Vol. 20, No. 11 November 2012

In the News Little change in U.S. Cuba policy likely despite Obama re-election, say experts Trail of destruction Hurricane Sandy ranks among the worst BY ANA RADELAT president of the Inter-American Dialogue. Others, who advocate new openings to the storms of the past 100 years ...... Page 3 he so-called ‘‘status quo” election may also mean status quo regarding U.S. policy on Castro regime, told CubaNews that progress can T be made even without Cuba releasing the 63- Cuba, analysts told CubaNews. USAID under fire On Nov. 6, voters re-elected President Barack year-old Maryland man. Cuba bashes pro-democracy programs as Obama, kept the Senate in Democratic hands “I think there will be changes, but they would and maintained a robust Republican majority in be slow,” said Wayne Smith, the first head of the Gross family sues employer ...... Page 4 U.S. Interests Section in Cuba, established dur- the House. That’s good news for those who ing Jimmy Carter’s presidency. want to ease the embargo. Republican challen- Political briefs Smith suggested the United States resume bi- ger Mitt Romney had promised that if elected, lateral talks and remove Cuba from the State Number of Cuban migrants hit high in ‘12; he’d bring back Bush-era restrictions on travel Department list of countries that support terro- UN condems embargo 188-3 ...... Page 5 and remittances to Cuba. rism (the only others on that list are Iran, Sudan And the good news for those who support the and Syria). Smith said such overtures might embargo is that there’s little chance of any more open the door to talks about Gross’s release. Azcuba in J-V openings to Cuba. The Obama administration But the White House sees no urgency to go Sugar Ministry to make electricity in ven- says it’ll make no new overtures unless Cuba beyond the policy changes it made during ture with Havana Energy Ltd...... Page 6 releases Alan Gross, a U.S. Agency for Interna- Obama’s first term — an easing of Cuban- tional Development subcontractor now serving American and other U.S. travel to Cuba and an a 15-year jail sentence in Havana for distributing end to some restrictions on remittances. New FDI law at last? smuggled high-tech equipment on the island. One change during Obama’s second term Cuba may sign long-awaited foreign invest- “I don’t think a lot is going to happen as long that could have an impact is the pending retire- as Alan Gross is in jail,” said Michael Shifter, ment law in December ...... Page 7 See Election, page 2

Provinces: Holguín Nickel-rich Holguín may end up as Cuba’s NGOs launch fundraising drives to help foreign-exchange salvation ...... Page 8 Hurricane Sandy’s many Cuban victims Talking to FARC BY VITO ECHEVARRÍA Cuba; in all, at least one million people live in Cuba hosts peace talks between Colombia urricane Sandy, one of the most destruc- areas affected by Sandy. Government officials are saying very little government, guerrilla group ...... Page 12 tive storms in half a century, killed 11 peo- Hple and caused immeasurable suffering about the hurricane’s impact on the Cuban eco- nomy, though it’s clear that the upcoming sugar when it tore through eastern Cuba on Oct. 24. harvest will be badly affected. Cigars, anyone? The hurricane — which also left 54 people Ex-Teledatos official Anibal Quevedo now CubaNews estimates that Sandy will knock 5% dead in Haiti and destroyed 70% of that Carib- to 8% off Cuba’s Gross Domestic Product, which hawks Cuban cigars online ...... Page 13 bean nation’s food crops — later made U.S. was supposed to grow modestly this year. In headlines because of the widespread chaos it 2009, the island’s GDP was estimated at $40.2 caused in the New York/New Jersey area. billion, which includes agriculture, industry, Business briefs But Cubans won’t forget Sandy anytime soon. transportation, etc., but excludes “social GDP” Hedge-fund manager seeks OFAC exemp- Local authorities said the hurricane’s fierce components like healthcare and education. tion to buy Cuban debt ...... Page 14 winds and flooding damaged 137,000 dwellings All three of Cuba’s three nickel plants were in Santiago de Cuba alone. hit either by high winds or intense rains that Given an average of 3.5 inhabitants per dwell- could have affected operations. CubaNews (ISSN 1073-7715) is published monthly by CUBANEWS LLC. © 2012. All rights reserved. ing, that means 480,000 people — more than the In the past, big storms have forced the sector Annual subscription: $398. Nonprofit organizations: city’s entire population — suffered at least some to close for days or weeks, with a loss of 200 $198. Printed edition is $100 extra. For editorial in- damage to their houses and apartments. tons of nickel a day. That translates into $3.3 mil- quires, please call (305) 393-8760, fax your request And that doesn’t include the city of Holguín, lion worth of nickel that isn’t produced, exclud- to (305) 670-2229 or email [email protected]. and lesser towns throughout the eastern half of See Sandy, page 3 2 CubaNews v November 2012 there’s a good chance Sen. Bob Menendez of Cuban heritage who takes a moderate Election — FROM PAGE 1 (D-NJ), an ardent opponent of the Castro stance on the embargo. ment of Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. regime, would become head of the Senate “He [García] supports Obama’s Cuba poli- Sen. John Kerry (D-MA), chairman of the International Affairs Committee. cy and his election shows a change in the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, says he Also, the top Republican on that panel, Indi- Cuban-American community,” Smith said. wants to be Clinton’s successor, but adminis- ana Sen. Richard Lugar, who pushed for open- Peters said recent economic reforms in tration officials suggest that Obama would ings to Cuba, is leaving the Senate following Cuba may prompt a positive response from prefer to nominate Susan Rice, U.S. ambassa- his primary defeat. He’ll probably be replaced Obama in his second term, telling us “the dor to the United Nations, and instead make by pro-embargo Sen. Bob Corker (R-TN). changes in Cuba are important and at some Kerry secretary of defense. Among other changes in the 113th point the administration will react to that.” However, Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) and Congress, Rep. Jeff Flake (R-AZ) — a leader But what about Alan Gross? Smith said the other Republican senators have threatened to U.S. insistence on Cuba releasing its prisoner block Rice’s confirmation because she repeat- unconditionally is “stupidity on our part.” ed disinformation — apparently given to her Peters agrees, arguing that portraying him by the CIA — about the origins of the attack as a humanitarian case — instead of someone on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, Libya. who was acting on Washington’s behalf Some say Kerry remains in the mix. The LUXNER LARRY against the Castro government — “is a for- Massachusetts senator has criticized the em- mula for keeping him in jail.” bargo as well as the USAID program that Both Smith and Peters say the U.S. should funded Gross’ activities; he also blocked fund- offer Cuba something for Gross’s release. ing for the agency’s Cuba activities. Maybe not what Havana demands — the free- But Kerry eventually released his hold on ing of four Cuban spies who remain behind the funds after USAID promised to make bars in the United States — but something. Yet 44 senators who once worked for open- small changes to that program. Rice, on the Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will step down, other hand, has said little about Cuba except ings with Cuba have sent a clear message to while Sen. John Kerry (D-MA), who wants her job, President Raúl Castro. A letter drafted by Ben to defend the embargo at the UN. is instead likely to be named secretary of defense. Robert Muse, a Washington attorney Cardin (D-MD) and Jerry Moran (R-KS) — involved in Cuba issues, said a new secretary in the anti-embargo movement on Capitol Hill both critics of the embargo — calls for uncon- of state could make changes in personnel that — has been elected to the Senate, where he ditional release of the imprisoned American. “Mr. Gross’s ongoing detention in your would please those seeking closer relations could have more influence. But another hard- between the United States and Cuba. country presents a major obstacle to any fur- line Cuban-American, Republican Ted Cruz of ther actions to improve bilateral relations,” “The time to repair relations with Cuba is Texas, will join Menendez and Marco Rubio now, not when there’s a ‘’biological solution’ the letter said. “We very much hope that you (R-FL) in the Senate. will take our concerns seriously. As we [to the Castro government],” said Muse, add- “I don’t anticipate any changes in Cuba pol- ing that any change in U.S.-Cuba policy would approach the three-year anniversary of Alan’s icy in either direction in Congress,” said Cuba imprisonment, we call on you to take action come not from Congress but from the White expert Phil Peters of the Lexington Institute.” House. “Congress is as strongly pro-embargo and grant him the belated release his situa- today as it was before the election.” Even so, some embargo foes are still opti- tion warrants.” q mistic. Smith, for example, is encouraged by the defeat of hardline exile Rep. David Rivera Washington-based journalist Ana Radelat has WHO WILL REPLACE ILEANA? covered Cuba-related issues on Capitol Hill for (R-FL) by Joe García, a Miami-born Democrat There are some notable changes, though. CubaNews since the newsletter’s birth in 1993. One reason for this is the pro-embargo US- Cuba Democracy Political Action Committee, which about $320,000 to congressional candi- HURRICANE SANDY’S TRAIL OF DESTRUCTION IN CUBA dates — many of them now freshmen law- makers from both parties. Rep. lleana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL), a Cuban- American lawmaker who for years has led the charge against any opening in the embargo, will leave her high-profile post as head of the House Foreign Affairs Committee because Republican rules term limit chairmanships. She’ll likely be replaced by Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ), who’s also a strong embargo supporter but has fewer Cuban exiles as con- stituents. Therefore, Smith would be under less pressure to seek sanctions against the government in Havana. Others vying to head the foreign affairs panel are Reps. Elton Gallegly and Dana Roh- rabacher, both of California, and Donald Man- zullo (R-IL) — all embargo hardliners. In a bitter race between incumbents, the top Democrat on the panel, Rep. Howard Ber- man, was defeated by a fellow California Dem- ocrat on the House Foreign Affairs Commit- tee, Rep. Brad Sherman. Berman, who was tepid in his support for loosening the embar- go, is likely to be replaced by Rep. Eliot Engel (D-NY), an embargo supporter. And if Kerry goes to the State Department, November 2012 v CubaNews 3 provinces produce 15% of Cuba’s sugar crop. Meanwhile, humanitarian aid has been Sandy — FROM PAGE 1 Tourism also took a big hit, with Guardala- pouring in from Venezuela, while China do- ing infrastructure damage. As of Nov. 20, the vaca — Cuba’s fourth-largest tourist hub — nated $400,000 in cash and Russia sent an air- Ernesto Che Guevara plant in Moa, which evacuated just as high season got underway. plane with roofing materials and some food. produces 30,000 tons of unrefined nickel plus There’s still no word on damages to beaches Help has been coming from private sources cobalt annually, was back in operation. or tourism facilities, though all hotels were in the United States as well. Bishop Leo Frade According to official sources, 24% of the shut down in the path of the advancing storm. of the Episcopal Diocese of Southeast Florida sugarcane crop in Santiago de Cuba was seri- In addition, Cuba’s electric power transmis- said his office has already sent thousands of ously damaged by Sandy, while official media sion grid was damaged. Sandy’s path roughly dollars to Cuba. in Holguín said “around 50% of standing cane paralleled the 220-kV transmission line from “Destruction of many dwellings has been was affected to one degree or another.” Santiago to Holguín — knocking down hun- considerable and some dead are among our Together, Santiago de Cuba and Holguín dreds of concrete and steel utility poles. people,” he said. “I have made an appeal to send money either to the Episcopal Relief and Development office of our church or to send money to me directly. We are concentrating on cash or check donations to quickly serve the people of Cuba.” Frade’s office is one of several U.S. NGOs lending help to Cuban victims of Sandy. Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Miami (CCADM), Caritas and Catholic Relief Services are also working together. Rachel Ramjattan, special projects coordi- nator at CCADM, said that ever since the Castro regime hiked customs duties for par- cel shipments into Cuba (the rate currently stands at $4.50/lb for most shipments over 7 lbs) “we are only accepting financial contribu- tions at this time.” Her organization, recognizing that Cuban- Americans and others may want to direct their cash contributions toward disaster vic- tims, has set up a website toward that effort, while simultaneously running a separate one for those elsewhere.

