Cuba Plans To Reduce Petroleum Imports*** "For June through October it is necessary to have better control and a decrease in the import of combustibles for the generation of electricity," the government said in a statement carried by the official Cuban Communist Party newspaper, Granma. But the article did not give details of how the imports would be reduced. Granma also said the Castro government is now lowering prices on flashlights and what it called "other emergency lighting" so Cubans could save on using electricity at home.***
Castro's Gov't Warns of Trafficking *** HAVANA (AP) - Facing persistent rumors that an exodus from Cuba is imminent, Fidel Castro's government warned Wednesday that anyone caught sailing here to retrieve people would be tried for migrant trafficking. The U.S. Coast Guard in Miami warned that Cubans could put themselves in danger if they try to illegally enter the United States by sea. "The Florida Straits is a dangerous, rough area to navigate, especially in overcrowded or unseaworthy vessels," the U.S. Coast Guard said in a Wednesday release. "Migrants rescued at sea will be expeditiously repatriated back to Cuba according to current procedures," it added. Rumors began circulating here last week that beginning Thursday private boats would start arriving from Florida and wait just outside the 12-mile limit that marks Cuban waters to pick up Cubans wanting to leave. Such rumors are common on both sides of the Florida Straits every summer, but have been especially persistent this year amid a worsening economic situation on the island and recent statements by Castro that some have interpreted as veiled threats of an exodus.***