Fidel´s Fortune

Fidel from my balcony

2007-02-13T10:52:00.000-08:00

2006-11-30T06:33:00.000-08:00

You don’t have a duty to beanywhere, Fidel: your duty to humanity is to look after yourself and go on living…

Dear brother and sister followers of Fidel:
Fidel’s transparency has made us clearly understand reality. But what he would most want is that we continue going forward. First you heard the voice of Oswaldo Guayasamín, creator of the Foundation 30 years ago, and whose living memory holds the thinking and sentiment of hundreds, thousands, millions of human beings, who are here or who have been unable to come to be with us in these days that are going to be marvelous, not only because of the love that we, you and the maestro’s family will be giving, but because of the personality of the man who is being honored: that volcano called Fidel!
The Guayasamín Foundation wishes to share with you, the visiting women and men from 80 countries, the privilege represented by being able to participate in this unparalleled tribute.
It is our wish that each segment of the program will be fulfilled as successfully as possible. It includes the Guayasamín exhibition, made concrete in an embrace from the artist to his brother Fidel; the international concert Todas las voces, Todas (All Voices Together) in which artists and singer-songwriters who are generously dedicating their music to Fidel will participate; and the colloquium in which we are going to dialogue on and update the memory of what has taken place and look at the projections of what is to happen in this world in turmoil, everything in relation to Fidel and to Cuba, both of whom symbolize the real concept of Revolution.
In the framework of this tribute, we are going to launch a book reproducing the works of Oswaldo Guayasamín twinned with poems from Pablo Neruda’s Canto General (General Song), and another book that brings together marvelously the thinking and a large part of the history of the Comandante, Cien horas con Fidel (One Hundred Hours with Fidel), written with such intelligence by the journalist Ignacio Ramonet, present here, in its third edition, which is an additional privilege for all of us.
However, that is little enough of what we can do as a tribute to a man who has given everything in favor of others, his own Cuban people and other peoples from Latin America and the world, whom he treats as if they were his own in the exemplary attitude of converting himself into the driving force of the most internationalist solidarity known to contemporary history.
An example of decorum, of austerity, of total detachment from material ambition, personal sacrifice in his inexhaustible work, all those virtues that have brought him to occupy that unique place in the history of these times in which he has dedicated most of his 80 years to fighting, leading battles, defeating – one after the other – the governments of imperialism and many of their figureheads, with all their blockades, their assassination attempts, their perverse genocidal practices.
Eighty years, which are many, many more for a person who found the strength to extend his days and working hours to the infinite.
His being this volcano that he has been, as Oswaldo Guayasamín describes him, is the reason for us meeting here to say to him:
Thank you, Fidel, for existing…
Thank you for having had the valor to forge the 26th of July…
Thank you for everything that you have done and for attaining the absolution of history a long time ago…
Thank you for the Granma landing, the beginning of the victory…
Thank you for making Cuba a free territory…
With the beneficiaries of the "I Can Do It," Operation Miracle (programs), and the thousands of medical students, we say to you: Thank you for making your dreams of social justice a reality…
Thank you for continuing to be a guerrilla…
With Elián González and with the five patriots imprisoned by the empire, we say to you: Thank you for being tenacious and for winning all your battles…
You do not have a duty to be anywhere, Fidel: your duty to humanity is to look after yourself and to go on living…
Friends: And so that Fidel hears from where you are, from the hand of the memory of Oswaldo Guayasamín, let us lavish to that volcano of tenderness the most loving standing ovation…
ALFREDO VERADirector of International Relations of theGuayasamín Foundation.Coordinator of the Tribute.