HAVANA OFFERS SUBSIDIES, LOANS TO VICTIMS Along with Catholic and Episcopal groups, Nashville-based Baptist Global Response is also providing assistance to Cuba. “We have great partners on the ground in Cuba who were able to mobilize within the first few hours. These partners are the Cuban Baptist churches themselves,” said Jeff Palmer, executive director of BGR. “Currently, we have released a little over $100,000. We have not received many dona- tions at this time for Cuba. These funds have come out of our disaster relief funds that we have on hand and are not recent donations.” Despite the Cuban customs expense that BGR will likely incur in shipping material goods to the island, it’s proceeding with such plans anyway. “We are working on mobilizing a shipment of roofing materials as well,” said Palmer. “This is still in the works.” Meanwhile, one U.S. charity group is directing its fund drive at the largest city in eastern Cuba. “MEDICC, along with Global Links, has launched a joint humanitarian campaign to send relief to Santiago de Cuba,” explained Jeannie Barbieri-Low of Medical Education Cooperation with Cuba in Decatur, Ga. “We are trying to raise an initial $25,000. We are reaching out to other groups like the Center for Democracy in the Americas, and mostly through the media at this point.” In addition to U.S. aid groups, Canada’s Pri- See Sandy, page 11 4 CubaNews v November 2012 US-CUBA RELATIONS Cuba once again bashes USAID pro-democracy programs BY TRACEY EATON boost the flow of information “to, from and in their objectives and are often counter-pro- uba’s Foreign Ministry is accusing U.S. within the island.” ductive to anyone associated with them.” diplomats of establishing “illegal Inter- Most Cubans do not have Internet access As for Internet access, she had this to say: Cnet centers” in Havana as part of a broa- and the government controls most print and “I find myself so conflicted: on the one der effort to build an opposition movement. broadcast media on the island. USAID pro- hand, I believe the Internet and other modes State Department spokeswoman Victoria vides laptops, mobile phones, USB drives and of mass communication should not be kept Nuland, speaking to reporters Nov. 2 in Wash- other equipment to independent civic, social from the public, and that no extenuating cir- ington, replied: “We are absolutely guilty of cumstance can justify any nation withholding those charges. The U.S. Interests Section in such tools from its citizens. Havana does regularly offer free courses in “On the other hand, I’m not sure that for- using the Internet to Cubans who want to sign eign government intervention is the best way to address this problem.”

up. We also have computers available for Cu- LUXNER LARRY bans to use. Obviously this wouldn’t be neces- USAID didn’t say exactly how the New Am- sary if the Cuban government didn’t restrict erica Foundation would use the grant money, access to the Internet and prevent its own cit- and foundation spokeswoman Clara Hogan izens from getting technology training.” didn’t answer an email requesting comment. Congress set aside $55 million for democ- In August 2011, the State Department racy-promotion programs in Cuba for fiscal awarded the New America Foundation a two- years 2009 through 2011. USAID handled year $1.4 million grant to manage a project called Open Internet Tools, or OpenITP, nearly $31 million of that, and the State USASpending.gov records show. Department managed the rest. U.S. Interests Section in Havana helps dissidents. OpenITP supports free, open-source soft- On Nov. 1, Cuba complained that U.S. diplo- ware projects that help get around censorship mats manage these programs from USINT- and political groups in Cuba. As part of the agency’s democracy-building and digital surveillance. Havana as part of a “regime change” strategy, These projects include the Briar project, and that “the USIS has continued illegal activ- campaign, it awarded a three-year $4.3 million grant to the New America Foundation’s Open which says it is building “a news and discus- ities that have nothing to do with the func- sion platform that will enable journalists, tions of a diplomatic mission.” Technology Institute in September. That surprised Anya Landau French, who activists and civil society groups in authoritar- It added that American officials are train- ian countries to communicate without fear of ing, financing and supplying individuals “in directs the foundation’s U.S.-Cuba Policy Initi- ative, which opposes U.S. economic sanctions government interference.” flagrant violation of the Vienna Convention on USAID does not release full details of its Diplomatic Relations, of Cuban law and the against Cuba and favors engagement. “I’m not involved in any USAID grants, and Cuba programs, citing the need to protect agreement itself that led to the establishment employees, contractors and aid recipients. of the U.S. Interests Section.” I frankly don’t want to be,” she wrote. “I think The agency’s website listed the New USAID says its intent is to give Cubans the I’m pretty clearly on record in my belief that America Foundation as a grant recipient in tools to “freely determine their future” and USAID’s programs in Cuba have largely failed September. By November, the foundation no longer appeared in the listing, which showed the agency’s current Cuba partners — and Gross family sues DAI, U.S. government grant amounts — as follows: lan Gross, jailed in Cuba for “crimes based Federal Insurance Co. — part of the n Foundation for Human Rights in Cuba: against the state,” sued the U.S. govern- Chubb insurance group — in Maryland Dis- $3.4 million from Sept. 2011 to Sept. 2014. Ament and the company that hired him trict Court, Gross and his wife said FIS “has n Grupo de Apoyo a la Democracia: $3 mil- for $60 million on Nov. 16, blaming them for wrongfully refused benefits” under what the lion from Sept. 2012 to Sept. 2015. his imprisonment and not warning him about suit cited as “a wrongful detention” clause. n International Relief and Development: $3.5 million from Sept. 2011 to Sept. 2014. the risks he faced, Reuters reported. The Department of Justice did not respond to the lawsuit. “The case is being reviewed,” n International Republican Institute: $3 Gross, 63, is serving a 15-year sentence for million from Sept. 2012 to Sept. 2015. giving Internet gear to Cubans under a USAID spokesman Charles Miller told Reuters. Gross, a development worker, went to Cuba n Loyola University: $3 million from Sept. program that Cuba views as subversive. 2010 to Sept. 2013. In the lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in five times as a subcontractor for DAI, which had a contract with the USAID. He has said he n National Democratic Institute: $2.3 mil- Washington, Gross and his wife, Judy Gross, lion from Sept. 2011 to Sept. 2014. allege that his employer, Maryland-based De- went to Cuba only to help the island’s Jewish community, not for political purposes. n Pan-American Development Foundation: velopment Alternatives Inc., and the U.S. gov- $3.9 million from Sept. 2011 to Sept. 2014. ernment “failed to disclose adequately to Mr. Since his detention, Gross’ wife said he had lost 100 lbs, was battling chronic arthritis pain n New America Foundation: $4.3 million Gross, both before and after he began travel- from Sept. 2012 to Sept. 2015. ing to Cuba, the material risks that he faced and had what could be a cancerous tumor beneath his shoulder blade. His daughter and Cuban officials promised to continue fight- due to his participation in the project.” elderly mother both have cancer. ing U.S. government-financed programs. The suit also says DAI and the government “What is mind-boggling is that this never “Cuba will not give ground to interference,” “failed to take adequate measures” to train should have come to pass,” said Scott Gilbert, the Foreign Ministry vowed in a statement, and protect Gross on his trips to Cuba, and lead counsel of Gilbert LLP. “The destruction “and will use every legal means at its disposal that they “ignored Mr. Gross’ repeated secu- of this family is the direct result of a project to defend its hard-fought sovereignty and rity concerns so that DAI could continue to approved, overseen and administered by DAI make ensure that the Cuban people and the generate significant revenue and the govern- and our government that was flawed from country’s laws are respected. q ment could continue to use Mr. Gross as a conception and pursued with complete disre- Tracey Eaton, former Havana bureau chief of pawn in its overall Cuba policy initiatives.” gard for Mr. Gross’ safety and well-being. It is the Dallas Morning News, now lives in St. Augus- In a separate lawsuit against New Jersey- an utter disgrace.” q tine, Fla., and writes occasionally for CubaNews. November 2012 v CubaNews 5 POLITICAL BRIEFS U.S. SEES JUMP IN CUBAN MIGRATION DURING 2012 More than 13,000 undocumented Cuban mi- In their own words … grants reached the United States or were inter- “Now we know why Mitt Romney released a last-minute campaign ad in South cepted en route during fiscal 2012, which ended Florida trying to link Hugo Chávez and Fidel Castro to Barack Obama. It was Sept. 30, reports Miami’s El Nuevo Herald. desperation. Romney knew he had to stave off the biggest surprise of the presi- The figure reflects a sharp surge in the number dential election in Florida: Nearly half of Miami-Dade’s Cuban-American voters of undocumented Cuban migrants arriving, or decided to stick with the president.” seeking to arrive in the United States. The figure — Miami New Times, in a Nov. 12 column, noting that President Obama won 53% of is the largest in the last three fiscal years. the Cuban-American vote, compared to 47% for Romney — even though an Oct. 28 Between 2009 and 2011, the average annual poll by the Miami Herald had said 76% of Cuban-Americans would back Romney. number of Cuban migrants arriving or trying to arrive hovered at 7,500. Not since 2008 had the “Republicans and Democrats, we need to compromise — yes, compromise. number of undocumented migrants leaving the We need to put politics and rhetoric aside, and focus on what really matters.” island for the United States exceeded 10,000. In 2008, the number of Cuban migrants who — Joe García, a Democrat who defeated fellow Cuban exile Rep. David Rivera (R-FL) reached U.S. soil or were intercepted en route by a 54% to 43% margin and will now represent Florida’s 26th District in Congress. stood at 16,260. These Cuban migrants leave without U.S. visas. Annually, the U.S. Interests “The number of Cuban-Americans going for Obama were shocking to us, and Section in Havana issues 20,000 visas to Cuban we have been studying this section of electorate for more than 30 years. For nationals, who are counted separately. Republicans, this must be very sobering, because in a quick, dramatic shift, your Cuba experts generally attribute the post-2008 most reliable base of Hispanics in the GOP are suddenly not there.” drop in arrivals to the U.S. economic crisis and — Fernando Amandi, managing partner at Miami-based survey group Bendixen & better Coast Guard interdiction methods. Amandi International, telling the Washington Post his views on the Nov. 6 election.

