HAVANA, Cuba, Feb 25 (acn) Cuba stated on Friday in Geneva that
interventionism in Libya is
unacceptable and opposed the exclusion of that Arab nation as a member of
the Human Rights
Council, the intergovernmental organ that is part of the United Nations
system.

Rodolfo Reyes, Cuba’s permanent representative at the organization,
spoke in one of the
sessions to analyze the issue, and recalled that less than 72 hours before
Cuban Foreign
Minster Bruno Rodriguez had expressed that some politicians and media
outlets incite to
violence, military aggression and foreign intervention in Libya.

Feelings are running high everywhere and I’m afraid that could lead to
serious
international and internal mistakes, warned the minister, cited by Reyes,
the National
Television Newscast reported on Friday.

We wish the Libyan people to achieve a speedy peaceful and sovereign
solution to the
situation created there, without any kind of interference or foreign
intervention, which
guarantees the integrity of the Libyan nation, said Rodriguez in his
speech, read then in
Brussels.

The ambassador stressed that the concerns that declaration reflected
became a reality and
that that State is amid a civil war, within the context of a world
economic crisis of great
dimensions, which plunges the peoples of that region and the world into
despair.

We’re all concerned about the loss of human lives and the damages
caused to the civilian
population due to the current conflict in that Arab nation, asserted the
diplomat, whose
statements were also published by the www.cubadebate.cu Web site.

He warned that the risk of taking advantage, in an opportunistic way,
of the tragic
situation to satisfy interventionist appetites, take sovereignty away from
the Libyan people
and seize its resources, can’t be accepted.

Some are already talking about a humanitarian military intervention,
which we oppose,
because, instead of solving the situation, it would complicate it even
more and could lead to
other serious implications, he said sententiously.

Reyes declared himself to be against some elements included in the
approved resolution,
which constitute what he described as “a disastrous precedent” for
cooperation in terms of
human rights, which the work of the Council should be based on.

He recalled that, from the start, when we were creating this new
Council, Cuba opposed the
clause on the suspension of a State’s membership.

In this regard, he pointed out that its inclusion in Resolution 60/251
set a negative
precedent that burdened the new organ with an additive that is
unparalleled in any other
organ of the United Nations.

Immediately afterwards, he asserted that it had never been cited until
today, but that its
use on this occasion will open the door to those seeking to legitimize
this mechanism, with
the purpose of using it selectively against countries disagreeing their
patterns.

Cuba, consequently, disassociates itself from the paragraph of the
approved resolution, he
stated.

Lastly, Reyes expressed that the island calls on calm and reiterates
its confidence in the
capacity of the Libyan people to solve their internal affairs, without any
foreign
interference, and to preserve the country’s peace, stability and sovereignty.

This is the first time that the suspension of a member of the of the
Human Rights
Commission, to which Libya belongs since May, 2010, is recommended, the
Telesur television
network reported.

The final decision in this regard will be made at the UN General
Assembly, the next meting
of which has been scheduled for March 1st in New York, specified the state
television network.

By Fidel Castro

When there are problems somewhere, is not that Marxism-Leninism lacks invincible force, the principles of Marxism-Leninism have not been correctly applied.

And we ourselves have said we have not been perfect revolutionaries, nor have we been perfect in the application of these principles; what we can say is that we have been honest and tried to be consistent. But this thing in our country next to the United States, a country so rich, so powerful, so influential, for so long, in our country and our people, who are now a stumbling block like Cuba, which is now a rock like Cuba, can only be understood in the light of the principles of Marxism-Leninism.

The role of the Party, its links with the masses, the correct application of these principles, the absence of favoritism, just actions, consideration on merit, collective leadership, democratic centralism, honesty, awareness, discipline, plus the extraordinary social and human content of the Revolution; these are the factors that have given this great strength to our Revolution, there is no mystery about it.

Fidel, December 1980

ON January 11, 2011, the United States government announced new measures in relation to Cuba. Although it is necessary to await the publication of the regulations in order to understand their true significance, according to preliminary information released by the White House press office, the measures will:

* Authorize travel to Cuba by U.S. citizens for academic, educational, cultural and religious purposes.

* Allow U.S. citizens to send limited remittances to Cuban citizens.

* Authorize U.S. international airports to request permission to operate charter flights to Cuba under certain conditions.

The adoption of these measures is the result of efforts by broad sectors of U.S. society which, in their majority, have been demanding the end of the criminal blockade of Cuba and the elimination of the absurd prohibition of travel to our country.

