Seeing the Light in Havana

Seeing the Light in Havana
Ray Sanchez/Direct from Havana | Direct from Havana
12:05 PM EST, November 25, 2008

HAVANA

Before I moved into my new apartment in the Vedado neighborhood, the
word among residents was that the power hardly ever went out along the
four-block stretch from Linea to the seaside Malecon.

Besides, the lengthy apagones, or blackouts, so familiar to Cubans just
three years ago are rapidly becoming part of the island folklore.
Generous deals with China and Venezuela averted the collapse of an
obsolete and inefficient electrical generation and transmission system
made up mostly of aging Soviet-bloc equipment.

Moving in, though, brought a new reality: parts of the Vedado have been
losing power sporadically much of the past month. The lights go out for
15- to 30-minute intervals, usually during the day. At times it will be
down two to three hours.

"I was stuck on an elevator for more than an hour," said Juana Espinal,
49. She was delivering eggs to a fifth-floor apartment near the Foreign
Ministry when the lights went out Friday. "No one noticed I was on the
elevator. I sat on the floor and waited calmly. These things happen.
This is Cuba."

Like many things on the island, there is no clear explanation for the
blackouts. Some attributed the problem to local construction. A power
company representative said the "sporadic outages could be caused by
ongoing efforts to upgrade the power grid."

Who knows? These things happen.

A building superintendent offered a solution: a makeshift
gasoline-powered generator set up in your kitchen or washroom, with an
attached garden hose dangling from an open window to let out the toxic
exhaust.

"You have to be very careful," he said. And it makes a racket. But it
keeps essential appliances powered for several hours. The price: $486.

Of course, it would only be temporary. Over the weekend, economic czar
Carlos Lage said hundreds of new fuel oil generators will provide the
island with some 1,700 megawatts of power by late 2010.

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/cuba/flbcubaray1125,0,7021648.column

How Obama could affect travel

How Obama could affect travel
Posted on Sun, Nov. 23, 2008

It's obvious that the new president-elect will have more urgent matters
than travel on his agenda. But after dealing with the economic crisis,
Afghanistan and Iraq, Iran, health care, energy, education and more, he
may have time for one or two lesser matters affecting the travel
industry. Here, without partisan comment either pro or con, are the ways
in which Barack Obama may affect the world of travel:

• Greater support for Amtrak. The president-elect has supported larger
appropriations for operating and expanding Amtrak, while his adversary,
Sen. John McCain, was well-known for opposing that federal support. In
addition, the Senate's most active opponent of Amtrak -- Sen. John
Sununu of New Hampshire -- was defeated for re-election, and there's no
doubt that a far more favorable environment now exists for improving and
expanding Amtrak.

In the campaign, Obama also favored creation of a National
Infrastructure Bank for funding such initiatives as reviving the many
hundreds of miles of abandoned railroad tracks, which would restore rail
service to such cities as Nashville, Tenn., and Las Vegas. Though a
primary purpose of that bank was to create jobs, the dividends to our
travel facilities are obvious.

• Support for the Travel Promotion Act. Numerous members of Congress
have endorsed a major program to establish an advertising and marketing
medium for encouraging foreign travel to the United States, and Obama
was one of the early signatories of that legislation. McCain opposed
such use of federal power, and now there is no doubt that a nationally
supported organization for promoting travel to the United States will be
launched.

• Easing of restrictions on travel by Cuban-Americans to visit relatives
in Cuba. Though the overall travel embargo on Cuba probably will be
maintained, at least on paper if not in practice, there undoubtedly will
be new regulations increasing the frequency by which Cuban-Americans can
visit their relatives and raising the amount of money they can spend
there. This was a major issue in South Florida during the campaign, and
Obama went strongly on record as permitting greater travel there by
Cuban-Americans. As to Cuban travel by the rest of us (and despite
statements by Obama that he does not support ending the embargo quite
yet), it's predicted by many that the federal government will no longer
be eager to enforce those restrictions on leisure travel, and the
situation will revert to what it was several years ago: A steady traffic
there by Americans flying quietly into Havana from Jamaica, the Bahamas,
Canada and Mexico.

• Major improvements in the air traffic control system: A constant
emphasis was directed by candidate Obama to the need for greatly
increased funding of air traffic control systems (and McCain advocated
the same). The new administration apparently will propose appropriating
several billions of dollars to measures that should reduce delays and
improve safety.

• An increase in the number of foreign visitors able to come here
without visas: Up until now, it was mainly citizens of Westernmost
Europe (Ireland, Britain, France, Germany, Spain, Italy, etc.) who were
allowed to visit the United States without first obtaining expensive
visas. During the campaign, Obama suggested adding several other major
countries to the visa-free list: Brazil, South Korea, Greece and others.
Many observers predict that this may reverse the present downward trend
of tourism to the United States.

http://www.kansas.com/195/story/606936.html

Trade group: US ag exports to Cuba hit record

Trade group: US ag exports to Cuba hit record

Nov 15, 2008

HAVANA (AP) — A U.S.-Cuba trade group says the island has spent a record
$536 million for American agriculture goods through the third quarter,
already surpassing all annual amounts since 2001.

The U.S. Trade and Economic Council says that most of the growth is
because of price increases, and not quantities. The council released the
figures Friday.

Washington's nearly 50-year-old trade embargo prohibits nearly all trade
between both countries, but Cuba has been allowed to buy U.S. food and
agricultural products with cash payments since 2000. Cuba began taking
advantage of the loophole in the American trade sanctions after a
hurricane ravaged parts of the island in November 2001.

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5j7bdrniNZxummeZJk3ChJGPXOQwQD94FI9HO1

Cuba looking for relief

Cuba looking for relief
Matt Halip
Issue date: 11/21/08 Section: Features

A hurricane, which creates massive waves, torrential downpours and
violent twisters, is one of the most feared phenomena on earth.

