THE © YEAR III Nº.10 JUNE 20, 2013 avana eporter HAVANA, CUBA HYOUR SOURCE OF NEWS & MORE R ISSN 2224-5707 A Weekly Newspaper of the Prensa Latina News Agency Price: 1.00 CUC, 1.00 USD, 1.20 CAN Academic Diplomacy, One More Element in the Cuba-US Conflict / P. 6 Tourism Protecting the Cuban Crocodile P. 2 Cuba Philip Brenner. Cuban diplomat José R. Cabañas. Jorge Mario Sánchez. Follow-up to the UN Conference on Women P. 3 Health & Science Stem Cell Therapy: Promising Results P. 5 Getting Around Entertainment Elaine Scheye. Andrés Serbín. Wayne Smith. Listings P. 8/9 Sports Teófilo Stevenson Boxing Tournament P. 1 5 Speakers at the Cuba-US Academic Workshop in Washington, D.C. Panel discussion on Cuba-US relations. CARIBBEAN FESTIVAL A Celebration of Popular Culture / P. 9 2 TOURISM BOCA DE GUAMÁ Protecting the Cuban Crocodile By WilfredoALAYON MATANZAS._ Boca de Guamá, the most local residents. The Cuban crocodile is mollusks, birds and fish. Their mating Pérez noted that the bodies of popular tourist center in the swampland specifically endemic to Zapata and to the season begins in December and ends in crocodiles that die on the farm are of Ciénaga de Zapata in the western Ciénaga de Lanier, a swamp on Isla de la April, and they spawn once a year. used in taxidermy. “We are immersed in province of Matanzas, is home to an Juventud, the second-largest island in the Etiam Pérez, a biologist and worker research on the role of hybridization in the important crocodile breeding farm. Cuban archipelago. The American crocodile at the farm, told the Prensa Latina news evolution of the species,” he said. The Ciénaga de Zapata is the largest inhabits the main island’s southern coast agency that he personally knew of a Crocodile skins are used for commercial and best-preserved wetland in the and parts of its northern coast. crocodile that reached its 65th birthday. purposes and are in high demand Caribbean islands, and is a Biosphere At the crocodile farm, these species “The females lay an average of 30 eggs, internationally for making purses, shoes Reserve and Ramsar site. reproduce in captivity, and their numbers and the birth rate varies between 66 and 70 and other costly items. Their meat, bones, In this picturesque setting about 160 are growing every year. percent,” he said. Ten percent of newborns teeth and fat are also used for a variety of km southeast of Havana, experts oversee All of this has made it possible to die during the first year, Pérez noted. purposes. The farm’s management plans the breeding of two species in enclosures continue having pure strains of the “We are trying to maintain an to use the captive population in some and semi-natural conditions: the largest of Cuba’s reptiles, and enabled appropriate density of crocodiles (on the parts of the Ciénaga de Zapata where cocodrylus rhombifer, or Cuban crocodile, experts to continue learning more about farm)—which has a capacity of about crocodile numbers have shrunk, and it endemic to the island, and the cocodrylus them. 5,000—and increase the number of carries out public information campaigns acutus, or American crocodile. enclosures and breeding areas,” he said. against illegal hunting. The farm began operating in 1960 A LONG-LIVING SPECIES Currently, the farm has 4,000 crocodiles, The farm has helped raise awareness to preserve these species, which had According to scientific literature, these which are kept in groups according to age about the environmental importance become endangered due to indiscriminate crocodiles live to be 80 to 100 years old. and size to reduce stress and improve their of crocodiles among locals and tourists hunting, and to provide employment for They are carnivores, feeding on insects, quality of life. alike, Pérez said. BIOPLagUICIDES Tricosave-34 it shows antagonic and hiperparasitic activity towards the main agents, that produce damping off of the seedbeds and plants whitening. Thurisave-25 For eggs and larvaes of nematodes of Meloidogyne genus in soils grade from 1 to 3 (according Taylor and Sasser 1978) BIOFERTILIZERS FOSFORINA Bacterian innoculant, solubizator of phosphorus and stimulant of the vegetable growing. 