06 - 30 - 06

CUBAN DISSIDENT GROUP REPORTS NEARLY 350 PRISONERS OF CONSCIENCE

     HAVANA, CUBA  --  A dissident group monitoring human rights in Cuba said Thursday there are at least 347 prisoners of conscience on the island and warned that the jailing of opposition activists was rising. "There is a worsening of the situation," said Aida Valdes Santana, of the National Coordinating Group of Prisoners and Ex-Political Prisoners. Valdes told a news conference that her group would begin offering periodic updates on the number of political prisoners.

    The Cuban Commission for Human Rights and National Reconciliation, headed by veteran activist Elizardo Sanchez, for many years has created a similar report every six months tracking the number of political prisoners on the island. The commission's latest report listed 333 political prisoners. Cuba's communist run government says there are no prisoners of conscience on the island, only common criminals.

RUSSIAN PRESIDENT PUTIN WANTS HOSTAGES' KILLERS HUNTED DOWN

    MOSCOW, RUSSIA  --   President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday ordered Russia's special services to hunt down and "destroy" the killers of four Russian diplomats in Iraq, the Kremlin said. Nikolai Patrushev, the head of the Federal Security Service - the main successor to the Soviet KGB - later said that everything would be done to ensure that the killers "do not escape from responsibility," the Interfax news agency reported.

    "The president has ordered the special forces to take all necessary measures to find and destroy the criminals who killed Russian diplomats in Iraq," the Kremlin press service said in a brief statement. It did not specify what special forces might be involved. Agents of the Foreign Intelligence Service and the Federal Security Service could be considered special forces.

    The order followed Monday's confirmation by the Foreign Ministry that four Russians Embassy workers who were abducted in early June had been killed. Foreign Ministry spokesman Andrei Krivtsov declined to say whether any Russian special forces currently were in Iraq but noted that there are "people responsible for security at the embassy" in Baghdad.  The lower house of the Russian parliament passed a statement earlier Wednesday that decried the murders and said that "occupying" countries are losing control in Iraq.

CUBA CAN'T MEET SUGAR HARVEST GOAL 

      HAVANA, CUBA  --  Cuba's struggling sugar industry won't make its harvest goals this year, the government acknowledged this week, saying that inefficient mills and a late start proved to be obstacles difficult to overcome. ''The recently finished harvest demonstrated that hard work and final results don't always correspond,'' the Communist Party daily Granma reported Tuesday.

    In February, when sugar prices rose to 17 U.S. cents a pound, Cuban leader Fidel Castro announced his country -- after having closed sugar mills and furloughed workers in 2002 -- would try to increase its production. The government announced it would shoot for a three million ton harvest. But experts say it is now producing about 1.3 million tons a year -- less than a fifth of what was grown in the 1950s. Government officials also recently announced plans to increase ethanol production fivefold -- a lofty goal that requires a stepped up harvest.

    The nation that four years ago had 156 operating mills now has just 42, and says 28 of them began the season late. Of 22 low-production mills, eight couldn't grind the amount of sugar cane that had been projected and two were shut down due to ''reiterated inefficiency and high per-ton cost,'' Granma reported. Had all the mills operated at capacity, Cuba could have produced another 43,800 tons, the paper said. But Granma did not offer any actual production figures for this year's harvest. ''The late start couldn't be beaten,'' the paper said.

ISRAEL ARRESTED HAMAS LEADERS

      GAZA CITY, GAZA STRIP  --  Israeli forces rounded up dozens of Palestinian Cabinet ministers and lawmakers from Hamas, increasing pressure on the Islamic militants to release a captured Israeli soldier, and witnesses said tanks moved into northern Gaza, widening Israel's largest military operation in the year since Israel pulled out of the seaside territory.

    Hamas officials said more than 30 lawmakers have been arrested in the West Bank. Palestinian security officials said Israeli forces detained the Palestinian deputy prime minister, Nasser Shaer, and three other Cabinet ministers, as well as four lawmakers in Ramallah. Several others were arrested in the town of Jenin, they said. Israeli media reported a roundup of Hamas lawmakers in Jerusalem and other locations.

    Also, the Hamas mayor of the West Bank town of Qalqiliya and his deputy were detained, security officials said. The military refused to comment. Israel blames Hamas for the attack Sunday in which two soldiers were killed and a third captured when militants tunneled under the border and attacked an army post, setting off the invasion.

06 - 29 - 06

aMERICANS RANK NO. 1 IN PATRIOTISM SURVEY SHOWS

     CHICAGO, ILLINOIS  --  When it comes to national pride, Americans are No. 1, according to a survey of 34 countries' patriotism. Venezuela came in a close second in the survey, released Tuesday by the National Opinion Research Center at the University of Chicago. People rated how proud they were of their countries in 10 areas: political influence, social security, the way their democracy works, economic success, science and technology, sports, arts and literature, military, history, and fair treatment of all groups in society.

    Patriotism is mostly a New World concept, the researchers said. Former colonies and newer nations were more likely to rank high on the list, while Western European, East Asian and former socialist countries usually ranked near the middle or bottom. The U.S. ranked highest overall and in five categories: pride in its democracy, political influence, economy, science and military. Venezuela ranked highest in four categories: sports, arts and literature, history, and fair treatment of all groups in society.

    Cultural differences might explain the lower rankings for the three Asian countries on the list - Japan (18th), Taiwan (29th), and Korea (31), Smith said. "It is both bad luck and poor manners to be boastful about things there," Smith said. Countries that were part of the former Soviet Union or in the former Eastern Bloc ranked lower because they are still struggling to find new national identities, Smith said. Hungary was the highest Eastern European country on the list at 21.

iNSURGENTS OFFER TO HALT ATTACKS IN IRAQ

    BAGHDAD, IRAQ  --  Eleven Sunni insurgent groups have offered an immediate halt to all attacks - including those on American troops - if the United States agrees to withdraw foreign forces from Iraq in two years, insurgent and government officials told The Associated Press on Wednesday. Withdrawal is the centerpiece of a set of demands from the groups, which operate north of Baghdad in the heavily Sunni Arab provinces of Salahuddin and Diyala. Although much of the fighting has been to the west, those provinces are increasingly violent and attacks there have crippled oil and commerce routes.

    The groups who've made contact have largely shunned attacks on Iraqi civilians, focusing instead on the U.S.-led coalition forces. Their offer coincides with Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's decision to reach out to the Sunni insurgency with a reconciliation plan that includes an amnesty for fighters. The Islamic Army in Iraq, Muhammad Army and the Mujahedeen Shura Council - the umbrella group that covers eight militant groups including al-Qaida in Iraq - were not party to any offers to the government.

    Naseer al-Ani, a Sunni Arab politician and official with the largest Sunni political group, the Iraqi Islamic Party, said that al-Maliki should encourage the process by guaranteeing security for those making the offer and not immediately reject their demands. "If the initiative is implemented in a good way, 70 percent of the insurgent groups will respond positively." Al-Maliki, in televised remarks Wednesday, did not issue an outright rejection of the timetable demand. But he said it was unrealistic, because he could not be certain when the Iraqi army and police would be strong enough to make a foreign presence unnecessary for Iraq's security.

ISRAELI TROOPS MOVED INTO GAZA; CAPTURED SOLDIER SOUGHT; TWO BRIDGES BOMBED

      GAZA CITY, GAZA STRIP  --  Israeli ground troops pushed into the Gaza Strip early Wednesday in a military operation aimed at freeing a captured soldier whose fate has transfixed much of the country. The incursion was the military's first major move into Gaza since the Israeli government withdrew all troops and settlers from the enclave nine months ago.

    An undisclosed number of troops reportedly entered the strip at its southern end, near the city of Rafah on the Egyptian border. Hours earlier, Israeli military officials said, military aircraft bombed two bridges in central Gaza to prevent the gunmen who abducted Cpl. Gilad Shalit, 19, during a Sunday attack on an army post at the strip's southeastern edge from moving him around Gaza or into Egypt Another airstrike hit Gaza's power station, knocking out electricity throughout the strip and igniting a huge fire that lit the pre-dawn sky. A third bridge was also reported hit.

    The Associated Press reported that at mid-afternoon, warplanes fired missiles at open fields in northern Gaza in an effort to prevent Palestinians from launching rockets from the area, the military said. Separately, Israel attacked a rocket-making factory in southern Gaza. No casualties were reported. In Washington, a senior U.S. official said that while he was not privy to many details about Israel's intentions, he expected the incursion would be "pretty significant." "This is in the category of a major operation," said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity. "This isn't just 20 commandos."

VENEZUELA WILL SHIP 340,000 BARRELS OF OIL A YEAR TO GRENADA FOR PRODUCTS LIKE BANANAS AND NUTMEG  

      CARACAS, VENEZUELA  --  Venezuela's state oil company said Tuesday that it signed an agreement with Grenada to supply 340,000 barrels of oil a year as part of a broader deal to provide crude products on preferential financial terms to Caribbean countries. Venezuela will ship 55,000 barrels of diesel, 85,000 barrels of gasoline and 200,000 barrels of fuel oil to Grenada annually, Petroleos de Venezuela SA, or PDVSA, said in a statement.

    The two countries are discussing how the bill can be paid, and Venezuela is considering accepting partial payment in agricultural products like bananas and nutmeg, it said. Grenada's Energy Minister Gregory Bowen was quoted as saying that the country would reinvest savings from the agreement in infrastructure, education and health.

    A joint venture will oversee construction of infrastructure so that Grenada can manage oil shipments, the statement added. The agreement is part of Venezuela's Petrocaribe oil supply program that it signed with 14 Caribbean nations last year. Haiti recently joined the group. Under the program, the receiving countries can pay for a portion up front and finance the rest over 25 years at low interest rates and pay partially in services or goods.