Few fear the wrath of a hurricane more than Cuba, which has been
devastated by Hurricane Ike and Hurricane Gustav, and most recently
Tropical Storm Paloma. When the powerful storms struck the island, they
severely damaged crops and left some 200,000 homeless. With estimated
losses of $5 billion, one of the world's last communist regimes is
facing an uphill battle.

"Never in the history of Cuba have we had a case like this," said
President Raúl Castro, according to The Miami Herald.

Following the damage to the island's food supply, housing, and
electricity grids, there have been several questions regarding Cuba's
ability to get by without massive international aid. Cuba's most
valuable export crops, citrus and tobacco, suffered big losses. Almost
half the sugar cane fields were flattened and the coffee harvest has
also been badly affected.

"It is impossible to solve the magnitude of the catastrophe with the
resources available," said Carlos Lezcano, director of the National
Institute of State Reserves, according to The Miami Herald. "The
reserves are being tested. We shall have to prioritize."

In the aftermath of the storms, Cuba's main allies flew to the rescue.
Russia sent four large cargo planes carrying 200 tons of relief
supplies. Brazil and Spain sent smaller shipments. Venezuela is expected
to make a big contribution, though details are not yet known.

Even though the damage done by the hurricanes was immense, Cuba declined
help from the United States. The Bush administration offered Cuba
$100,000 in relief aid, later raising the amount to $5 million. Instead
of accepting, Cuba demanded that the United States lift its trade
embargo to enable it to buy much needed reconstruction materials.

With or without the help of the United States, Cuba believes they will
come out of this crisis stronger than before.

"It's rather unlikely that sweating and starving Cubans go rioting in
the streets, even less so against a government that has been effective
in disaster preparation and response," said Johannes Werner, editor of
Cuba Trade and Investment News, according to The Miami Herald. "Cubans
have a track record of coming out stronger in far worse situations."

http://media.www.guilfordian.com/media/storage/paper281/news/2008/11/21/Features/Cuba-Looking.For.Relief-3557911.shtml

Open travel, remittances best course for Cuba

Posted on Thursday, 11.20.08
OBAMA ADMINISTRATION
Open travel, remittances best course for Cuba
BY MARIFELI PEREZ-STABLE
MarifeliPerez-Stable.com

On Jan. 1, 2009, the Cuban Revolution marks its 50th anniversary. Three
weeks later, Barack Obama will step into the Oval Office as the 11th
U.S. president to face a Castro-led government in Havana.

Several plates full of problems await the new administration. Still,
President Obama should quickly implement what he promised in Miami on
May 23: ''I will immediately allow unlimited family travel and
remittances to the island.'' Simply reversing the shameful restrictions
of 2004 won't do. A bold move that puts Havana on the spot is in order.

Lifting all restrictions on family travel and remittances may seem like
small potatoes. Yet, given where we are now, it could turn out to be a
game changer. In 1979, the visits of 100,000 Cuban Americans helped
trigger one of the most difficult domestic challenges that Havana has
ever faced, the Mariel exodus. Today Cuban society is considerably more
fragile. Merely rescinding the 2004 restrictions would suit the regime
just fine.

The Cuba Wars, by Daniel P. Erikson, my colleague at the Inter-American
Dialogue, has appeared in time for the coming rounds on U.S. Cuba
policy. It is an engaging read of U.S.-Cuban relations under President
George W. Bush. His treatment of Cuban Americans is especially fair and
noteworthy, whether it be the Elián González case, the presidential
recount in 2000 or the community's growing diversity. The Cuba Wars,
moreover, puts it all in the context of U.S. foreign policy since 9/11.

Erikson's review of how the Commission for Assistance to a Free Cuba
came about in 2003-2004 is particularly well done. The Iraq war stirred
a hornet's nest in the community. Why couldn't the United States do the
same in Cuba?

In August 2003, 13 Republican state legislators -- including 10 Cuban
Americans -- wrote Bush a letter expressing ''disappointment and
outrage'' about his Cuba policy and suggesting that stalwart support for
the Republican Party in Cuban Miami might be in peril. Two months later,
the Commission was born. It eventually issued a 500-page, detailed tome
meant to hasten the Cuban transition and placate the concerns expressed
in the August letter. With an eye toward the November 2004 elections,
the administration directed the aforementioned restrictions.

The Cuba Wars predicted that Lincoln and Mario Diaz-Balart would retain
their congressional seats. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen did as well, but hers was
mostly a foregone conclusion. The Republican victory may or may not
indicate that Cuban Americans in their districts support current policy.
Cuba, for once, was not the main issue in contention; the economy was.

What else might the election results show? An exit poll conducted by
Bendixen & Associates in Miami-Dade County with nearly 12,000 voters
(about 3,900 Cuban Americans) helps us look beyond the winners and
losers. While John McCain took 65 percent of their votes, Obama won the
county 58-42 and Florida 51-48. Two trends in the Cuban-American
electorate stand to favor the Democratic Party in the longer term.

• Sixty-one percent of those who are U.S.-born and 65 percent in the
18-29 group preferred Obama.

• Cubans who arrived in the 1990s were split 49-51 percent between Obama
and McCain while those arriving in the 2000s broke 58 percent for the
Democrat.

Let's not forget as well that, in the 2007 Florida International
University Cuba poll, 55 percent of Cuban-American respondents agreed
with unrestricted freedom to travel to the island, while 42 percent
opposed the embargo outright.

Elections have consequences, and the case for changing U.S. policy on
Cuba would have benefited immensely from one of the Cuban-American
challengers winning. At the same time, Obama won the demographic groups
that will only keep on growing as well as a total vote share comparable
to Bill Clinton's in 1996, which helped him win Florida.

I hope that Obama allows unrestricted family travel and remittances to
Cuba. It's not only right for humanitarian reasons but could also
capitalize Democratic gains among recent arrivals and younger, U.S.-born
Cuban Americans.

Confrontation simply hasn't worked. Tightening the embargo after the
Cold War was supposed to do the trick while more recent policies aimed
to hasten the transition. Perhaps we've been barking up the wrong tree.
Opening up may be the real hard line.