It is also an expression of recognition that the U.S. policy towards Cuba has failed and new ways to accomplish the historic objective of dominating our people are being sought.

Although the measures are positive ones, they are much less than what is being justly demanded, their reach is very limited and they do not modify policy against Cuba.

The announcement by the White House is basically limited to reestablishing the regulations which were in place in the 1990’s during President Clinton’s administration and were eliminated by George W. Bush in 2003.

The measures only benefit certain categories of U.S. citizens and do not reinstitute the right to travel to Cuba for all U.S. citizens, who will continue to be the only people in the world who cannot freely visit our country.

These measures confirm that there is no willingness to change the policy of blockade and destabilization against Cuba. Upon announcing them, U.S. government officials made it very clear that the blockade will remain in force and that the administration is proposing to use the new measures to strengthen subversion and intervention in Cuba’s internal affairs. This confirms the charges presented in the MINREX statement of January 13.

Cuba has always been in favor of interchanges with the people of the United States, its universities, academic, scientific and religious institutions. All the obstacles which make visits by U.S. citizens difficult have always been, and continue to be today, created by the U.S. government.

If a real interest in broadening and facilitating contact between our peoples exists, the U.S. should lift the blockade and eliminate the prohibition that makes Cuba the only country to which U.S. citizens cannot travel.

Havana, January 16, 2011

By James Thompson

I travelled to Cuba one year ago and met with Cuban doctors who are at the forefront of hurricane preparedness in that country. I was impressed with the organization and comprehensive plan that the Cubans have put together to protect their population from the ravages of hurricanes.

Their plan was based on scientific evidence which they gathered from previous experience in dealing with catastrophic storms. Their goal was to minimize casualties from catastrophic hurricane based disasters. They have largely succeeded in their effort.

For a great video documenting Cuban – U.S. cooperation, go to http://abclocal.go.com/ktrk/story?section=news/local&id=7834855

By Fidel Castro Ruz and Michel Chossudovsky

Note: Go to the URL for the complete report

URL of this article: www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=21892

Global Research, November 13, 2010

Introductory Note

From October 12 to 15, 2010, I had extensive and detailed discussions with Fidel Castro in Havana, pertaining to the dangers of nuclear war, the global economic crisis and the nature of the New World Order. These meetings resulted in a wide-ranging and fruitful interview.

The first part of this interview published by Global Research and Cuba Debate focuses on the dangers of nuclear war.

The World is at a dangerous crossroads. We have reached a critical turning point in our history.

This interview with Fidel Castro provides an understanding of the nature of modern warfare: Were a military operation to be launched against the Islamic Republic of Iran, the US and its allies would be unable to win a conventional war, with the possibility that this war could evolve towards a nuclear war.

The details of ongoing war preparations in relation to Iran have been withheld from the public eye.

How to confront the diabolical and absurd proposition put forth by the US administration that using tactical nuclear weapons against Iran will “make the World a safer place”?

A central concept put forth by Fidel Castro in the interview is the ‘Battle of Ideas”. The leader of the Cuban Revolution believes that only a far-reaching “Battle of Ideas” could change the course of World history. The objective is to prevent the unthinkable, a nuclear war which threatens to destroy life on earth.

The corporate media is involved in acts of camouflage. The devastating impacts of a nuclear war are either trivialized or not mentioned. Against this backdrop, Fidel’s message to the World must be heard; people across the land, nationally and internationally, should understand the gravity of the present situation and act forcefully at all levels of society to reverse the tide of war.

The “Battle of Ideas” is part of a revolutionary process. Against a barrage of media disinformation, Fidel Castro’s resolve is to spread the word far and wide, to inform world public opinion, to “make the impossible possible”, to thwart a military adventure which in the real sense of the word threatens the future of humanity.

When a US sponsored nuclear war becomes an “instrument of peace”, condoned and accepted by the World’s institutions and the highest authority including the United Nations, there is no turning back: human society has indelibly been precipitated headlong onto the path of self-destruction.

Fidel’s “Battle of Ideas” must be translated into a worldwide movement. People must mobilize against this diabolical military agenda.

This war can be prevented if people pressure their governments and elected representatives, organize at the local level in towns, villages and municipalities, spread the word, inform their fellow citizens regarding the implications of a thermonuclear war, initiate debate and discussion within the armed forces.

What is required is a mass movement of people which forcefully challenges the legitimacy of war, a global people’s movement which criminalizes war.