06 - 28 - 06

UNITED STATES CONCERNED ABOUT POTENTIAL HUGO CHAVEZ VISIT TO NORTH KOREA

     WASHINGTON, D.C.  --  The United States expressed Monday concern about the announcement of Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez on his visit to North Korea to execute agreements that could involve transfer of military technology.

     "I am not sure about what he is expecting from the North Koreans," US Department of State Spokesman Sean McCormack replied about the visit to Pyongyang disclosed by the Venezuelan ruler.

    "Certainly, if this involves transfer of military technology, given the background of North Korea, it would be a matter of concern," he added. At the end of a two-day official visit to Panama last Friday, Chávez said that he would head for the isolated country headed by Communist leader Kim Jong-Il to enter into bilateral agreements on technology and scientific matters. However, he did not provide further details, AFP quoted.

VENEZUELA GOVERNMENT AND US DEA ENTERED INTO AN ANTI-DRUG COOPERATION CONVENTION

    CARACAS, VENEZUELA  --  An anti-drug cooperation convention is to be entered into by the Venezuelan Government and US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) next July 8th, National Anti-drug Department CEO Luis Correa said. The agreement has some "changes of form, rather than substance," as compared to the prior instrument, he noted. Changes include the removal of effective operations of DEA officials in Venezuela and a close relationship between Venezuelan and US agents.

    Cooperation in training and technology will remain unchanged. "We, for instance, said, 'the parties should meet every month. This word was not adequate for the United States. Therefore, the term 'parties' was replaced with 'participants'", Correa elaborated on the issues of form.

    As reported by Efe, the execution of the anti-drug agreement was announced by last January. Ending July 2005, Venezuela stopped joint anti-drug efforts with the United States, by arguing "intelligence infiltration threatening the country's security and defense." The agency noted that the new deal is "very similar" to current instruments entered into by Venezuela and the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, France or Spain.

06 - 27 - 06

hugo chavez issues new protest against peru amid deteriorating relations 

     CARACAS, VENEZUELA  --  Venezuela issued a new protest against Peruvian President-elect Alan Garcia on Sunday, accusing him of seeking a confrontation with President Hugo Chavez instead of trying to mend deteriorating bilateral ties. The Foreign Ministry defended Chavez's recent suggestion in Panama that Garcia's June 4 presidential runoff victory was "dubious," saying the Venezuelan leader had simply "responded to attacks uttered against him by Mr. Garcia."

    Garcia was "far from contributing to the easing of bilateral relations" and seemed to be seeking a confrontation with Chavez to boost his profile, it said. In a statement Saturday, Peru's government rejected Chavez's suggestion that Garcia's victory might have been tainted by fraud and that nationalist candidate Ollanta Humala in fact had won.

    Garcia, who takes office July 28, and Chavez have exchanged a barrage of insults since Peru's election campaign when Chavez openly endorsed Humala, igniting a diplomatic crisis between the nations and the recall of their respective ambassadors. Peru criticized Chavez for interfering in Peru's internal affairs, while the Venezuelan leader accused Garcia of trying to turn other Latin American leaders against him. Chavez appeared to write off the possibility of making peace with Peru on Friday, saying that their relations "can't be fixed."

Al-qaida-linked group claims killing of four russian workers

    CAIRO, EGYPT  --  An al-Qaida-linked group posted a Web video Sunday showing the killings of three Russian embassy workers abducted earlier this month in Iraq. A fourth also was said to have been killed. An accompanying statement by the Mujahedeen Shura Council, an umbrella organization linking seven insurgent groups including al-Qaida in Iraq, said all four Russians had been killed.

    Russia's Foreign Ministry said it had not yet confirmed the hostages' deaths. The 90-second video, posted on an Islamic Web site that frequently airs militant messages, showed the beheading of two blindfolded men and the shooting of a third.

    In the footage, two men clad in black and wearing black ski masks shout "God is great!" before beheading the first man. Then one militant appears standing over the decapitated body of a second victim lying in a pool of blood, with the head placed on top of the body. The footage was stamped with the logo of al-Qaida. "God's verdict has been carried out on the Russian diplomats ... in revenge for the torture, killing and expulsion of our brothers and sisters by the infidel Russian government," the statement said.

SADDAM HUSSEIN BELIEVES U.S. NEEDS HIS HELP, LAWYER SAYS 

      AMMAN, JORDAN  --  Saddam Hussein believes the United States will have to seek his help to quell the bloody insurgency in Iraq and open the way for U.S. forces to withdraw, his chief lawyer said Sunday. Khalil al-Dulaimi argued in an interview with The Associated Press that the former leader is the key to returning stability to Iraq. "He's their last resort. They're going to knock at his door eventually," the lawyer said. Saddam is "the only person who can stop the resistance against the U.S. troops."

    Al-Dulaimi said Saddam brought up the topic during a meeting Tuesday, and indicated he would be willing to help the United States -- "for the sake of saving both peoples -- the Iraqis and Americans. He quoted Saddam as saying: "These puppets in the Iraqi government that the Americans brought to power are helpless. They can't protect themselves or the Iraqi people. The Americans will certainly come to me, to Saddam Hussein's legitimate leadership and to the Iraqi Baath Party, to rescue them from their huge quandary."

    The comments from Al-Dulaimi, the head of Saddam's defense team, portrayed a deposed leader who seems to hold out hope he can bargain his way out of trials that threaten him with the death penalty. Although he would not say exactly what Saddam might ask in return for helping, al-Dulaimi said it would not necessarily involve being reinstated as president of Iraq -- a nation he ruled brutally and plunged into three devastating wars.

IRAQI LEADER HOLDS OUT OFFER OF PEACE TO INSURGENTS

      BAGHDAD, IRAQ  --  Seven Sunni Arab insurgent groups have contacted the government to declare their readiness to join in efforts at national reconciliation, a key Shiite legislator said on Monday. The seven lesser groups, most of them believed populated by former members or backers of Saddam Hussein's government, military or security agencies, have said they want a truce, Hassan al-Suneid, a lawmaker and member of the political bureau of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's Dawa Party, told The Associated Press.

    The contact by the insurgent organizations, which could not be independently verified, would mark an important potential shift and stand as evidence of a growing divide between Iraqi insurgents and the more brutal and ideological fighters of al-Qaida in Iraq, who are believed to mainly be non-Iraqi Islamic militants.

    Al-Maliki was considering a possible meeting with leaders of the groups or contacts through intermediaries, al-Suneid said. He identified only six of the seven organizations by name, listing them as: al-Ashreen Brigades, the Mohammed Army, Abtal al-Iraq (Heroes of Iraq), the 9th of April Group, al-Fatah Brigades, the Brigades of the General Command of the Armed Forces.

06 - 26 - 06

israel: MILITANTS KILL 2 SOLDIERS; ISRAEL FORCES ENTERED GAZA FROM THE AREA OF ATTACK   

     JERUSALEN, ISRAEL  --   Israeli tanks, helicopters and ground forces have crossed into southern Gaza after Palestinian militants tunneled under the border and attacked several army posts, killing two soldiers and capturing a third, according to the Israeli army.  The Israeli army "will do everything that is required" to bring the missing soldier back to Israel, army chief of staff Dan Halutz said at a news conference.

    On Sunday morning, a group of about seven militants emerged from a tunnel inside Israeli territory near the Gaza-Israel-Egypt border and attacked the military posts, Israeli security sources said. The militants tossed hand grenades at an Israeli tank near the Sufa Crossing, killing the two soldiers, the sources said.  Palestinian security sources said three militants were killed in the attack. About an hour later, an explosion went off in the same area, injuring two soldiers -- none seriously -- Israeli security sources said.

    Another soldier was wounded in the melee, according to an Israeli hospital spokesman. An Israeli community just north of the army post was closed down and residents in the area were called to stay in their houses, the Israeli sources said. The militants who survived the attack escaped back into Gaza, and Israeli forces crossed the border to search for them, the Israeli army said.

HUGO CHAVEZ NAMES NEW DEFENSE MINISTER

     CARACAS, VENEZUELA  --  Hugo Chavez said Saturday he would appoint a top general as his new defense minister, choosing a loyalist who helped return him to power after a 2002 coup. Chavez, in a televised speech, said the appointment of army chief Gen. Raul Isaias Baduel would become "effective in the coming days."

    Baduel will replace Adm. Orlando Maniglia. Chavez thanked Maniglia for his work but did not elaborate on why he was making the change or what lay ahead for the outgoing defense minister. Baduel was named commander of the Venezuelan army in 2004. He helped lead forces that returned Chavez to power after dissident officers briefly unseated the leader in a 2002 coup.

    Baduel also backed Chavez during a 2002-2003 strike led by the opposition, helping to bring in troops to retake control of the oil industry. Chavez made the announcement during a speech west of Caracas at the site of a decisive 1821 battle that sealed Venezuela's independence from Spain. In his own speech, Baduel referred to a need for Venezuela to prepare for an "asymmetrical war" - a term often used by Chavez, who accuses the Bush administration of plotting to topple his leftist government.

06 - 25 - 06

CHAVEZ: PERUVIAN PRESIDENT-ELECT ALAN GARCIA A 'LAP DOG' OF THE UNITED STATES 

     PANAMA CITY, PANAMA  --  Hugo Chavez reignited a war of words with Peruvian President-elect Alan Garcia on Friday, calling him a "lap dog" of the United States. Chavez's comments during a two-day visit to Panama came after verbal sparring between the two leaders had calmed, and as Venezuela lobbies for a seat on the U.N. Security Council - a bid Garcia earlier this month suggested he might support.

    "His owner is in Washington, he's a lap dog, a tool of the empire," said Chavez, who frequently refers to the United States as "the empire." In comments to reporters, Chavez accused Garcia of trying to turn other Latin American leaders against him, mentioning Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, Argentine President Nestor Kirchner and Chilean President Michelle Bachelet. "If he thinks he's going to turn Lula against Chavez, or set Chavez to fighting with Kirchner or with Bachelet, he's going to crash and burn," Chavez said.