Marifeli Pérez-Stable is vice president for democratic governance at the
Inter-American Dialogue in Washington, D.C., and a professor at Florida
International University.

http://www.miamiherald.com/opinion/other-views/story/779559.html

Smaller steps likely first in Obama Cuba policy

Smaller steps likely first in Obama Cuba policy
By JENNIFER KAY 11.06.08, 5:17 PM ET
MIAMI -

Campaigning before Cuban-Americans here last spring, Barack Obama
promised that if elected he'd immediately lift Bush administration
restrictions on their travel back to the communist island and on the
amount of money they can send home to relatives.

He is widely expected by Cuba specialists to make good on that promise,
but it's unlikely he would quickly move to end or ease this country's
four-decade embargo that severely restricts trade and tourism with Cuba.

Much would depend on whether Cuba responds positively to the Obama
administration by releasing political prisoners, improving its human
rights record or moving toward a market economy, said Dario Moreno, a
Florida International University political science professor.

"If Cuba makes some sort of gesture toward the United States, it could
begin a diplomatic process," Moreno said.

President Bush has taken a hardline toward Cuba, imposing in 2004 tough
restrictions on travel and remittances, hoping to hurt the Castro
government by choking off a major source of dollars.

Cubans in the U.S. can only visit the island once every three years and
can only send quarterly remittances of up to $300 per household to
immediate family members. Previously, they could visit once a year and
send up to $3,000. The administration also tightened restrictions on
travel for educational and religious groups and strengthened enforcement
against travelers and businesses that subvert the embargo.

Obama has said he is open to a dialogue with Cuban President Raul
Castro, who succeeded his ailing brother, Fidel, two years ago. He has
also said he is open to diplomacy if there was an opportunity to advance
U.S. interests and the cause of freedom for Cubans and that his
administration would boost economic aid to the region and work with
other countries on drug trafficking and alternative energy.

Some exile groups are optimistic that Obama's regional approach to
diplomacy would work.

Individual Americans sharing resources and information and networking
with their Cuban counterparts would help foster democratic change on the
island better than cutting off their access to friends, family and
money, said Carlos Saladrigas, chairman of the Washington-based Cuba
Study Group, a nonpartisan organization of business and civic leaders
who favor opening relations with Cuba.

"It's going to be more proactive," said Francisco Hernandez, the
president of the Cuban American National Fund, which hosted an Obama
campaign stop in May. "The policy of the Bush administration has been a
wait-and-see policy in which for eight years they've been waiting and
praying for the conversion of Fidel and Raul Castro to democratic
leadership."

In winning Florida, Obama even prevailed in counties that re-elected
three Republican Cuban-Americans known in Congress for staunchly
defending hardline policies against Cuba - Reps. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen and
brothers Lincoln and Mario Diaz-Balart.

"The Cuban community struck a balance," Moreno said. "They liked Obama's
economic message but they wanted to keep their hardline members of
Congress."

The Diaz-Balarts and Ros-Lehtinen de-emphasized Cuba in their campaigns,
giving priority to the economy, health care and the Iraq.
Cuban-Americans expect more change in those arenas than in a lingering
Cold War standoff.

"We saw change from Fidel to Raul, but we see the same thing (in Cuba).
Now we're seeing a refocusing for Cuban-Americans of their priorities,"
said Andy Gomez, a Cuba expert at the University of Miami.

The Diaz-Balarts and Ros-Lehtinen oppose lifting the travel and
remittance restrictions.

Mario Diaz-Balart said he looked forward to talking with the
president-elect about Cuba, but that the hard-fought re-elections of he
and his brother in districts with large Cuban-American populations were
public affirmations of their positions on the island nation.

"There should be no unilateral concessions to state sponsors of
terrorism - there's a strong consensus," he said. "The question is,
'Will the president want to listen to the bipartisan consensus or will
he want to listen to a small fringe group that wants to see how they can
help the regime?'"

The congressman said the majority of Cuban-Americans do not support any
loosening of restrictions on remittances or travel to Cuba. "You can
believe the fake polls," he said, "or you can look at the election results."

Obama might not need the votes of the Diaz-Balarts and Ros-Lehtinen in a
Democratic Congress if he wants to force a change - but he would be
ill-advised to ignore the three if he wants to keep the support of their
constituents, said Susan Purcell, head of the University of Miami's
Center for Hemispheric Policy.

"It would depend on how he would package it - saying it's not a lifting
of the embargo, saying he wants to make life easier for Americans with
relatives on the island or saying that sending money to people on the
island would be good for a democratic transition," Purcell said.

Orlando Gutierrez of the Cuban Democratic Directorate said Obama should
maintain Cuba's isolation until the Cuban government released political
prisoners or improved Internet access on the island.

However, Obama's election sends a powerful message to Cuba's civil
rights movement, said Gutierrez, whose Miami-based organization receives
federal funding to build international solidarity for Cuban dissidents.

"His election itself is an ideological message of how freedom and
democracy are the best way to achieve equality," he said. "It's a stark
contrast to the lack of change and lack of reform that exist in Cuba."

Associated Press writer Matt Sedensky contributed to this report.

http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2008/11/06/ap5660581.html

Petrobras, Cuba to Explore for Oil Close to Florida

Petrobras, Cuba to Explore for Oil Close to Florida (Update1)

By Joshua Goodman and Jeb Blount

Oct. 31 (Bloomberg) -- Brazil's Petroleo Brasileiro SA and Cuba's
state-run petroleum company have signed an agreement to explore for oil
off the communist island's coastline about 100 miles from Key West, Florida.

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva signed the agreement with
his Cuban counterpart, Raul Castro, at a ceremony today in Havana.
Petrobras, as the Brazilian company is known, and Cuba Petroleo, or
Cupet, will explore Block 37, which begins three kilometers (1.9 miles)
from the Carribbean resort town of Varadero and is close to Cuban
onshore oil fields.