2006-11-30T06:32:00.000-08:00

Message from President Fidel Castroto participants in the celebrations for his 80th birthday
Dear compatriots and dear friends from all over the world:
During this time, I have worked intensely to guarantee in our country the objectives of the Proclamation of the 31st of July.
Now we find ourselves facing an adversary who has led the United States into a disaster of such magnitude, that it is almost certain that the U.S. people themselves will not allow him to conclude his presidential mandate.
In addressing you, intellectuals and prominent individuals of the world, I was in a dilemma: I could not bring you all together in a small venue. It was only within the Karl Marx Theater that all of the visitors would fit and, according to my doctors, I was still not in a condition to face such a colossal encounter.
I opted for the variant of speaking to all of you utilizing this channel. My thinking is well-known regarding José Martí’s ideas of glories and honors, when he said that they can all fit on a grain of corn.
Your generosity really overwhelms me. There are so many people that I would like to mention here that once again, I am opting not to do so, and I ask you to forgive me for mentioning just one name: that of Oswaldo Guayasamín, because he was able to synthesize many of the best virtues of those present here.
He made four portraits of me. The first one that he painted in 1961 was lost. I looked for it in every possible corner, and it never appeared. I suffered so much when I found out what an exceptional person Guayasamín was. The second was in 1981 and is kept at the Casa Guayasamín in Old Havana. The third, in 1986, is kept at the "Antonio Núñez Jiménez Foundation for Nature and Man." How far we were, he and I, when we first met, from imagining that the fourth portrait would be his birthday gift in August 1996.
How inspired his words were when he said: "From Quito and in any corner of the Earth, leave a light burning, because I will be back later."
About Oswaldo Guayasamín, I wrote one day, during the inauguration of the Capilla del Hombre, "He was the most noble, transparent and humane person I have ever known. He created at the speed of light, and his magnitude as a human being was limitless."
As long as the planet exists and human beings breathe, the work of creators will exist.
Today, moreover, thanks to technology, the work and knowledge that humanity has created throughout thousands of years is within everyone’s reach, even though it is not yet known how human beings are affected by the radiation from billions of computers and cell phones.
Recently, the prestigious World Wildlife Fund, based in Switzerland and considered internationally to be the most important NGO overseeing the global environment, stated that all of the measures taken by Cuba to protect the environment made it the only country on Earth that meets the minimum requirements for sustainable development. This is an encouraging honor for our country, but of little importance in the world, given the weight of its economy. That is why, on this past 23rd, I sent a message to President Chávez saying:
"Dear Hugo:
"By adopting a Comprehensive Energy Savings Program, you have become the most prestigious defender of the environment in the world.
"The fact that Venezuela is the country with the largest oil reserves is extremely important, and will make you an example that will draw along all other energy consumers to do the same, saving a countless amount of investment.
"Just as Cuba, a nickel producer, can mobilize resources worth billions of dollars for its development, Venezuela, with its exports of hydrocarbons, could mobilize trillions.
"If the rich industrialized nations were to achieve the miracle of reproducing throughout the planet – within several dozen years – solar fusion, having first destroyed the environment with hydrocarbon emissions, how will the poor nations, who constitute the immense majority of humanity, be able to live in that world?
"¡Hasta la victoria siempre!"
Finally, dear friends, who have done us the immense honor of visiting our country, I very sorrowfully take my leave of you, because I was not able to personally thank you and embrace each one of you. We have the duty to save our species.

2006-11-20T07:19:00.000-08:00

Preparations for Fidel’s Birthday Full Steam Ahead

More than a thousand personalities from all continents will be come to Cuba between November 28 and the first days of December to celebrate the 80^th birthday of Cuban President Fidel Castro in what will be "a demonstration of love, passion, affection and respect for the leader of the Revolution," said Alfredo Vera, member of the Guayasamin Foundation, the institution promoting of the initiative.

"Fidel Castro and the late Ecuadorian painter Oswaldo Guayasamin were united by profound ties of friendship and mutual admiration," said Vera.

The Foundation’s international relations person said the events to take place in Havana as part of the celebration include a colloquium on the thoughts of Fidel Castro; a concert at the Jose Martí Anti-imperialist Bandstand and an exhibition of Guayasamin’s paintings at the National Museum of Fine Arts.

The announcements were made on the nightly TV and Radio program The Round Table. Important intellectuals have confirmed their presence at the celebrations, among them, sociologist and journalist Ignacio Ramonet, Ecuador’s former president Rodrigo Borja, writer and essayist Luis Britto, and author Atilio Boron.

Foundation Vice-president Saskia Guayasamin, told the Round Table that convening the event was a task achieved on short notice, as a result of the great admiration for Fidel and his father Oswaldo, "who dedicated his painting to the defense of the poor and dispossessed of the Americas."

Vera added that the colloquium will run from November 29 through December 1. He said three commissions will delve into Fidel’s views on solidarity, internationalism and the need to forge a new type of human being. Discussions will also focus on the leader of the Cuban revolution’s concepts of justice, equity and humanity’s most pressing problems.

Round Table host Randy Alonso announced that all the debates will be taped for further broadcast on the program.

