12-29-05,8:54am
Havana, December 26 (AIN).- With a huge cultural program underway through January 2, Cubans are celebrating the 47 Anniversary of their Revolution.
The program kicked off on Sunday December 25, at the Jose Marti Revolution Square in Havana with live music concerts and a wide range of out-door activities for children and adults including a conga-drum dance parade, book and food fair, a circus, topped off by the popular Paulo FG and Van Van bands.
All theatres and outdoor scenarios throughout the island will be hosting different cultural activities to welcome the date when Cuba freed itself from the Batista dictatorship.
In the capital, many cultural centers will be offering free programming for adults and children with popular music bands and theatre performances throughout the week, including two concerts by Pablo Milanes.
The festivities will reach their peak on January 1 and 2 and include sports and cultural activities in all major Cuban cities, said Fernando Rojas, in charge of the National Council of Culture Centers.
The island closes 2005 on an upbeat with a spectacular 11.8 percent GDP growth. Higher salaries and pensions, new education, public health, social security and power generation programs, and the pride of Cubans to be able to offer growing assistance to nations on several continents are part of the general optimism.
Cuba and China Sign Biotech Accord Havana, December 26 (AIN) Cuba and China signed a bilateral collaboration agreement in the field of biotechnology in Beijing on Monday.
The accord will extend over the next 3-5 years and was signed by Cuban Government Minister Ricardo Cabrisas and China's Vice Chairman of the State Development and Reform Commission Zhang Xiaoqiang.
The sides described the pact as one that sets up the basis for the continuation of biotech projects and promoting new ones, while paving the way for further exploring mutual assistance in health care.
According to Juventud Rebelde newspaper, the agreement came during the first China-Cuba joint-working meeting on biotechnology, held in Beijing this month. There,
representatives reviewed all the work done to define common interests and projects to be jointly developed.
This responds to the common willingness to strengthen institutional cooperation, foster biotech collaboration and study the establishment of joint companies and research and development plans, among other actions.
During his visit to China, Cabrisas visited several industrial complexes and met with local authorities, including the Education Minister Zhou Ji, and top executives of companies having economic and commercial relations with Cuba.
Last Friday, the Cuban official and China's Trade Minister Bo Xilai chaired the 18th session of the Cuba-China Inter-governmental Commission for Economic and Commercial Relations
Announcements by Condoleezza Rice Against Cuba
By Nestor Nunez AIN Special Service Chilly winds continue to blow in from the north. Most recently the frigid gales originated from US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who announced that in 2006 -in a few days as it were- Washington will come up with new measures against Cuba.
The US official made it clear that Bush's so-called 'transition to democracy' plan against the island will be tightened in an effort by that government to 'free' Cuba.
The issue is nothing new, much less are the masked intentions behind the White House's anti-Cuban rhetoric.
The Washington's political game is aimed at supporting and promoting a handful of internal elements in an attempt to stop the Revolution once the country's current leadership is gone.
Still, this does not exclude the possibility of direct armed intervention if the conditions favor it.
The announcements made by Condoleezza Rice are not unexpected. However, Washington is taking these new steps against Cuba and making bilateral issues more difficult despite the opposition of many Americans, including a number of US lawmakers and governors.
One of Washing's new steps was the naming of Michael Parmly to be head of the US Interests Section in Havana. He has been called an 'expert in crisis management and conflict resolution.'
One of the first acts of the new 'diplomat' in Havana was to convene a meeting with anti-Cuba elements on the island. These individuals are working at the service of Washington in an attempt to satisfy the interests of anti-Cuba bands in Miami.
However, the timing could not be worse for the anti-Cuba elements. The Caribbean island has begun rapid economic growth and is experiencing increased international prestige thanks to the solidarity Cuba offers to just causes around the world.
If this were not enough, Cuba has the broad support of the international community in its fight against Washington's blockade. At the same time the island continues to gain respect from governments that are offering their friendship and growing support.
