IRAN OFFICIAL CRITICIZES US FOR DISSIDENT TV

    Iran's ambassador to Cuba criticized the U.S. government Wednesday for allowing Iranian exiles in California to broadcast dissident television programming via satellite to their homeland.  But during a news conference, Ambassador Ahmad Edrisian didn't directly answer reporters' questions about the U.S. government's complaints earlier this year that those signals were being jammed on the communist-run island.

    "How does it dare to allow the transmission of programs that provoke rebellion in an independent country?" Edrisian asked of the U.S. government. "We ask the United States to stop its meddling in the internal affairs of an independent country."  The Cuban government in July denied it was intentionally causing interference in those signals, and the jamming reportedly stopped soon afterward.

    Cuba for years has jammed signals from the U.S. government's Radio Marti and Television Marti, which includes programming that criticizes the government of Fidel Castro, who has been in power nearly 45 years. 

    A CALL FOR SOLIDARITY FROM POLITICAL PRISONER AT THE AG¾ICA PRISON IN MATANZAS

    The political prisoners and of conscience Miguel Galván Gutiérrez, Pablo Pacheco Ávila, Alexis Rodríguez Fernández and Manuel Ubals Gonzáles all confined at the Prison Agªica in Matanzas, wrote in jail a document titled "A Call From The Presidio", smuggled out of the prison thanks to the help of families of the common prisoners, informed dissident sources.

    Today, while the civilized world unites against international terrorism and more nations enjoy full democracies, we watch with sadness and indignation how in our homeland, government authorities persecute, imprison and revile some of its citizens, for simply dissenting, indicated the document.

    However, many are the Nations and International Organizations that protested openly, in firm condemnation for such violations, we thank them and support them wholeheartedly. We vehemently wish for other countries and institutions to support The United States Government and The European Union in their campaign of Solidarity so that the Cuban people can truly have the rights they are entitled to have, the text of the document. It is our hope that other organizations and people of good will join this call for solidarity, added the manuscript.

    FRUSTRATED BY INEFFICIENCY CUBAN DOCTOR GETS FIRED AND HIS LICENSE SUSPENDED

    Hospital administrators fired a doctor and suspended his medical license for nine months after he loudly expressed his frustration with widespread inefficiency in Fidel Castro's government.

    Mario Ariosta, a gynecologist, rushed into an operating room at National hospital in Havana to perform an emergency Cesarean section and found there were no gloves or sterilized instruments available. In his frustration, Ariosta loudly excoriated the government's inefficiency. Ariosta is off the job, but he has appealed the suspension of his medical license to a labor court.

    OSCAR ELÍAS BISCET BURIED IN AN UNDERGROUND DUNGEON

    Oscar sends the following message: I am in prison for not accepting to share a cell with a prisoner sanctioned to life in prison for killing an old man. I am well, even though I don't see the sky, always in the dark with a murderous companion that has caused twelve lesions."

    On the other hand, in a letter to the family he tells us: "I don't know why I am in this dismal place, but I can tell you that even in these dark days I can see the wisdom. If, to conserve the life and to refuse to live next to an old man murderer, they have me in this underground dungeon, I won't be angry nor frightened, I will face life's difficulties to enjoy the germination of the love."

    We want to appeal to the people that love justice so that they intercede in this situation. Previously, my husband has been in cells with dangerous criminals, but only in passing, never to share a cell with them on a permanent basis. Maybe the authorities have lost all sense of control in regards to Oscar, for this is the second time he is transferred to a punishment cell in less than seven months. This is why we are requesting of those who believe in Jesus Christ to intercede in my husband's situation and to please pray, for prayer is very important. In fact, we are praying.

    Click here    and read the complete testimony given over the telephone from Havana, Cuba by Elsa Morejón Hernández, wife of the prisoner of conscience Oscar Elías Biscet.

    DIAZ-BALART TO DENOUNCE ON HOUSE FLOOR TODAY TORTURE BY THE CUBAN DICTATORSHIP OF POLITICAL PRISONER, DR. OSCAR ELIAS BISCET

    Congressman Lincoln Diaz-Balart (R-FL) will take to the Floor of the House of Representatives today to denounce the torture by the Cuban dictatorship of political prisoner Dr. Oscar Elias Biscet and to demand his immediate release.