    Garcia appeared to have called for a truce with Chavez earlier this month. "We will not turn South America into a combat ground with Chavez," Garcia said on June 9. "If he declares war, I declare peace." Chavez has called Garcia "a thief for real, a demagogue, a liar," and openly supported Garcia's rival in Peru's June 4 presidential election. Garcia accused Chavez of meddling in domestic politics. Chavez appeared to write off the possibility of making peace with Peru, saying Friday that their relations "can't be fixed."

06 - 24 - 06

CHAVEZ OFFERS BUILD OIL REFINERY IN PANAMA   

     CARACAS, VENEZUELA  --  Hugo Chávez Thursday said that while Latin American countries are making efforts to get closer, "there are some powerful countries making every possible effort to sow discord among people, to undermine confidence, and poison good intentions." Chávez' comments came during his speech at the Panama Foreign Affairs Ministry to commemorate the 180th anniversary of the Anfictionic Congress, an initiative of Liberator Simón Bolívar to unify South American countries.

    Chávez rejected US lawmakers' claims that he is interfering in Nicaraguan elections. In a speech that lasted over one hour, Chávez vowed to "relaunch" bilateral relations with Panama, by using oil in the context of geopolitics. Chávez said he was willing to build in Panama a refinery and a gas pipeline, "as soon as possible." If such plans were implemented, Panama would no longer have to deal with intermediaries to purchase fuel.

    A few hours later, during his visit to the Miraflores floodgate, Chávez said the planned refinery could have a 150,000 bpd capacity and become "a large fuel refining, storage and distribution center." Before his Panamanian counterpart Martín Torrijos, Chávez said "integration is the only way to get out of backwardness," and ratified he would give "Venezuelan blood" to defend Cuba.

PETROECUADOR SUSPENDS REFINING AGREEMENT WITH PDVSA; CLAIMS "VAGUENESS"

     QUITO, ECUADOR  --  Spokespersons for Ecuadorian state oil firm Petroecuador said an agreement with Venezuelan state oil giant Pdvsa to refine Ecuadorian crude oil in Pdvsa domestic and foreign facilities would not be initialed on Friday as scheduled because of imprecisions found in the instrument. No new date for initialization of the agreement was set.

   Initialization of the agreement, under which Ecuador would save some USD 300-400 million on a yearly basis, according to official figures, was scheduled for June 21st, and it was adjourned for Friday because Venezuelan energy authorities postponed their visit to Quito.

    However, on Friday, the sources said that there is no full technical survey assessing the exact economic benefits Ecuador is to obtain from the deal. Further, Petroecuador CEO Fernando González resigned unexpectedly two days ago, and no substitute has been appointed so far.

FOREIGN AIRLINES TOLD TO PAY 10 PERCENT COMMISSION TO VENEZUELAN TRAVEL AGENCIES

      CARACAS, VENEZUELA  -- Foreign airlines operating in Venezuela have to pay a 10 percent commission to travel agencies on air ticket sales, said the National Assembly Management and Services Committee president Darío Vivas. Currently, foreign carriers are paying a 6 percent commission on air ticket sales, and they have even proposed cutting down such fees to 3 percent as of July.

    "There is a resolution of 1976 in force establishing payment of 10 percent commission on sales of international air tickets," Vivas reminded, as reported by the official news agency ABN. The ruling party MVR lawmaker ensured they would not allow any airline, let alone foreign carriers, to set unilateral deadlines to cut commissions, as that would run counter the Venezuelan law.

    Foreign airlines have asked the Supreme Tribunal of Justice (TSJ) to rule on the validity of the resolution Vivas mentioned. 

ARGENTINEAN PRESIDENT KIRCHNER HIGHLIGHTS VENEZUELA SOLIDARITY 

      MADRID, SPAIN  --  Argentinean President Néstor Kirchner warned Thursday against "cyclic caricaturing" of emerging Latin American governments, labeled as indigenous or populist. "They are just aiming at reconstruction," he said according to DPA.

    Kirchner, who spoke at the Spanish Congress as part of a two-day official visit to Madrid, circumvented in this way the European ongoing concern about some Latin American governments, such as the government of Bolivian Evo Morales and Venezuelan Hugo Chávez. Kirchner noted Venezuela's solidarity with other states in the hemisphere, despite "the image of little monster intended by the United States."

    "Both nations have significant trade relations. USD 25 million go from Venezuela to the United States. At the same time, the Latin American country is a major oil supplier to the United States," Kirchner recalled.

06 - 23 - 06

ONE OF THE YOUNGEST MEMBERS OF CUBA'S RULING POLITBURO WAS SENTENCED TO 12 YEARS IN PRISON FOR INFLUENCE-PEDDLING

     HAVANA, CUBA  -- A Communist official long held up as an example of the island's future leadership was sentenced to 12 years in prison for influence-peddling, the party said Wednesday. Juan Carlos Robinson Agramonte, among the youngest members of the ruling Politburo before being kicked out of the elite body and the party in April, pleaded guilty Friday during a trial in Havana, the official Granma newspaper said. Government prosecutors had sought a 15-year sentence.

    ''It was demonstrated that Robinson Agramonte, in the open process of his ideological weakening and with abuse of his position, forgot his high responsibilities and the integrity demanded of a revolutionary cadre and used his influence to obtain benefits,'' Granma said. It offered no specifics on what benefits were obtained or how Robinson used his influence to get them.

    Cuban officials had once pointed with pride to Robinson as an example of the island's young black leadership. Robinson, now 49, is from the eastern city of Santiago -- Cuba's second-largest city -- and had been the party's first secretary for the Santiago Province since 1994. But in late April, the Politburo announced that Robinson was expelled from the party for repeatedly failing to overcome ''errors'' such as abuse of authority and arrogance. At the time, the party leadership said Robinson had become “a lamentable and unusual case of the inability of a political cadre to overcome his errors.'' 

A CUBAN woman who spied for cuban dictator fidel castro IS RELEASED ON BOND 

     MIAMI, FLORIDA  --  Elsa Alvarez, accused of being an unregistered agent of Cuba's communist government, has been ordered freed on bond to await trial. In ordering her release from federal detention, U.S. District Judge Michael Moore called the government's case against her weak.

    ''There is no evidence she has had direct contact with any Cuban government officials for at least 10 years,'' Moore wrote last Friday. “Her contacts with the Cuban government since the late 1970s [and the information she has allegedly passed to the Cuban government] have been benign.'' The order noted that Elsa Alvarez tried to dissuade her husband, Florida International University psychology professor Carlos Alvarez, ``from acting on behalf of the Cuban government.''

    The FBI arrested Elsa Alvarez, a psychology counselor at FIU, and her husband in January. He remains in federal detention, awaiting trial. The couple have four children, including a teenage daughter. Among the conditions of her release: 1) She can't leave Miami-Dade County without court permission;  2) She has to surrender her passport and travel documents; 3) She can't visit airports, seaports or train or bus stations; 4) She must be placed on electronic monitoring; and 5) She has a curfew for most of the night hours.

06 - 22 - 06

CUBA CELEBRATES ITS PLACE ON U.N. RIGHTS COUNCIL 

     HAVANA, CUBA  -- Cuba on Tuesday welcomed the opening of the new U.N. Human Rights Council, praising its own election as a founding member of the 47-nation body and the exclusion of the United States, which declined to stand as a candidate. Cuba -- which has been criticized by the United States and rights groups for its record -- said its victory in the May election was a reward for its humanitarian work, including work by its doctors in 70 other countries and free surgery by Cuban eye specialists for patients from elsewhere in the Caribbean and Latin America.

   ''Today is a particularly symbolic day. Cuba is a founding member of the Human Rights Council and the United States is not,'' Foreign Minister Felipe Pérez Roque said.  The absence of the United States is the defeat of lies; it is the moral punishment for the haughtiness of an empire.'' Velia de Pirro, political counselor at the U.S. Mission, dismissed Cuba's comments. ''Cuba, rather than explain how it intends to comply with its pledge, chose instead to engage in gratuitous and unfounded attacks against the United States,'' Pirro said. ``Perhaps it is because those pledges sound hollow, especially in the ears of the Cuban people.''

   The United States opposed the creation of the council, saying it did not do enough to improve upon the discredited Human Rights Commission that preceded it, and it declined to run for a seat. However, Washington has promised to help the council succeed. Japan, Canada, Finland and Switzerland were also among those chosen to sit on the 47-nation body. The first meeting of the council runs through June 30.

U.S. VISA TOLL-FREE CALL CENTER BACK AFTER OVERRUN 

     HAVANA, CUBA  --  A toll-free call center to schedule U.S. visa interviews for Cubans was back up this week, after collapsing June 2 under the weight of more than a half-million calls in a single day, the American mission in Havana said Tuesday. The U.S. Interests Section said in a statement that the center had taken steps to ''enhance the service's reliability'' and was operating at full capacity after providing limited service beginning June 9.

    The call center had averaged about 3,000 calls a day since resuming partial service, the statement said. Through the new system, which launched May 25, U.S.-based Cubans can schedule appointments for relatives at the American mission in Havana by calling a toll-free number. The number cannot be accessed from Cuba.

    The appointment service deals with visitor visas, not immigration or refugee status requests. It was created to make it easier for Cubans to get appointments by streamlining a frustrating process that can take days or even weeks. The U.S. Interests Section issues about 12,500 nonimmigrant visas to Cubans annually out of about 30,000 requests, some of which are multiple petitions from the same applicants.

VENEZUELA DEVISES ROCKET LAUNCHER

      CARACAS, VENEZUELA  -- A multi-purpose rocket launcher made in Venezuela will join the army next October, official news agency ABN reported Tuesday. The addition is concomitant with a number of major purchases of new military equipment over the last two years. The acquisition includes 100,000 Kalashnikov AK103 rifles, 10 strike aircrafts, 33 Russian choppers, and eight patrol boats. Also, the procurement of 24 Russian Sukhoi planes was announced recently, AP disclosed.