ANTI-EMBARGO RESOLUTION PASSES UN 188-3 “I’d love to travel and have the opportunity to see the world, but how can I In an annual ritual that surprised nobody, the afford the flight? I’ve got no chance. It’s almost impossible.” UN overwhelmingly approved a resolution Nov. — Havana fisherman Vladimir Maiquil, commenting on Cuba’s new emigration policy. 13 condemning the U.S. trade embargo of Cuba. The lopsided vote was 188 in favor and three “Look, our Cuba policy is generated towards creating better ties with the (United States, Israel and Palau) against. In addi- Cuban people outside of the government. You know our concerns about the tion, two tiny Pacific island states — Micronesia Cuban government. Our policy remains the same. It’s not going to change” and the Marshall Islands — abstained. Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez said — State Department spokesman Mark C. Toner, at a Nov. 13 briefing following the the Obama administration’s “persistent tighten- United Nations’ 188-3 vote to condemn the U.S. embargo of Cuba (see item at left). ing” of the embargo was a disgrace. Speaking for Washington, State Department of- “The Castro brothers’ latest efforts to bolster their tyrannical rule through oil ficial Ronald Godard accused Havana of seeking revenues was unsuccessful as Venezuelan state oil company PDVSA admitted “to identify an external scapegoat for the island’s failure and closed its oil exploration operations off the coast of Cuba. However, economic problems when they are principally we must stay vigilant as the Cuban regime is continuing its futile search for oil caused by the economic policies the Cuban gov- in coordination with Russia’s state-run oil company, Zarubezhneft.” ernment has pursued for the past half century.” — Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL), chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee in a Nov. 5 statement following PDVSA’s revelation that its exploratory well came up dry. CUBAN BANK LINKED TO FLA. MEDICARE SCANDAL A South Florida money-laundering network “The lack of medical clarity given to Mr. Gross by the Cubans has been caus- secretly transferred more than $30 million in ille- ing him severe mental anxiety for six months and counting. As time goes on, gal Medicare profits through a remittance firm and depending on the severity of his illness, the denial of medical care will sure- with shell companies in not only Canada and ly amount to torture.” Trinidad, but also in Mexico, Hispanic Business — Jared Genser, Washington lawyer for imprisoned USAID subcontractor Alan Gross, reported Nov. 6, quoting court records. in a Nov. 12 letter to Juan Mendez, the United Nations’ special rapporteur on torture. Kirian Vega, 35, who owned Ozain Pharmacy in another person’s name, billed more than $600,000 “The U.S. government sent him there, they sent him on a project, and they in false claims to the taxpayer-funded Medicare need to take responsibility for getting this man home.” program and received about $400,000. — According to the plea agreement, Vega admit- Judy Gross, in a Nov. 10 phone interview with Reuters. ted he used a Florida check-cashing store to laun- der $124,000 of the tainted proceeds in 2009 “I think it is probably unlikely that any significant change can occur as long as through the shell companies of the offshore the Cubans continue to have Alan Gross in jail, and the Cuban regime probably remittance company, Caribbean Transfers. knows that. The regime says it wants to end the blockade, but every time there Court documents show that money was wired has been a U.S. administration that would move toward normalizing relations, to Turismo dos Polos in Mexico, which trans- they do something that makes it politically difficult to move in that direction.” ferred a portion — $45,000 — to another shell — Ian Vasquez, Cuba expert at the Cato Institute, quoted in the Los Angeles Times. company, Communications Sophie, in Trinidad. That money was then sent to an unidentified “The embargo is the longest-lasting failure in U.S. foreign policy history.” travel agency in Cuba, records show. — Peter Kornbluh, director of the Cuba Documentary Project at the National Security That revelation came to light in the case of a Archive, speaking Nov. 13 on the Al Jazeera TV network’s “Inside Story.” now-convicted check-cashing store owner who Also on the show with Kornbluh were CubaNews editor Larry Luxner and was first believed to be at the center of the case. former State Department official José Cárdenas, a pro-embargo consultant. It marked the first time investigators traced taint- ed Medicare proceeds to Cuba’s state-run bank. 6 CubaNews v November 2012 FOREIGN TRADE U.K. company partners with Azcuba in electricity venture avana Energy Ltd. and state-run sugar has the potential to be a “valuable asset.” subsidiary, Compañía de Obras en Infraes- entity Azcuba have signed a joint ven- The idea: to reduce Cuba’s dependence on tructura (COI), was expected to sign the Hture to build a 30-megawatt biomass fossil fuels by boosting renewable energy agreement sometime in early November. COI power generation plant at Ciro Redondo — a sources and providing electricity to areas has been working in Cuba for several years sugar mill 400 kilometers east of Havana. which currently have weak supply. building new port facilities at Mariel. The venture between Havana Energy and Andrew Macdonald, CEO of Havana Ener- “Under the agreement, we will manage the Zerus SA, a unit of Azcuba is the first ever in gy, said “generating low-carbon energy, sav- mill for 13 years, upgrade it and bring in new this sector. It’ll develop the pilot plant at Ciro ing on diesel, producing more sugar, clearing machinery for the harvest and cane transpor- Redondo while the agreement extends to four tation,” an Odebrecht source told Reuters. future facilities, said a company press release. “We start next week for this harvest that Brian Wilson, chairman of Havana Energy begins in December.” and a former U.K. energy minister, told Last year, Cuba accounted for 1.4 million reporters his company will invest $45 million tons, or less than 1%, of the 170 million tons of to $55 million in the pilot plant, with power sugar produced worldwide. According to Reu- generation at Ciro Redondo to begin by 2015. ters, “talks between potential sugar investors “I have a longstanding personal commit- and the government have come and gone for ment to normalizing commercial relations years, with few results. At least three other with Cuba, and I hope that this joint venture companies are negotiating management will encourage other British companies to agreements, according to two different com- take an interest in the country,” said Wilson. pany representatives.” “It is exactly three years since the concept British, Cuban partners toast new energy venture. Hipolito Rocha, general director of Brazil’s of this project was formed. It is a tribute to the export promotion agency in Cuba, said $60 Cuban authorities that we have reached this marabú from fertile land, employing people — million will be invested in the pilot project. point within a reasonable time while allowing [this project] provides multiple value and for Cuba was once the world’s biggest sugar them to ensure that all their own legitimate all concerned is a privilege to work on.” exporter, with raw output reaching 8.1 million interests and objectives are safeguarded.” The venture was unveiled as Brazilian con- tons in 1989. This year, state-run Azcuba says The power plant will be fueled partly from glomerate Odebrecht SA said it will soon it hopes to produce 1.68 million tons, rising to bagasse waste from the sugar mill during the begin managing a sugar mill — marking the maybe 2.4 million tons by 2015. harvest season, and marabú — an invasive first time that industry is ready to accept for- Details: Johnny Considine, Havana Energy weed that covers large areas of the country eign participation since the 1959 revolution. Ltd., Hotel Comodoro #892, Calle 3ra y 84, Mir- — for the rest of the year. Wilson said marabú Reuters reported Nov. 7 that an Odebrecht amar, Ciudad de Habana. Tel: +34 661 395327. FIHAV lures British firms hoping to cash in on Cuba trade BY VITO ECHEVARRÍA just over £6 million in 2010, and consisted mitment and readiness to boost bilateral trade arlier this month, Cuba hosted its 30th mainly of cigars, rum, unrefined sugar, lubri- and investment,” said Tim Cole, the British annual International Havana Trade Fair cants and honey. ambassador to Cuba, speaking at FIHAV. E(FIHAV), a crucial event dominated by The British delegation at FIHAV — consist- Days before that event, Cole told Caribbean major trading partners such as Venezuela, ing mainly of companies based in London and News Digital: “We want to promote British China, Brazil and Spain. the country’s southeastern region — includ- investment in Cuba, based on mutually prof- ed the following entities: itable deals and commitments. We know that This year, however, 20 firms from Great n Advance Engineering Ltd., Europe’s there are companies from our country with Britain — a country not known for showcas- largest manufacturer of chemicals for air con- [billions of pounds] to invest in Cuba. There ing itself at Cuban trade fairs — took part in ditioning and refrigeration systems. are four companies interested in building golf the Nov. 4-10 event, including high-profile n Atlantic Service Co., manufacturer of courses, and there are others involved in names like Castrol and Havana Holdings. handsaw blades and handsaws for the meat biotechnology.” Other British companies with exhibits at and fishing industries. Cole also said he wants to see British beef FIHAV were Ceiba Investments and Esencia n BSP International Foundations Ltd., certified in Cuba so that it can be cleared for (both previously profiled by CubaNews) as makers of construction equipment. sales into that market — which would explain well as Havana Energy, Cuban Investments n Canterbury Christ Church University, the presence of companies like Costwold Ltd., Jotun Paint, Republic Bank and South which is searching for Cuban partners to de- Fayre Ltd., EBLEX and BPEX. East London Chamber of Commerce. velop online courses in Spanish and English. Given the recent corruption cases that The British government wants to use n Conrico International Ltd. ,exporters of have ensnared British, Canadian and other FIHAV as a way to open doors for U.K. food vehicles, capital equipment and auto parts. foreign investors in Cuba, U.K. Trade & In- exporters, given that Cuba now imports up to n Costwold Fayre Ltd., consolidator of vestment — through its www.ukti.gov.uk 80% of its food requirements. British and European-made specialty and website — does warn its nationals about the For now, bilateral trade has nowhere to go gourmet food and drink products. ongoing anti-corruption campaign being but up. In 2010, British exports to Cuba came n EBLEX and BPEX, government agencies waged by Cuba’s comptroller-general, Gladys to just under £15 million — a 68% jump from that promote British beef and lamb exports. Bejerano. the £8.9 million reported in 2009, according to n Green Future Fuels, biofuel additives. It also advises entrepreneurs that “business the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. n Merlin ERD Ltd., oil-well engineering. visitors can expect to have their phones calls FCO’s statistics don’t include trade done n Mini B Ltd., scuba-diving equipment. and emails monitored [by the Cuban govern- through third countries like Spain, meaning n The King of Shaves Co. Ltd., manufac- ment], but so long as [they] operate in an such figures could actually be higher. turer of male grooming products. appropriate manner, this should not present In turn, Cuba’s exports to Britain totaled “The trade delegation underlines our com- barriers to doing business in Cuba.” q November 2012 v CubaNews 7 FOREIGN TRADE Cuba may sign long-awaited investment law next month BY DOMINGO AMUCHASTEGUI many attractions. The lack of FDI not only keeps jobs away or decades, the Castro government has For years, government constraints, bureau- but also hurts Cuba’s foreign trade picture. been pushing foreign investment for cratic regulations, a weak economy and The island cannot diversify its exports unless Fthree obvious and “official” reasons: it Fidel’s well-known hostility to FDI stood as a capital and technology is made available; as a provides capital, technology and markets. gigantic firewall that prevented — with very result, exports are stagnating. Add to that a fourth benefit: jobs. few exceptions — any significant develop- Last year, Cuban exports rose by 20%, ac- Yet in an economy starving for jobs, for- ment from taking place. cording to Antonio Carricarte, vice-minister eign investment has been something of a dis- Cuba’s decision to freeze investors’ bank of foreign trade and investments, and former appointment — providing employment for accounts in the aftermath of the 2008 reces- chairman of Cuba’s Chamber of Commerce. less than 3% of Cuba’s workforce. sion went down badly — leading investors That was largely due to medical services When the island’s new Investment Law such as French oil giant Elf Aquitaine, Dutch- (up 27% from 2010 figures), tourism (up 13%) (Law #77) was passed in 1995, the goal was to British consumer products giant Unilever, and medical supplies (up 11%). Together, promote foreign investments — including Israel’s Grupo BM and others to close their these three represented 80% of Cuba’s total free-trade zones and industrial parks — and Cuba operations. exports. The remainder consisted of traditio- not just via state-to-state agreements but also In addition, corruption scandals involving nal goods like nickel, sugar, tobacco and rum. foreign direct investment (FDI). foreign investors as well as top Cuban offi- Five nations — Venezuela, China, Canada, The new law even contemplated offering cials who have since been jailed contributed Spain and the Netherlands — account for 70% foreigners 100% ownership in ventures. As to an atmosphere of distrust and gloom. of Cuba’s foreign markets, said Carricarte; such, Cuba signed foreign investment protec- Venezuela alone buys 40% of Cuba’s exports. tion treaties with more than 50 countries, and RESISTANCE TO FDI SLOWLY FADING AWAY According to other sources, Venezuela, passed legislation extending land-lease Nevertheless, President Raúl Castro’s cur- China, Canada, Spain, Brazil and the United arrangements for up to 99 years. rent process of economic reforms have put States accounted for $9.68 billion in imports But the fact is that almost 15 years later, not the issue back into the limelight. Chapter III and $4.18 billion in exports in 2010. one significant project that’s 100% foreign- of last year’s Lineamientos [guidelines] adopt- owned has been established in Cuba — while ed by the Communist Party of Cuba con- NEW ENERGY VENTURES GENERATE INTEREST free zones and industrial parks essentially tained 44 items on foreign investment. Cuban experts and foreign observers have remain dreams on a piece of paper. One and a half years later, a new invest- been urging the government for years to Publicly and privately, Fidel Castro has ex- ment law has yet to be adopted — but that diversify trade and reduce the island’s pressed his opposition to Law 77. Even the may finally happen in December, during the dependence on Venezuela. official promise to provide answers to foreign winter session of Cuba’s National Assembly. One way to do this is increase business ties proposals and offers within 60 days was never After so many negative experiences, what with the so-called BRIC countries — Brazil, kept, despite many complaints from potential accounts for this new delay in adopting legis- Russia, India and China — but so far, the lat- investors that were routinely ignored. lation aimed at luring foreign investors and ter three have been extremely reluctant to The usual economic and political obstacles improving Cuba’s overall economic situation? commit to major investments in Cuba, with major investors find in Third World countries Again, all fingers point to Fidel and his the exception of the oil industry. are also found in Cuba, despite the island’s resistance to globalization. The limited number of markets, exportable goods and trading partners — as well as Cuba’s growing trade deficit, directly reflect- ed in the balance of payments and Cuba’s for- Zarubezhneft to drill off northern Cuba eign debt — should at last convince the lead- ussian state oil company Zarubezh- “It’s an important investment, but it’s an ership to treat the subject with urgency and neft will spend close to $126 million on investment in the future,” Stepashin said, transparency. Rnear-shore exploration off north-cen- according to RIA Novosti, before meeting The coming new investment law likely to tral Cuba that’ll begin in December, report- with Raúl Castro. Both expressed confi- be adopted in December will show how much ed , quoting the Russian dence, said the Russian news service. that leadership has learned from its many CubaStandard.com past mistakes. news service rt.com. “We hope that in a fourth intent, follow- The Songa Mercur, a Soviet-built and ing three failed ones, we will see ‘big oil’,” Meanwhile, a few major foreign firms have Norwegian-owned semi-submersible, ar- the Russian official said, referring to explo- made headlines. These include Brazilian conglomerate Ode- rived Nov. 15 in Cuban waters from Trini- ratory drilling this year by the Scarabeo 9 platform. “This would be of enormous help brecht SA, which is not only revamping the dad & Tobago, Russian Comptroller Sergei Port of Mariel west of Havana but has also Stepashin confirmed. to the Cuban economy and a step ahead in our relations, as well as a response to the won a contract to manage the 5 de Septiem- Several Russian and Cuban officials visit- bre sugar mill near Cienfuegos. The deal ed the platform including Stepashin, Zaru- defenders of the [U.S. embargo].” reported that the Son- involves an initial investment of $60 million. bezhneft CEO Nikolay Brunich and the CubaStandard.com The Cuban government has also signed a Russian envoy to Cuba, Mikhail Kamyshin ga Mercur is owned by Oslo-based Songa joint venture with Britain’s Havana Energy Zarubezhneft chartered the semi-sub- Offshore AS. The shallow-water rig, built in Ltd. to generate electricity from sugarcane mersible for 325 days to drill in Block L, the 1989 and updated in Galveston, Texas, in biomass and marabú, a weed that has ren- easternmost of four blocks the company 2007, can drill in depths of up to 1,200 feet. dered much of Cuba’s arable land useless In contrast, the Scarabeo 9 — used by (see leased in 2009. It’s located off the keys of . q Villa Clara province, near Cayo Santa Mar- Spain’s Repsol, Malaysia’s Petronas and related story, page 6 of this issue) ía, a new beach tourism destination Cuba Venezuela’s PDVSA in Cuba — can drill in Former Cuban intelligence officer Domingo has been developing over the past 10 years. depths up to 12,000 feet. It was custom-built Amuchastegui contributed to this story. Amuchas- The first exploration results, according to in China and Singapore with minimal U.S. tegui writes regularly for CubaNews on the Com- Stepashin, will be announced in May. content, to comply with U.S. sanctions. munist Party, Cuba’s internal politics, economic reform and South Florida’s large exile community. 8 CubaNews v November 2012 GEOGRAPHY Provinces: Nickel-rich Holguín may be Cuba’s FX salvation BY ARMANDO H. PORTELA This is the third in a series of monthly arti- INFRASTRUCTURE olguín is one of the five provinces cles on Cuba’s 15 provinces by cartographer The Central Highway and the Central established in 1976 by splitting up the Armando H. Portela, who has a Ph.D. in geo- Railroad link Holguín with the rest of Cuba, Hformer province of Oriente. The others graphy from the Soviet Academy of Sciences. and a dense network of secondary roads and are Las Tunas, Granma, Santiago de Cuba railroad branches reaches all settlements and and Guantánamo. relatively easy to mine, but at the same time economic hubs. The transport infrastructure Located on Cuba’s northeastern coast, Hol- strip mining causes extensive, devastating is said to be in very poor shape. guín is the fourth-largest province in Cuba, and virtually irreversible environmental The ports of Moa and Nicaro export all of covering 9,215.7 square kilometers (3,559.7 destruction to the zone’s dense forests — a Cuba’s nickel, while Antilla, on Nipe Bay, square miles). Its territory -- a combination of combination of pine groves and rainforests ships around 3% of Cuba’s sugar exports. The cultivated fertile lowlands and densely forest- that shelter a large and unique wildlife. province is served by Frank País Internation- ed mountains — is superbly endowed with al Airport, which is growing annually as more natural resources. POPULATION tourists arrive from Europe and Canada. The thinly populated uplands rise to a top With 112.6 inhabitants per floor of 900-1,200 meters (2,950-3,900 feet) sq km, Holguín is one of above sea level, interrupted by smooth flat Cuba’s most densely popu- basins and gentle valleys where sugar cane, lated provinces. In 2011, its plantains and other edible vegetables are population was estimated at grown and where most of the population lives. 1,037,833, or about 9.2% of The highest point is Pico del Cristal, rising Cuba’s total 11.28 million. 1,231 meters (4,038 feet) at Sierra del Cristal, The provincial capital, southeast of the town of Mayarí. also called Holguín, has To the east lie the mountains of Sierra de 276,839 residents, making it Nipe, Sierra Cristal and Sierra de Moa, which Cuba’s fourth-largest city. mainly consist of large bodies of serpen- Other key provincial cities tinites, peridotites and other ultrabasics cov- are Moa (57,652), Banes ered with lateritic weathering crusts that (34,452), Mayari (29,027), range from 15 to 80 feet in thickness. San Germán (24,699) and Nickel, Holguín’s main natural resource, is Sagua de Tánamo (23,641). also one of Cuba’s most important sources of Due to persistent emigra- foreign exchange, along with remittances. tion, the province lost 24,947 Nickel is found here in 0.8% to 1.4% concen- residents between 2007 and trations in silicated-oxidized ores including 2011. During that time, Hol- large concentrations of brown iron ore and guín’s population grew at an cobalt. Ore reserves are estimated at 800 mil- annual rate of only 0.27%, lion tons, roughly 37% of world reserves. meaning provincial growth These vast superficial nickel deposits are has virtually stagnated. November 2012 v CubaNews 9