    Dr. Oscar Elias Biscet, one of Cuba's best known and most respected pro-democracy leaders, was sentenced to 25-years in the Cuban gulag by the Castro dictatorship on April 7, 2003. In recent weeks, according to his wife, Elsa Morejon, Dr. Biscet has been placed in a human "tomb" punishment cell, in solitary confinement, in Kilo 8 prison.

    Diaz-Balart and Colleagues will take to the Floor at the conclusion of votes during Special Orders. This will be carried nationwide on C-SPAN.

    EMPLOYEE IN CUBA FIRED FOR DISCUSSING HUMAN RIGHTS DECLARATION

    Administrators of a nickel refining plant in Niquero, in eastern Cuba, accused an employee of distributing subversive materials for talking to other workers about human rights, and fired him. Alejandro Aguilarte, 27, said he found a copy of the UN's Universal Declaration of Human Rights in one of the plant's bathrooms, and when he read it, realized that none of its articles were observed in Cuba. Subsequently, he started bringing up the issue for discussion with fellow workers.

    Calixto Guerra, a Communist Party militant, called a meeting with the union's representative and administrators of the René Ramos Latour plant, and together they took the decision to expel Aguilarte. Aguilarte said he has since protested his firing in letters to the Iron and Steel and to the Labor ministries, but that he has had no response.

    REPRESSION CONTINUES AGAINST DISSIDENTS IN SAN JOSÉ DE LAS LAJAS, HAVANA PROVINCE

    The strong repression against members of the Human Rights Party of Cuba continues. Last October 27, 2003, Delfín Rodríguez Hernández, was detained after the appeal against Julián Martínez Báez in the provincial tribunal of 100 and 33, in the City of Havana, where his sentence was set at three years in prison.

    The dissident  was held several hours in the National Revolutionary Police Unit of San José de las Lajas, Province of Havana. He was subsequently ordered to appear at the same unit last November 3rd, but  he was not attended and received another order to appear on the 10th of November.  In the same manner, Luis Medina, activist of our organization in the same municipality, was severely harassed by the political police.

    Because of all of this we make a plea to the international public opinion so that it will make its presence before the government of Cuba and demand that it cease the hostilities against the oppositionists referred to herein and other activists of the Human Rights Party of Cuba Affiliated with the Andrei Sajarov Foundation. From the City of Havana René Montes de Oca Martija, Secretary General of the Human Rights Party of Cuba Affiliated with Andrei Sajarov Foundation given to Martha Tamargo.

    VARGAS LLOSA: CHÁVEZ IS A VERY DANGEROUS PERSON WHO MUST BE VANQUISHED 

    Peruvian writer Mario Vargas Llosa labeled President Hugo Chávez as "a very dangerous person" who, besides destroying Venezuela, has become an example of a populist leader who must be vanquished in a "cultural war." Vargas Llosa took part in a conference on democracy and leadership challenges in Latin America, an event organized by Inter-American Dialogue, a Washington-based think tank.

    "Chávez is a very dangerous person, not only because he is destroying Venezuela, but also because he is creating a kind of model that under certain circumstances could become popular in the rest of Latin America," he said. "This is a cultural war," added Vargas Llosa. "We must fight and win if we do not want get back to the populist era, which has been so tragic in our history."

    Venezuela is "evolving increasingly towards a totalitarian system", he said. "Fortunately, the press and mass media have not yet been taken over, but it is something that you could envisage in the near future, unless something happens," he added.

    SUGAR SHORTAGE CAUSES SOFT DRINK PLANT TO CUT PRODUCTION

    Latinoamericana, one of the largest soft drink companies in Cuba, has been forced to cut production because of a shortage of sugar, according to employees. Once a leading exporter of sugar, Cuba has been faced with shortages because of poor crops and antiquated mills, many of which have been closed down.

    "We're only doing part of our production," said an employee questioned by telephone. The plant, located in the Cerro district of Havana, was the Canada Dry plant in pre-revolutionary Cuba.

    CHÁVEZ URGES CALM AHEAD OF SIGNATURE DRIVES

    President Hugo Chávez urged Venezuelans to refrain from violence during upcoming signature drives that opponents and supporters are holding to ask for different recall referendums. "Venezuelans, let's give another demonstration of civic-mindedness, of democratic will, of respect for each other so we can coexist peacefully," Chavez said Sunday during his weekly TV and radio program.