In his October 15 speech, Fidel Castro warned the World on the dangers of nuclear war:

“There would be “collateral damage”, as the American political and military leaders always affirm, to justify the deaths of innocent people. In a nuclear war the “collateral damage” would be the life of all humanity. Let us have the courage to proclaim that all nuclear or conventional weapons, everything that is used to make war, must disappear!”

The “Battle of Ideas” consists in confronting the war criminals in high office, in breaking the US-led consensus in favor of a global war, in changing the mindset of hundreds of millions of people, in abolishing nuclear weapons. In essence, the “Battle of Ideas” consists in restoring the truth and establishing the foundations of World peace.

Michel Chossudovsky, Global Research, Centre for Research on Globalization (CRG),

Montreal, Remembrance Day, November 11, 2010.

——————————————————————————–

“The conventional war would be lost by the US and the nuclear war is no alternative for anyone. On the other hand, nuclear war would inevitably become global”

“I think nobody on Earth wishes the human species to disappear. And that is the reason why I am of the opinion that what should disappear are not just nuclear weapons, but also conventional weapons. We must provide a guarantee for peace to all peoples without distinction

“In a nuclear war the collateral damage would be the life of humankind. Let us have the courage to proclaim that all nuclear or conventional weapons, everything that is used to make war, must disappear!”

“It is about demanding that the world is not led into a nuclear catastrophe, it is to preserve life.”

Fidel Castro Ruz, Havana, October 2010.

By James Thompson

HOUSTON – According to an article in the Texas Tribune on 4/28/10, the Port of Houston has gained permission for its container vessels to sail to Cuba. This development could strengthen Texas’ position as a trading partner with the island nation.

The trade potential is significant. In 2009, the U.S. total trade with Cuba was $521 million. In 2008 it was $710 million. $85 million worth of goods was sent to Cuba from Texas in 2009.

Restrictive trade laws implemented by the Bush administration made trade with Cuba extremely difficult. The policy change was approved by the U.S. Commerce Department, the Bureau of Industry and Security and Cuba’s Alimport agency. It will ease the flow of cargo through the port.

Current legislation is pending before the U.S. House of Representatives which would ease the draconian trade restrictions imposed by the Bush administration as well as previous administrations. H.R. 4645, the Travel Restriction Reform and Export Enhancement Act would allow U.S. citizens the freedom to travel to Cuba which has been denied them for many years. It would also loosen punitive financial restrictions imposed by the Bush administration in a retaliatory move in 2005. The Bush policy mandates that Cuba pre-pay for its goods through a third country’s banking system. This leaves the Cubans vulnerable, because the U.S. government could seize the pre-payment before the goods were delivered and then stop the delivery of the goods. No other nation in the world has to deal with this punitive trade policy.

Jeff Moseley, president and CEO of the Greater Houston Partnership, states, “The potential economic impact on our nation and region is really too great not to proactively explore restoration of trade with Cuba.” He calls for achieving “peace through commerce.”

Many Texans recognize the potential for increasing jobs as a result of easing travel and trade restrictions with Cuba. In light of the current economic and jobs crisis, it only makes sense to trade with one of our closest neighbors. It is clearly a win-win proposition.

With neither provocation nor justification, the Europe Parliament viciously bit Cuba … Thursday, March 11, it adopted a resolution that condemns the alleged “avoidable and cruel” death of Cuban “political prisoner” Orlando Zapata and the resolution voices concern at the “alarming state” of another “political prisoner,” Guillermo Farias. The resolution also repeats a call to the Cuban Government for the “immediate and unconditional” release of all political prisoners and urges the EU to begin a “structured dialogue” with Cuban “civil society.”

The EU approved the resolution by 509 votes to 30 with 14 abstentions.

Statements by Reina Tamayo, the mother of Orlando Zapata, and statements of the Cuban doctors who treated Orlando Zapata refute the lies of the EU about the “avoidable and cruel” death of Cuban “political prisoner” Orlando Zapata.

Senora Tamayo was a constant visitor at the National Hospital for Inmates, at Havana’s Hermanos Ameijeiras Hospital and at Amalia Simone Hospital in Camaguey where her son was treated during various stages during his voluntary 80-day hunger strike which began of December 8, 2009 and ended in death on February 23, 2010.

“Well, thank you very much � we have full confidence � we can see your concern and that everything that is being done to save him.” Reina Tamayo said in clip filmed weeks before his son’s death and aired on Cuban TV after his death.