In September the U.S. allowed a 27-year ban on offshore drilling along
much of the U.S. coast, including waters adjacent to Cuba, to lapse. Rio
de Janeiro-based Petrobras has been one of the biggest buyers of
offshore oil leases in recent years in sections of the U.S. Gulf of
Mexico where drilling is allowed.

Petrobras is eyeing Cuba as it aims to focus non-Brazilian operations in
the Gulf, Chief Executive Officer Jose Sergio Gabrielli has said in the
company's 2008-2012 strategic plan.

Cupet is seeking technology from Petrobras, which produces more than 80
percent of Brazil's oil from offshore fields and holds many deepwater
drilling records.

The agreement allows for a seven-year exploration period. If oil is
found, production can continue for 25 more years under a shared
production arrangement. Cupet has the right to can take sole possession
of the finds after reimbursing Petrobras' exploration costs.

The accord is Petrobras' first with Cuba. The initial investment will be
$8 million.

To contact the reporter on this story: Joshua Goodman in Rio de Janeiro
at jgoodman19@bloomberg.net; Jeb Blount in Rio de Janeiro at
jblount@bloomberg.net
Last Updated: October 31, 2008 15:15 EDT

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601086&sid=agpjtteuVcqc&refer=latin_america

Russian truck maker Kamaz considering production in Cuba

Russian truck maker Kamaz considering production in Cuba
20:47 | 21/ 11/ 2008

MOSCOW, November 21 (RIA Novosti) - Kamaz is considering setting up an
assembly line to produce 500 trucks annually in Cuba, Russia's largest
truck maker said Friday.

"To further develop the automobile business in Cuba and strengthen
Kamaz's place on the country's market, we and the Cuban side are
considering the possibility of establishing a trade and service company
to sell, service and repair Kamaz trucks, as well as an assembly
facility with a production capacity of 500 trucks a year," Kamaz said in
a press release.

Over 200 Kamaz trucks have been delivered to Cuba in 2008 as part of a
Russian loan to the country.

Kamaz, based in the Volga Republic of Tatarstan, produces more than 30
models of trucks, as well as trailers, buses, tractors and spare parts.
It also manufactures engines, power units, and components.

The company has assembly facilities in Poland, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan,
Ethiopia, Vietnam and Ukraine.

http://en.rian.ru/russia/20081121/118458907.html

St Lucia donates materials to hurricane-hit Cuba

St Lucia donates materials to hurricane-hit Cuba
Published on Friday, November 21, 2008

HAVANA, Cuba (ACN): The President of the St Lucia-Cuba Friendship
Association Rawle Harvey presented a donation of materials sent from
that country to Cuba, to help in the recovery from the damage caused by
Hurricanes Gustav, Ike, and, more recently, Paloma.

The materials valued at 26,000 US dollars were donated by the Saint
Lucian people, non-governmental organizations, charity associations and
different companies, reported the Cuban Foreign Relations Ministry (MINREX).

According to the MINREX report, the donation sent by plane includes
clothing, shoes, food, construction tools and two power generators. A
second similar shipment is expected to be sent to Cuba by that country.

http://www.caribbeannetnews.com/news-12361--5-5--.html

Cuba trade worth $32 million to Virginia farmers

Associated Press
Cuba trade worth $32 million to Virginia farmers
Associated Press, 11.14.08, 08:25 AM EST

In just six years, trade between Cuba and Virginia farmers has grown
from less than $1 million to more than $32 million.

And Virginia Agriculture Commissioner Todd P. Haymore is hoping for even
more growth.

He recently returned from the Havana International Trade Fair in Cuba,
where he and others pushed Virginia's apples, soybeans, poultry, wood
and other products.

Virginia is among the top five states exporting to Cuba.

A nearly 50-year-old trade embargo prevents U.S. tourists from visiting
Cuba and prohibits nearly all trade. But a law passed by Congress in
2000 allows the Cuban government to buy U.S. food and agricultural
products with direct cash payments.

Copyright 2008 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may
not be published broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed

http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2008/11/14/ap5694398.html

Norilsk Nickel eyes metals plant project in Cuba

Norilsk Nickel eyes metals plant project in Cuba
18:23 | 20/ 11/ 2008

MOSCOW, November 20 (RIA Novosti) - Russian metals giant Norilsk Nickel
is considering the possibility of becoming an operator in a metals plant
construction project in Cuba, the company's CEO said on Thursday.

Vladimir Strzhalkovsky said it would take between six and nine months to
complete a feasibility study, after which Cuba would apply to Russia for
a loan to implement the project.

"I believe that Cuba has a good chance of getting it," he said.

In mid-November, Norilsk Nickel and Cuba's Cubanique signed a memorandum
of understanding on cooperation in prospecting for solid serpentinites
at Cuba's Nicaro Mines.

They also agreed to exchange specialists and share experience in mining,
marketing and environmental issues.

Norilsk Nickel is Russia's largest diversified mining and metals
company, the world's largest producer of nickel and palladium, and one
of the world's largest producers of platinum, rhodium, copper and cobalt.

It also produces gold, silver, tellurium, selenium, iridium and ruthenium.

http://en.rian.ru/business/20081120/118435177.html

Priceline pays fine for breaking Cuba sanctions

The Associated Press November 4, 2008, 2:14PM ET
Priceline pays fine for breaking Cuba sanctions
NEW YORK

Priceline.com Inc. has become at least the second online travel company
to get slapped with a fine from the federal government for violating
U.S. sanctions on Cuba.

Priceline, based in Norwalk, Conn., agreed to pay $12,250 after an
internal audit revealed one of its foreign subsidiaries provided
"limited travel services to Cuban nationals," company spokesman Brian Ek
said Tuesday. Ek said he could not reveal where the Cubans were
traveling to or from.

He said the company reported the violation voluntarily.

A statement from the Treasury Department said a subsidiary of Priceline
"provided travel-related services in which Cuba or Cuban nationals had
an interest."

