social revolution

Vice President Lage Reveals Gas Efficiency Plans
Lage explains the future development of transport with modern equipmentJuan Varela Pérez - granmaThe engines currently operating in the trucks that circulate in Cuba, with their high levels of gas consumption, will be replaced with more modern and efficient engines from China, said Vice President Carlos Lage during a visit on Friday to the workshops of the Shaping Company of Guanajay. The replacement of HIGH gas consumption ENGINEs WITH more efficient ones will allow for a substantial saving of fuelLage told workers and managers of that company, which is engaged in the engine replacement, that the first 12,000 engines purchased for that purpose are already in Cuba.The country presently has the necessary resources to increase the current pace of engine replacement, he said, and also pointed out that the accelerated rise of oil prices is forcing Cuba to speed up the process.Lage’s tour around business facilities in the province of Havana included the Evelio Prieto bus assembly plant, also in Guanajay. There, he disclosed the purchase of 5,000 Chinese buses that will arrive in Cuba in the next 4 to 5 years. Some of them –around 600 to 800– will be assembled in this plant under the supervision of Chinese technicians assisted by our experienced workers.On his visit to the liquid feed plant in Artemisa, Lage said that the investments aimed at increasing pig food production and at avoiding damage to the environment should have priority. He highlighted the importance of using the leftovers from food consumption in major social centers and of using, at the same time, less imported products, such as soya.He explained that this program, created by comrade Fidel before the special period, –the period marked by the economic crisis after the collapse of the Soviet Union in the early 1990´s– had to be interrupted due to the well recorded scarcities and difficulties at the time. Production has increased, but it is still not enough, and the marketing must be improved. Importing pork from the international market costs $2,200 USD a ton, while producing a ton in Cuba costs less than $1,400 USD.In the last five years, the price of milk has tripled, the price of rice quadrupled, and that of the rest of the food products has at least doubled. That economic pressure, he said, which has more serious repercussions on underdeveloped nations, is something we have to face with less resources and more efficient work. Joining Carlos Lage on the tour were Ivan Ordaz, member of the Central Committee and first secretary of the Party in Havana province; Fernando Acosta, minister of the Iron and Steel Industry; Armando Cuellar, president of the provincial assembly of the People’s Power and other officials.


Disciplina administrativa y planificación favorecen la economía
Sara Sariol - granma -
BAYAMO.— José Luis Rodríguez, ministro cubano de Economía y Planificación, destacó en esta ciudad la necesidad de elevar la disciplina administrativa y perfeccionar los mecanismos de planificación en pos de hacer más eficientes nuestras estructuras empresariales, a propósito del actual ordenamiento de la economía nacional.Al intervenir en la evaluación de un recontro a entidades granmenses, el también Vicepresidente del Consejo de Ministros promovió reflexiones sobre la alta responsabilidad de los cuadros administrativos en el cumplimiento y control de las prioridades planteadas a nivel central para la ejecución de los presupuestos.La nuestra —apuntó— es una economía planificada, en la cual todo está normado; por tanto, las direcciones administrativas tienen que conocer cada una de las disposiciones y acostumbrarse a trabajar con ellas, pues el desconocimiento de la ley no libera de su cumplimiento.El intercambio centró su atención en deficiencias en el sobregiro de presupuestos, en la utilización de recursos en objetivos para los cuales no han sido asignados, debilidades en el control interno, y errores en el proceso de contratación y relaciones económicas entre las empresas, incluidas la emisión de facturas sin calidad, lo cual motiva las llevadas y traídas cuentas por cobrar y pagar fuera de término, aunque erróneamente y no pocas veces estas se atribuyen a la falta de financiamiento. Gladys Bejerano, titular de Auditoría y Control, reiteró el imperativo de elevar la disciplina administrativa en el punto donde quedó claro que el cuadro centro de una empresa está obligado a dominar en detalles en qué y cómo se emplean los recursos de todo tipo.El concepto del control —aclaró Rodríguez— va más allá de la contabilidad; su esencia se revierte al final en un balance contable para el cual se requieren especialistas bien preparados, pero lo fundamental es usar bien cada recurso.