Frank País International Airport in Holguín (top); sign at entrance to state-run Cubaniquel operation in Moa. yields neared 45 tons of sugarcane per hectare, which translates into Holguín — FROM PAGE 8 5 tons of raw sugar per hectare. In 2012, after having abandoning the poorest fields, Holguín pro- AGRICULTURE vince saw yields of 36 tons/ha, or 3.6 tons/ha of raw sugar. Sugar is, by far, the province’s most important crop, even after the Holguín also accounts for 5-10% of all coffee grown in Cuba. Coffee 2002 downsizing of the industry, which left Holguín with only five plantations here have the highest yields on the island, which 610 active mills out of 10 that existed before. pounds of green beans per hectare (82 quintales per caballería). Even The remaining sugar mills are Fernando de Dios (formerly Tacajó), so, this is well below the 900 pounds per hectare (120 qq/caballeria) Loynaz Hechevarría (formerly Alto Cedro), near Cueto; Ramón López regularly attained before the 1959 revolution. Peña (formerly Báguanos); Cristino Naranjo (formerly Cacocum) and Urbano Noris (formerly San Germán), the largest in the province. INDUSTRY This year’s output of 151,000 tons made Holguín the second-largest Nickel is now by far the leading industry in Cuba, and it is all locat- sugar producer in Cuba after Villa Clara, and represented a discrete ed in Holguín province. In the past few years, output has declined in growth from 116,000 tons in 2011 — but that’s barely 20% of the aver- spite of relatively healthy world market prices. In 2010, the last year age 700,000 tons produced by the province annually in the late 1980s. for which statistics are available, Holguín produced 69,694 metric In 1999, the province still yielded 412,000 tons of raw sugar but back then production costs were nightmarish and Holguín’s mills ranked tons of unrefined nickel — down from 70,016 tons in 2009 and 8% among the costliest in Cuba. At prevailing world raw sugar market lower than the 75,642 tons produced in 2005. prices, Holguín’s 2011-12 harvest was worth about $80 million, com- Nickel is now Cuba’s top export earner, generating an export value pared to $380 million in the late 1980s. in excess of $1.52 billion in 2010, with nearly all output destined for Production for the 2012-13 harvest was projected at 180,000 tons of Canada, Europe and China. raw sugar, but Hurricane Sandy, which tore through the province in Two of these plants were built by U.S. companies: René Ramos late October, has seriously dampened expectations. Latour (formerly Nicaro Nickel Co.) in 1943, and Pedro Soto Alba As for the rest of Cuba, agricultural yields have been the Achilles’ (formerly Moa Nickel Co.), which began production in 1960. heel behind the problems facing the sugar sector. In the late 1980s, See Holguín, page 10