Treasury Department spokesman Andrew DeSouza would not comment on why
Priceline's settlement was so much less than the $182,750 paid by
Travelocity.com LP in a similar case last year.

In that case, Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control said
Travelocity violated the sanctions on Cuba nearly 1,500 times between
January 1998 and April 2004, a first for an online travel agency.

The department said Priceline violated regulations on Cuba between
September 2004 and November 2007 but did not say in how many instance

http://www.businessweek.com/ap/financialnews/D9489VU00.htm

After three hurricanes, 'no hay' in Cuba

Posted on Friday, 11.14.08
After three hurricanes, 'no hay' in Cuba
BY MIAMI HERALD STAFF REPORT
cuba@MiamiHerald.com

HAVANA -- Even before Hurricane Paloma unleashed more than 140-mile per
hour winds along Cuba's Southeastern coast, many Cubans joked that they
already knew the sequence of the storms that battered the island in the
past three months -- first came Gustav, then Ike and now No Hay, Spanish
for ``there isn't any.''

No hay plantains.

No hay pineapples.

No hay sufficient amount of construction supplies to dole out for all
those looking to rebuild and repair their homes.

So what exactly is left?

''We still have our sense of humor,'' quipped Carlos Humberto, a silver
haired man in his 60s who rents rooms to tourists.

Despite the good-natured attitude, the lack of basic staples is no
laughing matter. Cuba is struggling with an estimated $10 billion in
damages in the aftermath of three storms in the span of three months.

Adding to what was already a housing crisis: more than 500,000 homes
have been destroyed across the island since August. Thousands of
families still find themselves housed at night in school halls and
classrooms in more affected provinces like Camagüey in central Cuba and
Holguín in the northeastern region.

Nightly television news reports from the University of Camagüey show
some 1,000 people still sheltered at the school following Paloma's path
of destruction along the beachside town of Santa Cruz del Sur.

''We will rebuild, but logically we will not build so close to the
water,'' Raúl Castro told the afflicted residents during a recent visit
to the university. ``What's the point of rebuilding next to the water if
we're going to have to rebuild with the next storm?''

Still, promises of reconstruction are hampered by limited supplies of
wood and metal sheets for roofs. Building supplies have been in such
high demand, that government officials have called on the population to
report anyone found to be purchasing more supplies than deemed
necessary, several residents told The Miami Herald.

''It's a good thing,'' said Maria Luz, who makes extra money by braiding
hair for tourists in Old Havana. ``It protects us from people who want
to buy up all the supplies to resell it for higher prices.''

After Hurricanes Gustav and Ike swept the country in August and
September, flatbed trucks stacked with with green plantains were
dispatched to bring food to storm-ravaged residents. At the time,
residents joked that they would be eating platanos for weeks.

Now, with nearly one third of the country's crops destroyed during the
first two storms, plantains are hard to find. Even tourists hoping to
score plantain dishes from restaurants are told to choose another dish
on the menu.

''We're able to get malanga but plantains are hard to come by,'' said
Duniel, 23, who shuttles tourists around on a bicycle taxi throughout
the Old Havana neighborhood. ``If you get some, they are all black,
overripe?''

Also hard to come by are various kinds of fruits, especially pineapples.
Many of the agricultural fields where they grow, also were destroyed by
the storm. Carlos Humberto, the man who rents rooms to tourists, is used
to providing his guests with fruit salad for breakfast each morning.
Now, he laments having to apologize for having only a few slices of
pineapple to offer.

''Even to get the pineapple, I had to ride my bike from market to
market,'' Carlos Humberto said.

Even though the United States has offered as much as $6 million in aid
on five separate occasions following the storms, Cuban officials have
rejected the money, stating the economic embargo should be lifted, instead.

On the streets of Havana, many Cubans still are hopeful for eventual
U.S. assistance -- energized by the news of Barack Obama's election to
presidency.

''We are hopeful that he will change relations with Cuba,'' said
Francisco Mora Garcia, 43, sitting on the steps of Havana's aging and
mold-ridden Capitolio building. ``Isn't he known among Americans as a
man of change? We hope so.''

Mora Garcia, who said he fled the island during the 1980 Mariel boat
exodus and once lived in California before he was deported six years ago
following an arrest for a violation he called minor, also was looking
for change on the streets of Havana.

He begged for spare change, shampoo, soap or any else tourists were
willing to hand over.

''Its a hard life here and its not getting easier,'' he said.

http://www.miamiherald.com/news/miami-dade/breaking-news/story/771604.html

Malawi to export beans to Cuba

Malawi to export beans to Cuba

Malawi is slowly gaining ground in the business of exports as it will
soon start exporting beans to Cuba. The Southern African country is said
to have secured an outright order of 15,000 metric tons of red beans to
Cuba. Malawi is one of the countries that grow the best beans which have
won the heart of many.

The country's minister of Industry and Trade Henry Mussa said the deal
had come about after Cuba experienced hurricanes which destroyed its
crops. "We have been given an outright deal to export to Cuba about
15,000 metric tons of red beans, which is translated to nearly
US$12million (K1.9bn)," said the minister on his arrival from Cuba's
26th International Trade Fair.

Mussa was quoted in a local newspaper, Daily Times, that apart from the
beans export the two countries had also made an agreement on Cuba
assisting with expertise and knowledge to process fruits. According to
reports from the country's ministry of trade officials, experts from
Cuba are expected in Malawi to select a variety of their choice.

Malawi is said to have showcased several agricultural commodities which
included groundnuts, tea, and coffee at the fair. Statistics from the
country indicate that it produces about 34,000 metric tonnes of beans
annually. Early this year the country also announced that it was to
export some of its products to China. China and Malawi tied its
friendship last year.