Guayasamin´s grandson, Alfredo Che Vera, provided details on the concert Todas las Voces Todas, scheduled to take place on November 30, with the participation of renowned musicians and singers from Cuba and Latin America.

2006-10-29T17:39:00.000-08:00

Fidel gives camera to boy humiliated by the blockade

RAYSEL Sosa González received a digital camera on Wednesday night (Oct. 25), sent by President Fidel Castro, the daily Juventud Rebelde reported.

The boy received his gift publicly from the hands of Roberto González, deputy minister of health, at the school where Raysel attends seventh grade, Olof Palme Junior High, in the Havana neighborhood of La Lisa.

Jorge González, who leads the Coloring My Barrio Community Workshop, where Raysel cultivates his artistic talent, said that for four months, they had suffered together after the Japanese company Nikon shamefully refused to give Raysel the camera that was his prize for the 15th International Children’s Painting Competition on the Environment, because the camera had U.S. components.

“Today, justice has been done, and it has come from the most just man in the world,” the teacher affirmed.

Raysel, who was so surprised that he didn’t open his carefully gift-wrapped present for several minutes, said he was very happy about the camera sent by Fidel.

He said that he would like to see him when he gets better, give him a kiss on the cheek, and thank him for that warm gesture.

Raysel hasn’t yet decided what images his new camera will capture, but he will always remember this day, along with the pleasant knowledge of the solidarity given him by his classmates and neighbors, who a few minutes earlier had listened attentively to the detailed explanation from José Ramón Cabaña, an official with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, regarding the aggressive U.S. policy toward Cuba and its relentless blockade, which was used to try to deprive this young Cuba of his happiness.

2006-10-29T17:37:00.000-08:00

Fidel is in the heart of each one of us

General of the Army Raúl Castro tells pioneers at their 4th Congress

“Fidel was not physically present here, but he has been in a more important place, in the hearts of each of us,” affirmed General of the Army Raúl Castro Ruz, in the final event of the 4th Congress of the José Martí Pioneers Organization (OPJM) which met over two days in the International Conference Center.

“He is going to enjoy this event very much, it will fill him with profound joy to see these calm, disciplined and solemn children; to see this beautiful verdant flower that you represent.”

He recalled the response of the Cuban leader when the pioneers repeated in the 3rd Congress: “Fidel, Fidel, what is it that Fidel has, that the Americans can’t handle him?” “I have you,” he answered five years ago. Nobody would be in the least doubt of what he had when he said that.

When Fidel recovers, he is going to participate in a solemn session with the delegates to this 4th Pioneers Congress, noted Raúl, a proposal he transmitted at the initiative of Carlos Lage. The news provoked an explosion of joy in the plenary session.

“You have to urge Fidel to get better, and I am going to tell him on your behalf. I wouldn’t miss that solemn session,” Raúl added.

CONSTANT IMPROVEMENT

The second secretary of the Party refuted the lies in the U.S. and Miami press on Fidel’s imminent death. “He is steadily improving, but as he warned in his proclamation, his recovery will take time. He has a telephone at his side and is using it more and more every day,” he emphasized.

Raúl said that he had met with the leader of the Revolution the previous Friday at 8:30 p.m. as agreed by him, and that Carlos Lage, vice president of the Council of State, and Felipe Pérez Roque, minister of foreign affairs, had also been present. Fidel gave them some directions on affairs of state.

Recalling anecdotes from the insurrectional struggle, he confided that the sentence he liked the most from the personal diary that he kept for the first 80 days after the Granma landing was the one he wrote in January 1957, the time of battle at La Plata, the first victory of the Rebel Army.

On that occasion he noted: “There from a distance I saw the flames of freedom burning over the garrisons of oppression. One day we will raise up schools on their ashes.”

“I can’t help but get emotional when I see everything that the Revolution has done in education under the precise guidance of what some of you call the Pionero Mayor.

MILITIAS TO PARADE ON DECEMBER 2

“Nobody should get confused about this little country that shelters a great peaceful people, but if they set upon us they are going to come up against a telluric khaki force, with a wasps’ nest, as Fidel said once. We wish the best for our people, but they wish them the worst,” he said, alluding to the enemies of the Revolution.

Raúl announced that there is to be a military parade in the capital on December 2 to demonstrate the upgrading of our defense armaments on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the Revolutionary Armed Forces.

There is also to be another military parade on November 30 to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the insurrection in that city in support of the landing of the expeditionary forces from the yacht Granma.

