Fownhope’s Heart of Oak Society traces its roots to the age of friendly societies, when communities provided their own safety net. Its anniversary celebrations reveal a tradition still very much alive, says MARK SEDDON
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Trying to sue socialism: Trump ratchets up the pressure on Cuba
Using a previously unenforced law against trade with Cuba, the Trump administration is heading towards a major showdown with the international community, writes ROB MILLER
ANGUS REID explains the significance of Cuba’s egalitarian in letter and spirit Family Code and the pertinent lessons it holds for democracies anywhere in the world
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NICK WRIGHT considers how the isolation of Israel and a new film on the controversial Italian communist leader are creating new reference points for Italy’s left
CARLOS MARTINEZ says Cuba’s achievements in the face of a criminal blockade are startling, but the island’s future if the United States succeeds in crushing it looks bleak
AMNON BROWNFIELD STEIN reports that far-right MPs who mobbed the event organised by Hadash may have helped raise awareness of the brutality of the Israeli right
ON January 16 the US government suspended Title III of the Helms-Burton legislation for 45 days. Title III is the part of the Helms-Burton Act which gives US citizens the right to sue foreign companies for using properties which were nationalised following the Cuban Revolution in 1959.
However, while the US strictly adheres to other articles of Helms-Burton (an Act which codified sanctions against Cuba into US law 23 years ago) Title III has never been enforced. Every president, Democrat and Republican, has waived this part of the Act on a six-monthly basis since it was passed in 1996.
In reducing the waiver period to just 45 days, the US government is sending a warning to the international community that anyone with investments in Cuba may be about to get dragged through the US courts.
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