CubaNews articles from August 2007

CubaNews archives from August 2007

ITC: lifting of travel, trade restrictions could double U.S. food exports to Cuba.
August 1, 2007... For years, U.S. food exporters and anti-embargo crusaders have complained that trade and travel restrictions aimed at bringing the Castro regime to its knees were hurting the American economy as well. Now they have some hard data to back up...

In both parties, presidential candidates are generally taking a hard line on Cuba.(Romney, Mitt)
August 1, 2007... Most contenders for the 2008 presidency have trouble navigating the minefield of US-Cuba policy and exile politics--and former Republican governor of Massachusetts, Mitt Romney, is no exception. During a March campaign stop in Miami, Romney...

Filmmakers in Cuba scramble for TV, movie contracts.
August 1, 2007... The recent screenings of Cuba-themed films such as "East of Havana" and "Man of Two Havanas" have put the spotlight on a new cottage industry in Cuba: foreign film production companies that help put stories about the island on both the big...

USA Patriot Act scaring foreign banks away from Cuba.
August 1, 2007... Heightened scrutiny of banking transactions by Washington since 9/11 has led European and Canadian banks to curtail dealings with Cuba, reports Reuters. The newswire, in a Jul. 25 story by Anthony Boadle, said the USA Patriot Act allows...

Herzfeld Caribbean Basin Fund plans non-transferable rights offering.
August 1, 2007... The Miami-based Herzfeld Caribbean Basin Fund announced Jul. 24 that it had filed a registration statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission for a proposed nontransferable rights offering to holders of the fund's common stock. ...

With merger, Imperial to control top Cuban cigar brands.
August 1, 2007... British Imperial Tobacco finally came up with the right price in its bid for the Franco-Spanish conglomerate Altadis: 16.2 billion euros ($22.3 billion). That works out to 50 euros ($69) per share. The merger would make London-based...

U.S., Cuba trade barbs over visa shortfall.
August 1, 2007... The State Department said it cannot meet an agreed-upon quota of 20,000 visas for Cuban emigres this year because the Castro regime is obstructing its consular work in Havana. "Unfortunately, the Cuban government has thwarted our efforts...

Cuba's political prisoner population drops.
August 1, 2007... Cuba had 318 political prisoners, 35 of whom are gravely ill, warns a report issued Jul. 13 by the outlawed National Coordinator for Prisoners and Ex-Prisoners. "Of the 318 prisoners, 105 are considered prisoners of conscience and the...

In their own words ...
August 1, 2007... "Whatever new administration emerges will have to decide if it will maintain the absurd, illegal and failed policy towards Cuba, or if it will accept the olive branch we extend. If the new U.S. authorities finally put aside their arrogance and...

The Cuban homestead: a different approach to farming.
August 1, 2007... In the mid-1980s, when the process of experimenting with Cuba's state-run economy--later known as Perfeccionamiento Empresarial--was just starting, Raul Castro and his advisers came to the conclusion that certain areas of Cuba could benefit...

Guantanamo's two-faced climate challenges farmers.
August 1, 2007... Nature is hard to pin down in Guantanamo. The salty and eroded soils and infrequent rains in the south mark a clear contrast with the lush green of the northern coast of Cuba's easternmost province. "Baracoa has the best of it. The tourists...

Luly Duke's Fundacion Amistad: going against the grain.(Amistad Group Inc.)
August 1, 2007... The Hamptons of Long Island--known for palatial mansions and the well-heeled New Yorkers who enjoy their summers there--are definitely not a haven for Cuban-American exiles. Yet that's where a lively charity event was held last month by...

Latin American bishops welcome Cuba's new attitude toward Church.
August 1, 2007... The Latin American Bishops Council (CELAM in Spanish)--meeting in Cuba for the first time since the 1959 revolution--said the Castro regime is opening up to dialogue with the Vatican and is receptive to the idea of a wider role for Catholicism....

'SiCKO' triggers debate over Cuban healthcare system.
August 1, 2007... Rescue workers Bill Maher, Reggie Cervantes and John Graham came down with major ailments as a result of the toxic dust they inhaled at New York's Ground Zero following the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. But they never imagined they'd end up...

