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WORLD NEWS Wednesday 6 september 2017

Cuba opens 5-month transition likely to end Castro reign

dent and members of the dents are paid by foreign nated physician Orlando
powerful Council of State governments and exile Gutierrez. Both men were
by February. Castro has groups as part of a plan praised as “revolutionary”
said he will leave the presi- to overthrow the island’s and “honest.” “We have
dency by that date but he socialist system and rein- to be here to defend our
is expected to remain head stall the capitalism and U.S. revolution and the social
of the Communist Party, dominance ended by the gains we have won,” said
giving him power that may country’s 1959 revolution. one voter, Ivis Garcia, who
be equal to or greater than At one session Monday works for a state-owned
the new president’s. evening, about 400 people real estate enterprise.
Cuban officials say 12,515 gathered to choose their Raul Castro, 86, became
block-level districts will neighborhood’s candi- president in 2008 and
nominate candidates for date, meeting in front of a launched a series of slow-
city council elections to be house adorned with pho- moving and limited socio-
In this March 17, 2015 photo, Cuba’s President Raul Castro held Oct. 22. tos of the late Fidel Castro economic reforms after
listens to the playing of national hymns during his welcoming An opposition coalition says and Cuban flags. Choos- his brother Fidel stepped
ceremony at Miraflores presidential palace before the start of
an emergency ALBA meeting in Caracas, Venezuela. Cuba it expects 170 dissidents ing between their current down due to illness. Fidel
began on Monday, Sept. 4, 2017 an electoral process that will to seek nomination in the delegate and a young Castro died last year at
presumably conclude with the departure of Castro from the block-level meetings that challenger, they re-nomi- age 90. q
presidency. began Monday. A few op-
(AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos) position candidates made
By ANDREA RODRIGUEZ municipal representatives, it to that stage previously
Associated Press the first in a series of votes but were defeated.
HAVANA (AP) — Cuba this for local, provincial and, fi- The government does not
week began a five-month nally, national officials. allow the participation of
political transition expect- In the second electoral parties other than the ruling
ed to end with Raul Cas- stage, a commission domi- Communist Party and has
tro’s departure from the nated by government- worked to quash the elec-
presidency, capping his linked organizations will tion of individual opposition
family’s near-total domi- pick all the candidates for candidates, leading critics
nance of the political sys- elections to provincial as- to call the votes an empty
tem for nearly 60 years. semblies and Cuba’s na- exercise meant to create
Over the rest of Septem- tional assembly. the appearance of demo-
ber, Cubans will meet in The national assembly is cratic participation.
small groups to nominate expected to pick the presi- Cuban officials say dissi-

Mexico parties strike alliance for 2018 vote

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexi- or PRD, says it’s the Broad start Morena party. The al-
co’s main conservative par- Democratic Front. liance could further erode
ty and a center-left party “We are united to end cor- the ideological underpin-
struck an alliance Tuesday ruption. ... We are united to nings of the PRD, which has
to run a joint candidate in end violence,” PAN leader lost support to Morena and
the 2018 presidential race, Ricardo Anaya said. moved toward the center.
though so far they’re not in Both parties are hoping to “We know we don’t have
agreement on what their unseat the ruling Institution- the same ideas, but we
coalition should be called. al Revolutionary Party next pursue the same goals,”
The conservative National year. Former two-time PRD PRD leader Alejandra Bar-
Action Party, or PAN, is call- candidate Andres Manuel rales said.
ing it the Citizen’s Front of Lopez Obrador is also a for- The smaller Citizens’ Move-
Mexico, while the Demo- midable contender as the ment party also signed on
cratic Revolution Party, standard-bearer of his up- to the alliance.q