    Chávez opponents plan a November 28 - December 1 signature drive to ask for a recall referendum on his presidency next year, claiming he has amounted dictatorial powers during five years in power. Chavez supporters are planning a November 21-24 signature drive for recall votes against 38 opposition lawmakers who Chavez accuses of betraying voters.

    Chávez has previously warned those planning to sign against him that their names would be recorded and remembered. Both opposition and government supporters held dummy sign-ups in the capital Sunday, inviting residents to familiarize themselves with petition forms. The United States and other nations view a possible recall vote as a peaceful way to end political turmoil threatening the stability of the world's No. 5 oil exporter.

      TWO BLACK HAWKS CRASH DEATH TOLL RISES TO 17

    Seventeen U.S. soldiers were killed, five were injured and one was missing when two U.S. Black Hawk helicopters crashed Saturday in a residential neighborhood in the northern Iraqi city of Mosul.Military officials believe one helicopter may have climbed to avoid gunfire and collided with a second Black Hawk, causing them both to crash.

    Authorities had no reports of Iraqi casualties, but a military official said the crashes set buildings on fire.  Initial reports indicated that when the first helicopter rose to avoid ground fire, it "caused a rotor strike with the second helicopter," a military source told CNN.

    The two UHÜ60 Black Hawks crashed at about 6:30 p.m. (10:30 a.m. EST) in the western part of the city, Col. William Darley said. He said soldiers from the 101st Airborne Division, Iraqi police and Iraqi firefighters were on the scene. The deaths brought the number of American soldiers killed in the Iraq war to 422. Of those, 283 have died since President Bush declared the end of major combat operations on May 1.

    US CONGRESS MAINTAINS TRAVEL RESTRICTIONS ON CUBA

    The US Congress approved a measure maintaining travel restrictions on US citizens to Cuba, even though both the Senate and the House of Representatives earlier passed separate measures lifting the 40 year-old ban. The decision, reached in bargaining around midnight Wednesday, came after President George W. Bush threatened to veto the measure if approved, congressional sources said Thursday. Both the House and the Senate are controlled by lawmakers from Bush's Republican Party.

    The measure -- which technically blocked money funding the enforcement of the travel ban -- was dropped as House and Senate bargainers agreed to a budget of nearly 90 billon dollars for the Treasury and Transportation departments.  The provision was withdrawn "behind closed doors and without giving an opportunity for the full conference committee to vote," according to a statement from the Washington Office of Latin America (WOLA).

    Lincoln Diaz-Balart, a distant cousin of Castro, thanked President George W. Bush for his "strong leadership," which he said is key to "maintaining sanctions on the Cuban dictatorship until all political prisoners are liberated and free elections are scheduled in that enslaved island." 

    CASTRO MISSES IBERO-AMERICAN SUMMIT FOR THIRD TIME

    For a third consecutive year, Cuban dictator Fidel Castro has decided to skip the annual summit of leaders of Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking nations where he usually stole the limelight. Cuba's delegation that arrived for the summit in Santa Cruz, Bolivia, on Thursday was headed by Vice President Carlos Lage, flanked by Foreign Minister Felipe Perez Roque.

    Castro, 77, had been invited to speak at an alternative "social summit" organized in Santa Cruz by peasant and worker groups that oppose free market policies advocated by the United States. Bolivian peasant leader Evo Morales, who invited Castro to the event, said in Havana two weeks ago that Latin America would become "another Vietnam" for the United States if its people united against neoliberal economic policies.

    At the last summit he attended, in Panama three years ago, Castro quarreled with El Salvador's conservative President Francisco Flores, accusing his country of harboring an exiled extremist who planned to assassinate him. Flores shot back that Castro's support for leftist guerrillas was partly responsible for El Salvador's 12-year civil war that killed about 75,000 people.

    OSWALDO PAYÁ SEEKS INTERNATIONAL SUMMIT PLATFORM TO MAKE HIS CASE

    Cuban dissident Oswaldo Paya made an impassioned appeal to organizers of an Ibero-American summit this week to speak out on human rights in communist-ruled Cuba. "Silence has been the watchword at all the summits," Paya said in a letter released to the foreign media Tuesday, even "given the grave human rights situation in Cuba." Cuba, the only one-party communist state in the Americas, has been widely criticized for a crackdown on dissidents that saw 75 opponents of Castro jailed in April for up to 28 years.