Is Michael Moore right about Cuba?(Criticism and interpretations about the new documentry film SALUD)
August 1, 2007... For Americans curious about Cuba's health care system after seeing Michael Moore's "SiCKO," the new documentary film "SALUD!" sheds light on how such a resource-poor country can provide its people with universal health care. "SALUD!" is...

Cuba, Russia sign aviation agreement.(Cuban Civil Aeronautics Institute)(Russia Transport Ministry)(Brief article)
August 1, 2007... Cuba and Russia have renewed their alliance with a commitment to increase cooperation in aviation services and training, according to Cuban media reports. Russia's Transport Ministry and the Cuban Civil Aeronautics Institute signed a deal...

Cubana adds 3rd flight to Santo Domingo.(Brief article)
August 1, 2007... Cubana de Aviacion launched a third weekly flight to Santo Domingo effective Jul. 3. Cubana's commercial representative, Eugenio Portales, made the announcement during the recent Caribbean Tourism Convention in the Dominican Republic. ...

TACA airlines to fly San Jose-Havana route.
August 1, 2007... El Salvador-based TACA airlines announced Jul. 16 that, because of popular demand, it is adding new flights from San Jose, Costa Rica, to Cuba and the Dominican Republic. The flights to Havana's Jose Marti International Airport will run...

Fisheries ministry sees revenue boost.
August 1, 2007... The Cuban Ministry of Fisheries expects $109.3 million in revenues this year, of which $29 million will come from Cuba's own hard-currency retail chains, or "dollar stores." Once among Cuba's top foreign-exchange earners, the fishing...

Cuba forced to import Brazilian sugar.
August 1, 2007... A steep slump in Cuba's once-powerful sugar industry has forced the Castro regime to import sugar from Brazil and Colombia for the past six years, reports El Nuevo Herald. Preliminary results of the 2007 harvest do not indicate a change in...

TerraFly offers satellite photo database.
August 1, 2007... TerraFly, an online program that for the last eight years has made it possible to navigate the world through the use of satellite images, has extended its reach to Cuba. The website at www.terrafly.com--now the world's biggest publicly...

New study details Cuba oil, gas industry.
August 1, 2007... An Irish-based research center has just published a report that gives in-depth coverage to crude oil and natural gas exploration in Cuba. The report, issued Jul. 6, provides operator and equity details for major exploration and production...

Cuba to boost 'strategic' foreign investment.
August 1, 2007... Cuba may boost the participation of foreign investors in sectors crucial to the island's economic development. Members of Havana's expatriate business community told Spanish news agency EFE in a story published Jul. 4 that Cuba would seek...

Clues behind Raul's landmark Jul. 26 speech in Camaguey.(Castro Ruz, Raul)
August 1, 2007... A part from the usual rhetoric by Cuban standards, Raul Castro's Jul. 26 speech in Camaguey was extraordinary. This time the United States was not the usual scapegoat for the shortcomings, shortages and economic problems faced by Cuban society....

Correction.(Correction notice)
August 1, 2007... Last month, CubaNews unknowingly attributed a quote that downplayed U.S. restrictions on doing business in Cuba. The comment, which appeared on Page 5 of our July issue, under the "In Their Own Words" section, was made by James Beaver, a...

Former bigshot Robaina is now an artist.
August 1, 2007... Cuba's ex-foreign minister, Roberto Robaina--removed from politics in 1999--has found a new line of work: a painter of sensual nudes and bucolic landscapes. Wilfredo Cancio Isla of El Nuevo Herald reports that Robaina's paintings are on...

Tiny La Habana: Cuba's only province without a capital.
August 1, 2007... This is the 12th in a series of monthly articles on Cuba's 14 provinces by geographer Armando H. Portela, who has a Ph.D. in geography from the Soviet Academy of Sciences. Portela currently resides in Miami. The province of La Habana is...

Calendar of events.(Calendar)
August 1, 2007... Aug. 2-4: Association for the Study of the Cuban Economy, 17th Annual Conference, Hotel Radisson Miami. Theme: "The Transition: What to Do and What to Avoid." Dozens of scholarly papers to be presented at this key annual gathering of top Cuba...