Also present at the congress were José Ramón Machado Ventura, Esteban Lazo and Carlos Lage, all members of the Political Bureau, as well as others from the Central Committee Secretariat, as were representatives of the Union of Young Communists , the Federation of University Students, the Federation of Students in Intermediate Education and the Ministry of Education.

SURPRISE HUGS AND KISSES

Raúl Castro was the depository of the seals that accredit him and Fidel as delegates to the 4th Pioneers Congress, presented by Herlys Ortiz in the name of more than 1.4 million Cuban pioneers.

Raúl received the surprise load of mass hugs and kisses from the pioneers, who gave him a picture in which children are asking him to accept their entry “into Fidel’s army, as soldiers of ideas and fires, for the battles of today and tomorrow, at the orders of a general like you, faithful to the dreams of Martí.”

A piece of crystal carved with the face of José Martí by Carlos Marcoleta, an artist from Cárdenas, was sent to Fidel, the oldest of the pioneers, via Marcoleta’s younger brother.

Raúl enjoyed the affection and contagious joy of the children, who sung, laughed, joked and even cried with emotion.

The FAR minister told them that Fidel had sent a special present to them: the second edition of the book, Cien horas con Fidel (One Hundred Hours with Fidel), the result of interviews by the Franco-Spanish writer Ignacio Ramonet.

“You have been present for every minute of this Congress, in every dream, in every poem, in every song,” affirmed Miriám Yanet Martín, national OPJM president.

In her message she assured: “Like you, Comandante, have them, they have you and they are here to let you know that.”

PIONEERS MULTIPLYING THE IDEAS OF CHE

On the 39th anniversary of Che’s death in Bolivia pioneers are multiplying his ideas, affirmed Mercedes López Acea, member of the Central Committee Secretariat, on closing the congress.

Lázaro Izquierdo, a Cuban doctor who works in La Higuera medical post, told the pioneers of his experiences in that historic place in Bolivia.

Dr. Izquierdo, a member of the Henry Reeve International Brigade, arrived in La Higuera, where they killed Che, along with other health professionals when Bolivia was affected by torrential rain last February.

“We are there to fulfill the dreams of Che Guevara, the dreams of those adult models sought by Cuban children and those in La Higuera,” he stated.

In La Higuera, Che is not only looked on as a saint; he is still a symbol for many people in the world. Villa Grande was the scenario where he contributed not only to restore the medical post but carried construction materials on his shoulders to a height of 2,300 meters.

2006-09-20T18:12:00.000-07:00

Fidel received the writer Miguel Bonasso
The Commander-in-Chief Fidel Castro Ruz received the President of the Commission of Natural Resources and Environment of the House of Representatives of the Argentine Republic, Miguel Bonasso, who is in Cuba as personal representative of the President from his country to the meeting of the Group of the 15, which will take session tomorrow in occasion of XIV the Summit of the Movement of non-Aligned Countries. In touching and brotherly encounter, Fidel showed to the outstanding writer and Argentine journalist the first unit of the second Cuban, reviewed and enriched edition with new data, of the book "One hundred hours with Fidel", who will be flattered to the Government and Chiefs of State and other present personalities in the Summit of the NOAL.The Commander-in-Chief told to Bonasso the intense process of revision of the book, to which he dedicated numerous hours, even in the middle of the strategic tasks of conduction of the Power Revolution and the fabulous educational and health programs in which the country is involve now. He said that the book became a something very important to him, not only by the necessary precisions of content, just by the commitment that he has made with the Cuban people to review it, to print a new edition that could be distributed in all the country. One and other again he reviewed each chapter of the book until the minimum detail, even during the trip to Argentina, the intense day of the 26 of July and in the process of recovery after the operation, even at the most complicated moments, when he did not know of how long would arrange to do it, with the objective to fulfil his commitment with the Cuban people.The result is just more than an edition finished, with deep and important reflections and unpublished documents that add more value to the exceptional testimony of the leader of the Cuban Revolution. Fidel and Bonasso also interchanged opinions on diverse subjects of interest of our special region and in on the development of the Miracle operation, by which 400 000 patients have been operated in hardly two years, the great majority Latin American and Caribbean. In addition to the advanced centres whereupon counts the country, where have been made most of these operations, Cuba has installed Oftalmological Centres of high level in Bolivia, Ecuador, Guatemala, Haiti and Venezuela, to take care of patients of those countries and bordering nations. In Bolivia, where several centres are installed, the capacity of operations reaches more than 100 thousand annual people. During the encounter, Bonasso gave to Fidel a trip portfolio, as expression of its confidence in which he will continue travelling by the world taking the voice and the message of Cuba. He expressed to him that he saw him far better that what he has imagined from the published thing and he appreciated him with the same spirit and the lucidity whereupon saw him in Cordova, the last July, when they shared several moments during the days of that visit.Fidel thanked Bonasso for his presence in Cuba and its decided support to the Latin American integrating projects, since he has demonstrated with his participation in several encounter of intellectuals of the region and their presence to it in the presidency and his presence as orator in the crowded act in the Revolution Square the past February 3rd, when the International Jose Martí Prize was given to the President Hugo Chávez , and in the presidency of the historical act of April 29th, when the incorporation of Bolivia to the agreements of the ALBA took place.Taken from Pagina/12