    Paya appealed for permission for a statement on the Cuban situation to be read to the leaders at the summit of Spain, Portugal and their former colonies in the Americas, to be held in Santa Cruz, Bolivia on Friday and Saturday.  "We aren't asking for anything and there will not be calls" for specific action, Paya said in a letter. "Judge and decide for yourselves, your excellencies, as a reflection of the spirit of freedom of the people you represent, what you should do" about Cuba's lack of freedoms.

    "We are asking for a space at this summit ... in the name of all of those who are working peacefully for the rights of all citizens and in defense of those who are marginalized, the poor and marginalized majority in their own country," Paya continued in the letter. It would be "the voice of Cubans who do not have a voice in Cuba, and denying this to them would be extending to the summit the exclusion of the regime in power" in Cuba, he wrote.  Paya's appeal came a day after relatives of the 75 dissidents, now jailed for terms of as long as 28 years for "subversion," sent a letter to Castro pleading for their release.

    MORE THAN 11,539 CUBANS HAVE ARRIVED IN VENEZUELA DURING THE LAST 30 DAYS

    Pedro Castillo, a lawmaker for opposition MAS party, is to ask the National Assembly to launch a special investigation on the entry of 11,530 Cubans to Venezuela from September to October. Castillo is to show evidence collected during an investigation conducted by intelligence officers. Said evidence indicates that Cubans arrived in Venezuela aboard some 76 flights from September 27 to October 27, according to information disclosed by Castillo in a report published by El Universal.

    On Sunday, Castillo added that the flights bringing in Cubans -including intelligence agents- returned to the Caribbean island with a number of Venezuelans -as shown by pictures and documented evidence- who are reportedly going to receive military training in Cuba.

    "We do not know whether the Venezuelan government is preparing for war or it is trying to create an irregular army including foreigners to act in the country, which could be very serious. This would be the first government seeking to create and use an irregular army instead of fighting against it."

    CHAVEZ DEMANDS  $ 1 BILLION FROM CENTRAL BANK'S INTERNATIONAL RESERVES

    Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez on Sunday ordered the Central Bank of Venezuela (BCV) to transfer to the Executive Branch $1 billion from the country's international reserves -which according to him have recovered significantly- for investment in agriculture. During his weekly radio and TV show "¡Aló, Presidente!" he warned that he has the capacity to call for a nationwide referendum on this matter or appeal to the Supreme Court of Justice, if BCV does not follow his directions.

    "We are getting closer to $21 billion in international reserves. Why should we have this money deposited in banks in the United States and Europe? This money belongs to Venezuelans. Why should we have $21 billion deposited in banks? Why cannot we use $1 billion, which is what I am asking for? This money does not belong to the government. It belongs to the country. It does not belong to BCV either.

    "From $21 billion, I, on behalf of the country, and especially of the farm producers, ask the Central Bank of Venezuela just one billion dollars. If the central bank continues to refuse, I am going to consider filing a legal action with the Supreme Court of Justice. I do not want to fight against anybody. I am just standing up for the rights of the nation." I could convene a national referendum -because I can convene a referendum without collecting signatures. I have been granted this power under the Constitution," he added.

    DIAZ-BALART BLASTS SENATE FOREIGN RELATIONS COMMITTEE FOR VOTING TO SEND TOURIST DOLLARS TO A TERRORIST REGIMEN 

    Congressman Lincoln Diaz-Balart (R-FL) today blasted the Senate Foreign Relations Committee's passage of legislation which aims to ease the travel restrictions on Cuba, in essence voting to put tourist dollars into the pockets of a terrorist dictator.

    "Not only does the attempt to send tourist dollars to the Cuban regime undermine the President's war on terrorism, it brings shame on those who voted against amendments to the travel legislation conditioning travel to Cuba on freedom of speech and release of political prisoners.  It is shameful that some Senators would vote against freedom of speech and release of political prisoners. Castro is part of the global terrorist network, and yet misguided Senators vote to send tourist dollars to his dictatorship. Fortunately for U.S. national security, President Bush has pledged to veto any legislation that would increase revenue for the Cuban terrorist regime," said Diaz-Balart.