    Colonel Ender Galvis, a participant in the design of the armament, told the Bolivarian News Agency that the multi-purpose rocket launcher called VE-NILANGAL has cutting-edge technology and goes beyond similar equipment currently used by the Venezuelan army.

    "Both the work equipment and deliverables used to manufacture this hardware is 100 percent Venezuelan," Galvis declared. The novel weapon includes an anti-tank, anti-air, anti-bunker and anti-personal, easy-to-handle device. It weighs only nine kilograms with a scope of two kilometers," the officer explained.

ARGENTINA CONFIRMS MERCOSUR PRESIDENTIAL SUMMIT IN CARACAS

      BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA  --  Argentina, which holds the temporary presidency of the Southern Common Market (Mercosur) until July, Tuesday confirmed that the heads of State of the bloc are to meet on July 4th in Caracas to initial the protocol of full adhesion of Venezuela to the group, AP reported.

    The Argentine Foreign Affairs Ministry published said in a press release that "the five presidents of the regional bloc (Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay and Venezuela) are to initial the protocol of adhesion of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela to Mercosur," following the relevant negotiations.

    "In this way, the five member countries ratify their commitment to consolidate South American integration in the context of regional integration, with 75 percent of the regional Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and 250 million people," the statement said. On July 20-21, a second Mercosur presidential summit will take place in Córdoba, Argentina, where Argentine President Néstor Kirchner is to hand over the provisional presidency of the bloc to his Brazilian colleague Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.

06 - 21 - 06

VENEZUELA REGRETS US OPPOSITION TO NOMINATION

     CARACAS, VENEZUELA  --  The United States cannot claim the moral high ground to oppose Venezuela's nomination to a position at the United Nations Security Council, Foreign Vice-Minister for North American Affairs Maripili Hernández said. "The United States is not entitled to speak up against, because, among others, it cannot claim the moral high ground. In order to come out against a candidacy, moral is the first thing they should have. And they lost it, because they themselves have violated the Security Council resolutions," the official told Radio Nacional.

    Hernández accused Washington of violating "overtly and outrageously" such resolutions due to the incursion into Iraq, by arguing the existence of mass destruction weapons," DPA quoted.

    Venezuela and Guatemala are running for the position at UN in representation of Latin America and the Caribbean, to be chosen next September. The Vice-Minister deemed it shameful the US pressure in the hemisphere to vote against Venezuela, as denounced by President Hugo Chávez.

US DENIES PRESSURE ON CHILE TO VOTE AGAINST VENEZUELA

      WASHINGTON, D.C.  -- The United States labeled Tuesday as false a report on Washington exerting pressure on Chile to vote against Venezuela for a position at the United Nations Security Council, DPA reported. "I understand that this is a false report. The story on the Chileans and F-16 is just a false article," State Department Spokesman Adam Ereli said.

    Daily newspaper "Los Angeles Times" published this week, quoting unidentified Latin American diplomats, that Washington agreed to sell Chile F-16 strike aircraft, but warned that no Chilean pilots would be trained in the event of voting Venezuela for a position at the UN Security Council.

    "Obviously, it is up to each country to decide whom they will vote for the position at the Security Council," Ereli added.

POLITICAL PARTY ASKS BACHELET NOT TO VOTE FOR VENEZUELA FOR A POSITION AT THE UNITED NATIONS

      SANTIAGO, CHILE  --  Democracia Cristiana (DC), the major party of official Concertación por la Democracia is to ask Chilean President Michele Bachelet not to vote Venezuela for a position at the United Nations Security Council. The decision has prompted divisions in the official block, DPA quoted. Exequiel Silva, the official responsible for international affairs, announced the DC official stance. They would rather a third candidate. The move would take aside Guatemala, supported by the United States.

    He argued that "continued interference" of Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez in the internal affairs of foreign nations, such as Colombia and Peru, does not make him the best regional representative, despite the support of Argentina and Brazil.

    Silva was making particular reference to Chávez lashing out at Peruvian president-elect Alan García, since he was running for president to date.

06 - 20 - 06

DEPUTY SECRETARY OF STATE ROBERT ZOELLICK QUITS FOR WALL STREET

     WASHINGTON, D.C.  --  U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Robert Zoellick announced his resignation on Monday to join investment house Goldman Sachs, after focusing on China and Sudan in the No. 2 job at the department. Zoellick had been tipped as a candidate for treasury secretary but he was passed over for the job which went to Goldman Sachs chairman Henry "Hank" Paulson.

    With Zoellick at her side, U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice paid tribute to her outgoing deputy as a strategist and an intellectual leader. She did not announce a replacement for Zoellick when he leaves next month, and State Department officials said it was undecided whether his successor would be the point person on China and Sudan.

    Last month, Zoellick played a pivotal role in getting the main rebel groups in Sudan's western Darfur region to sign a peace agreement after talks had dragged on for years. He had made several trips to the region.  "More than anyone else he (Zoellick) has moved this forward and come up with tangible results. It is a matter of concern when one of the administration's point people decides to leave," said Alex Meixner of the Save Darfur Coalition, an alliance of groups that raises public awareness about Darfur. 

HUGO CHAVEZ KALASHNIKOV FACTORY PLANS STIR FEARS IT COULD ARM LATIN AMERICAN REVOLUTIONARIES 

      CARACAS, VENEZUELA  --   Hugo Chavez's plans to build the first Kalashnikov factory in South America are stirring fears Venezuela could start arming his leftist allies in the hemisphere with Russian assault rifles. Chavez denies such ambitions, saying his government bought 100,000 Russian-made AK-103 assault rifles and a license from Moscow to make Kalashnikovs and ammunition to bolster its defenses against "the most powerful empire in history" - the United States.

    Some political opponents and critics suspect Chavez, a former paratrooper, has other intentions, such as providing allies such as Bolivia with arms while forging an anti-Washington military alliance. "Our president has always had a warlike mentality, but now it appears this mentality is turning into a mission that could easily extend to other parts of Latin America," said William Ojeda, a presidential candidate who hopes to run against Chavez in the December election.

    Chavez has said "Venezuelan blood would run" if the United States tried to invade Cuba or Bolivia, though he has not said his government would provide them with weapons. The Bush administration also is concerned about Chavez's intentions. State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said Friday that Venezuela appeared to be in the midst of an "outsized military buildup for a country of that size and the nature of the threats" in the region.

EVO MORALES WANTS TO SELL COCA TO ARGENTINA

      LA PAZ, BOLIVIA  --  Evo Morales traveled Saturday to the site of two coca-processing factories being built with Venezuelan and Cuban money, and expressed hope that Bolivia will show the world it has nothing to fear from decriminalizing the main ingredient in cocaine.  Morales said Venezuela and Cuba would contribute almost US$1 million (790,000) to the plans, which will manufacture coca into drinks.

    Morales also said he would take a cake made of coca to Cuban President Fidel Castro for his 80th birthday on August 13, and that he would ask Argentine counterpart Nestor Kirchner to allow coca leaves to be sold in northern Argentina as part of his campaign to decriminalize coca, which has been on a U.N. list of prohibited substances since the 1960s.

    Turning coca into ingredients for a variety of products is the best way of "convincing the presidents of Latin America, Europe and Asia to support the international legalization of coca," Morales said. "It is possible we won't make a profit, but it will demonstrate to the world that coca is not only used for cocaine." "I want you to accompany me to ask President Kirchner that the trade be legal and not contraband," said Morales, who continues to hold his other job as the leader of Bolivia's coca growers' federation.

06 - 17 - 06

PANELISTS: THE UNITED STATES SHOULD HELP MEXICO CREATE JOBS

     MEXICO CITY, MEXICO  --  The Mexican border would be less of a problem if the United States would help create jobs south of the Rio Grande, panelists told a convention of Hispanic journalists.

    The United States can build a wall to keep immigrants out, but it must work more closely with Mexico if it has any hope of reducing the massive flow of illegal immigrants, panelists including CNN anchor Lou Dobbs and New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson told Hispanic journalists Friday during a national conference in Fort Lauderdale.

    Dobbs, who has campaigned intensely to strengthen border security and stop illegal immigration, blamed Mexico for the large numbers of immigrants crossing the borders. ''Mexico is a shame for its people, for what it's done for its people in the last 30 years,'' he said, adding that it ''exports its poor to the United States,'' while failing to provide jobs and education for them.  >>>  Full Story

OUSTED JUDGE'S CORRUPTION ALLEGATIONS REACH THE TOP: VENEZUELAN COURTS 'FOR SALE'  

      CARACAS, VENEZUELA  --   A Supreme Court justice ousted for embezzlement -- and now in hiding -- is the force behind a brewing corruption case that targets Venezuela's vice president and two other top leaders. hey would have been serious accusations even if they had not been made by Supreme Court Justice Luis Velázquez Alvaray:  Venezuela's judiciary is so riddled with corruption that in the Caracas courts ''everything is for sale, from the moment you enter to the moment you leave.''

    Those who can afford it pay off a gang of lawyers and judges, dubbed ''the band of dwarves,'' controlled by the nation's vice president. nd that's only a sample of the allegations by Velázquez, who disappeared after the legislative National Assembly sacked him last week on charges of embezzling public funds. Velázquez's claims, which he started making to the Venezuelan media three months ago, initially were dismissed by the country's top prosecutor, Isaías Rodríguez, as ''diffuse and generic'' and impossible to investigate.

    But now a prosecutor has been assigned to investigate Vice President José Vicente Rangel, Interior Minister Jesse Chacón and National Assembly Chairman Nicolás Maduro in connection with the case. One problem with that investigation is that the prime witness, Velázquez himself, has disappeared and is rumored to have fled the country. The other is that the prosecutor has been accused of being a staunch government supporter, unlikely to pursue the allegations strongly.  >>>  Full Story

HUMALA CONCEDES CHAVEZ UNDERMINED HIS PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDACY

      LIMA, PERU  --  The defeated Peruvian nationalist presidential candidate Ollanta Humala timidly admitted that Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez' statements did damage his presidential candidacy.  "As a matter of fact, Mr. Chávez' statements were not of any help," Humala replied when asked if he believed that Chávez remarks expressing support for the nationalist presidential candidate while insulting his rival Alan García were the reasons why Humala was defeated by García last June 9th, AP reported.

