There was some minor confusion the last time I posted one of these updates. That's my fault, I assumed the info at the bottom made the attribution clear, but that was sloppy thinking on my part. Just to be clear, then, all of these weekly summaries are sent to me by the Center for a Free Cuba. I re-post them to give them wider exposure.

Here's last week's:

Summary of the last seven days - May 23, 2003

* The cult of the Cuban Revolution is waning, reported The New
York Times in an article from its Buenos Aires correspondent. More than
one hundred intellectuals in the region recently published a vigorous
protest against repression in Cuba, among them many former Castro
supporters. (The New York Times, May 18)

* The Cuban government withdrew its request for admission into
the Cotonou Agreement. The accord between the European Union (EU) and
the members of the African, Caribbean and Pacific group of States (ACP)
provides tariff benefits to developing countries. The E.U. had
indefinitely suspended the review of Cuba's application following recent
repressive acts in Havana. This is the second time that Cuba has
withdrawn its candidacy for the Cotonou Accord. (AFP, May 19)

* The Washington Post attributed the latest crackdown in Cuba to
the fact that the internal dissident movement "had grown from a minor
annoyance into a major threat to the regime." In an editorial titled
The Poet and the Despot, The Post focused on the plight of imprisoned
poet, Raúl Rivero. Sentenced to 20 years, he is one of 76 dissidents
who received harsh prison sentences. The article reports that 11,000
Cubans demanded change through the Varela Project. The Chicago Tribune
quoted Cuba's Minister of Culture, Abel Prieto: Rivero, he said, "is not
being tried as a poet. He is not being tried as a writer.He is being
tried as a citizen who has committed a crime of putting himself at the
service of a foreign government." The Tribune said Rivero's trial
lasted less than one day. (The Washington Post, Chicago Tribune, May 18
and 19)

* Oliver Stone traveled to Havana to add other views to his
documentary, Comandante, as demanded by HBO. Stone held another
interview with Fidel Castro, after which he declared that he had
"learned a lot". According to Stone, Castro told him many "incredible"
things during 20 hours of interviews. (EFE, El Nuevo Herald, May 22)

* The Permanent Council of the Organization of American States
(OAS) examined a declaration proposed by Chile, Canada and Uruguay that
criticized the situation of human rights in Cuba. Seventeen countries
supported the initiative, an unprecedented outcome in the OAS in more
than 30 years. The initiative did not acquire the necessary consensus
of the 34 member states and it is not expected to be brought up next
June at the OAS' General Assembly. (La Tercera, Chile, May 21)

* The Cuban Interests Section in Washington held a going away
party for the diplomats expelled from the United States for espionage.
A number of North American Castro sympathizers attended the event,
reported The Washington Post in an article titled, "Hasta la vista,
Baby!" The Cuban press insisted on the diplomats' innocence, saying
that the expulsions were "a gift from Bush to the Miami mafia." (The
Washington Post, Granma, May 20 and 21)

* At the White House, President Bush met with 11 Cuban former
political prisoners and relatives of victims of Castro's repression on
the 101st anniversary of Cuba's Independence Day. "My hope is for the
Cuban people to soon enjoy the same freedoms and rights as we do.
Dictatorships have no place in the Americas," Bush said. He spoke in
Spanish and Radio Martí broadcast the message to Cuba. According to a
statement released by three Cuban American members of Congress, the
Administration's review of Cuba policy continues. Ambassador Otto
Reich, Special Envoy to Latin America, who attended Bush's meeting with
the Cubans, said that every policy alternative except "violent methods"
was under consideration. (El Nuevo Herald, May 21)

* TV Martí transmitted its signal to Cuba on Tuesday, May 20 for
4 hours on channels 13 and 18 on the Cuban network, and via commercial
satellites. President Bush had promised one year ago that Radio and TV
Martí signals would be strengthened in order to improve their
effectiveness. In "Thank you, Fuhrer" an editorial published by Granma,
Havana's official newspaper, Castro threatened to use Cuban broadcasts
to interfere with radio programs in the United States. (El Nuevo
Herald, Granma, May 21)

* The U.S. included Cuba, once again, in its list of countries
that "simply don't cooperate" with Washington in the fight against
terrorism. Others in the list: Iran, Libya, North Korea, Sudan and
Syria. Iraq has been removed from the list. (AFP, May 23)

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Tel 202.463.8430 * Fax 202.463.8412 * www.cubacenter.org