    TORTURE CUBAN WOMEN PRISONERS

     THE CUBAN FOUNDATION FOR HUMAN RIGHTS reports the agonizing conditions of terror and torture suffered by women detained at this penitentiary, a unit of Cuban State Security in the province of Holguin, Cuba. Day and night, the screams of tormented women in panic and desperation who cry for God's mercy fall upon the deaf ears of prison authorities. They are confined to narrow cells with no sunlight called "drawers" that have cement beds, a hole on the ground for their bodily needs, and are infested with a multitude of rodents, roaches, and other insects.

    These female prisoners lack all sort of necessary personal possessions and almost always have no water, even for bathing, often drinking this precious liquid full of insects. The food distributed to them is terrible, smells rotten, and is stored in receptacles lacking in hygiene. Even prison officials have complained of the small quantities served. In these "drawers" the women remain weeks and months. When they scream in terror due to the darkness (blackouts are common) and the heat, they are injected sedatives that keep them half-drugged.

    They are supervised by men who personally administer the feminine products they need and who so often open these "drawers" without respecting their privacy. One female prisoner cried out, "get me out!", "get me out, I'm suffocating!", and an official called Marino replied: "stick your nose out through a hole and shut up!" If anyone in the penitentiary protests out loud, they are taken to assigned  punishment cells where they must abide by a ruthless discipline.

    Testimony provided by: Juan Carlos González Leiva
    Blind lawyer in prison and President of the Cuban Foundation for Human Rights

    FREE TRADE WON'T FREE CUBA (By Claudia Márquez Linares) 

    According to our state television, the Castro regime was pleased that the United States Senate passed an amendment easing restrictions on American citizens traveling to Cuba. This was no surprise. Just days before the vote, Fidel Castro met here with a group of American travel agents. Both sides are impatient to make business deals in tourism on our island. But how much this would really benefit Cubans outside the top Communist Party leadership remains to be seen.

    Democratic dissidents here are divided on the travel ban and the American trade embargo. But there is unanimity that the Cuban government does not deserve any sort of reward now, just half a year after it carried out the worst crackdown on the opposition in decades Ü the arrest of 75 dissidents, who were quickly given prison terms of up to 28 years...

    Click here    and read the complete article

  SUGAR SALE TO CUBA FACES OPPOSITION

    One contract that did not get signed at the fair was for the sale of U.S. sugar, and the American trader involved said powerful political interests in Florida were opposing the deal. Cuba, once the world's largest sugar producer, needs to import sugar for local consumption because its harvest fell to a 70-year low and output is pledged to foreign buyers.

    Trading company PS International Ltd is in talks with Alimport to sell Cuba between 5,000 and 15,000 tons of sugar, but the sale hinges on an export quota decided by the U.S. government when imports exceed expectations. "Companies that are very strong politically are opposed to this sale," PSI International representative Wayne Carrick. "We are talking of big producers in Florida like Domino Sugar, owned by the Fanjuls, the biggest sugar producers in the United States," Carrick said. A key electoral state, Florida is home to most Cubans exiles.

    U.S. companies stole the show at this year's Havana fair, where European presence has dropped due to Cuba's economic crisis, a severe credit crunch and a diplomatic freeze over European Union criticism of the island's human rights record. "If it wasn't for the Americans, this fair would be dead," said a foreign businessman based in Havana.

   BLACK HAWK HELICOPTER CRASHED KILLING SIX GI'S 

    All six soldiers aboard a U.S. Black Hawk helicopter were killed Friday when the aircraft crashed near Saddam Hussein's ancestral homeland of Tikrit, according to a U.S. military spokeswoman. "We can confirm all six on board are dead," said Army spokesman Maj. Josslyn Aberle.

    The Black Hawk slammed into the ground at about 9:20 a.m. (1:20 a.m. EST). A second Black Hawk traveling with the helicopter didn't notice any hostile fire beforehand, Aberle said.  But local Iraqis blamed the crash on ground fire, a senior U.S. military official said. The cause of the crash remains under investigation.

    The helicopter was engulfed in flames after it crashed, according to reports from the second aircraft. The Black Hawks were en route to Camp Ironhorse, the main U.S. military base in the north-central town of Tikrit. The crash comes a day after a somber memorial service for 15 U.S. troops killed when a CH-47 Chinook helicopter went down Sunday in Fallujah in an apparent missile strike. A 16th soldier died Thursday of injuries suffered in the attack, the Pentagon said.