    Humala, however, avoided the issue and slashed out at García, whom -Humala said- took advantage of Chávez' words to obtain political gains. According to Humala, García privileged personal interests over national interests, as he helped create tensions between Venezuela and Peru. Further, Humala said, García blocked any possibility for Venezuela to reconsider its move to leave the Andean Community of Nations (CAN).

06 - 17 - 06

united states says venezuela getting more firepower than it needs

     WASHINGTON, D.C. --  The United States said Friday Venezuela's arms acquisition program goes well beyond the country's legitimate defense needs. On Wednesday, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez said his country plans to buy 24 Russian-made Sukhoi fighter jets this year and to build a factory to produce Kalashnikov assault rifles.

    State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said U.S. officials will ask the Russians to take a second look at their decision to go ahead with the transactions. The Venezuelan fighter jet purchase and the rifle factory "certainly go well beyond what they might require for their defensive needs, given the fact that they already have these other weapons purchases in train or already completed."

    He pointed out that Venezuela has already bought 100,000 AK-103 assault rifles from Russia. "So why do you need to produce more?" he asked. Chavez has said his country needs a strong defense in the event of an attack by the United States.

HUGO CHAVEZ OKAYS BANCO DEL SUR

      CARACAS, VENEZUELA  --  Hugo Chávez okayed the creation of Banco del Sur (Southern Bank), an initiative intended to allow countries in the region and even members of the OPEC to use their own resources to face any financial turbulences and fund development plans, rather than resorting to multilateral bodies such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF

    Edgar Hernández Behrens, CEO of the state-owned Bank for Social and Economic Development, explained that "creation of Banco del Sur was approved, and its board of directors is yet to be appointed." Unofficial sources said Venezuelan Finance minister Nelson Merentes was designated as the president of the new bank.

    In March this year, during a meeting with the directors of the Latin American central banks, Chávez said Venezuela was ready to make contributions to Banco del Sur, adding that OPEC partners and countries in the region could transfer a part of their international reserves to Banco del Sur.

US COMMITTEE REJECTS CHAVEZ' THREAT TO REVIEW BROADCASTING LICENSES

      WASHINGTON, D.C.  --  The independent US-based Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) Thursday issued a press release to reject President Hugo Chávez' threats to block the renewal of broadcasting licenses for privately owned television and radio stations that oppose his government.

    "We urge President Chávez to refrain from making these kinds of menacing statements which could have a chilling effect on the press," said CPJ Executive Director Ann Cooper, AFP reported. "The allocation of broadcast frequencies should be based on technical considerations not politics."

    CPJ underscored the statements made by Venezuelan Information and Communication minister William Lara, who said that the Venezuelan government was legally entitled to refuse license renewals to stations whose behavior it deemed "to be in violation of the law." He said he had "noticed a systematic tendency to violate the law."

TRADE UNION REPORTS MASSIVE LAYOUTS IN PDVSA

      MARACAIBO, VENEZUELA  --  A number of trade unions in the oil industry in northwestern Zulia state claimed that some 600 people have been dismissed from Pdvsa-Occidente on no grounds over the last three months, and they are therefore likely to stage demonstrations in the next few days.

    "Workers are fired just because Sisdem (Pdvsa System for democratizing employment) is acting arbitrarily," said Castor Vecino, from trade union Fedepetrol. "There are some managers trying to grant contracts arbitrarily, and that is the reason behind recent work accidents."

    Over the next few days a number of oil trade unions in Zulia state are expected to stage a demonstration to put pressure on the Executive Branch to manage contracting in a more serious way.

06 - 16 - 06

RAÚL CASTRO SAYS THE COMMUNIST PARTY WILL REMAIN THE SOURCE OF POLITICAL POWER EVEN AFTER FIDEL

     HAVANA, CUBA  --  Cuba's Communist Party will remain the source of political power on the island with or without Fidel Castro, the president's brother Raul Castro said in comments published Thursday. Raul Castro, the island's defense minister and designated successor of 79-year-old Fidel Castro, dismissed claims that Cuba's political system would change dramatically after his brother is no longer president, saying the party would quickly fill any political vacuum.

    "Only the Communist Party - as the institution that brings together the revolutionary vanguard and will always guarantee the unity of Cubans - can be the worthy heir of the trust deposited by the people in their leader," he said in a speech Wednesday marking a military anniversary. "Anything more is pure speculation," he added. As first vice president of the Council of State, Cuba's supreme governing body, the 75-year-old is legally designated to assume his brother's role as president of the council in the event of "absence, illness or death."

    "We Cubans are conscious of the fact that without the effort sustained by our people to consolidate the defensive capacity of the country, we would have ceased to exist as an independent nation a long time ago," he said. He said the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq proved how far the United States will go with its "imperialist aims of planetary hegemony." Hundreds of kilometers of underground tunnels have been built to shelter citizens in the case of an invasion, and endless hours devoted to "dispassionate analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of our likely enemy," he said.

RICARDO ALARCON DENIES CUBA HAD IMPRISONED MORE THAN 24 JOURNALISTS

      FORT LAUDERDALE, FLORIDA  --  The head of Cuba's parliament denied his country had imprisoned more than two dozen journalists because they spoke out against his government in a rare interview that was broadcast Wednesday at a Hispanic media convention. "Those reports are fairly exaggerated," said Speaker Ricardo Alarcon, saying those who were imprisoned were not independent journalists but were agents of the United States.

    He also blamed the U.S. embargo for the lack of Internet access in his communist country and denied reports that President Fidel Castro, 80, suffered from a disease such as Alzheimer's or Parkinson's. "I would say that Fidel Castro is very, very strong and healthy. More than you would imagine," Alarcon said. "He doesn't have any of those diseases that are from time to time attributed to him." While the speaker defended the Cuban government he was less sure of what would happen if the U.S. lifted its 46-year embargo. "I cannot imagine how the situation would be," he said.

    About 200 people listened to him by satellite broadcast at the 24th annual National Association of Hispanic Journalist Convention. Alarcon waved a photocopy of what he said were declassified U.S. Department of State documents showing the CIA had paid journalists to promote anti-Cuban government propaganda for nearly five decades. Outside the convention, more than a dozen women dressed in black protested Alarcon's interview with Colombia University journalism professor and New York Times contributor Mirta Ojito, herself a Cuban exile.

06 - 15 - 06

POWER RESTORED TO UNITED STATES DIPLOMATIC MISSION IN HAVANA AMID ACCUSATIONS, DENIALS

     HAVANA, CUBA  --  Electricity was restored Tuesday to the American mission in Cuba after Washington accused Fidel Castro's government of deliberately cutting off the building's power and Havana angrily denied it.

    U.S. Interests Section Chief Michael Parmly said power to the building, which was cut on June 5, was restored midmorning. Parmly said he still believed the weeklong power outage was deliberate, despite the Cuban government's adamant denials.

    "I find it hard to explain otherwise," Parmly said. "They are denying it now because it became public." U.S. officials in Havana and Washington on Monday accused Cuba of harassing the American mission by deliberately cutting off power and lessening the building's water supply.

TENS OF THOUSANDS OF US AND IRAQ FORCES DEPLOYED IN BAGHDAD

      BAGHDAD, IRAQ  --  Tens of thousands of Iraqi police and soldiers searched cars and secured roads in Baghdad on Wednesday as Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki launched a major security crackdown aimed at ending the violence that has devastated the capital. The crackdown, which army officials said was dubbed Operation Forward Together, began a day after President Bush paid a surprise visit to Baghdad, promising continued U.S. support for Iraqis but cautioning them that "the future of the country is in your hands."

    Iraqis encountered more checkpoints and soldiers as they drove to work Wednesday morning, causing traffic to back up in some areas, although noticeably fewer cars were on the streets elsewhere. Al-Maliki called on Iraqis to be patient with the security measures and promised Iraqi forces would respect human rights and not single out any ethnic or sectarian group. "We are only going to attack areas that are dens for terrorists," he said during a news conference to formally unveil the plan in Baghdad.

    Maj. Gen. Mahdi al-Gharrawi, the commander of public order forces under the Interior Ministry, said his forces had not encountered any resistance, even in some of the capital's most volatile areas. "The people are feeling comfortable with the security measures and they are waving to us," he said. "Until now, no clashes have erupted and no bullets have been fired at us." Security officials said Tuesday that 75,000 Iraqi and multinational forces would be deployed throughout Baghdad, securing roads in and out of the city, establishing more checkpoints, launching raids against insurgent hideouts and calling in airstrikes if necessary.

HUGO Chavez says Venezuela to purchase Russian fighter jets this year

      CARACAS, VENEZUELA  --  Hugo Chavez said Wednesday that Venezuela will purchase new Russian-made Sukhoi fighter jets this year, extending a military buildup that has raised concern among U.S. officials. Chavez said the SU-30 jets will replace a fleet of U.S.-made F-16s, which Venezuela has had trouble maintaining because the administration of U.S. President George W. Bush has refused to sell Caracas parts.

    Chavez did not say how many planes his government planned to purchase. "We have decided to acquire Russian combat planes. The first shipment should be here before the end of the year."   Despite Washington's objections, Venezuela is purchasing 15 Russian helicopters for US$200 million (160 million), and officials say they hope to buy 18 more. Washington announced last month it was curtailing arms sales to Venezuela, saying the South American nation has failed to cooperate in counterterrorism efforts. Venezuela is also buying 100,000 Russian-made AK-103 assault rifles and plans to set up factories to produce Kalashnikovs under license. The first 30,000 of the assault rifles arrived June 3.