“They came to get us late to take us to the meeting with the masters (master’s degree holders) who came to analyze Zapata’s health, and they explained to us that it was very critical, critical; that they were doing everything possible to save Zapata, but every day, something else in his body became worse; that they even had a kidney ready in case his failed, that they were going to fight to the end, but the situation is critical, critical,” Reina Tamayo, the mother, told Cuban radio before here son’s death, as renal complications set in.

“I was able to see the doctors who were there before I went in, and there were doctors from CIMEQ (Center for Medical Surgical Research), the best doctors, trying to save his life�,” Reina Tamayo judges the quality of the medical services received by her son as the condition of her son deteriorated near the end.

The mother of Orlando Zapata was at her son’s side during his hunger strike and during the efforts of Cuban doctors to save her son from the complications that set in during his hunger strike. The EU wasn’t there. The mother has no political and ideological motive, unlike the EU which commonly grovels before US imperialists, to misrepresent the circumstances of Orlando Zapata’s death.

Statements of members of the Cuban medical team that worked to save Orlando Zapata’s life corroborate the statements of Orlando’ mother and refute the lies contained in the resolution passed by the EU.

“The patient suffered a series of complications inherent to prolonged inanition, of being so long without ingesting any food,” said Dr. Gimel Sosa Martin of the National Hospital for Inmates.

Dr. Jesus Barreto Penie at Havana’s Hermanos Ameijeiras Hospital said: “In that case, one can maintain the person more or less well-nourished by implementing artificial feeding techniques, which may include parenteral techniques, but that is not sufficient to guarantee long-term survival, when the digestive tube or digestive tract is not used — essentially the small and large intestines, which have a series of vital functions that precisely guarantee contact with the food ingested. If a person does not receive that stimulus for days or weeks, the intestine begins to lose its functions, and one of the most important is the immunological one. The intestine is the most important immunological organ, and what maintains that immuno competence is precisely contact with the foods that one receives; hence, atrophy of the intestinal mucous may occur; the intestine becomes thinner; in fact, it is described as becoming almost like transparent paper. That’s where complications come in, such as digestive haemorrhages, intestinal perforations, and what is the most dangerous and most serious — which is what ends the life of many of these patients — is when they begin to pass along the bacteria that normally co-exist in the small intestine, and above all in the large one, into the blood, and multiple infections occur, which are what kills the patient.”

“The patient did not wish to eat, by his own desire. When one decides not to eat, the body begins to self-cannibalize; in other words, this is a person who begins to consume him or herself because his or her own body is looking for away to sustain itself in face of that insufficiency of food intake orally. That was what happened to Orlando; he began to exhaust his proteins, to exhaust his carbohydrates, to exhaust his fats, and after 47 or 48 days without ingesting food, he was a patient (for whom) it is very difficult to recover via the oral channel,” said Dr. Mariano Izquierdo.

Doctor Daile Burgos said: “At this center, we continued providing the medical attention to Zapata, which he received at the Amalia Simone Hospital in Camaguey. This patient was in the open wards for some time, and later was transferred to a progressive care and intensive therapy unit, because of his state of debilitation produced by the inanition resulting from his voluntary fast, and for artificial, parenteral nutrition; that is, feeding through a vein, due to the patient’s refusal to ingest food. Here, there was very close follow-up by this hospital in Camaguey, including with support from a psychological standpoint to warn him about all the deadly consequences that this prolonged fast could bring. And I do think that he was closely followed and treated, including with cutting-edge products, with respect to alimentation and very close follow-up by the therapy units at that center.”

In other words, the consensus of the doctors, an opinion with which the patient’s mother concurs, is Zapata’s death is neither “unavoidable” nor “cruel.” The consensus of the doctors is Orlando Zapata died from (1) inanition… this is, an exhausted condition that results from lack of food and (2) a set of complications including infection, renal, and immunological conditions produced or aggravated by inanition. The Cuban Doctors tried to force food into Zapata’s body through his veins and this procedure relieved somewhat the problems associated with (1), the inanition, but not the problems associated with (2), the set of complications that largely arose from inanition.

Why would the EU pass a resolution against Cuba that is glaringly contrary to the evidence of the most credible witnesses … namely, Zapata’s family, and glaringly contrary to the most competent witnesses, the Cuban doctors who treated Zapata?

Credibility and competence are pearls that should never be cast before swine, especially in the EU parliament … they can’t distinguish between pearls and the mixture of mud, filth, and slop they love.