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Cuba rules out
US change of policy towards it
The Cuban government
does not believe there will be
changes in Washington's policy
against the island country,
regardless whoever wins the
presidential election in the
United States next week, local
press said Saturday.
Although Cuba has not openly
pronounced over the election,
political analysts point out
that Havana wishes, at least,
the defeat of Republican
candidate George W. Bush who
seeks re-election, contending
with Democrat candidate John
Kerry.
A sign of the rejection of the
Cuban government to Bush
re-election is the sign posted
in a street of Havana showing a
false Website "w.bush.genocide"
and to options "continue" or
"cancel." The arrow points
towards the second option.
The analysts remember that all
of the US presidents since
1962,Republicans or Democrats,
have done nothing to put an end
to the economic blockade against
Cuba.
Although Havana does not wish
Bush to be re-elected, this does
not mean it wishes the triumph
of Kerry in the Nov. 2 election
in the North American country.
President of the Cuban
parliament Ricardo Alarcon said
days ago with respect to Kerry,
"it seems with him we would have
more of the same." "It would be
worth knowing what he thinks and
what he would do," he pointed
out.
According to the Cuban
government, the restrictions of
all kinds imposed by the United
States as part of the blockade
have caused 70 billion US
dollars in economic losses in
Cuba in the past 42 years.
A token of the worsening in the
relations between the United
States and Cuba is the severe
adjectives used by Cuban leader
Fidel Castro against the
appearance of Bush.
In contrast, the government of
Cuba was less severe with the
previous US administration of
Democrat Bill Clinton, despite
the crisis generated when a US
private light-airplane,
departing from Florida, was shot
down in Cuban waters.
Bush intensified the embargo on
Cuba and restricted trips and
remittances from US territory to
the island.
Kerry said he supported the
embargo but might consider a
revision of the Washington
policies towards the Caribbean
country, especially those making
reference to trips.
2 dead, 2
injured in explosion near Bogota
A taxi driver and one of his
passengers were killed on Friday
night in a bomb explosion near a
bus stop near Bogota, capital of
Colombia, police said.
"There were four people
traveling in the vehicle, of
whom two were killed and two
wounded," Bogota police
commander Hector Garcia told
reporters.
Police offered a reward of
43,000 US dollars for
information leading to the
arrests of the bomber.
Over the past four years,
Bogota's bus system, known as
Transmilenio, has been targeted
three times.
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