    UNBELIEVABLE, CUBA WANTS TO BUY U.S. SUGAR

    Cuba, the world's eighth largest sugar producer, is in talks to buy sugar from the United States for its domestic market, the president of the Cuban food import agency Alimport, Pedro Alvarez, said on Wednesday. Cuba's sugar output has declined dramatically in recent years, forcing the closure of half its unproductive mills last year. The communist-run government has had to import sugar from Brazil for local consumption because much of its production is under contract for export.

    "There is a U.S. company interested in selling us sugar and we are interested in buying," Alvarez said. He hoped a deal could be struck during this week's trade fair in Havana. "For our part, there are no objections. If American producers want to sell us sugar and the price is good, why can't we buy it," Alvarez said. "The United States is close. It is a country of friends. We want to buy sugar. It would be historic," he added. Talks are focusing on U.S. export quota availability, a business source said.

    Cuba was the world's largest sugar producer until Brazil outstripped it in the first half of the 20th Century. Most of the Cuban output was destined for the United States. U.S. companies owned many sugar mills on the island until they were confiscated after the 1959 revolution led by President Fidel Castro.

    CUBA, VENEZUELA, ARGENTINA AND BRAZIL TO JOIN AGAINST THE USA

    Argentina wants Cuba to join other Latin American countries to negotiate with the United States over a major free trade pact, the new Argentine ambassador to Cuba Raul Abraham Taleb on Monday. "Cuba and other countries must join in the total integration of Latin America, so that we can sit down at the negotiating table with the United States in a strong position," Taleb said.  Cuba, the western hemisphere's only communist nation, was excluded from negotiations on a Free Trade Area of the Americas led by the United States, which has maintained economic sanctions against Cuban dictator Fidel Castro's government since 1962.

    Argentina, whose relations with Washington were so close in the last decade, restored full diplomatic ties with Cuba under left-leaning President Nestor Kirchner, who plans to visit Havana early next year. Taleb said Castro and Kirchner see a strong alliance emerging between Cuba, Venezuela, Brazil and Argentina, countries that have swung left in recent years in a backlash against free-market economic policies advocated by Washington.

    Argentine Central Bank and Economy Ministry officials travel to Cuba on Nov. 25 to start renegotiating Cuba's unpaid debt dating from the 1970s, Taleb said. But he added that his country was "not at all satisfied" with Cuba's request, copied from Argentina's own proposal to its private creditors, that 75 percent of the debt be forgiven. The two countries disagree on the size of the debt, with Argentina adding years of interest to the total. The Argentine ambassador said Cuba is so cash-strapped that it cannot pay and should open its market to Argentina's meat exports and investment in hotel resorts. "Cuba copied the Argentine recipe," Taleb said. "They say the debt cannot be paid because it would be a costly sacrifice for the Cuban people, which is what we said to the IMF."

    BAHAMAS MISTREATS CUBAN ASYLUM SEEKERS

    The Bahamian government is mistreating asylum seekers from Cuba and Haiti by not giving them forms in their own language and by detaining their children for prolonged periods without much exercise and education, Amnesty International said Wednesday. Last year, only four people were granted refugee status in the Bahamas, a nation of 700 islands off the coast of Florida, the group said.

    The Bahamas is less than 60 miles away from the Florida coast, making it a popular launching point for illegal migrants from Jamaica, Haiti and Cuba. The Bahamian government responded to the Amnesty report, calling it unbalanced and inconsiderate of the country's crumbling infrastructure. "The report mentions some things which are true and some things which are not true," said Mark Wilson, permanent secretary for the National Security Ministry. "Our overall reaction is the report lacks balance."

    When dealing with Cuban migrants, Bahamian authorities sent information about them - including names, addresses and photos - to the Havana government within 72 hours of their arrival, the report said. "Amnesty International is concerned that if the authorities provide this information prior to considering protection needs, they may potentially put the detainees and the families of the detainees at risk," it said. Wilson said authorities are obligated to notify foreign governments if their nationals are being deported. Unlike the United States, the Bahamas does not offer Cubans de facto asylum.

