CubaNews articles from March 2007

CubaNews archives from March 2007

Lawmakers propose Cuba-related bills, but few--if any--are expected to pass.
March 1, 2007... As promised, legislators from both sides of the aisle have introduced bills in the new Congress that, if passed, could radically change current U.S. policy toward Cuba. But few of those measures have any chance of approval. Cuba-related...

New 25-story condo-office tower may be a sign of rebirth along Havana's Malecon.(Edificio Atlantic condo-office tower from Azul Inmobiliaria SA a joint venture of Cimex and Bi & Di Real Estate SpA. )
March 1, 2007... Motorists and pedestrians passing along Havana's seaside Malecon have something new to look at these days: an unusual 25-story tower with a gravity-defying design, conspicuously facing the Atlantic Ocean. The Edificio Atlantic--located at...

Despite U.S. laws, remittances still find their way to Cuba.
March 1, 2007... The Bush administration's continued crackdown against Cuba is crippling South Florida money transfer companies like never before. Just how much is flowing from the United States to Cuba in the form of remittances is hard to say. Miami-based...

Burton denies backing Delahunt proposal.(Dan Burton)(Cuban-Americans Famly Rights Restoration act)(William D. Delahunt)(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... Rep. Dan Burton of Helms-Burton fame says he does not support a bill that lets Cuban-Americans travel freely to Cuba to visit family members. The Indiana Republican supposedly made the commitment to endorse the Cuban-American Family Rights...

Drug smugglers staying away from Cuba.
March 1, 2007... Fewer drug traffickers are using Cuba as a corridor to the U.S., thanks to tough enforcement and cooperation with other countries, Granma said Mar. 4 in a report carried by Reuters. Cuba intercepted 1,243 lbs of marijuana and 225 lbs of...

Cuba opposes powers of new UN rights body.(United Nations. Human Rights Council)(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... Cuba is leading a bid by a number of countries to strip the UN Human Rights Council of its power to investigate and condemn violations, a move some activists warn could jeopardize the credibility of the United Nations itself. Reuters...

"In their own words ...".
March 1, 2007... "How long he stays on earth, that's a decision that will be made by the Almighty. I don't know how long he's going to live. But I do believe that the system of government he's imposed upon the people ought not to live if that's what the people...

Cuba's environmental challenge: facts and policies.
March 1, 2007... This is the second part of an article on Cuba's environmental legacy by our political analyst, Domingo Amuchastegui. The first part appeared in our February 2007 issue. Last month, we outlined how Cuba's environmental degradation has gone...

Brian Latell: Raul Castro faces huge challenges ahead.
March 1, 2007... Brian Latell has been in hot demand lately--though not everybody likes the message he's delivering. "I've been attacked verbally, pretty regularly in radio and TV shows, sometimes very vehemently," he says. "Since my book came out--first...

Stormy confrontation at ICCAS: an eyewitness report.(Institute for Cuban and Cuban-American Studies)(Brian Latell, Roberto Ortega, Hal Klepak discuss Cuban future)(Discussion)
March 1, 2007... A Feb. 27 panel discussion entitled "Transition and the Cuban Military" at the University of Miami's Institute for Cuban and Cuban-American Studies turned ugly at times--with insults, interruptions and angry reactions from the audience making...

'East of Havana' chronicles life of Cuban hiphop musicians.
March 1, 2007... Last month, jaded filmgoers in New York and Los Angeles were surprised when they came across "East of Havana"--a 90-minute Spanish-language documentary about a trio of young struggling rappers in present-day Cuba. Billed by some as the...

Imperial-Altaldis merger worries Cuba.(Imperial Tobacco Group PLC)(Altadis S.A.)
March 1, 2007... In 2006, tobacco exports rose 8% to just over $370 million. Cuba exported 73% of its cigars by volume, with those sales accounting for 83% of total production value. Of that total, Western Europe purchased 61% of all cigar exports,...

Nickel exports to rise slightly in 2007.
March 1, 2007... Cuba intends to increase unrefined nickel production from 74,000 metric tons last year to 76,000 tons in 2007, the country's minister of basic industry said Mar. 22. "We have plans to grow this year and keep growing to take advantage of...

Wind farm inaugurated on Isle of Youth.
March 1, 2007... Cuba has opened an experimental wind farm on Isla de la Juventud, the Communist newspaper Juventud Rebelde reported Feb. 25. The $3.4 million Los Canerreos project, constructed by French company Vergnet, features six 55-meter-high windmills...

Brazil-Cuba trade hits record in 2006.
March 1, 2007... Trade between Brazil and Cuba amounted to a record $374.8 million in 2006, according to the Brazilian Ministry of Development, Industry and Foreign Trade. Last year, Brazil's exports to Cuba reached $343.25 million, while imports from Cuba...

Pernod wins rum brand dispute in Spain.(Pernod Ricard)(Bacardi Corp. and Havan Club Holdings)(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... Pernod Ricard said the Provincial Court of Madrid has rejected Bacardi's claim over ownership of the Havana Club brand in Spain. "The court ruled that Bacardi's claims over the brand's ownership in Spain were 'unfounded' as the trademark...

Cuba striving for open-source software.
March 1, 2007... The Castro regime is joining with Venezuela to convert its PCs to open-source software. The Associated Press reported Feb. 17 that both governments are trying to wean state agencies from Microsoft's proprietary Windows to the open-source...

Chamber of Commerce sees numbers fall.
March 1, 2007... The Cuban Chamber of Commerce ended 2006 with 761 associated companies, 68 lower than the previous year, according to official sources quoted by Spanish news agency EFE. Raul Becerra, president of the chamber, attributed the drop to the...

Hilton: Cubans can stay, despite U.S. laws.(Hilton Group PLC reverses ban on Cuban delegations in Europe)(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... The Hilton group has reversed its ban on Cuban delegations staying at its hotel properties in Europe, and called on Great Britain and the United States to resolve the issue. The Guardian reported that the action came after European unions...

Cuba's only 90 miles from Key West--or is it?(Brief article)
March 1, 2007... Ninety miles from Key West," the Calle Ocho crowd has shrieked for nearly half a century. "There's a communist government only 90 miles from Key West," yells sign-waving zealots. Hopefully their political precision is better than their...

Perfeccionamiento especial is alive, well and growing.(enterprise perfecting)
March 1, 2007... Contrary to suggestions by Cuba-watchers in Miami and elsewhere, the concept of perfeccionamiento empresarial (PE) is far from dead or being excluded in Cuba's official media. In early February, the Communist daily Granma published a very...

2007 tourism arrivals take a plunge.
March 1, 2007... Relatively high prices, a warm winter in Europe and the sale of a Spanish tour company to a U.S. competitor is hurting Cuba's $2.4 billion tourist trade this year after a 3.6% decline in 2006. The number of tourists arriving in Cuba fell 7%...

Letters to the editor.(Letter to the editor)
March 1, 2007... With reference to the article "British investors launch Cuba magazine" (CubaNews, February 2007, page 10), you took my comment "there are no mulatas in Cuba Absolutely" completely out of context, and used this to imply a derogatory view towards...

In wake of sugar crisis, Villa Clara's population shrinking.(Province overview)
March 1, 2007... This is the 7th 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. Villa Clara is one of three...

Calendar of events.
March 1, 2007... If your organization is sponsoring an upcoming event, please let our readers know! Fax details to CubaNews at (301) 949-0065 or send e-mail to larry@cubanews.com. Mar. 24: "Habana Abierta in Concert," Miami-Dade County Auditorium. Group's...