    "We are preparing for the defense of sacred land," Chavez said Wednesday after personally distributing new rifles among the soldiers at Fort Tiuna, Venezuela's main military facility.     "Those who accuse us of being a threat to the continent are precisely the ones that have always been a threat to our continent and the world. We are not a threat to anyone," Chavez said while clutching an AK-103. "We are constantly being attacked by the most powerful empire on the planet."

06 - 14 - 06

PRESIDENT BUSH MAKES SURPRISE VISIT TO BAGHDAD

     BAGHDAD, IRAQ  --  President George W. Bush, seeking to bolster support for Iraq's fledgling government and for U.S. war policy at home, made a surprise visit to Iraq on Tuesday to meet newly named Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and discuss the next steps in the troubled 3-year-old war.It was a dramatic move by Bush, traveling to violence-rattled Baghdad less than a week after the death of terror chief Abu Musab al-Zarqawi in a bombing attack. The president was expected to be in Baghdad a little more than five hours.

    Bush met with al-Maliki in heavily fortified green zone at a palace once used by Saddam Hussein. It now serves temporarily as the U.S. Embassy. "Good to see you," exclaimed al-Maliki, who didn't know Bush was in Baghdad until five minutes before they met. "Thanks for having me," Bush responded. They smiled broadly and gave each other a two-handed handshake in the high-domed marble room. The trip was known only to a handful of aides and a small number of journalists sworn to secrecy because of obvious security threats for Bush and members of his entourage.

    The prime minister had been invited to the embassy on the pretense of taking part in a video conference with Bush, supposedly at Camp David, the presidential retreat in Maryland's Catoctin Mountains. The videoconference was to go on as scheduled, but with Bush appearing alongside al-Maliki. Bush's secret trip to violence-ridden Baghdad came six days after the death of al-Zarqawi. The administration hoped the elimination of Zarqawi and the completion of al-Maliki's cabinet would make war-weary Americans look at Iraq in a more positive light.

CUBA DENIES IT CUT POWER TO US DIPLOMATIC MISSION IN HAVANA 

      HAVANA, CUBA  -- Cuba vigorously denied U.S. charges that it deliberately cut off power to the American mission in Havana, saying Tuesday there were problems in the electrical grid feeding the building and that U.S. authorities "lie shamelessly." "We categorically deny that there have been premeditated cuts in the electrical energy to disrupt the functioning of the (U.S.) Interests Section, the Communist Party daily Granma said in an angry editorial.

    U.S. officials in Havana and Washington on Monday accused Fidel Castro's government of harassing the American mission by deliberately cutting off power a week ago and lessening the building's water supply on several recent days. American authorities "lie shamelessly when they try to blame our government with a supposed cut in electrical power and a lessening of the potable water supply" to the building, the newspaper said.

    The newspaper said the charges of harassment made against Cuba on Monday were part of the United States' ongoing campaign against Fidel Castro's government. Since the oceanfront building lost electricity a week ago, it has been operating with generator power, U.S. State Department officials have said. In a Monday statement to international news media in Havana, U.S. Interests Section spokesman Drew Blakeney accused Cuba of "bullying tactics." The U.S. Interests Section in Cuba was opened Sept. 1, 1977, during the administration of then-U.S. President Jimmy Carter to provide a minimum of communications between the two countries. Cuba also has an Interests Section in Washington.

ACLU TO FIGHT CUBA TRAVEL BAN

      MIAMI, FLORIDA  --  Florida's American Civil Liberties Union plans to file a lawsuit today to challenge a new state law that bans colleges from organizing and paying for trips to Cuba's Jurassic Park and other countries that may support terrorism. ''It's not in the overall interest of the United States for individual states to meddle in matters of foreign affairs and international security,'' ACLU spokesman Brandon Hensler said Monday.

    The law applies to both private and public colleges and universities, prohibiting private schools from spending state money to plan such travel and preventing public schools from using any money to pay for those trips. Professors and students at private schools would need private donations to pay for travel to countries listed as sponsors of terrorism by the U.S. Department of State.

    But the politician who sponsored the new law has said he is considering a bill for next year that would withhold money from schools that sponsor any trips to terrorist countries. Besides Cuba, the U.S. government considers Iran, Libya, North Korea, Sudan and Syria to be terrorist sponsors. Florida's educational travel ban law also applies to those nations. State Rep. David Rivera, the Miami Republican who sponsored the bill, said he does not believe taxpayer money should go into Cuban leader Fidel Castro's pockets.

06 - 13 - 06

U.S. DIPLOMATIC MISSION IN HAVANA HAS NO ELECTRICITY

     WASHINGTON, D.C.  --  The Cuban government has cut off electricity to the U.S. diplomatic mission in Havana as part of a sharp increase in harassments that include holding up visas for American diplomats waiting to take up posts there and restricting gasoline supplies, the State Department said Monday. The electricity to the U.S. Interests Section in Havana -- not quite an embassy because Cuba and the United States do not have formal diplomatic relations -- was cut off at 3 a.m. on June 5, said Ashley Morris, a State Department spokeswoman

    Although electricity in Cuba is notoriously unreliable, Morris said no other buildings around the Interests Section on Havana's seaside Malecón boulevard have been affected, so U.S. officials believe the cutoff is deliberate. Asked if the Cuban government had given any reason for the cutoff, Morris said, "you'll have to ask the Cubans. We'd like to know as well.''

    The latest Cuban harassments were first reported in today's El Nuevo Herald. U.S. officials also confirmed that diplomatic personnel in Havana have started destroying some documents that are not essential, but called that a standard procedure when power to a diplomatic facility is cut. Morris said the Interests Section continues to ''operate under normal procedures'' by using its own generators. Water is still supplied to the main Interests Section building but is sporadically available in the mission's annex, where visa applications are processed.

EUROPEAN UNION CONSIDERED LONG-TERM STRATEGY FOR CUBA; DEPLORES RIGHTS SITUATION

      LUXEMBOURG. BELGIUM  --   The European Union considered crafting a long-term strategy toward Cuba Monday, deploring the state of human rights on the island and urging Havana to free all political prisoners, according to draft conclusions of an EU foreign ministers meeting. No details of the strategy were immediately available, but diplomats said the EU would stop short of reintroducing sanctions the bloc imposed in 2003.

    Czech Foreign Minister Cyril Svoboda said the EU needed a strategy not only for the near-term, but also for when Cuban leader Fidel Castro dies. "It is important to stress that Castro will not rule forever. We need a strategy for the period of transformation and national reconciliation," he told reporters. Support within the EU for a tougher stance on Cuba is strongest in the eight eastern European nations that joined the bloc in 2004 and where memories of the legacy of communism are still fresh.

    The Netherlands and Sweden also favor a tougher stance, but Spain is among countries that oppose it, officials said. Czech officials said that not only have Europe's policies failed to foster a measure of democracy in Cuba, but the emergence of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has been a boon for Castro. Venezuela is a major supplier of oil to the United States, but its diplomatic relations with Washington have deteriorated.

HUGO CHAVEZ: WON'T BACK DOWN IN SECURITY COUNCIL SEAT BID 

      CARACAS, VENEZUELA  --  Hugo Chavez vowed on Sunday that Venezuela will not back down in its bid for a seat on the U.N. Security Council, and slammed the United States for pressuring Latin American nations to reject his country's candidacy. Venezuela and Guatemala are competing for support from Latin American and Caribbean nations for a regional seat on the Security Council, which is charged with maintaining international peace and security.

    "Venezuela is going to continue fighting" for the seat, Chavez told government officials and supporters during his weekly television and radio program "Hello President." Chavez, a former paratroop commander who has repeatedly clashed with Washington since taking office in 1999, accused the United States of using " psychological warfare, pressure and blackmail against the world's governments to avoid Venezuela being elected." The administration of U.S. President George W. Bush publicly backed Guatemala's bid at last week's Organization of American States general assembly in the Dominican Republic.

    Central American nations also are expected to back their neighbor, while countries such as Argentina and Brazil have expressed support for Venezuela. Guatemalan foreign minister and told reporters the country would be well-suited to handle issues like Iran's nuclear program - an apparent dig at Chavez, who has close ties with Iran. The contested seat will become available in January. If the region cannot agree on a consensus candidate, the issue will be taken up by the U.N. General Assembly.

06 - 12 - 06

HUGO CHAVEZ: RELATIONS WITH PERU DEPEND ON APOLOGY FROM PRESIDENT-ELECT

     CARACAS, VENEZUELA  --  Hugo Chavez said Sunday that Venezuela's diplomatic relations with Peru would return to normal only if the Andean nation's president-elect, Alan Garcia, apologizes for disrespecting his country. Chavez, speaking during his weekly television and radio program "Hello President," said relations with Peru would remain "in the refrigerator" until Garcia retracts recent insults and vehemently denied that he was to blame for the dispute.

    "The only way Venezuela could re-establish relations with Peru's new government is if the president-elect of Peru offers the required explanation and apology to the Venezuelan people," Chavez said. "He threw the first stone, I just responded."

    Garcia described Chavez and Bolivian President Evo Morales as "spoiled children" and "historic losers" after they criticized Peru for signing a free-trade deal with Washington. Chavez called Garcia, an ex-president, a "thief," saying he and Peruvian President Toledo are "crocodiles from the same water hole" - a remark that prompted Peru to remove its ambassador from Caracas.

GENERAL CRADDOCK: GUANTANAMO DETAINEES USED SHEETS IN SUICIDE

     SAN JUAN, PUERTO RICO  --  Three Guantanamo Bay detainees hanged themselves with nooses made of sheets and clothes, the commander of the detention center said Saturday. They were the first reported deaths among the hundreds of men held at the base for years without charge.  Two men from Saudi Arabia and one from Yemen were found dead shortly after midnight Saturday in separate cells, said the Miami-based U.S. Southern Command, which has jurisdiction over the prison.