Source: africanews.com

Publication date: 11/17/2008

http://www.freshplaza.com/news_detail.asp?id=33218

Cuba says its national economy grew 6 per cent in the first half of this year

Cuba says its national economy grew 6 per cent in the first half of this
year

Nov 1, 2008

HAVANA — Cuba's says its economy grew by six per cent in the first half
of 2008, but won't maintain that pace because of damage caused by
Hurricanes Gustav and Ike.

Economy Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez says the rise in gross domestic
product in the year's final six months won't match the results of the
first, which finished with six per cent growth.

Hurricane Gustav hit western Cuba on Aug. 30 and Ike slammed into the
country's eastern flank barely a week later, then raked most of the island.

The government says the storms caused the greatest storm damage in
Cuba's hurricane-battered history, killing seven people, damaging nearly
450,000 homes and crippling food production and infrastructure.

Rodriquez says the principal challenge is the reconstruction of the
country, whose losses were initially calculated at $5 billion but which
today are seen as far higher.

He offered no new estimates.

However, Civil Defence Chief Ramon Pardo Guerra told visiting Brazilian
President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva that collective damage from the
storms had reached nearly 8.7 billion convertible pesos, or about $9.4
billion.

That makes them nearly twice as costly as officials originally believed.

Cuba's measurement of GDP includes spending on free health care,
education through college and monthly food rations provided by the
communist system - an uncommon methodology that critics say inflates
growth figures.

Officially, the economy expanded by 7.5 per cent last year and posted a
12.5 per cent growth rate in 2006.

Rodriguez projected last year that the economy would grow eight per cent
in 2008, but he and other officials began warning in July, even before
the hurricanes hit, that rising global food and oil prices would cause
"inevitable adjustments and restrictions."

http://canadianpress.google.com/article/ALeqM5jq9fzBRHy-oIPHF4ZvT7cHBb0XBQ

USDA Exports: Corn, Soybeans, & Wheat Up, Beef Sales To Canada

11/20/2008 7:44:00 AM

USDA Exports: Corn, Soybeans, & Wheat Up, Beef Sales To Canada

Wheat: Net sales of 511,000 metric tons were up two and one-tenth times
from the previous week and 40 percent from the prior 4-week average.
Increases reported for Japan (103,400 MT), South Korea (89,200 MT),
Egypt (56,900 MT), unknown destinations (54,800 MT), Nigeria (48,000
MT), Thailand (39,600 MT), Costa Rica (29,900 MT, including 3,700 MT
switched from Guatemala), and Cuba (27,500 MT), were partially offset by
decreases for Guatemala (3,700 MT), Mexico (2,800 MT), and Colombia
(1,100 MT). Exports of 452,300 MT were up 1 percent from the previous
week, but down 7 percent from the prior 4-week average. The primary
destinations were Nigeria (73,900 MT), Iran (66,000 MT), Egypt (64,900
MT), Japan (57,000 MT), the Philippines (50,400 MT), Cuba (27,500 MT),
Portugal (18,000 MT), and Costa Rica (15,300 MT).

Corn: Net sales of 433,800 MT were up 22 percent from the previous
week, but down 15 percent from the prior 4-week average. Increases
reported for Cuba (125,200 MT), Japan (90,600 MT), Taiwan (87,300 MT),
Syria (50,400 MT, previously reported as Egypt), Ecuador (30,000 MT),
and Mexico (27,300 MT), were partially offset by decreases for Colombia
(33,200 MT) and Guatemala (23,300 MT). Exports of 755,900 MT were down
7 percent from the previous week, but up 9 percent from the prior 4-week
average. The primary destinations were Japan (300,000 MT), Mexico
(106,200 MT), Taiwan (87,400 MT), South Korea (85,200 MT), Syria (50,400
MT), Colombia (28,000 MT), Honduras (25,300 MT), and Cuba (25,200 MT).
Note: Accumulated exports were adjusted down 50,400 MT for Egypt.

Barley: There were no sales reported during the week. Exports of 2,900
MT were to Canada (2,400 MT) and Taiwan (500 MT).

Sorghum: Net sales of 4,100 MT were for Mexico. Exports of 23,400 MT
were down 39 percent from the previous week and 61 percent from the
prior 4-week average. The destination was Mexico.

Rice: Net sales of 118,900 MT--a marketing-year high--were up two and
one-fifth times from the previous week and two and seven-tenths times
from the prior 4-week average. Increases were reported for Costa Rica
(62,800 MT), Venezuela (30,700 MT), Mexico (10,800 MT), and Honduras
(7,000 MT). Exports of 83,800 MT were up two and three-tenths times
from the previous week and 42 percent from the prior 4-week average. The
primary destinations were Venezuela (30,700 MT), Mexico (23,200 MT),
Honduras (7,400 MT), Haiti (6,200 MT), Canada (5,400 MT), and South
Korea (2,000 MT).

Soybeans: Net sales of 790,900 MT were up 65 percent from the previous
week, but down 11 percent from the prior 4-week average. Increases
reported for China (469,200 MT, including 122,000 MT switched from
unknown destinations and decreases of 128,200 MT), Mexico (122,200 MT),
Germany (76,600 MT, including 75,000 MT switched from unknown
destinations), Taiwan (75,800 MT, including 58,000 MT switched from
unknown destinations), the Netherlands (59,700 MT, switched from unknown
destinations), and Japan (25,800 MT), were partially offset by decreases
for Egypt (35,400 MT) and unknown destinations (17,500 MT). Exports of
1,067,500 MT were up 2 percent from the previous week, but down 13
percent from the prior 4-week average. The primary destinations were
China (581,500 MT), Taiwan (104,200 MT), Germany (76,600 MT), Japan
(66,100 MT), the Netherlands (59,700 MT), and South Korea (57,800 MT).

Soybean Cake and Meal: Net sales of 92,300 MT were down 26 percent from
the previous week and 41 percent from the prior 4-week average.
Increases reported for Cuba (40,000 MT), Mexico (26,600 MT), Canada
(9,300 MT), the United Arab Emirates (7,000 MT), and Honduras (6,600 MT
switched from Guatemala), were partially offset by decreases for
Guatemala (6,600 MT), Japan (4,600 MT), and Nicaragua (2,000 MT).
Exports of 116,500 MT were down 20 percent from the previous week, but
unchanged from the prior 4-week average. The primary destinations were
Mexico (37,000 MT), Ecuador (27,500 MT), and Canada (24,300 MT).