The Meaning of Raúl's 'Reforms'
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB120873568671129859.html?mod=googlenews_wsj,

An Age of Transition
The United States, China, Peak OIl, and the Demise of Neoliberalism
http://www.monthlyreview.org/080401li.php,

ENTREVISTA A MARITZA GARCÍA, SOCIOLOGA: "La identidad cultural, un proceso de comunicación"
http://www.rionegro.com.ar/diario/2008/04/21/20084v21b02.php,

ALBA: La revolución social pasa por la transformación de la educación
Cochabamba (ABI).- Los ministros de Educación de la Alternativa Bolivariana para los Pueblos de Nuestra América (ALBA), que este domingo iniciaron en esta capital las deliberaciones del "Taller de Educación Superior para el ALBA", coincidieron en señalar, a su turno, que cualquier revolución social pasa por la transformación completa de la educación para la consolidación de los cambios en la sociedad.http://abi.bo/index.php?i=noticias_texto_paleta&j=20080420165027,

Tareas medulares para la eficiencia económica
Ledys Camacho Casado
El Comité Nacional de la Asociación de Economistas y Contadores de Cuba recién efectuado en esta capital, profundizó en las acciones presentes y futuras de los profesionales y técnicos que ejercen esa actividad en el país http://www.opciones.cu/leer.asp?idnuevo=3306,

Industria Ligera
Renacer productivo y comercial
Minerva Hernández Basso
Modernización tecnológica a partir de proceso inversionista en diversas ramas del sector. La calidad de los surtidos en la prioridad de los objetivos del año http://www.opciones.cu/leer.asp?idnuevo=3304,

Con suma responsabilidad
En defensa de la tierra y de la soberanía alimentaria, contra el “libre comercio” de alimentosPor un consumo responsable agroecológico autogestionado, por Agustín Morán
http://www.insurgente.org/modules.php?name=News&file=print&sid=13343,



Productiva jornada de trabajo voluntario este domingo
Participaron 1 262 407 trabajadores en cifras preliminares ofrecidas por la CTC. Encabezó Salvador Valdés Mesa la movilización nacional en Güira de Melena Masiva y productiva resultó la jornada de trabajo voluntario realizada este domingo en saludo al 1 de Mayo, de acuerdo con la cifra preliminar de 1 262 407 trabajadores movilizados en todas las provincias, informada por la CTC al mediodía de ayer, y las faenas a las que se dio impulso: siembra y recogida de viandas y vegetales, labores en la zafra azucarera, construcción de viviendas y obras de la Batalla de Ideas, producciones industriales, manipulación de mercancías e higienización.Hacia distintas labores agrícolas, como siembra y recogida de viandas y vegetales, se movilizaron miles de trabajadores este domingo.Salvador Valdés Mesa, miembro del Comité Central del Partido y secretario general de la Central sindical, encabezó la movilización de dirigentes nacionales de esta organización, a los que se unieron cuadros de la Escuela Nacional de la ANAP, en la finca La Iberia, de la UBPC Héroes de Yaguajay, en el municipio habanero de Güira de Melena, para dedicar su aporte a la siembra de más de cuatro hectáreas de malanga, en tierras recién cosechadas de papa.Valdés explicó a la prensa que esta gran jornada se inscribe en la Campaña Nacional de Trabajo Voluntario iniciada el 1 de abril y que se extenderá hasta el 28 de enero del 2009, como saludo a los aniversarios 50 de la Revolución y 70 de la fundación de la CTC, con el objetivo de impulsar todas los programas y planes en la recuperación económica del país.La campaña parte de la premisa de lograr el aporte de 70 horas voluntarias por trabajador, como mínimo, en labores priorizadas durante el período, agregó, no solo en las cuatro jornadas masivas previstas —esta por el 1 de Mayo, y los domingos 20 de julio, 23 de noviembre y 25 de enero del 2009—, sino en otras que se organicen en correspondencia con las condiciones y necesidades que surjan en localidades y centros laborales.

Cuba To Send Medical Professors To UDS
CUBA is to send 200 medical professors to lecture at the University for Development Studies (UDS) Medical School in Tamale.The Cuban professors will help train more doctors locally to help address the current shortage of health professionals in the country.Mr Akwasi Osei-Adjei, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Regional Integration and NEPAD, disclosed this at the just ended 14th Session of the Ghana-Cuba Permanent Intergovernmental Commission for Scientific, Technical and Economic Co-operation.The meeting reviewed and analysed the co-operation between the two countries for the period 2006-2008, approved the programme for scientific, technical and economic co-operation for the next two years and analysed the general conditions for technical co-operation between them.Ghana’s delegation was led by Mr Osei- Adjei, while the Cuban side was led by the Minister of Government, Ricardo Cabrisas Ruiz.Mr Osei-Adjei acknowledged the gesture which will be in addition to the regular medical brigade that Cuba sends to the country to support the country’s health care delivery services.He said the government attaches great value to the scholarships Cuba awards to Ghanaian students to study in various disciplines.On trade, Mr Osei-Adjei expressed concern about the low level of formal trading activities between the two countries."This issue has been extensively discussed during the session and the tone has, therefore, been set for the critical examination of how economic relations between our two countries could be developed and sustained in a mutually beneficial situation," he said.He expressed satisfaction at decisions reached at the meeting which covered broad areas of co-operation, including education and sports, health, trade, investment, tourism, scientific and industrial research, and initiatives in the private sector.The Ghana-Cuba Joint Commission sessions have been convened bi-annually since April 1982.The next session, the 15th, will be hosted by Cuba in 2010.