    Attempts were made to revive them, but they failed. "They hung themselves with fabricated nooses made out of clothes and bed sheets," Navy Rear Adm. Harry Harris told reporters in a conference call from the U.S. base in southeastern Cuba. Gen. John Craddock, commander of the U.S. Southern Command, said in the conference call that the three had left suicide notes, but refused to disclose the contents.

06 - 11 - 06

CUBAN DICTATOR FIDEL CASTRO CRITICIZES THE WAY al-zarqawi killed; "cuba could bomb the united states to kill its no. 1 enemy, luis posada carriles" 

     HAVANA, CUBA  -- Cuban dictator Fidel Castro criticized the recent U.S. military airstrike that fatally wounded Abu Musab al-Zarqawi in Iraq as a "barbarity," saying all accused criminals deserve a trial. "The accused cannot just be eliminated," the Cuban president said late Friday in a lengthy speech closing a literacy conference. "This barbarity cannot be done." Even the laws of the ancient Romans required a trial for accused criminals, he said. Castro never mentioned the atrocities committed by al-Zarqawi, including the decapitation of many innocent people.

    By bombing al-Zarqawi's hide-out, the United States acted as "judge and jury" against the leader of the al-Qaida terror network in Iraq, Castro said. "They bragged, they were practically drunk with happiness." The U.S. military has said al-Zarqawi initially survived the dropping of two 500-pound (225-kilogram) bombs on his hide-out Wednesday, but died a short time later. The bombs ripped a huge crater near the house in a date palm forest just outside Baqouba, northwest of Baghdad.

     The tyrant said with irony that if Cuba used the same logic, it could bomb the United States to kill its No. 1 enemy, Luis Posada Carriles, who is being held in El Paso, Texas, on immigration charges. The communist government accuses the Cuban-born Posada of masterminding numerous violent attacks against the island, including the bombing of a Cuban airliner that killed 73 people in 1976. Posada denies involvement in the bombing of the plane.

GENERAL BILL CALDWELL: AL-ZARQAWI ALIVE WHEN US FORCES ARRIVED AT SITE

      BAGHDAD, IRAQ  -- Abu Musab al-Zarqawi was still alive when U.S. forces arrived at the site of the airstrike that killed the al-Qaida in Iraq leader, a U.S. military spokesman told Fox News Friday. Al-Zarqawi and others were killed on Wednesday by a U.S. airstrike on a house outside Baghdad. Iraqi police arrived at the site first, found al-Zarqawi in the rubble and put him on a gurney, Maj. Gen Bill Caldwell, spokesman for the multi-national forces, told Fox. U.S. forces then arrived, and identified al-Zarqawi, Caldwell said in the interview.

    Al-Zarqawi was initially conscious and the U.S. forces said he appeared to recognize them as such and attempted to roll off the gurney to escape, Caldwell said in the Fox interview. He died shortly thereafter, Caldwell said on Fox. Al-Zarqawi didn't give any information to the troops before he died, Caldwell said on Fox. El líder de Al Qaida en Irak, Abu Mussab al Zarqawi, seguía con vida tras el ataque aéreo estadounidense del miércoles contra la casa donde se refugiaba, y murió poco después por sus heridas, declaró ayer un portavoz del Ejército de Estados Unidos.

    El general William Caldwell, portavoz del Ejército, dijo que Zarqawi murió a causa de las heridas sufridas cuando dos bombas de 500 libras destruyeron la casa en que se alojaba cerca de Bakuba. Otras cinco personas --dos hombres y tres mujeres-- también murieron en el ataque, añadió el portavoz. Fuentes próximas a la familia dijeron a AFP que también murió un bebé de año y medio, hijo de Zarqawi.

06 - 10 - 06

CHILEAN PRESIDENT MICHELLE BACHELLET DENIES US PRESSURE TO VOTE AGAINST VENEZUELA'S NOMINATION TO UNITED NATIONS SECURITY COUNCIL

     WASHINGTON, D.C.  -- Chilean President Michelle Bachellet met Thursday for the first time at the White House with her US counterpart George W. Bush, and denied having been under pressure to vote against Venezuela's nomination to the United Nations (UN) Security Council.

    As quoted by AFP, Bachelet and Bush discussed the threats to democracy in the hemisphere and their respective energy policies. Both of these issues involve Venezuela. However, according to the Chilean ruler, no reference was made to the position for Latin America and the Caribbean in the Security Council. Venezuela and Guatemala have voiced willingness to occupy such position.

    "There has been no pressure whatsoever on any topic. Just two presidents dealing with issues in the common interest," the Chilean ruler said following a meeting at the Oval Office and a luncheon with Bush. 

FOREIGN MEDICAL STUDENTS IN CUBA COMPLAIN ABOUT LOST INTERNET CONNECTION

      MORON, CUBA  --  Foreign medical students at the Morón School of Medical Science are complaining that the Internet connection has been inoperative for as long as weeks now.

    "I am waiting for the connection to be reestablished to find out if my family has answered an e-mail that I sent them several weeks ago," said one student.

    Some of the students said they had connected through the dollar-denominated Internet facilities operated for the exclusive use of foreigners by the Cuban telephone company. In general, Cubans are not allowed access to the Internet.The students at the school come from Africa, Asia, Latin America and several Arab countries.

CONCERN ABOUT FATE OF REPLACED WEAPONS IN VENEZUELA

      WASHINGTON, D.C.  --  The former Venezuelan ambassador to the United Nations Diego Arria claims that "it is absurd to imagine that in a scenario of modern warfare any serious military officer could argue that they could defend their territory with these rifles (Russian-made Kalashnikov assault rifles Venezuela purchased from Moscow)" but warned that "attention should be paid to the final destination of the weapons, as well as of those to be replaced (old FAL)."

    Meanwhile, Javier Corrales, an Associate Professor of Political Science at Amherst College, shares Arria's concern and wonders: "What will happen to the replaced and extra rifles? Venezuela is purchasing as many as 100,000 new rifles. But it only has 40,000 troops." "The Venezuelan case brings to light a problem in the Inter-American security system: the lack of an acceptable protocol for handling weapons modernization," Corrales added.

    The discussion came in a forum conducted by Latin American Advisor, an electronic public of Inter-American Dialogue, as disclosed in a press release of the group.  The forum was intended to discuss whether Venezuela's military purchases threaten stability in the region, as Washington claims, or are they part of Hugo Chávez' Government efforts to modernize its military.

06 - 09 - 06

PRESIDENT BUSH blasts hugo chavez

     OMAHA, NEBRASKA  --  President Bush suggested Wednesday that Venezuela's fiery anti-American President Hugo Chavez has done "a great disservice to the traditions and people" of his country. Venezuela is a major supplier of oil to the United States, but relations between Chavez and the Bush administration have sharply deteriorated. An ally of Cuba's Fidel Castro, Chavez has called Bush an alcoholic, a terrorist and an imperialist. He has denounced the U.S.-led war in Iraq, and repeatedly accused the U.S. of trying to overthrow him to seize the South American country's vast oil reserves.

    U.S. officials have denied that and have accused the confrontational leftist of being a threat to Latin American democracies. Recently, the Bush administration expressed concern about what it says is Chavez' "ideological affinity" with two leftist guerrilla groups operating in neighboring Colombia, and Venezuela's multibillion-dollar arms acquisition program.

     On a visit to the Juan Diego Center here, Bush met Lourdes Secola, who told him she came to the United States 25 years ago Wednesday from Venezuela to get an education and work in dentistry. "I'm a little worried about your country," Bush said after listening to her story. "I'm worried about it, a little worried about it. I think it'll be OK." But, he added: "It's going to take awhile. Sometimes leaders show up who do a great disservice to the traditions and people of a country."

LUIS POSADA LAWYER MAY CALL SENATOR JOHN KERRY, OLIVER NORTH

      MIAMI, FLORIDA  --  In an effort to free Cuban exile militant Luis Posada Carriles from federal detention and help him qualify for U.S. citizenship, his attorney may call on U.S. Sen. John Kerry and Oliver North of Iran-contra fame to testify about Posada's ties to the U.S. government. Posada's lawyer, Eduardo Soto, said Tuesday that he is considering subpoenaing Kerry and North because their testimony may assure U.S. immigration officials that Posada was working for the U.S. government during the contra war against the Sandinistas in Nicaragua in the mid-1980s.

    Soto said Posada, who was once a legal U.S. resident, should receive U.S. citizenship because he served as an active-duty soldier for the U.S. Army in Vietnam, and later as a paid U.S. agent in Nicaragua. ''He was the lead prosecutor in Iran-contra,'' Soto said of Kerry. "He is a man who has personal knowledge of investigations, reports, testimony, everything that Iran-contra entails.''

VENEZUELA, CUBA IN OIL TECHNOLOGY DEAL   

      CARACAS, VENEZUELA --  Venezuela has agreed to share technology with Cuba for oil exploration, production and refining, Venezuela's state oil company said Wednesday. Intevep, the research arm of state-run Petroleos de Venezuela SA, signed the agreement, which includes projects to increase Cuban oil production, improve the quality of its fuels and optimize its refineries, a company statement said.

    Intevep will work with Cuba's Ceinpet petroleum research center. Hugo Chavez and Cuba's Fidel Castro are close allies and have struck a series of agreements. Venezuela currently ships 98,000 barrels a day of oil to Cuba under preferential payment terms, and plans to revamp Cuba's Cienfuegos oil refinery.

HUGO CHAVEZ NOT TO BE INVITED TO ALAN GARCIA'S INAUGURATION

      LIMA, PERU  --  Hugo Chávez will not be invited to the takeover of Peruvian President-elect Alan García next July 28th, according to Congressman Luis Gonzáles Posada, for Partido Aprista, AP quoted. Posada claimed that the Venezuelan ruler is not welcome. "No way," he answered with regard to the possibility of Chávez attending the ceremony.

