Focus on Food in Cuba, Hungry for Leadership in Washington

Dear Friend:

The cost and availability of food is the immediate concern facing Cuba in the aftermath of the hurricanes.

These problems command the attention of the Cuban people, their
government, and our news summary.  We have updates on the supplies of
food, the government's use of price controls to restrain food prices,
the impact of the hurricanes on Cuba's reforms and the impact of the
embargo on the charitable work of humanitarian groups like Caritas.  
We also provide a report on one effort Cuba has undertaken to
reschedule its debts to free up resources to pay for imports of food.

Once again, we return to the question of what the United States ought to be doing to help with this crisis.

You can access the entire October 10 newsblast here.

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Oct 2 Newsblast: Frozen food prices in Havana, Frozen visas in the United States and Frozen foreign policy laws in Florida

Dear Friend:

When we looked at the news in Cuba this week, we saw a series of fascinating but troubling contrasts.

On the issue of hurricane relief and recovery:  Cuba's government has
taken steps to thwart price gouging, and it continues to receive
support from the United Nations and other nations, notably, this week
China.

Meanwhile, Congress is likely to recess this week for our elections
without removing restrictions on the right of Cuban-Americans to help
their families cope with losses from the storms.

On the issue of diplomacy:  We look at talks between Cuba and the
European Union; our European allies still hold to the "quaint" notion
that you can mediate differences and disagreements between nations by
sitting down and talking.

Meanwhile, our government is pressuring the government of Cyprus not to open an embassy in Havana.

On constitutional rights:  A federal court held this week that a state
law passed in Florida, requiring travel service providers to post a
quarter-million dollar bond, is probably unconstitutional, and stayed
enforcement of the law pending a trial.

Meanwhile, the U.S. government denied visas to two Cuban working journalists who have covered the UN for three years.

By the way, this action comes nearly a year after a speech by President
Bush in which he offered to provide loans to Cubans once the Cuban
government did things like offer protections for freedom of the press,
and it comes just a few weeks before the UN votes on whether to condemn
the US embargo for the seventeenth year in a row.

This is a story that the Cuban journalists should be allowed to cover, don't you think?

You can access the entire October 2 Newsblast here.

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Transcript of Sep 17 teleconference on Cuba hurricane relief available here.

Speakers included CDA Executive Director Sarah Stephens, Colonel Larry Wilkinson, Katrin Hansing from Florida International University, Gail Reid, Director of the Medical Education Cooperation with Cuba- and Phil Peters, vice-president of the Lexington Institute.