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E-mail: [email protected] CUBA 3 FOLLOWING UP THE UN CONFERENCE ON WOMEN Progress in Working toward Full Equality By DanielURBINO the Federation of Cuban Women, in an interview with The Havana Reporter. HavaNA._ Women’s rights have come a “We are working on training and long way since Clara Zetkin of Germany continuing education for women, so that proposed the annual celebration of they can assume the social changes that International Women’s Day in 1910 in are emerging from the updating of the Copenhagen. Cuban economic model,” she said. Now, in the second decade of the 21st The country’s institutions and century, experts agree that the pace of agencies should facilitate greater social progress has subsided, and that in fact, insertion through concrete actions aimed alarming retreats have been documented at increasing the number of women in some regions. involved in self-employment, or non-state According to UN Women, the United management forms, Amarelle said. Nations Entity for Gender Equality One essential tool is the development and the Empowerment of Women, it is of services for easing the burden of Emilio Herrera. : O women who are most affected by modern T domestic responsibilities that women O conflicts, occupational segregation, PH carry, keeping them from having full violence and discrimination. Moreover, Teresa Amarelle, general secretary of the Federation of Cuban Women. access to cultural improvement and, women do not participate enough in therefore, to better jobs and income, she decisions that affect them and they lag Havana to assess the status of the National decade, Cuba also has expanded access to said. behind men in access to land, credit and Action Plan to Follow Up the 4th UN management jobs, González said during a In referring to the follow-up meeting decent employment. Conference on Women. session of the assessment meeting. on the UN women’s conference, This reality contrasts with what has While problems in attaining access Some 46 percent of managers in the Amarelle praised its overall positive been achieved in Cuba, where substantial to jobs are endangering the social state sector are women. And in public conclusions, saying it was an opportunity progress has been made in working toward equilibrium in many nations, Cuba has office, women hold 48 percent of national for “identifying gaps and proposing full equality, according to authorities and achieved an increase in rates of women’s Parliament seats and the majority of seats courses to follow. The discussions have civil society representatives. participation in the economy. in the provincial assemblies of People’s been very intense and rich, with many Cuba, which has a population of just According to Deputy Minister of Labor Power. contributions.” over 11 million according to the 2012 and Social Security Odalys González, In the non-state sector, where women The assessment meeting, the third census, is perfecting its policies in working women hold 48 percent of state jobs and account for one-third of the workforce, organized by Cuba, examined this toward full gender equality, and this was have been identified, along with young the goal is to increase their participation, country´s achievements in gender equality confirmed by participants at a meeting in people, as a prioritized group. In the past said Teresa Amarelle, general secretary of and in women’s inclusion in society. Cuba Steps up Prevention Measures for Hurricane Season By LianetARIAS HavaNA._ Cubans have been staying more alert to all news related to the weather since June 1, when the hurricane season began for the Atlantic, the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean. Hurricanes, accompanied by a large area of clouds, rain, wind and thunderstorms, are defined by experts as low-pressure systems that form over the ocean, generally in tropical regions. Therefore, these events, which vary in strength and are classified into five categories according Garal. : O T to the Saffir-Simpson scale, put both Cuba and other O nations in the region on alert until Nov. 30, when the PH season ends. Since 1986, Meteoro has included the participation of systems are expected to turn into hurricanes, and some However, in the specific case of Cuba, authorities the general population and government entities such as could be powerful category 3, 4, or 5 cyclones on the Saffir- have promoted a system of vigilance, protection and the Central State Administration, the executive bodies of Simpson scale. Factors taken into consideration for these prevention for disasters of this type that has received the country’s state enterprise groups, the Revolutionary forecasts include higher sea temperatures, the absence of global recognition. Armed Forces, and the Interior Ministry. In addition, Cuba’s the El Niño phenomenon, and a more powerful monsoon As part of that strategy, in May the government held cities have their own programs, such as timely tree- season in Western Africa.