Putting people first
Speaking to the UN General Assembly's third commission on social, humanitarian and cultural issues in early October, Rodolfo Reyes, second secretary of Cuba's UN mission, said Cuba will continue to be a society that puts its people first. The Cuban revolution pays special attention to young people, the elderly, the disabled and women.
Despite Washington's attempts to tighten its blockade, Cuba will continue to dedicate the bulk of its national budget to universal social security, health care and education.
Castro thanked
Representatives of political forces in the Dominican Republic have sent a letter of appreciation to Fidel Castro, thanking him for his call for the Dominican Republic and Haiti to receive aid for its victims of Hurricane Georges before Cuba, which suffered less devastating losses.
The Dominican political leaders noted how much Cuba needs just and equal treatment in face of Washington's almost 40-year blockade.
On September 28, Castro announced that a medical team made up of 13 specialists equipped with a small 10-bed field hospital, medical equipment and medicines would be sent to the Dominican Republic.
Castro called on the international community to provide aid particularly to Haiti. Due to its precarious sanitary situation and its high infant mortality rate, a special effort from developed countries like Canada, Japan and the European Union was needed.
Even though Georges had wrecked crops, tens of thousands of houses and 400 workplaces in Cuba, Cuba was willing to help provide the necessary qualified personnel needed by each country, the Cuban president pledged. "The most just, humane and honourable thing to do is to focus international aid on the most affected peoples, the ones with greatest needs", Castro said.
Uruguayans remember Che
Latin Americans on October 8 marked the 31st anniversary of the death in combat of Che Guevara. Uruguayan workers and students paid tribute to Che as a bust of the revolutionary guerilla fighter was unveiled in the capital, Montevideo. Solidarity events also took place in Bolivia, Cuba and other Latin American countries.
Sustainable agriculture
The city of Havana grows 33% of all Cuba's vegetables, while urban dairies and community gardens in all Cuba's cities continue to expand, Eugenio Fuster, director of Havana's urban agricultural program, told audiences during a speaking tour of the United States.
Fuster has met with US farmers and agricultural scientists to explain urban agriculture "secrets" that have helped Cuba to overcome the food crisis which occurred after the collapse of the Soviet and eastern European regimes.
A "food first" program turned public gardens into organic gardens throughout Havana. The program is now being studied and copied by the world's agricultural scientists.
The gardens seldom use chemical fertilisers, relying instead on animal manure and household compost.