Leftist ex-bishop ends 61-year conservative rule in Paraguay
ASUNCION (AFP) — A leftist ex-bishop Monday celebrated his historic electoral triumph in Paraguay's presidential election after defeating the ruling party candidate and ending 61 years of conservative rule.Fernando Lugo was declared the winner by the Electoral Tribunal with nearly 41 percent of the vote compared to almost 31 percent for Blanca Ovelar of the ruling Colorado Party, crushing her dream of becoming the South American country's first woman president."Today we can dream of a different country," Lugo, 56, told reporters late Sunday. "Paraguay will simply not be remembered for its corruption and poverty, but for its honesty."Ovelar, whose party has been in power since 1947, conceded defeat before the final results were released."I recognize the triumph of Fernando Lugo," she said. "We acknowledge with dignity that the results of the presidential contest are at this point irreversible."Another candidate, Lino Oviedo, 64, a retired army chief who helped stage a coup that ended the 35-year military dictatorship of Alfredo Stroessner (1954-1989), trailed far behind in third place with 22 percent of the vote.Lugo earlier addressed jubilant supporters of his leftist Patriotic Alliance for Change coalition at his campaign headquarters, saying the election showed that "the little people can also win.""You are responsible for the happiness of the majority of the Paraguayan people today," he said as supporters chanted his name."This is the Paraguay I dream about, with many colors, many faces, the Paraguay of everyone," said Lugo, who was suspended from his religious order by the Vatican in late 2006 for his entry into politics.His supporters began celebrating their anticipated victory setting off fireworks even before polls closed.The Colorado Party has been in power for 61 years, including Stroessner's rule. Paraguay chose its first democratically elected president in 1993.There is no runoff vote in Paraguay. Outgoing President Nicanor Duarte constitutionally could not seek re-election after serving a five-year term.Turnout was a high 65 percent among Paraguay's 2.9 elegible voters, said Electoral Tribunal vice president Juan Manuel Morales, who announced the final results of the elections when 92 percent of precincts had reported.Lugo's Patriotic Alliance for Change coalition earlier had feared fraud would mar Sunday's vote, but as 70 observers from the Organization of American States monitored ballot stations, electoral court chief Rafael Dendia said voting went smoothly.Transparency International, an organization monitoring for voter fraud, reported some cases of corruption."We've seen voting cards being bought and money going around in some polling booths," one of the group's observers, Pilar Callizo, told Channel 4."We also saw Colorado Party teams inside and outside some polling stations creating an atmosphere of intimidation," she added.Lugo's opponents have said he is in line with leftwing presidents Hugo Chavez of Venezuela and Evo Morales of Bolivia.But Lugo, while championing the rights of the poor, says he is more centrist as he seeks to overhaul a country with a per-capita income of just 1,900 dollars.While Paraguay's formal economy relies on agriculture, corruption is pervasive.Duarte made little headway in stamping out graft, which also sullied his own administration. Paraguay is a prime source of contraband electronics and cigarettes, most smuggled into neighboring Brazil, Argentina and Bolivia.After election results were announced, Duarte vowed to help Lugo make a smooth and peaceful transition."Today we suffered an electoral defeat," Duarte told his Colorado Party, but added: "I want to stress that for the first time in Paraguay's political history, there will be a party-to-party transition without bloodshed, coup d'etat, without violence."

'Bishop of the poor' takes power in Paraguay
The Colorado party has stayed in power by means of democracy and dictatorship ruling even longer than Cuba's Communist party. Eight months ago, Lugo welded ...http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/apr/21/4,

Pretende presentar una cobertura favorable a su política
El New York Times desvela que el Pentágono ha infiltrado en los medios a decenas de analistas militares http://www.rebelion.org/noticia.php?id=66298,

Message MachineBehind Analysts, the Pentagon’s Hidden Hand http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/20/washington/20generals.html?em&ex=1208923200&en=a4ee1c89d3b31d22&ei=5087%0A,

Cubarte ofrece acceso a ciento seis instituciones cubanas http://www.cubarte.cult.cu/global/loader.php?cat=actualidad&cont=showitem.php&id=46404&tabla=articulo&seccion=Titulares&tipo=Noticia,