2006-09-20T18:11:00.000-07:00

Fidel was chosen President of the MNOAL
The Commander-in-Chief Fidel Castro Ruz, was chosen President of the MNOAL today by acclamations of the Movement of Countries non-Aligned in the XIV Summit, that began today under the conduction of Raul Castro, Chief of State in functions of Cuba. To proposal of Prime minister of Malaysia, Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, Fidel received the applause of the leaders of more than 100 delegations of countries members, in his condition of President of the MNOAL, which assumes for the second time. Minutes before, the Cuban chancellor Felipe Perez Roque informed that Raul Castro, Chief of State in functions, would head the delegation of the greater one of the Antilles, in as much the Commander-in-Chief recovers satisfactorily and follows the prescription of the doctors, who indicated rest to him.The own Badawi in self expressed to the plenary , and it was accepted by acclamations, that the First Vice-president of Cuba would assume the presidency in functions of the Summit, until Fidel reassumes his responsibilities of State and Government.The XIV Conference of the MNOAL began in the morning shortly after the 10, as soon as Raul gave the official welcome to the heads of delegations. In the presidential entrance of the Palace of Conventions of the Cuban capital, Raul interchanged greetings with each one of the presidents, prime minister and other high leaders, to those who the Honour guard presented his respect.After the intervention of Felipe, the Prime minister of Malaysia made a report of the activity of the MNOAL in the last three years, in which this forum of agreement was revitalized it self in the defence of its original principles.“We trust that Cuba will be able to direct the Movement, its history gives us the certainty that non-Aligned will be in the good hands of Cuba and it will reach higher levels”, said Badawi.“Then I assume”, said Raul when he took possession.
Took it from Granma.cu

2006-09-20T18:04:00.000-07:00

Evo Morales and Hugo Chavez Visit with Fidel Castro

Commander in chief Fidel Castro met with the presidents of Bolivia and Venezuela, Evo Morales and Hugo Chavez on Saturday night, the second time he spoke with the two South American leaders in less than a week.
The three presidents exchanged impressions on the 14th Summit of the Non-Aligned Movement that was wrapping up in Havana. They agreed on the need to work to further revitalize the movement as the representative organization of the aspirations and views of Third World nations.
Evo and Fidel talked about the projects implemented between the two nations as part of the Bolivarian Alternative for the Americas (ALBA) and the Peoples Free Trade Treaty of Nations, promoted by Bolivia, Venezuela and Cuba.
Fidel Castro expressed his deep admiration for President Morales and extolled his extraordinary struggle for Bolivians to recover control over their country's natural resources.
The Cuban leader spoke with his close friend Hugo Chavez about increased cooperation with Bolivia in the fields of health, education and other social fields.

2006-08-31T08:21:00.000-07:00

Raul Castro Received Syria Minister of Information
Havana

Raul Castro, Second Secretary of the Cuban Communist Party, received on Sunday August 27 a delegation from Syria headed by the Minister of Information, Mohsen Bilal.

The Syrian minister traveled to Cuba as a personal emissary of President Bachar Al Assad. He carried a message to Raul Castro wishing Cuban President Fidel Castro a speedy recovery and reaffirmed his country’s solidarity with the people, Communist Party and government of Cuba at a time when the island faces stepped up threats and aggressions from the Bush administration.

During the meeting, Bilal confirmed that President Al Assad will participate at the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) Summit set for Sept. 11-16 in Havana and gave the Syrian government’s total support for Cuba as the next president of 116-member NAM.
The minister informed the Cubans on the situation in the Middle East and his country after the Israeli invasion of Lebanon, the increased repression and massacres against the Palestinian people and the increased threats against Syria.

