Dear Mitchell:

I spent yesterday morning at the United Nations in the General Assembly to answer questions from the UN Committee on NGOs consisting of 18 nations including the USA, China, Russia, India, the United Kingdom and Cuba. I also made a brief presentation on IAEWP as it grew and developed in 107 countries over the past 31 years.

Earlier this past week I got a call from the United Nations stating that Cuba, which accused IAEWP of offending, accosting, and insulting the Cuban Ambassador at the UN in Geneva this past April 1997, had advocated that IAEWP should be suspended from ECOSOC for one year. This move was vigorously opposed by the United States and the United Kingdom. So I was called to go and make a report to the UN General Assembly and to answer questions. Because the trip was booked three days in advanced, instead of three weeks, the air tickets cost $1,100 instead of merely $240!

I did so yesterday and the Cuban Ambassador treated me very cordially and was surprised to find out how much IAEWP has been an asset to Cuba in the past. The result, briefly stated, was as follows. The USA proposed that the UN Geneva incident does not reflect IAEWP but one person who happened to be on the IAEWP delegation who was supposed to be there only as an observer. Consequently, the USA proposed to have the case dropped and forgotten. On the other hand, Cuba dropped its recommendation to suspend IAEWP from ECOSOC and proposed that IAEWP be reinstated again to its consultative status at the roster level. Also, Cuba asked that in one year from now the UN ECOSOC Committee will study the IAEWP work and developments over the next 12 months. At that time, the Cuba Ambassador stated, the UN ECOSOC Committee on NGOs may drop the case and the matter will be considered closed.

Afterwards the Cuban Ambassador came to me to thank me, once more for what we have done in favor of Cuba in the past. I have indicated in my presentation that I have personally written to both President Bush and President Clinton to lift the embargo on Cuba and to establish good relations with it. Also, I mentioned your recent visit to Cuba where you met with officials of the Cuban Peace Movement. I also showed to the Cuban Ambassador the presentation you made in Cuba. He seemed to have remained impressed.

In view of this, I told the Cuban Ambassador that I intended to visit Cuba next year, but now I feel quite enthusiastic, I have in mind to visit Cuba this very same year. The Cuban Ambassador looked quite pleased and said to me: "That's great. We welcome you."

In view of such a development, where we succeeded to turn a crisis into a good opportunity, I would like you to advise me on how to prepare to get to Cuba. Perhaps you may get in touch with important people you met there and ask them to send me an invitation. In that case, you may indicate that I could arrive on a Sunday and then leave the following Sunday, thus spending there a whole week. You may indicate that I would be happy to give a series of talks on various topics of national and international concern. Also state that they may prepare for me may a public forum which will consist of questions raised to me about any topic of concern they may imagine. By the way, I have done this in russia and other countries as well.

I came to know that there are no flights from the USA to Cuba. I have to go via some other country. What route do you propose? Needless to say I would need a visa, correct? I may, perhaps, seek to obtain this from the Cuban Embassy in the USA. I still have to explore this and I have already informed our travel agent.

Did you pay for your room and board? Or did they give you free hospitality? Where you picked up at the airport? Or did you arrive like a lonely stranger trying to get a cab your presumably pre-booked hotel? If you took care of the expenses of the room and board, how much does it cost, approximately? Did you stay only in Havana, or did you visit other parts of the country?

These are important items for me to know. Usually, when I travel I have my room and board taken care of by the host country. Once in a while, I am also secured with air tickets. Do you communicate with Cubans by letter, by fax, by telephone, by e-mail..... by what? Probably a letter will take ages, if it will ever to arrive from the USA especially when there is a thick Berlin wall between the two countries! If you have access to phone, fax, and e-mail in your communication with Cuba, please do let me have such items.

Last but not least, give me some names of important people you might have met. Please let me hear from you at your earliest convenience.
Best Regards:

** Charles Mercieca **
Executive Vice President, IAEWP