CubaNews articles from November 2002

CubaNews archives from November 2002

Melia to invest millions in 2 new resorts; chain already manages 22 Cuban hotels.
November 1, 2002... Spain's Grupo Sol Melia will sink at least $15 million into two huge beach resorts being developed in separate ventures with the Cuban government and various investor groups. The first project is an 800-room hotel on Cayo Largo, a resort island...

Once-proud coffee industry falls victim to drought, theft and mismanagement.
November 1, 2002... When Jose Gavinia was a boy, his family owned a farm just south of Tope de Collantes in the old province of Las Villas. About a third of the Gavinias' 390 acres was planted with coffee, and the operation had both a dry and a wet mill. Cuban...

Cubatabaco, General Cigar to settle Cohiba case in court. (Tobacco).
November 1, 2002... Whose Cohiba is it anyway? That question will be answered in a New York courtroom sometime early next year, following a trademark infringement lawsuit brought by state-owned Empresa Cubana del Tabaco (Cubatabaco) against New York-based General...

Downsizing the sugar industry. (Agribusiness).(closure of sugar mills in Cuba)(agricultural policies of head of State Fidel Castro )
November 1, 2002... SUGAR MILLS TO REMAIN ACTIVE PINAR DEL RIO 1. Harlem 2. Treinta de Noviembre LA HABANA 3. Abraham Lincoln 4. Hector Molina 5. Gregorio Arlee Manalich 6. Boris L. Santa Coloma 7. Habana Libre MATANZAS 8....

Party Congress in doubt. (Politics).
November 1, 2002... Political pundits in Havana--members of the Cuban Community Party (PCC) included--are asking the same question again and again: Will there be a Sixth Party Congress after all? And no one has a sure answer. According to PCC rules, a Congress...

In their own words ...
November 1, 2002... "I believe our government's policy towards Cuba is cruel and unfair, profoundly unneighborly, and I felt morally obligated to help the island defend itself from our efforts to impose our values and our political system on it." --Ana Belen...

Despite legal tug-of-war, Havana building boom continues. (Real Estate).
November 1, 2002... For the last five years, major legislation regarding Cuba's real-estate sector has been awaiting final approval, but Fidel Castro has turned down a draft of this important bill three times--leaving the industry in a frustrating legal limbo. ...

Cuba's Enrique Oltuski: a lifetime of revolution. (Newsmakers).(Entrevista)
November 1, 2002... Over 100 years ago, Jose Marti said that to be a man, one must plant a tree, have a child and write a book. By that definition, Marxist revolutionary Enrique Oltuski is a real mensch. He's planted an extensive backyard garden filled with...

U.S. academics analyze post-Castro transition scenarios. (Politics).
November 1, 2002... The following are summaries of four papers prepared for the Cuba Transition Project of the University of Miami's Institute for Cuban and Cuban-American Studies, with funding from the U.S. Agency for International Development. The full text...

Poultry executive urges end to embargo.(Articulo breve)
November 1, 2002... James L. Baker, president of Atlanta-based Cherokee Trading, has won a contract to supply Cuba with 1,400 metric tons of frozen chicken worth $630,000. The contract, a result of the recent U.S. food expo in Havana, follows the sale of...

Canadian chicken exports to Cuba tumble.(Articulo breve)
November 1, 2002... Canada's chicken exports to Cuba fell sharply in the first half of 2002, down almost 40% from the 16,764 metric tons exported to Cuba during the same period last year. This drop coincides with a dramatic increase in U.S. exports of frozen...

Italian trade institute opens Havana office.(Articulo breve)
November 1, 2002... The Italian Institute for Foreign Trade has won Cuban government approval to establish a branch in Havana. The office, which will be the agency's 126th throughout the world, will promote bilateral trade between Italy and Cuba. At present,...

CNP to send high-level delegation to Cuba.(Articulo breve)
November 1, 2002... The Washington-based Center for National Policy is sponsoring a Nov. 17-20 visit to Cuba of former U.S. government officials, diplomats, business leaders and scholars. CNP says the group has been examining U.S. policy on Cuba and...

Cuba shelves plan to impose baggage tax.(Articulo breve)
November 1, 2002... Only a few days before it was to take effect, the Cuban government has abandoned plans to charge arriving air passengers a so-called "welcome tax" for carry-on and other luggage weighing more than 20 kilograms. Beginning Nov. 1, Cuban...

Costa Rican firm seeks U.S. clients.(Articulo breve)
November 1, 2002... Invecosca S.A., a Costa Rica-based company with offices at Havana's Wajay Free Zone, is looking to represent U.S. exporters who hope to crack the Cuban consumer market. Company CEO Jose Rafael Romero says Invecosca racked up sales of $12...

Cuba airs its dirty laundry in public.(Articulo breve)
November 1, 2002... Cuba has 14 industrial laundries that together process over 60,000 kilograms of textiles (sheets, towels, tablecloths, etc.) on a daily basis for the tourism industry, according to figures released at a recent convention in Varadero for the...

FIHAV could attract 1,000 foreign firms.(Annual Havana International Fair )(Articulo breve)
November 1, 2002... Companies from more than 50 nations will send representatives to the 20th Annual Havana International Fair (FIHAV), set for Nov. 3-10. Abraham Maciques, president of the organizing committee, said he's expecting over 1,000 companies, with a...

Dos Gardenias restaurant opens in Mexico.
November 1, 2002... Cubanacan S.A. has signed a deal to open a Dos Gardenias restaurant at the Las Velas beach resort in Cancun, Mexico. The 250-seat eatery, to be finished by year's end, is named after a song popularized by the Buena Vista Social Club and will...

Clandestine video shops cater to Cubans on tight budgets. (Small Business).
November 1, 2002... Interested in catching a kung-fu action flick, a sappy Leonardo DiCaprio romance or the latest Austin Powers comedy? If you happen to be a tourist or a Cuban with access to dollars, you might drop by one of 40 or so state-run Videocentro...

Pinar del Rio: tobacco still king in this troubled province. (Geography).
November 1, 2002... With the Gulf of Mexico to its north and the Caribbean Sea to its south, Pinar del Rio is the westernmost and the third-largest province in Cuba, covering 10,925 sq kilometers (4,218 sq miles). That's equivalent to 9.8% of Cuba's total land...

Calendar of events.(Calendario)
November 1, 2002... If your organization is sponsoring an upcoming event, please let our readers know! Fax details to CubaNews at (301) 365-1829 or send an e-mail to larry@luxner.com. Nov. 3-9: 20th Havana International Fair. Fully hosted trip to Cuba for...