    LUIS CAMPOS CORRALES HANDCUFFED AND THROWN FROM THE SECOND FLOOR OF EL COMBINADO DEL ESTE

    In evening hours of October 20, Luis Campos Corrales, political prisoner and member of the Democratic Party November 30 "Frank País", who is almost blind due to a bacterial infection was handcuffed and then thrown from the second floor of the prison Combinado del Este in Havana, by the officer in charge of the detachment that goes by the name of Leonel with the aid of another prison official. Luis Campos Corrales is serving a 25 year sentence in the Cause #37 of 1994 for the supposed crime of piracy.

    Campos Corrales was able to denounce the event to his mother Gregoria Corrales over the telephone on November 1, when he was granted permission to call to inquire about her health for she had eye surgery the previous week. He also told his mother that he was presently sleeping in the floor under some stair in an unknown detachment at El Combinado del Este.

    According to information received by correspondents of Lux Info Press in Havana, after this incident with Campos Corrales, officials at Combinado del Este also dragged through the floor of the prison the political prisoner Orlando Zapata Tamayo of  the Alternative Republican Movement in Havana and member of the Civic Movement Committee of the Varela Project, who was unjustly sentenced to 18 years in prison in the recent wave of repression that began last March. They left Tamayo's back full of lacerations only for requesting medical attention.

    "HASTA LA VISTA, BABY" COMES TO UN DURING A VOTE ON CUBA EMBARGO

    Casting itself as the terminator, the United States on Tuesday wished Cuban dictator Fidel Castro "hasta la vista, baby" before a vote in the U.N. General Assembly on the U.S. embargo against Havana. The assembly voted 179-3 against Washington's four-decade old trade embargo and travel against Cuba. Similar resolutions have been adopted since 1992. Last year's vote was 173 to 3 with four abstentions. The resolutions are not mandatory.

    "Cuba's best day is when the Cuban people have terminated Castro's evil Communist dictatorial regime and said to him, 'Hasta la vista, baby,"' U.S. representative Sichan Siv told delegates before the vote. California's Governor-elect Arnold Schwarzenegger uttered the oft-quoted line in the film "Terminator 2: Judgment Day." Only the United States, Israel and the Marshall Islands voted "no" on the resolution urging Washington to end the trade and travel embargo. Morocco and Micronesia abstained.

    Siv, a native of Cambodia, who gave half his speech in Spanish, said the embargo would be lifted when Cuba changed its human rights record and opened its system to trade. He said that Cuba's claim to have lost $72 billion over the years in lost trade and additional costs had more to do with its "failed economic policy" than the embargo. In Havana, the government invited 5,000 officials and friends to the Karl Marx theater to watch a live broadcast of the debate in the General Assembly.

    PRESIDENT BUSH: "AMERICA WILL NEVER RUNî IN IRAQ 

    A day after guerrillas shot down a helicopter in Iraq and killed 16 Americans, President Bush said Monday that attackers are trying to drive away coalition forces but that "America will never run. The president said "Some of the best have fallen in service to our fellow Americans. "We mourn every loss (…) We honor every name. We grieve with every family. And we will always be grateful that liberty has found such brave defenders."

    "The enemy in Iraq believes America will run," the president said. "That's why they're willing to kill innocent civilians, relief workers, coalition troops. America will never run." "If we lose the peace in Iraq that entire part of the world becomes chaos.

    U.S. HELICOPTER SHOT DOWN KILLING 15 GI°S

    A U.S. military transport helicopter crashed Sunday near Fallujah, Iraq, killing 15 U.S. troops and wounding 20 others, Pentagon sources said. Spokesman Col. William Darley said witnesses reported seeing missile trails when the CH-47 Chinook went down, but he said the official cause of the crash has not been determined. At least some of the soldiers aboard the Chinook were about to go on leave, he said.

    The attacks came as coalition forces were on alert for a threatened "day of resistance" by anti-coalition guerrillas following a warning from the U.S. Consulate Office in Baghdad. The helicopter went down near the city of Amiryah, according to a statement from the U.S. Central Command. It was carrying troops to Baghdad from an 82^nd. Airborne Division camp outside Fallujah, a hotbed of resistance to U.S. troops. The Army has not identified the units of the dead and wounded soldiers, pending notification of relatives, Darley said.

    In Washington, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld called the deaths tragic. He said the people who are resisting the U.S.-led occupation of Iraq and the establishment of a new government there are "going to be beaten eventually." "In a long, hard war, we're going to have tragic days, as this is," Rumsfeld told ABC's "This Week." "But they're necessary. They're part of a war that's difficult and complicated."