Vacationers work on their tans at Guardalavaca, one of Cuba’s longest unspoiled white-sand beaches; an ancient 1940s private taxi chugs along a street in Moa. 10 CubaNews v November 2012

Holguín — FROM PAGE 9 The much newer Che Guevara plant was fin- ished in 1986 in Moa with Soviet technology, but was radically refurbished later on. Construction of a fourth plant at Las Camariocas, near Moa, was halted in 1991, after it was 85% complete; the project was GOOGLE MAPS/LANDSAT completely abandoned in 2000. This old project is now being revamped by Ferroniquel SA, a Cuban-Venezuelan joint venture founded in 2007 to transform the orig- inal Soviet-made project into a stainless steel plant with annual capacity of 68,000 tons. The $1.1 billion plant should be running by 2013. In the past, poor efficiency has hindered the nickel industry -— mainly at the Che Guevara refinery — where over 30 tons of oil was used to produce one ton of nickel concentrate. Heavy investments in ther 1990s have suc- ceeded in cutting the fuel expenditure at this plant by half. The Pedro Soto plant, which uses an acid- HOLGUÍN BOASTS 16% OF WORLD’S NICKEL RESERVES leaching technology and is jointly operated by n terms of nickel and cobalt, Cuba’s the Cuban government with Canada’s Inortheastern mountain belt is one of Sherritt International Corp., reportedly the richest places on Earth. expends $1 to produce one pound of nickel — Reserves here in Holguín province are an excellent performance by any standard. immense. According to the U.S. Geologi- Output at a third plant, at Nicaro, has been cal Service, Cuba holds about 21 million cut to 18,000 tons per year from a nominal tons of base reserves (including minor de- capacity of 25,000 tons. posits in Pinar del Río’s Cajálbana hill and After peaking at a record high in excess of Camagüey’s San Felipe plateau), or 16% of $53,000 per ton in 2007, nickel world market the global total and 7% of all known cobalt. prices have declined to around $16,000/on, a That’s enough to last at least 280 years at current production rates — or maybe consequence of the global economic slow- Cuba has few ways of minimizing the down and China’s industrial deceleration. longer, as recycling increases and high devastation caused by strip mining, which Bleaker world prices for nickel seem to prices and new technologies make the literally annihilates the original forests. have frozen the expansion plans for Toronto- mining of lower-yielding ores profitable. These are shown in dark green or light based Sherritt at its Moa plant. A combination of geology and tropical homogenous green in the false-color satel- Untreated liquid and solid wastes, along climate has created these world-class de- lite pictures (1), leaving behind large with emissions to the atmosphere from the posits. Nickel and cobalt are found here on patches of barren lands shown in purple or nickel refining industry, produce one of the the surface, blended in a lateritic weather- red (2), which are later replanted with most severely polluted zones in Cuba. ing crust formed over serpentines and alien species, in brown hues (3). Holguín was at the heart of a vast industrial peridotitic rocks, which for millions of As new tracts are surveyed for mining development program that saw its heyday in years were exposed to hot and humid trop- (4), intense erosion washes out the clayey the 70s and 80s, but was abruptly cut after the ical weather in mesa-like low mountains sediments downstream to the seashelf (5). collapse of the Soviet bloc. and coastal hills. With 8-10 feet of rain per year on ex- The gigantic project foresaw turning the These earthy crusts reach up to 80 feet posed loose clayey sediments, erosion in province into a steel and machinery hub of thick and are extremely loose. They’ve open pits is extreme. Especially cata- impressive proportions. Long-term aspira- been held in place for hundreds of thou- strophic are intense hurricane rains that tions projected even a clone of the Soviet-built sands of years by dense rainforests that last for days. Scholars estimate that gullies Juraguá nuclear plant near Cienfuegos. are home to unique species of plants and grow at 3-5 feet per year in deforested Ironically, as with many other gargantuan animals found nowhere else in the world. lands, faster in mining zones. industries inspired by the Soviet model, the Cuban and foreign scholars alike consi- Nickel operations at Moa (6), Ernesto dream rapidly became an operational night- der these ecosystems to be among of the Guevara (7) and René Ramos (8) make mare. Fidel Castro referred to this during the most diverse in the Caribbean. Cuba one of the world’s 10 leading produ- inauguration of the 26 of July Heroes plant in But these rare landscapes sit on top of cers. Combined output at these plants has 1981: “The problem with these factories, I valuable mineral reserves, leaving no averaged 71,000 tons annually over the want to tell you, does not consist of getting other choice than to destroy the first in past five years — but to obtain that product them or building them. The main problem is order to reach the second. some 8.3 million tons of mineral ore has to to put them to work.” Nickel is the top export earner for the be processed, leaving an immense and The 60th Anniversary sugar-cane harvester impoverished Cuban economy, and con- lasting scar behind. factory, a Soviet-built project inaugurated in servation is frankly not a viable choice. – ARMANDO H. PORTELA 1977, became a national symbol. With a capa- city of over 600 combines per year (in 1989 it produced 621 combines), it was a versatile in- stallation, capable of producing a variety of spur the collapse of Cuba’s sugar industry. 26th of July mechanical plant, built by Bul- complex farm machinery and spare parts. These days, the factory makes only spare garia and opened in 1981 to complement the Yet the hundreds of KTP-1 and KTP-2 har- parts and repairs the aging KTP combines as sugarcane harvester plant and also to make vesters manufactured here proved to be too Cuba buys newer harvesters from Brazil. farm equipment and assist the steel industry. heavy, inefficient and unreliable — helping Another giant of Holguín’s industry is the See Holguín, page 11 November 2012 v CubaNews 11

FOREIGN TRADE Sandy — FROM PAGE 3 mate’s World Relief and Development Fund has made an initial pledge of $20,000, as part French consultant offers Cuba advice of the ACT Alliance fund drive for Cuban hur- ricane victims. BY VITO ECHEVARRÍA gence for his clients because of the 1996 Helms-Burton Act — and with good reason. ACT Alliance, a Swiss-based charity that resident Raúl Castro’s ongoing anti-cor- conducts humanitarian programs around the ruption campaign is boosting business Some years ago, Miami lawyer Nicolás Guti- P érrez sued an affiliate of French engineering world, is working with the Cuban Council of for one Guadeloupe-based consultant Churches to raise nearly $500,000 for Cuba. who’s been advising French and Caribbean- giant Bouygues Travaux Publics for alleged violations of Title IV of Helms-Burton. On Nov. 15, the Cuban government said it area companies since 2007 on the “dos and would offer subsidies and loans to help storm don’ts” of conducting business in Cuba. The lawsuit stemmed from construction work the company conducted for a resort in victims rebuild. The new policy lets such peo- Last year, Jean-Michel Aublet raised the Cuba on land formerly owned by the Sánchez- ple buy building materials at half-price. profile of his company, Carrera Consulting, Hill family. In 2007, Bouygues’ Cuba activities Residents of Guantánamo, Holguín and which helped structure a three-way deal to re- temporarily complicated its ultimately suc- Santiago de Cuba provinces can also ask for furbish an aging oil refinery in Cienfuegos. cessful efforts to secure a $1 billion contract bank credits to rebuild, and those who lack As noted by Reuters, that $6 billion deal in- to build the Port of Miami Tunnel Project. sufficient income can apply for further subsi- volves the Cuban-Venezuelan entity Cuven- This is exactly the type of controversy dies up to the entire cost of the materials. petrol, China Huanqui Contracting and Engi- Aublet wants to avoid for his clients, most of “The government made the decision to es- neering Corp. (a unit of the Chinese state oil whom he refrained from disclosing. tablish a subsidy of 50% of current prices for firm CNPC), and the Italian subsidiary of French trade experts like Aublet may see construction materials that will be sold to fam- French oil engineering firm Technip SA. more consulting work in the future, thanks to ilies whose homes were totally or partially It aims to boost the Soviet-built refinery’s the French government’s warming attitude destroyed,” according to an official notice capacity from 65,000 to 150,000 barrels a day. toward business with Cuba these days. The published in the Communist daily Granma. “Thanks to the actions of Carrera Consult- friendlier ties were reinforced with the De- Meanwhile, due to Havana’s onerous cus- ing, Technip signed an agreement with Cuba cember 2011 visit of French State Secretary toms duties on incoming shipments, Cuban- in the petroleum sector,” said Aublet, explain- of Foreign Trade Pierre Lellouche to Havana. American organizations that provide assis- ing that Technip will do design and engineer- During that visit, Lellouche said French ex- tance are limiting their contributions to cash. ing work, and take part in construction. ports to Cuba in 2011 came to only 121 mil- “We are referring our members to donate € through Friends of Caritas Cuba,” said Nata- Aublet is well aware of Raúl’s anti-corrup- lion, less than half the €256 million in exports tion drive but says he’s not overly concerned reported in 2000. One obstacle to stronger lia Martínez, communications director at the about it, since he insists that he steers his bilateral trade was Cuba’s 2009 cash crunch, Miami youth group Raíces de Esperanza. clients away from any conduct that could land which prevented French investors from trans- For these groups, the real obstacle in help- ing to Cuba is the constant international them in hot water with Cuban authorities. ferring nearly €60 million out of the country. Instead, Aublet focuses on compliance with media coverage devoted to Sandy’s victims in Details: Jean-Michel Aublet, Carrera Consult- the New York/New Jersey area — diverting U.S. embargo laws but doesn’t say why. One ing, Guadeloupe, F.W.I. Email: carreraconsult- explanation: he could be conducting due dili- attention away from Cuba and other islands. [email protected]. URL: www.carreraconsulting.fr. “We understand that the devastation in the northeastern U.S. could affect donations for Cuba as well as other Caribbean countries that were hard-hit,” noted BGR’s Palmer. “However, we will do what we can.” q Vito Echevarria, a New York-based freelance journalist, writes for CubaNews about business, e-commerce, the arts and entertainment. Armando Portela contributed significantly to this news story.

