HUMAN-CAPITAL

Cuba Defends Its Human Capital

Havana, Sept 29 (PL) Cuban President Fidel Castro refuted
the US government"s accusations that Cuba is not fulfilling
the migratory agreements signed between both countries.

Among other aspects, such agreements include 20,000 visas
per year to those Cubans who want to emigrate to the United
States, which the US claims have already been fulfilled
this year.

During the closing session of the 6th Congress of the
Committees for the Defense of the Revolution (CDR), the
president told the 1,500 delegates and guests that the US
accusations are based on Cuba"s failure to give visas to
professionals who have received visas from the Washington
Interest Section Office in Havana to emigrate to the United
States.

"They say that Cuba makes it difficult for physicians,
computer specialists and other professionals to emigrate,
but as far as I know, we have not signed any brain drain
agreement," the Cuban leader said satirically to applause
from the audience.

Fidel Castro censured the systematic intellectual sacking
of Latin America by luring its professionals with the high
salaries they would receive in the United States, and
stressed that that would not be the case of the Island.

"Cuba is not a brain incubator," asserted the Cuban
president, "and if it were, it would be to help needy
countries, not to fill the pockets of looters."

In the context of this conflict, the president gave a
detailed discussion of Cuban educational advances, citing
the high number of students in high school or at equivalent
teaching levels.

Now, we must struggle that an even larger number of
students go on to university, in order to achieve a society
with an integral general culture, expressed Fidel Castro.

The Cuban president said that all the country"s efforts go
to strengthening the economy and the living conditions of
the people and there is no doubt that these objectives will
be reached.

In another part of his speech, Fidel Castro stated that
"the greatest of all our peoples" works has been to resist
the almost 45 years of US aggression and blockade."

President Castro added that Washington has invested 45
years in trying to destroy the revolution and this Island,
which could fit into US territory almost 90 times and which
population is 30 times less.

The CDR was founded in 1960 at the initiative of Fidel
Castro to neutralize terrorist activities that were
determined to destroy the then young revolution.

Today, it has 8 million members over 14 years of age,
representing 93 percent of Cubans.