Soybean Oil: Net sales of 7,900 MT were primarily for Jamaica (3,200
MT), Costa Rica (1,500 MT), Nicaragua (1,300 MT), and Guatemala (1,200
MT). Decreases were reported for Saudi Arabia (200 MT). Exports of
1,900 MT were up 6 percent from the previous week, but down 79 percent
from the prior 4-week average. The destinations were mainly to Mexico
(800 MT), Canada (400 MT), and the United Arab Emirates (100 MT).

Cotton: Net Upland sales of 202,400 running bales were up 51 percent
from the previous week and 8 percent from the prior 4-week average.
Increases reported for China (39,700 RB), Turkey (36,900 RB), Mexico
(23,900 RB), Peru (14,200 RB), Bangladesh (13,300 RB), and Thailand
(11,200 RB), were partially offset by decreases for unknown destinations
(400 RB). Exports of 239,000 RB were up 8 percent from the previous
week and from the prior 4-week average. The primary destinations were
China (87,200 RB), Turkey (48,200 RB), Mexico (32,900 RB), and Indonesia
(11,100 RB). Net American Pima sales of 700 RB were mainly for Japan
(300 MT) and Thailand (300 MT). Exports of 1,900 RB were down 14
percent from the previous week and 40 percent from the prior 4-week
average. The primary destinations were Germany (900 RB) and Indonesia
(700 RB).

Hides and Skins: Net sales of 516,600 pieces were up 7 percent from the
previous week and 41 percent from the prior 4-week average. Whole
cattle hide sales of 493,000 pieces resulted as increases for China
(234,100 pieces), South Korea (177,100 pieces, including 49,500 pieces
previously reported as Japan), Taiwan (72,300 pieces), and Thailand
(31,900 pieces), were partially offset by decreases for Japan (52,300
pieces). Exports of 655,400 pieces were up 15 percent from the previous
week and 20 percent from the prior 4-week average. Whole cattle hide
exports of 637,000 pieces were primarily to China (299,000 pieces),
South Korea (207,700 pieces), Taiwan (33,900 pieces), Japan (29,800
pieces), Hong Kong (28,100 pieces), and Thailand (11,000 pieces).

Net sales of 89,300 wet blues were up 27 percent from the previous week,
but down 11 percent from the prior 4-week average. Increases were
mainly for China (19,400 grain splits), the Dominican Republic (9,600
unsplit and 4,600 grain splits), South Korea (13,900 unsplit), Mexico
(10,800 grain splits and 1,700 unsplit), and Indonesia (11,400 unsplit).
Exports of 73,800 hides were up 36 percent from the previous week, but
down 5 percent from the prior 4-week average. The primary destinations
were China (20,600 unsplit and 1,600 grain splits), Hong Kong (12,200
unsplit), Taiwan (11,100 unsplit), and South Korea (8,200 unsplit). Net
sales of splits totaling 1,705,400 pounds were for Hong Kong (907,400
pounds), China (528,000 pounds), and South Korea (270,000 pounds).
Exports of 502,400 pounds were down 37 percent from the previous week
and 48 percent from the prior 4-week average. The destinations were
Hong Kong (367,400 pounds) and South Korea (135,000 pounds).

Beef: Net sales of 4,200 MT were primarily for Canada (1,400 MT),
Mexico (1,400 MT), South Korea (500 MT), and Japan (400 MT). Net Sales
of 500 MT for delivery in 2009 were primarily for Japan (200 MT) and
Taiwan (200 MT). Exports of 8,300 MT were mainly to Mexico (3,200 MT),
Canada (1,600 MT), South Korea (1,500 MT), Japan (900 MT), Vietnam (300
MT), and Taiwan (300 MT).

http://www.cattlenetwork.com/Content.asp?ContentID=270338

Storm-Wracked Cuba Has Huge Housing Deficit

Storm-Wracked Cuba Has Huge Housing Deficit
Castro says 3 hurricanes wiped out 500,000 homes, causing $10 billion in
destruction

HAVANA -- The province of Pinar del Rio, affected by two of the three
hurricanes that battered Cuba in recent months, has already repaired
damage to more than 14,200 houses and provided temporary accommodations
for 14,000 families, but still has a deficit of 98,560 homes, the
Communist Party daily Granma reported Monday.

"That means that half of the population of Pinar del Rio today is
without permanent homes," the paper said in its report of a recent
meeting of local leaders in that western province of 730,000 inhabitants.

Damage caused by hurricanes dating back to 2002 in that part of the
island have contributed to the housing deficit, Granma reported.

The daily said the damage to buildings in Pinar del Rio "includes 28,818
total collapses" caused by Hurricane Gustav, which devastated Cuba's
extreme west on Aug. 30, and Hurricane Ike, which crossed the island
from east to west between Sept. 7-9.

However, among those people who lost their houses only a little more
than 200 are still living in shelters, according to provincial Communist
Party leaders, who have urged local inhabitants to trust that resources
will go where they are most needed.

Hurricanes Gustav, Ike and Paloma, which swept over the eastern part of
the island on Nov. 8, totally or partially destroyed more than a
half-million homes and - according to estimates provided last week by
President Raul Castro - caused roughly $10 billion in damage. EFE

http://www.laht.com/article.asp?ArticleId=320778&CategoryId=14510

Cuba names new foreign investment minister

Cuba names new foreign investment minister
www.chinaview.cn 2008-11-14 10:22:07

HAVANA, Nov. 13 (Xinhua) -- Cuban leader Raul Castro has named
Rodrigo Malmierca Diaz as the new Minister for Foreign Investment and
Economic Collaboration, replacing Marta Lomas Morales, state media
reported Thursday.