TOURISM — FROM PAGE 10 Holguín Overseas tourism is focused on Guardalava- This 84-acre behemoth with 732,000 square ca. With seven hotels containing 3,413 rooms, feet of roofed shops has met the same fate as it’s the No. 4 tourist hub in Cuba; other key other Cuban giant industries. beaches include Costa Verde and Esmeralda. In the late 1990s, Cuban authorities built a The five-star Meliá Río de Oro, with 292 new 100-megawatt thermal power plant in Fel- rooms, is one of the highest rated by visitors ton. Experts say it’s Cuba’s newest, most effi- in Cuba. Other large hotels include the Gavi- cient power facility — and is located close and ota Playa Pesquero (944 rooms) and Gaviota conveniently enough to Holguín’s nickel-pro- Playa Costa Verde (480 rooms). The main ducing region to save substantiallty on elec- accommodation in the city of Holguín is the tric transmission costs. three-star Hotel Pernik, with 204 rooms. q 12 CubaNews v November 2012 LATIN AMERICA Havana hosts peace talks between Colombia, FARC rebels BY DOMINGO AMUCHASTEGUI In fact, for nearly 30 years now, Cuba has Colombia’s neighbors, to regional diplomacy n Nov. 19, peace talks between the Col- contributed — either as a party to the conflict, — and to the role of Cuba in the process. ombian government and one of the old- as facilitator or as peace broker — to a num- The United States is watching closely as Oest rebel groups in Latin America, the ber of regional conflicts in which the United well, for two reasons: if they succeed, there’d 8,000-strong Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionari- States was also strongly involved. These in- no longer be any need for a Plan Colombia as de Colombia (FARC), began in Havana. clude Angola, Southern Africa, Nicaragua, El that has cost U.S. taxpayers untold billions of The goal: to reach a settlement that will end Salvador and Guatemala. dollars, with very limited results. And second- the nearly 50-year-old war while addressing Japan has also expressed its gratitude to ly, it would boost the region’s struggle against the rebels’ future, rural development and Cuba in the past — on issues ranging from the drug trafficking and violence. compensation of victims of the conflict. 1985 takeover of the Japanese Embassy in If this is indeed Cuba’s performance, then The bloodshed has cost the lives of tens of Lima by Peru’s Ejército Revolucionario Tupac how valid is the assertion that Cuba is a ter- thousands of Colombians, while millions of Amaru terrorist group, to certain démarches rorist-supporting state? people have been displaced. A recent Gallup with the government of North Korea. Apparently, it’s an assertion that’s not even poll quoted by Reuters found that 72% of Col- In the current talks, Colombian President supported by U.S. official sources. The 2008 ombians support the negotiations — but only Juan Manuel Santos has expressed hope that U.S. State Department’s Country Reports on 39% think they’ll succeed. down the road, the ELN might join in too — Terrorism said that Cuba “no longer actively The dramatic face-to-face meetings now and here Cuba’s assistance would prove supports armed struggles in Latin America underway at an undisclosed location in Hav- extremely effective. and other parts of the world.” It adds: “The ana are the culmination of preliminary talks The ELN, which like the FARC was founded United States has no evidence of terrorist- that have been going on for more than a year, in the early 1960s, has perhaps 3,000 fighters, related money laundering or terrorist financ- said Cuba’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. according to the Colombian liaison officer at ing activities in Cuba.” Cuba agreed to host the talks at the request the U.S. Southern Command, Army Col. It should be evident to all that keeping Cuba of both parties. As such, Cuba is not only the Jorge H. Romero. The ELN is in preliminary on the terrorist list — along with Iran, Sudan host but also a guarantor of the process, along talks with the Santos government about join- and Syria — is an anachronism in U.S. foreign with Norway. Venezuela and Chile also have ing the negotiations in Havana, for now its foot policy that desperately needs a reality check. representatives at the talks. soldiers continue on the warpath. Recognizing Cuba’s contribution to bringing No one denies that during the years of open The success of these talks could mean a lot peace to long-suffering Colombia would be a confrontation in the 1960s, Cuba gave materi- to Colombia’s 46 million inhabitants, to symbolic step in the right direction. q al support and military training to Colombian guerrilla groups like the Movimiento Obrero Estudiantil de Colombia (MOEC), as well as followers of populist politician Jorge Eliécer Cuban doctors generate pride, revenue Gaitán, who was assassinated in 1948, setting eople remember with love and admi- quake destroyed Port-au-Prince, Haiti, and off a wave of violence that lasted 10 years. many countries immediately organized air- Cuba has also helped the Ejército de Libera- ration Dr. Albert Schweitzer, who ded- Picated his life to improving public lifts of relief supplies to help the victims. ción Nacional (ELN), and to a much lesser health in Central Africa. But Cuban physicians, nurses and techni- extent the Movimento 19 de Abril (M-19), cians were already on the ground, having now a legal political party in Colombia. It Since the ‘60s, Cuban doctors have done the same, serving the poor from Algeria to been present in Haiti since the late 1990s. never supported the FARC because of opposi- When cholera struck Haiti in the after- tion to FARC tactics such as kidnappings and Zimbabwe. In cities and villages through- out Africa, one hears the same request: math of the January 2010 earthquake, it its links to drug traffickers. was the Cuban medical mission that detect- In July 1989, Cuba’s military court found “We want to keep the Cuban doctors.” Closer to home, Cuba sent massive med- ed the presence of this illness and notified Gen. Arnaldo Ochoa Sánchez guilty of treason Haitian authorities. after an investigation revealed he had accept- ical help to Peru in the late ‘60s after a ser- ies of natural disasters, despite Cuba’s lack Former President Bill Clinton, who’s led ed bribes from Colombian cocaine traffickers international assistance efforts to Haiti, has in exchange for letting them use Cuban terri- of diplomatic ties with Peru at the time. In 1972, after a huge earthquake de- publicly recognized Cuba’s contribution; so torial waters for drug drops and pickups. did the which published a Both Ochoa Sánchez and another officer, stroyed Managua, Cuba did not hesitate to New York Times, dispatch a team of doctors and even a hos- story on the subject in November 2011, Tony de la Guardia, were sentenced to death. under the headline “Cuba Takes Lead in After the execution, information connected to pital to the Central American capital— even though Nicaragua was then ruled by the Haiti’s Cholera Fight.” the activities of both men were shared with In recent years, from Bolivia to Pakistan, U.S. and Colombian authorities. virulently anti-communist Somoza regime. Two years later, Hurricane Fifi brought and Guatemala to Qatar, dozens of coun- More recently, the State Department has re- tries have benefitted from Cuban doctors. cognized Cuba’s cooperation in the fight considerable suffering to Honduras, and the Castro government sent help at no Some have objected, arguing that Cuba against drug trafficking (see “Is Castro’s Cuba “politicizes” the issue and that these doc- a budding narcostate? U.S. officials clearly sug- charge, despite the absence of relations between Havana and Tegucigalpa. tors are actually hurting the interests of gest otherwise,” CubaNews, April 2012, page 1). local physicians. As relations between Cuba and Colombia The same happened with Hurricane Mitch struck Honduras in 1998. When a Indeed, there’s an implicit political mes- improved, the Castro government stopped sage — that it’s a tool of Cuban diplomacy. interfering in Colombia’s domestic affairs. military coup overthrew Honduran Presi- dent José Manuel Zelaya in 2009, the But it’s legitimate, and it works. Cuba must It also agreed to act as mediator or facilitator de maximize its human resources, and in fact, in specific conflicts; its efforts have been facto authorities got rid of every form of Cuban cooperation except the doctors, who medical services today represent one of praised by several former Colombian presi- Cuba’s largest sources of hard currency. dents including Alfonso López Michelsen, nevertheless stayed on to serve the people. Belisario Betancur, César Gaviria, Andrés On Jan. 12, 2010, a 7.0-magnitude earth- See Doctors, page 13 Pastrana and Alvaro Uribe. November 2012 v CubaNews 13 E-COMMERCE Former Teledatos official now hawks Cuban cigars online BY VITO ECHEVARRÍA Canadian bricks-and-mortar retailers like Robert Sajo to launch the Havana-based por- nibal Quevedo, former director of the Casa del Habano might be worried about tal CubaWeb.cu. Cuban state-controlled e-commerce online competition. The two entrepreneurs then spun off anoth- Aventure Teledatos GET, is now selling Quevedo explains his low prices and how er site, “Quick-cash,” which offered U.S. cred- Cuban cigars online. he’s able to ship his Cuban smokes into the it-card holders at the time — including Cuban Unicoshabanos.com, based in Gibraltar United States, despite exiles in South Florida — an alternative to the embargo. grappling with the onerous restrictions im- through Intersapiens Ltd. — a corporation he posed by the U.S. Treasury Department’s set up there — offers online cigar “We’re in the Colon aficionados Free Zone,” said Que- Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) on worldwide an array of Cuban smokes, ranging Cuba-bound wire transfers sent from the from Montecristo and Partagás to Romeo y vedo, which lets him sell his Cuban cigars United States. Julieta, H. Upmann and the famed Cohiba (in- Such transactions were executed through cluding the always in demand Esplendido). without passing on taxes to overseas buy- the Ontario-based Internetsecure credit card Quevedo, a one-time Angola war veteran ers. “We ship them by clearinghouse service. This meant that a who’s an independent businessman these mail as gift parcels. Canadian entity would be listed on a U.S. days, told CubaNews the cigars themselves Canada, Brazil and credit-card statement, with no mention that are warehoused in Panama, from where he Chile are also big mar- the Quickcash transaction involved Cuba — ships to customers all over the world, includ- thereby evading OFAC scrutiny. Anibal Quevedo kets for us.” ing the United States. Quevedo wouldn’t A look at the Miami customer service tele- In fact, his prices for many cigars are com- discuss his credit-card processing structure. phone number for Unicoshabanos.com re- petitive (for example, a box of 25 Cohiba Es- However, if his past e-commerce experience veals a connection with another Cuba-themed plendidos costs $545, or $21.80 per stick). is any guide, he’s likely to use a third country website: envios.supermarket.treew.com (a That price is a fraction of what’s charged for like Canada, which is outside the jurisdiction Toronto-based online supermarket that facili- the same cigar in other countries, including of the U.S. trade embargo against Cuba, or tates shipments of groceries and other con- Canada. As confirmed by a Casa del Habano Gibraltar — a well-known European tax haven sumer products from abroad into the island). shop in Montreal, for example, tobacco and — to process credit card payments, including Like the treew.com supermarket site, sales taxes there will cost a smoker C$81 for those from U.S. customers. Quevedo is relying on word-of-mouth to drive the same cigar. That practice goes back to Quevedo’s years traffic onto his online cigar venture. q Even including shipping charges from with Teledatos GET in the late 1990s, when Panama into Canada, it’s easy to see why he partnered with Toronto e-commerce guru Cuba ag report available The Virginia-based Lexington Institute has issued a 10-page study by its vice-presi- dent, Philip Peters, entitled “Reforming Cu-