Raul Castro expressed appreciation for the message from President Bachar Al Assad and reiterated Cuba’s support to the Syrian people in the face of aggressions and hostilities from Tel Aviv. He also confirmed the island’s support of Syria’s efforts to recovery the Golan Heights, occupied by Israel since the 1967 invasion.

Raul Castro told the visitor that President Fidel Castro was gradually and satisfactorily recovering from his surgery. He noted the total peace reigning in the country and the effort being made by the Communist Party, government and the people in general to carry out the tasks entrusted in them by Fidel in his Proclamation of July 31, including the decision to substantially raise the country’s combat capability and readiness.

The Defense Minister said that Cuba is ready for the Non-Aligned Summit and highlighted the numerous displays of support received from around the world.
Accompanying Raul Castro in his meeting with the Syrian minister were Foreign Minister Felipe Perez Roque and Fernando Remirez de Estenoz, member of the Communist Party Secretariat.

2006-08-30T06:46:00.000-07:00

Fidel Castro Better Every Day
Lima
Responding to concern in Lima over President Fidel Castro´s health, Pedro Ross, head of the Cuban Workers Union (CTC), reported the president´s marked improvement.
Fidel Castro is very well, every day improving and he is walking, Ross said to thunderous applause during a dialog with hundreds of sympathizers of the Cuban Revolution.

The union leader, who ends a six-day visit to this country tomorrow, said there is absolute calm in the island in spite of the difficulties with the statesman s health. Fidel Castro had emergency surgery at the end of July.
Life in Cuba goes on as well as before, said the also member of the Cuban State Council, after remarking that the supposed transition prompted by US president George W. Bush will have to wait until most Cubans die.
Facing those not-so-new threats, Cuban men and women are ready to receive aggressors with rifles in hand, said Ross.

The Cuban union leader then dealt with the country s economic advances. Previously, he and the delegation that accompanies him held talks with the Peruvian CGTP (General Confederation of Workers).
Ross also visited the city of Arequipa and conversed with leaders of Peru s leftwing political parties.

2006-08-29T12:52:00.000-07:00

Havana

Syria's President Bachar Al Assad sent a get-well message to Cuban leader Fidel Castro wishing him a prompt recovery and reaffirming his solidarity against US threats of the Caribbean country's sovereignty.

Syrian Minister of Information Mohsen Bilal, who was the special envoy of Al Assad, gave the message to Cuban Army General Raul Castro, Granma daily reported on Tuesday.
Bilal ratified the support and participation of the Syrian head of government in the Non-Aligned Movement Summit, and reiterated his government s total backing of the Caribbean country.

The Syrian minister also gave detailed information about the situation in the Middle East and his country after the Israeli invasion of Lebanon, and talked about Tel Aviv's increasing repression and massacres against the Palestinian people, as well as the escalating threats against Syria.

The Cuban Army general appreciated Al Assad s message, and reiterated Cuba's support for the Syrian people in the face of the Israeli hostilities and aggressions.

2006-08-28T12:14:00.000-07:00

Cuba Rejects Miami Annexation

Havana
Cuba discarded Monday any possibility of the island being annexed to the United States, and said those any who support that option are on Washington's payrolls.
Entitled Neo-annexionism, Granma newspaper publishes Monday a comment which rejects this trend from some sectors that want Cuba to become the Union's 51st state with the name of Havami.

As a consequence of President Fidel Castro's disease, the initiative, dated from some years ago, took strength in south Florida, where an extremist group celebrated the statesman's health problems.

On July 31, the Cuban leader informed through a proclamation the temporary delegation of his state responsibilities to First Vice President Raul Castro, and talked to the people about his health.

While the island carried on normality, wishes for the president prompt recovery have been multiplied, while a "transition" was pushed from Miami and the White House, which the island silenced with more unity and commitment to defend the Revolution.

2006-08-25T12:53:00.000-07:00

Cuban Teachers in Nicaragua Wish Fidel Castro a Fast Recovery
Cuban teachers and other educational workers currently offering their services in Nicaragua sent Fidel Castro a message wishing him well and a fast recovery from recent surgery.
The Cuban collaborators said they have been following news about President Castro’s rehabilitation and that they were pleased to learn of the successful treatment he has undergone.
Half a dozen of Cuban teachers have been working in Nicaragua for a year now. They have helped foster the national literacy program launched by the Sandinista Front, the Prensa Latina news agency reported.
Ned Quevedo, a teacher from eastern Cuban province of Camaguey, said that the teaching program has been successful in that Central American nation, while the Nicaraguan people have welcomed the Cuban personnel with open arms.