    CASTRO URGES SOCIALIST LEADERS TO FIND OWN METHODS TO DEFEAT "IMPERIALISM"

    Cuban dictator Fidel Castro called on leaders of social movements from across the Americas to find their own methods for change rather than copying existing political models - including communist Cuba's. Castro told leaders of groups representing Indians, workers and others late Thursday night that they should "seek their own way" as they press for change in their countries around the Western Hemisphere.

    "One should not be dogmatic; that is one of the secrets of revolution," said Castro, who led the Cuban revolution that brought him to power in 1959. "Every one of the movements will have different things. There will be things that are similar but not exactly the same," he said.

    Earlier Thursday evening, Bolivian opposition leader Evo Morales told the gathering that if Latin American opponents of Washington's free trade policies join forces, they could deal the United States a political blow as serious as its loss in the Vietnam War. "Urgent action is important," Morales said, calling on the leaders of social movements to join in regional unity and "create people power."

    U.S. AGRIBUSINESS SHOWS OFF AT CUBA FAIR

    Florida fruit juices and North Carolina turkey are among products American companies are showing off in Cuba this week as they press to sell more farm products to the communist island. Grouped inside a stand at the International Fair of Havana, opening Sunday afternoon, the 71 American firms from 18 states and Puerto Rico hope their displays will persuade Cuban officials to buy more under an exception in a 42-year U.S. trade embargo.

    This year's American presence doesn't compete with the number of U.S. firms that took part in a U.S. food and agricultural exhibition held here a little more than a year ago. It featured 288 exhibitors from 33 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. The fair will feature products from more than 600 companies from about 50 nations. American exhibitors include the USA Rice Federation; Carolina Turkey of Mt. Olive, N.C., and Splash Tropical Drinks of Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
 

    CUBAN DICTATOR FIDEL CASTRO: "HOPEFULLY, THE MAN HAS AS MUCH STRENGTH IN HIS HEAD AS HE DOES IN HIS ARMSî

    During a five-hour speech at the closure of a conference of Latin American academics, Cuban dictator Fidel Castro said Friday that the Hollywood star and governor elect of California, Arnold Schwarzenegger,  "at the very least'' deserves credit for being physically fit. îBut they haven't done an X-ray or other study that shows a very important fact: how many muscles he has in his brain.î

    îHopefully, the man has as much strength in his head as he does in his arms,'' Castro said of Schwarzenegger, a former Mr. Universe known for starring in such movies as "The Terminator.'' Castro referred to recent news reports that Cuban-born U.S. Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, R-Fla., had asked Schwarzenegger not to promote American trade to Cuba. îNo one has invited him,'' Castro said of Schwarzenegger. But Castro noted that the governor-elect had traveled to the island at least once in the past.   

    EVO MORALES CONVINCED OF US DEFEAT IN LATIN AMERICA

    The leader of Bolivia's coca leaf growers and possible next president of Bolivia, Evo Morales, called on Latin Americans on Thursday to unite in opposing U.S. policies in the region and cause "another Vietnam" for the United States. Emboldened by social protests that toppled such a staunch U.S. ally as the president of Bolivia two weeks ago, Morales urged Latin Americans to reject what he called "U.S. intervention in their region.î

    "I am convinced that by creating people's power and achieving Latin American unity with the clarity to defeat imperialism, we can soon celebrate Latin America becoming another Vietnam for the United States," the Aymara Indian leader said in reference to the defeat of American policy in the South East Asian country.

    Morales spoke at a Latin American social science conference attended by Cuban dictator Fidel Castro. Analysts of Latin American politics said the Bolivian crisis pointed to growing instability in impoverished Andean countries that could spread through the region, where indigenous populations have not seen the benefits of free-market reforms or the privatization of state enterprises advocated by U.S. administrations.

    US DENOUNCES PRESENCE OF CUBAN INTELLIGENCE IN VENEZUELA

    In a speech delivered at the 7th Conference of the Americas hold in Miami, Otto Reich, U.S. special envoy for Latin American, said that he sees with special concern "the presence in Venezuela of foreign advisors who do not contribute to peace in the continent." He added: "We must be worried about Venezuela because it is a strategic country. It is a rich nation that unfortunately is being very poorly managed."