-million. "That's almost a quarter of all the tourists Cuba received last year," said Maria Werlau, a Cuban exile who runs the human rights Free Society Project from New Jersey and has written on the importance of tourism to Cuba.  "For Cuba to take this stance on a measure even they know is politically motivated is a cheap shot, and Canadians need to be informed about how Fidel Castro's government is repaying them for their indirect support of his regime."  Cuban officials could not be reached for comment. But in a speech at the UN last month on Canada's draft resolution condemning Iran, Jorge Cumberbatch of the Cuban mission suggested Ottawa was doing Washington's bidding. "Canada has become an accomplice in the war of adventures of its imperial neighbour," he said. (National Post, 24/11/06) 

November 25: Government Ministry Ricardo Cabrizas Ruiz received the Secretary General of the African, Caribbean and Pacific Group, ACP, Sir John Kaputin, who arrived in Cuba for an official invitation. During his stay, Sir Kaputin will exchange opinions with Cuban authorities on the 84th Minister Council Session and 5th Head of States and Governments Summit of the ACP Group, which will take place December 4-8 in Khartoum, Republic of Sudan. Sir Kaputin will also meet with Ricardo Alarcon, president of Cuba’s National Assembly, with Foreign Trade Minister Raul de la Nuez, as well as with the vice Minister of Foreign Affairs, Bruno Rodriguez, and the director of the National Economy Research Centre Osvaldo Martinez. (AIN, 25/11/06)

November 25: Yerodia Abduolaye Ndombasi, vice president of the Democratic Republic of Congo, arrived in Cuba to attend the celebrations for Fidel Castro´s 80th birthday. Abduolaye was welcomed by Ivan Mora, head of the Sub-Saharian Africa Department of the Foreign Affairs Ministry. The Congolese leader highlighted he traveled to Cuba to honour the important role of the Caribbean island in the liberation of Africa, especially in Congo-Kinshasa. (Prensa Latina, 25/11/06)

November 27: Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez told a ``red tide'' of hundreds of thousands of supporters that he will dedicate his expected re- election victory to the communist island of Cuba. Chavez, a close ally of Fidel Castro, noted that the vote will be held at the same time that Cuba celebrates the 50th anniversary of the landing of the yacht that carried Castro and his armed band to Cuba to launch their guerrilla war. ``This victory on December 3 (...) we're going to dedicate it to the 50 years since the arrival of the revolutionary boat Granma led by Fidel Castro to the coast of Cuba,'' Chavez said to cheers. ``Fidel, applause from Venezuela! Long live Cuba! Long live revolutionary Cuba!''  (AP, 27/11/06)

November 28: The United Nations Human Rights Council rejected an attempt to hold the Sudanese government responsible for halting atrocities in Darfur, opting instead for a less-pointed resolution calling on all warring parties to end abuses. The council is dominated by African and Muslim countries that have sided with China, Cuba and with other countries in preventing criticism of any government but Israel. The council voted 22-20 against a resolution from the European Union and Canada demanding the Sudanese government to prosecute those responsible for killing, raping and injuring civilians in the Darfur region of western Sudan. (Globe & Mail, 29/11/06)

November 29: Minister of Foreign Affairs Nicolás Maduro is heading a Venezuelan delegation attending a celebration in Havana on the occasion of the 80th birthday of Cuban ruler Fidel Castro. Maduro "will attend the events scheduled for the occasion and will be welcomed by Cuban leaders," said official newspaper Granma. The minister took part of the opening ceremony hosted by Guayasamín Foundation as part of a homage that will finish with a military parade on December 2. (El Universal, 29/11/06)

November 29: Canada’s ambassador to Cuba, Alexandra Bugailiskis, presented the director of the National Institute of Oncology and Radiobiology, Dr Alberto Céspedes, with a donation of 47,000 Canadian dollars. In Cuba, as in Canada, medical care is free, and we are proud that this donation can be used for cancer research, expressed the diplomat. Ambassador Bugailiskis took the opportunity to announce that the 10th Terry Fox Run would take place on March 17, 2007, an event that in Cuba is the most massive after the one in Canada. (Granma, 29/11/06)