Castro hits out at Bush over Cuban sex tourism claims

FIDEL CASTRO yesterday rejected charges by US President George Bush that he promotes sex tourism in Cuba, then went on the offensive to dredge up old reports about his enemy's past drinking habits.

The Cuban leader vigorously denied Mr Bush's recent allegations, saying that what the White House believes is "that which the president makes up in his head, whether it corresponds to reality or not".

"There are many in the world who know very little about the Cuban revolution, and could fall prey to the lies diffused by the United States," the Cuban president said at the island's annual Revolution Day celebration in the central city of Santa Clara.

During a speech in Tampa, Florida, earlier this month, Mr Bush accused Mr Castro of turning Cuba into a major destination for sex tourism, which is "a vital source of hard currency to keep his corrupt government afloat".

"The regime in Havana, already one of the worst violators of human rights in the world, is adding to its crimes. Castro welcomes sex tourism," Mr Bush said at the July 16 conference on human trafficking.

Although prostitution exists in Cuba, it is unorganised and has been far less visible since Mr Castro launched a massive crackdown on street crime in early 1999.

Mr Castro said someone should have told Mr Bush that before Cuba's 1959 revolution around 100,000 women were involved in prostitution because of poverty, discrimination or unemployment.

Mr Castro then lashed out at the US leader in a more personal manner, summarising the arguments made in Justin A Frank's book, Bush on the Couch: Inside the Mind of the President. He claimed that Mr Bush had replaced drinking with religious fundamentalism.

"He depends on religion as a defence mechanism, substituting thought," said Mr Castro, paraphrasing from the book by the Washington-based psychoanalyst. "In some ways, he doesn't even have to think."

In an autobiography when he was Texas governor, Mr Bush wrote about swearing off alcohol in 1986, when he was 40, after a spiritual awakening.

Mr Castro ended by saying he hoped God does not "instruct" Mr Bush to invade the island, a fear the Cuban leader often repeats.

"He had better check on any divine belligerent order by consulting the Pope and other prestigious dignitaries ... asking them for their opinion," he said.