LARRY LUXNER LARRY ban Agriculture: Unfinished Business.” The report gives readers a comprehen- sive view of the current structure of Cuba’s agriculture sector — from the agrarian laws of 1959 and 1963 that socialized but did not completely collectivize Cuban agriculture, to President Raúl Castro’s latest reforms. Guidelines adopted during Cuba’s Sixth Party Congress in April 2011 allow direct food sales by producers, grant more auton- omy for UBPCs (Unidad Básica de Produc- ción Cooperativa), offer credits for farmers, grant income-tax breaks to agricultural pro- ducers and establish new stores for farm equipment, among other measures. “The goals are clear: to increase food sup- plies, cut the import bill, boost export crops Cuban epidemiologist Greta Sánchez gives an indigenous boy a yellow-fever shot in Jotashá, Paraguay. and use markets and incentives to replace a cumbersome food distribution bureaucracy. ban government — recently told his nation The steps taken so far show promise but fall — FROM PAGE 12 Doctors that the Cuban doctors “have won the hearts short of desired results,” Peters concludes. But this arguably has nothing to do with the of the Honduran people” thanks to their dedi- Agriculture, the first sector targeted for quality, professionalism and human dedica- cation and readiness to serve in the most reform, has proven one of the most difficult, tion of these Cuban doctors — individuals remote regions of Honduras. and it is clear that gradual, trial-and-error who go well beyond the call of duty as they Honduran Health Minister Arturo Bendaña changes will continue through the five-year serve countless hours in slums, villages, jun- said Cuban physicians have delivered 115,000 reform process that ends in 2015.” gles and other inhospitable places. They don’t children and have conducted 670,000 surger- Details: Phil Peters, VP, Lexington Institute, compete with local doctors because the locals ies in his country, including 47,000 vision 1600 Wilson Blvd., Suite #900, Arlington, VA have never served there to begin with. restoration procedures. 22209. Tel: (703) 522-5828. Fax: (703) 522- Honduran President Porfirio Lobo — who’s Indeed, Dr. Schweitzer would be proud. 5837. Email: [email protected]. no a leftist, liberal or sympathizer of the Cu- – DOMINGO AMUCHASTEGUI 14 CubaNews v November 2012 biles and motorcycles to electronics, medical bankrolling the effort or where it is based, BUSINESS BRIEFS equipment, hardware, cosmetics, everyday though it does warn investors “of the very items, machinery and traditional handicrafts. real dangers in doing business with a capri- FIHAV 2012 PARTICIPATION BREAKS RECORDS Prestigious brands included Zhejiang Geely, cious and arbitrary government.” On Nov. 12, Cuba wrapped up the 30th Jinbei and Beijing North Star. It adds that “economic development results Havana International Trade Fair (FIHAV Ma Keqiang, economic/trade consultant at not from the confiscation of property and 2012) — the largest of its kind in the last the Chinese Embassy in Havana, said Chi- redistribution of wealth, but rather from cre- decade — with 3,587 foreign exhibitors from na’s expanded presence at FIHAV reflects its ating a legal framework that secures title 67 countries taking part. interest in maintaining its status as Cuba’s rights to land, homes and businesses, thus Several key intergovernmental and inter- 2nd-biggest trade partner after Venezuela. making private enterprise possible.” institutional agreements were signed during Zhejiang Geely, the fastest-growing car- Details: Cuba Property Rights Initiative. URL: the week-long event, said Ricardo Cabrisas, maker in the history of China’s auto indus- www.cubaprosperity.com. vice president of the Council of Ministers. try, is exhibiting its latest models, which Cuban entrepreneurs also held talks with stand out for their comfort and bright colors. TAIWAN AS A MODEL FOR CUBA’S FUTURE companies from Venezuela, Russia, Germany The company began supplying Cuba with The University of Miami’s Cuba Transition and the European Union, he said. cars six years ago, carving a niche for its Project (CTP) has released in book form the More than a dozen companies from Cuba, minibuses and other vehicles in the Cuban proceedings from its Feb. 11, 2012, event, Brazil, Russia, China, Spain and Venezuela market, especially in the tourism sector. “Taiwan as a Model for Cuba’s Future.” received awards, as well as several products Beijing North Star, already well-known in The conference — co-sponsored by CTP including Cubay rum, Mercedes-Benz cars Cuba, is featuring its range of solar-powered and the Taiwan Foundation for Democracy and Tarapaca wine from Chile. lamps and heaters among other products. — featured Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL) Cabrisas said this year’s trade fair was held as keynote speaker. Experts invited to lec- as Cuba pursues economic reforms that will CUBA PROPERTY RIGHTS LAUNCHES WEBSITE ture included Ray Mou, director-general of help boost foreign investment. A new organization calling itself the Cuba the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in “The creation of the first Development Property Rights Initiative has been formed. Miami, Dr. Yuang-Kuang Kao, FIU’s Jorge Special Zone at the Mariel port (48 km west Its backers say the initiative “supports Salazar Carrillo, CTP Director Jaime Such- of Havana) has opened new opportunities for respect for property rights in Cuba as the licki, Dr. Hans H. Tung and Chung-Li Wu. foreign investment,” he said, noting that for- key to economic development, and opposes The 96-page free book, which contains dia- eign investments and joint ventures will any unilateral changes in U.S. economic grams, dissertations, lectures and the text of bring Cuba more capital, improved technolo- sanctions against the Cuban government several speeches, focuses on lessons Cuba gy and a better positioning of its products on until there is a satisfactory resolution to the may learn from prosperous Taiwan as it one overseas markets. thousands of property claims against Cuba day undergoes a transition to democracy. China alone sent 62 companies to FIHAV and until the property rights of foreign in- Details: Dr. Jaime Suchlicki, Cuba Transition — 22 more than last year — and they occu- vestors and Cuban citizens are guaranteed Project, University of Miami, Casa Bacardi, pied a 1,000-sq-meter exposition area. Chin- by Cuban law.” 1531 Brescia Avenue, Coral Gables, FL 33146. ese products on show ranged from automo- The website gives no indication who’s Tel: (305) 284-2822. Email: [email protected].