Malmierca, 52, recently completed his mission as Cuban ambassador
to the United Nations, official daily "Granma" reported.

The report did not reveal the reasons for the change, nor the new
post Lomas will take up.

Malmierca has served as vice minister, director and in other
positions in the Foreign Investment Ministry.

The ministry oversees the Cuban government's joint venture projects
with foreign companies, as well as the operation of non-governmental
organizations in the country.

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-11/14/content_10357000.htm

Wagon Pars targets €25m exports to Cuba, China

Wagon Pars targets €25m exports to Cuba, China
Tehran Times Economic Desk

TEHRAN – Iran's Wagon Pars Company has planned to export €25 million
worth of wagons to Cuba and China by the end of the current Iranian year
(March 20, 2009), the company managing director Gholamreza Razzazi said
here on Monday.

The company's exports to Cuba and China reached €19 million last
(Iranian) year, he said. This is while in the first half of the current
year, the exports hit a high of €16 million, he added.

The company has so far exported 1500 cargo wagons to Syria, Sudan, Cuba,
67 passenger wagons to Bangladesh, and 160 passenger wagon bogies to
China, Razzazi noted, Iscanews news agency reported.

He boasted that the company's products compete with those of China,
Russia, Ukraine and other target markets.

The Wagon Pars Company has the capacity to produce 80 percent of the
country's required cargo wagons and 70 percent of passenger wagons, he added

http://www.tehrantimes.com/index_View.asp?code=182229

US case highlights Cuban 'slaves' in Curaçao

US case highlights Cuban 'slaves' in Curaçao
A federal judge in Miami last month ordered a shipping firm to pay $80
million for conspiring with Cuba to abuse workers.
By Colin Woodard | Correspondent of The Christian Science Monitor

from the November 18, 2008 edition

Willemstad, Netherlands Antilles - Olivia Ocampo well remembers the
night the two Cuban workers came to her house in January 2005.

Exhausted and afraid, they had escaped from the premises of the nearby
Curaçao Drydock Company, where they said they and some 100 other Cubans
had been forced to work 112 hours a week fixing ships for three cents an
hour.

Ms. Ocampo approached the police and government authorities in
Willemstad, the capital of the Netherlands Antilles, a Dutch dependency
in the southern Caribbean, but "they just wanted to push all the trash
under the carpet and say that everything is fine," she said.

But last month, a federal judge in Miami ordered the shipyard to pay the
workers and one of their colleagues a total of $80 million in damages,
after finding it had conspired with the government of Cuba to force them
into what was, in effect, slave labor.

The case has focused a spotlight on the shadowy corners of the global
economy, where capital moves freely across borders and laborers are
sometimes forced to follow in bondage. While most cases involve abuses
committed in developing nations with poor human rights records, this
took place within the Kingdom of the Netherlands, home to the
International Court of Justice and the International Criminal Court.

"These types of violations are not out of the ordinary for the Cuban
government," says Tomas Bilbao of the Cuba Study Group in Washington,
which helped the workers bring their suit. "What's surprising is that it
happened in a dependency of the Netherlands, a country known for its
interest in human rights."

The three men testified that they had been sent to Curaçao to work off
Cuba's multimillion-dollar debt to the Curaçao Drydock Company, a
private company whose largest shareholder is the government of the
Netherlands Antilles. Their passports were seized at the airport and
they were rarely allowed to leave the shipyard complex, and only in
groups with a minder. They typically worked 15 days in a row and when
off-duty had to watch Fidel Castro's videotaped speeches.

Working conditions were perilous, they testified. One of the men,
Fernando Alonso, burned his hand while welding steel without proper
safety gear. Another, Alberto Rodriguez-Licea, broke his foot and ankle
when a rope he was dangling from snapped. The third, Luis Casanova, was
ordered to work in water and says he was shocked so severely that
electricity shot from his tongue.

"They faced the worst choice you can imagine: to continue being slaves
not knowing if they would live or die because they were being treated so
badly or to try to escape, knowing that even if they were successful it
would be horrific for their families in Cuba," says Miami-based attorney
Seth Miles, who represented the men. "Their kids have been kicked out of
school, their relatives have lost their jobs, and neighborhood gangs
harass their families."

Mr. Castro's nephew, Manuel Bequer, was a senior manager of the shipyard
at the time. He is still listed as the production manager on the
company's website.

The company has denied many of the allegations, though they admitted
that the Cuban workers' passports were seized and that their unpaid
wages were deducted from the debt Havana owed the company. After failing
to get the case thrown out on technical grounds, the firm fired their
attorneys and abandoned the case.

Reached by telephone on Oct. 20 and informed of the judge's ruling,
company spokesman Lennox Rhodes said to "call in an hour" for comment.
He did not subsequently answer his telephone or respond to frequent
phone and e-mail messages.

The company has also refused to respond to local media requests,
according to Mike Willemse, editor of the Antilliaans Dagblad newspaper.
"We understand that they will in no way pay the [damages] because they
don't have it," he said. "It's simply not there."

A spokesperson for the Netherlands Ministry of Kingdom Affairs, Mireille
Beentjes, said her government "has been concerned about the labor
circumstances" at the shipyard and had "on several occasions expressed
these concerns" to the Netherlands Antilles government.

Mr. Alonso and Mr. Casanova eventually received visas to seek justice in
US courts. All three escapees now live in Tampa, Fla.

Theirs is one of dozens of human rights cases tried in recent years
under the Alien Tort Claims Act, which allows foreign citizens to sue
foreign officials and companies in US courts for serious violations of
international law.

If the Curaçao Drydock Company ignores the judgment, they will find it
hard to do business with US firms or the Miami-based cruise ship lines,
Mr. Miles says. "Good corporate citizens generally don't do business
with bad actors," he says. "They would not want to be associated with a
company that not only employs slave labor, but ignores US court judgments."

http://www.csmonitor.com/2008/1118/p07s01-wogn.html