    "He has insulted him (García), has insulted President Alejandro Toledo, who is a head of state. He has threatened Peru. There are dignity issues here that should prevail," Gonzáles maintained. The official was Foreign Minister during García's first term in 1985-1990. Chávez "is a defiant who has picked a quarrel with everybody," according to the official. "A significant effort should be made to try to find meeting points," he added.

06 - 08 - 06

PRESIDENT BUSH WORRIED ABOUT VENEZUELA

     WASHINGTON, D.C.  --  US President George W. Bush expressed concern Wednesday about Venezuela and hinted that his Venezuelan counterpart Hugo Chávez is doing "a serious damage" to the country, AFP quoted. "Sometimes, leaders emerge to damage traditions and people in a country," Bush told a Venezuelan woman during a debate with immigrants. The Venezuelan, Lourdes Secola, has been in the United States for 25 years, Efe reported.

    "I am worried about your country. But I think it will be doing well," he added. The US ruler met first with a small group of businesspersons and then, in another room, with Hispanic immigrants who use the resources provided by a community center.

    Venezuela and the United States have had conflictive relations, in addition to continued war of remarks between the leaders. Last May 22nd, Bush claimed to be concerned about the erosion of democracy in Venezuela and Bolivia. Additionally, he condemned the interference in the elections of third countries, in reference to President Chávez.

POTENTIAL RUSSIAN LICENSE TO MANUFACTURE RIFLES IN VENEZUELA

      MOSCOW, RUSSIA  --  Russia can sell Venezuela a license and build a plant to manufacture AK-103 automatic rifles, a top manager of the state corporation Rosoboronexport said. "Building of a factory is possible," Nikolái Demidiuk, director for spatial missions at Rosoboronexport, told news agency Interfax, as quoted by Efe. The official had been queried about such possibility to "counter a US attack."

    "I do not know what are they going to reject. It is none of our business. They can counter whatever they want. It is their business. As for the building of a factory, yes, this is plausible," Demidiuk said. Russia sold Venezuela 100,000 modern AK-103, Kalashnikov rifles for USD 54 million. A total of 30,000 arrived already.

POLLS SHOW MEXICAN PRESIDENTIAL FRONTRUNNERS NECK AND NECK

      MEXICO CITY, MEXICO  --  New opinion polls published Tuesday show Mexican presidential candidates Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador and Felipe Calderon are neck and neck going into their second and final presidential debate.

    A poll published by the El Universal newspaper had both Lopez Obrador of the left-wing Democratic Revolutionary Party, or PRD, and Felipe Calderon of the conservative National Action Party, or PAN, with 36% of the voters' support. It showed Roberto Madrazo of the Institutional Revolutionary Party, or PRI, with 24%. The survey, taken between June 1 and June 4, had a margin of error of plus or minus 3.4 percentage points. A separate poll published by the Excelsior newspaper, with a margin of error of 3.1 percentage points, showed Lopez Obrador with 35.5%, Calderon with 34.4% and Madrazo with 27%.

OAS CHIEF CALLS FOR "DEFROSTING" RELATIONS WITH CUBA

      SANTO DOMINGO,  DOMINICAN REPUBLIC  --  Secretary General Jose Miguel Insulza closed the Organization of American States' general assembly Tuesday with a call to improve relations with Cuba, the lone Western Hemisphere state that is not a member of the 34-member organization. "I hope that we can advance a situation of defrosting with Cuba," he told a news conference.

    The three-day meeting of foreign ministers, held in the Dominican Republic for the first time, was dominated by a spat in which Peru alleged interference by Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez - an ally of Cuban leader Fidel Castro - in its recent presidential elections.

    Insulza, a former socialist interior minister of Chile, spent much of the conference defraying tensions. In opening remarks on Sunday, he downplayed claims that political tensions were dividing the hemisphere. Nonetheless, Insulza cautioned not to expect, "a quick incorporation of Cuba to the OAS."

06 - 07 - 06

US CLAIMS THAT VENEZUELA FAILS TO FIGHT HUMAN  TRAFFICKING

     WASHINGTON, D.C.  --  In 2006, Venezuela is still among the 12 countries in the watch list that do not meet the minimum requirements to fight human trafficking, according to the annual report of the US Department of State, disseminated Monday in Washington.

    "The Government of Venezuela does not fully comply with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking and is not making significant efforts to do so," the report noted, as submitted by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, DPA quoted. Venezuela is one of three countries in the Americas that could be sanctioned by the US Government for not combating human trafficking. Belize and Cuba are the other two nations.

    While the report acknowledged the government clear improvement against trafficking during the period covered -April 2005 to March 2006-, efforts were limited to training of officials and launch of public awareness campaigns. The problem is that there were not increasing trials against traffickers, the paper noted.

US WILL EXAMINE VENEZUELA'S REPLY ON HUMAN TRAFFICKING

      WASHINGTON, D.C.  -- The United States is to explore the Venezuelan answer to a report on human trafficking and analyze the Foreign Ministry rationale. According to the Ministry, 21 people faced trial in 2005, in addition to three in 2006 in this regard, the US Department of State reported.

    The US Office on Human Trafficking "will review if these are actual data. If so, they will be reflected in upcoming reports," State Department Spokesman Sean McCormack said. As quoted by DPA, the official remembered that sanctions including discontinued aid from Washington to the nations that appear on the watch list are to be implemented in September.

    Therefore, the countries interested in preventing these sanctions have several months, from the submittal of the report in May until September, to take palliatives and make the White House not to stop cooperation.

BRAZILIAN SUPPORT TO VENEZUELA FOR UNITED NATIONS SECURITY COUNCIL

      SANTO DOMINGO,  DOMINICAN REPUBLIC  --  Brazil is ready to back Venezuela's nomination to the United Nations (UN) Security Council, Foreign Minister Celso Amorín said in Santo Domingo, where he is attending the Organization of American States (OAS) 36th General Assembly. It was a tough decision, the diplomatic said in a press release, because of Brazil's "excellent relations both with Venezuelan and Guatemala." The Central American nation is also running for the Security Council.

    Amorín explained that the decision went to Venezuela "because it is a neighbor country and a member now of the Southern Common Market (Mercosur)."

    "We have excellent relations with Venezuela. Both in the trade and political areas, relations are going smoothly. Venezuela just completed negotiations to be a formal member of Mercosur, and we should work on all of this to fit it in the context of the South American Community of Nations."

06 - 06 - 06

HUGO CHAVEZ DEFEATED, PERUVIANS ELECT ALAN GARCIA AS PRESIDENT

     LIMA, PERU  --  Alan García will be Peru's next president, agreed three different television exit surveys made public immediately after the polls closed in Sunday's election. With the official vote count yet to begin, the three exit polls showed García winning by a margin of five to 14 points over ultra-nationalist leftist Ollanta Humala, a retired lieutenant colonel. The election presented an unappealing choice for many people.

    García's presidency 20 years ago ended with food shortages, hyperinflation, accusations of corruption and a spreading insurgency by the Shining Path guerrilla. García, 57, said he has learned from his mistakes. Humala provoked fears that he would turn Peru into a military dictatorship or serve as a puppet of Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez. Humala, 43, said he would nationalize Peru's foreign-owned mineral holdings and would redistribute wealth from the country's economic elites into the hands of the urban and rural poor.

    Today's election has important implications beyond the Andes because of Chávez' fervent desire to have Peru join Cuba and Bolivia in a Venezuelan-led bloc that opposes market-friendly policies supported by the United States and Brazil. Voting in Peru is obligatory. 

 CALL SYSTEM FOR U.S. VISAS SHUT DOWN BY FLOOD OF CALLS

      HAVANA, CUBA  --  The new toll-free telephone number to book appointments for Cubans who want visas to visit the United States was suspended Friday after half a million calls in a single day crashed the system, the U.S. Interests Section in Havana said. It was unclear whether the 500,000 calls represented legitimate callers seeking the appointments or an act of sabotage designed to shut down the system. The call-in system lasted just six days. A call center in Mexico opened on May 25 and got 10,000 calls the first day.

    ''The next day it was 13,000, and yesterday 15,000,'' said Interests Section spokesman Drew Blakeney. ``While there had been a linear increase, the increase by a factor of 10 today [Friday] was way beyond anything contemplated.'' Last fiscal year, the U.S. diplomatic office in Havana processed 30,000 applications. Appointments to apply for nonimmigrant visas were booked through the end of January in the six days the call center operated, the Interests Section said in a brief statement. Because of the server crash, the Interests Section suspended further appointments for non-immigrant visas but will honor those already scheduled.

    Cuban-Americans in the United States could call the number to apply for appointments for friends or relatives on the island, ending a system that had been manipulated by Cuban hustlers who charged Cubans up to $100 for visa appointments. Moving the call center to Mexico and having the calls placed from the United States was billed as a way to build transparency into the visa application process. The appointments cost $11 and could be requested for up to five people. The 1-800 number, Blakeney said, has been cut off indefinitely.

ARGENTINA BACKS VENEZUELA FOR U.N. SECURITY COUNCIL SEAT

      BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA  --  Argentina will back Venezuela for the Latin America-Caribbean seat on the U.N. Security Council, Venezuela's Foreign Ministry said Saturday. A ministry statement quoted Argentine Foreign Minister Jorge Taiana as saying, "Argentina has clearly expressed that it will support Venezuela in its candidacy for the Security Council."

    Taiana said his country would reject pressure to vote for another candidate, according to the ministry. On Friday, U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Thomas Shannon indicated that Washington clearly preferred that Guatemala have the seat. Shannon described Venezuela's agenda in international institutions as "peculiar" and having a "confrontational, conflictive edge" that was unhelpful.

    Venezuela and Guatemala will be seeking support from Latin American and Caribbean nations for the regional seat, which will become available in January. If the region cannot agree on a consensus candidate, the issue will be taken up by the U.N. General Assembly.