Hedge-fund manager seeks OFAC exemption to buy Cuba debt athan Sandler, founder of Ice Canyon, a $2 billion hedge fund Cuban debt issued in the 1970s requires unanimity of debt holders based in Los Angeles, is asking the Treasury Department’s to amend payment terms — a clause that’s nearly non-existent in NOffice of Foreign Asset Control (OFAC) for permission to sovereign debt deals done today. Once the debt was in the hands of buy defaulted Cuban sovereign debt, CNBC reported Oct. 17. a U.S. investor, OFAC would actually have legal control of them, and Sandler said getting such an exemption would not only be prof- thus could block any debt forgiveness deal if it so chooses. itable but would also serve U.S. foreign policy objectives. Yet Sandler’s biggest hurdle may be Cuban-American lawmakers. “Allowing U.S. investors to acquire Cuban debt insures U.S. inter- When asked to discuss defaulted Cuban debt, Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehti- ests will have a seat at the table, an inevitable part of the normaliza- nen (R-FL) wouldn’t speak with CNBC but sent a written response: tion process,” said Sandler, who first revealed his desire to buy “Financial institutions in the United States should think twice Cuban debt at CNBC’s Delivering Alpha conference in July. before considering doing business with the Castro dictatorship,” On a panel discussion about frontier market investing, Sandler she told the network. “Many businesses have already been sanc- said he was most excited about “transformational stories.” tioned and fined for violating current U.S. law, as Cuba is designat- “There are three repressive, repugnant, rogue countries that, I ed by the United States as a state sponsor of terrorism. The Cuban think, over the next one to three years will experience massive polit- regime regularly defaults on their loans and trade credits it receives ical change: Cuba, North Korea and Sudan,” he said. All three have from international entities and owes billions in hard currency debt. defaulted government debt “that will have to be the predicate to nor- “Doing business with a totalitarian state with no separation of malizing relations with the international community and ultimately powers, while attempting to make money off the backs of the Cuban gaining access to the international capital markets.” people, is despicable and immoral,” Ros-Lehtinen stated. Sandler is quite active in the debt of North Korea, but said at the Mauricio Claver-Carone, executive director of the US-Cuba conference: “Unfortunately, as U.S. investors, we’re still prevented Democracy PAC, said allowing hedge funds to buy defaulted Cuban from investing in Cuba and Sudan.” debt could give ammunition to U.S. food export companies that CNBC says that while other U.S. hedge fund managers hope to hope to extend credit to Cuba. acquire Cuban debt, no one has gone as far as Sandler. He’s reached “It would send a horrible policy message,” said Claver-Carone, out to some of the best-known legal minds on sovereign debt to help adding that in the event of normalized relations, Cuban-American him, petitioned OFAC, and then appealed when he was denied. legislators’ first priority will be compensation for the seized proper- His petition rests on two key ideas: First, that buying and owning ty of Cuban exiles now living in the United States. debt defaulted on for more than 30 years does not fund the current Supporting hedge funds’ purchases of the defaulted debt might Cuban government in any way. risk their standing with constituents who see the funds as compet- Second, in his letter to government regulators, Sandler says ing with the future funds available for compensation. q November 2012 v CubaNews 15 BOOKSHELF From ‘Cuban Thunder’ to ‘Sacrificial Ceremonies of Santería’ uban motorcycle mechanics go to ex- story of sacrifice, valor, ingenuity and friend- over the past 50 tremes to keep vintage American hogs ship. Eaton, by the way, is a former Havana years, Lele’s Crumbling more than a half century after correspondent for the 256-page guide Dallas Morning News the last Harley-Davidson dealership closed in who now writes occasionally for CubaNews. to the sacrificial socialist Cuba. ceremonies of Cut off from the United States, Harley rid- SACRIFICIAL CEREMONIES OF SANTERÍA Santería enables ers on the island scavenge parts from some of Tackling the biggest controversy surroun- initiates to learn the most unlikely places: battered old Soviet ding his faith, Santería priest Ócha’ni Lele ex- proper ceremo- trucks, lawn mowers and even anti-tank guns. plains for the first time in print the practice ny protocol; it It’s a tale of man and machine like no other in and importance of animal sacrifice as a reli- also gives out- the world. gious sacrament. siders a glimpse Some Harley riders in Cuba fit their Describing the animal sacrifice ceremony in into this most machines with tractor tires so they can ven- step-by-step detail, including the songs and secretive world. ture into swampy scrubland chants used, he examines Ócha’ni Lel to hunt for ducks and other the thinking and meta- has been im- wildlife. Others use their physics behind the ritual mersed in the motorcycles to haul every- and reveals the deep con- underground thing from human bones to nections to the odu of the culture of orisha cinder blocks. diloggún — the source of worship since 1989. His other books include Word of the Cubans’ ex- all practices in this Afro- Diloggún Tales of the National World, Teach- ploits has reached motorcy- Cuban faith. ings of the Santería Gods, The Secrets of Afro- cle mechanics in the U.S., Tracing the legal battle Cuban Divination; Obí: Oracle of Cuban San- including famed custom spearheaded by Oba Ern- tería and The Diloggún: The Orishas, Proverbs, bike builder Jesse James, esto Pichardo, head of Sacrifices and Prohibitions of Cuban Santería. who sent an autographed the Church of the Lukumi Details: Manzanita Carpenter, Inner Tradi- biker magazine to one of Babaluaiye, over the tions, One Park Street, Rochester, VT 05767. Tel: mechanic, writing, “Long right to practice animal (802) 767-3174 x135. Fax: (802) 767-3726. live Cuba!” sacrifice as a religious sa- Email: [email protected]. “Cuban Thunder” by jour- crament, Lele chronicles nalist Tracey Eaton includes the fight all the way to its “Bookshelf” is an occasional feature of interviews with more than 1993 U.S. Supreme Court CubaNews in which we summarize works 30 Harley riders, including victory, which estab- we think will interest our diverse audience. legendary mechanic Sergio lished legal protection for If you would like your book, report, novel Morales, former stunt rider Antonio Miniet the Santería faith and its practicioners. or scholarly publication to be featured in an and Ernesto Guevara, the Cuban son of the “Sacrificial Ceremonies of Santería” (ISBN: upcoming issue, please email a request to late revolutionary Ernesto “Che” Guevara. 978-1-59477-455-3, $16.95 paperback) is also [email protected] or send off a review The 181-page book, available at iBookstore available as an ebook. Shedding light on the copy to Larry Luxner, Editor, CubaNews, for $5.99, is illustrated with hundreds of pho- extraordinary global growth of this religion PO Box 1345, Silver Spring, MD 20915. tographs that help document an unusual ‘Cuba: Contemporary Art’ is the perfect coffee-table book rofiles of 59 artists over half a century — “Beautifully produced and stunningly Luís Camejo’s highly evocative paintings of telling the story of modern Cuba diverse bilingual collection,” says Publishers urban life; José Manuel Fors’s memory-cen- Pthrough visual art and the recent loosen- Weekly. “It is rare that a collection of this tered work using found and discarded ing of the U.S. embargo and President Raúl breadth presents works objects. and Roberto Castro’s opening up of state-regulated of such a uniformly high Diago’s assemblages tourism — has yielded a flurry of student pro- standard that are so con- embodying sharp socio- grams, professional conferences, books, sistently provocative and political critique of the movies, and general enthusiasm in this coun- experimental. The book place of impoverished try for all things Cuban. provides exceptional blacks in Cuban society. With the future government of Cuba still an insight into contempo- Gracing the cover of open question, its cultural riches have never rary Cuban art and the this lavishly illustrated been more relevant to American readers. aesthetic and critical book, which makes a “Cuba: Contemporary Art” explores how innovation it embodies.” great gift, by the way, is Cuban artists have worked in and around the The book (ISBN 978-1- José Emilio Fuentes constraints of Castroism (“Within the Revolu- 59020-776-5, price $40) Fonseca’s “Memory & tion, everything; outside the Revolution, noth- was put together by An- Memory” — provocative- ing”) and Cuba’s severely depressed econo- dreas Winkler, art cura- ly installed in front of the my, and how art education there evolved over tor of The H Magazine, U.S. Interests Section the years, from an elite community to a sub- and by Sebastiaan A.C. during Havana’s 2009 ject with mass appeal. Berger, a founding part- Biennial art fair. The 288-page book includes more than 500 ner of Berger, Young & Associates and direc- Details: Theresa Collier, Public Relations, profiles and images of Juan Carlos Alom, Car- tor of Cuba Finance Ltd., which launched The Overlook Press, 141 Wooster Street, New York, los Caballero, Felipe Dulzaides, Raúl Cordero H Magazine in 2005. NY 10012. Tel: (212) 673-2305. Fax: (212) 673- and Flavio Garciandía, among others. Says Publishers Weekly: “Standouts include 2296. Email: [email protected]. 16 CubaNews v November 2012

CALENDAR OF EVENTS CARIBBEAN UPDATE If your organization is sponsoring an upcoming event, please let our readers know! You already know what’s going in Cuba, Fax details to CubaNews at (301) 949-0065 or send e-mail to [email protected]. thanks to CubaNews. Now find out what’s happening in the rest of this diverse and Nov. 2 7: “La Vieja Trova de Cuba,” by José Ruiz Elcoro, Miami. Music program sponsored fast-growing region. by the Asociación Nacional de Educadores Cubano-Americanos (NACAE). Limited seating. Subscribe to Caribbean UPDATE, a monthly newsletter founded in 1985. Cor- Details: Instituto de Estudios Cubanos y Cubano-Americanos, Casa Bacardi, University of Miami, porate and government executives, as well 1531 Brescia Avenue, Coral Gables, FL 33146. Tel: (305) 284-2822. Email: [email protected]. as scholars and journalists, depend on this publication for its insightful, timely cover- Nov. 28-30: 36th Annual Conference on the Caribbean & Central America, InterContinental age of the 30-plus nations and territories of Hotel, New Orleans. This event attracts business leaders from across the region. Cost: $575. the Caribbean and Central America. When you receive your first issue, you Details: Gwen Rodríguez, Caribbean-Central American Action, 1300 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, #700, have two options: (a) pay the accompany- Washington, DC 20004. Tel: (202) 204-3050. Fax: (202) 789-7349. Email: [email protected]. ing invoice and your subscription will be Nov. 3 0: Latin America Economic Forecast 2013, Four Seasons Hotel, Miami. “The global processed; (b) if you’re not satisfied, just write “cancel” on the invoice and return it. economic outlook, its impact on Latin America, and prospects for doing business in the reg- There is no further obligation on your part. ion.” Confirmed speakers: Armando Castelar (Fundação Getúlio Vargas, Brazil); Edward Glab The cost of a subscription to Caribbean (SIPA Global Energy Security Forum); Jonathan Heath (Universidad Panamericana, Mexico); UPDATE is $281 per year. A special rate of Mário Marconini (Teneo Strategy, Brazil); Alvaro Moreno (Consejo Privado de Competitivi- $142 is available to academics, non-profit organizations and additional subscriptions dad, Colombia); John Price (Americas Market Intelligence, Miami); Roberto Salinas León mailed to the same address. (Mexico Business Forum) Jeffrey Schott (Peterson Institute for International Economics, To order, contact Caribbean UPDATE at Washington) and Roger Tissot (Tissot Associates, Canada). Light buffet to follow. Cost: $100. 116 Myrtle Ave., Millburn, NJ 07041, call us at (973) 376-2314, visit our new website at Details: Isabel Artime, Center for Hemispheric Policy, University of Miami, PO Box 248297, Coral www.caribbeanupdate.org or send an Gables, FL 33124-6535. Tel: (305) 284-9918. Fax: (305) 284-9871. Email: [email protected]. email to [email protected]. We accept Visa, MasterCard and American Express. Dec. 9 : “Classically Cuban Concert: Music for Martí,” FIU, Miami. Program to be presented by Emilio Cueto under the direction of Armando Tranquilino; features compositions inspired by José Martí. Details: Cuban Research Institute, Florida International University, 11200 SW 8th St., DM 353, Miami, FL 33199. Tel: (305) 348-1991. Fax: (305) 348-3593. URL: www.cri.fiu.edu. Dec. 12-19: 28th Havana International Jazz Festival. For nearly 30 years, the big names of world jazz have performed on Havana stages during this celebration. Visit with this licensed Cuba travel agency. Details: Adolfo Nodal, Cuba Tours & Travel, 320 Pine Ave. #503, Long Beach, Editor CA 90802. Tel: (888) 225-6439 x802. Fax: (562) 684-0174. Email: [email protected]. n LARRY LUXNER n

Jan. 6-13, 2013: Literary Havana. An event, approved by the U.S. Treasury Department, Washington correspondent for persons with documented experience in the literary world (publishers, poets, playwrights, n ANA RADELAT n novelists). Details: Adolfo Nodal, Cuba Tours & Travel, 320 Pine Ave. #503, Long Beach, CA Political analyst 90802. Tel: (888) 225-6439 x802. Fax: (562) 684-0174. Email: [email protected]. n DOMINGO AMUCHASTEGUI n Jun. 3, 2013: “Cuban Economy Colloquium 2013,” Bildner Center for Western Hemisphere Feature writers n VITO ECHEVARRÍA n Studies, New York. Annual gathering analyzes Cuba’s economy. Details: CUNY, 365 Fifth Ave,, n DOREEN HEMLOCK n #5209, New York, NY 10016. Tel: (212) 817-2096. Fax: (212) 817-1540. mail: [email protected]. Cartographer n ARMANDO H. PORTELA n

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