The literacy campaign, based on the Cuban methodology known as “Yo Si Puedo,” has helped some 20,000 people how to read and write in several municipalities of Nicaragua.

2006-08-24T12:27:00.000-07:00

Miriam Makeba Sends Message to Cuban Leader

Message from Miriam Makeba, (a friend of Cuba who visited our country in October 2005) received through the International Relations Direction of the Ministry of Culture and which expresses congratulations and her wish for a rapid recovery to Fidel. Makeba is one of the singers that will attend the Cuban festival Todas las voces todas (All of the voices) next December.

Dear Commander-in-Chief Fidel Castro,
I am writing on behalf of Ambassador Dr Miriam Makeba, her band and myself to extend our very best wishes for the continued improvement of your health. I apologise for not having written sooner to let you know that we are, and have been, sending you our warmest thoughts at this time: we were travelling away from home when we first learned of your health issues.
I would like to take this opportunity on behalf of us all to wish you many happy moments for your birthday. We look forward to visiting Cuba again to attend your delayed celebration later in the year and send you our best wishes in the interim.

Respectfully,
Abigail Parker
Personal Assistant and Tour Manager to Ambassador Miriam Makeba

2006-08-24T09:20:00.000-07:00

Cuban Writers and Artists Renew Commitment to Justice.

Message to Fidel Castro on the 45th anniversary of the founding of the Union of Writers and Artists of Cuba

A renewed commitment with dignity and justice was the center of a message from Cuban authors and artists as they celebrated the 45th anniversary of the Union of Writers and Artists of Cuba (UNEAC) Tuesday in Havana.

The message addressed to President Fidel Castro was read by UNEAC president, poet Carlos Marti.

"Your dreams of humanity and social justice and the opening that embodied the idea of founding the UNEAC gave our work the dignity it deserved, as we joined together to use art and literature to defend our traditional ethical and esthetic values and to create a Cuban and international culture supported by our profoundly radical and humanist revolution."
The highpoint of the anniversary celebration was when a diploma, especially designed by national award winning artist Jose Gomez Fresquet, that recognizes Fidel as the founder of the revolutionary organization of writers and artists, was handed to Parliament President Ricardo Alarcon de Quesada for delivery to the commander.

2006-08-18T07:43:00.000-07:00

No enemy can defeat us

Affirms Raúl in a statement to Granma. He affirmed that Fidel continues to improve and thanked people for the thousands of messages of solidarity and support from our country and abroad. Measures have been taken to prevent any attempt at aggression. The people are giving a conclusive demonstration of confidence in themselves.The General of the Army Raúl Castro Ruz has offered an interview to Granma daily. The conversation took place in his office at the Ministry of the Revolutionary Armed Forces (MINFAR) and focused on the principal events of recent days.Comrade Raúl, our people joyfully received the message and photographs of the Comandante en Jefe published in the press and the subsequent television report of the encounter with president Chávez. Nevertheless, taking advantage of this opportunity, it would be greatly appreciated by millions of people who have attentively followed information on the state of health of compañero Fidel, to hear your personal assessment, as someone always so united to him.Without any doubt, what most interests all of us at this time is the Jefe’s health.On behalf of all the people, I will begin by congratulating and thanking the doctors and the other compañeros and compañeras who have attended to him in an excellent manner, with an unsurpassable professionalism and, above all, with much love and dedication. This has been a very important factor in Fidel’s progressive recovery.Moreover, I think that his exceptional physical and mental nature has also been essential to his satisfactory and gradual recovery.We Cubans, even when we don’t see you for a while on television or in the written press, know that you are there, at your combat post as always. But I think that these words of yours will also disarm the speculation and lies present in some of the foreign media.If you are referring to those in other countries who entertain themselves by speculating about if I am going to appear on television or in the papers or not; well, I appeared with Fidel on Sunday (August 13) and when I received President Chávez , although really those comments don’t bother me in the slightest.What does interest me greatly is what our people are thinking, although, fortunately, we live in this geographically small island, where everything that we are doing is known. I can confirm that when I talk with the population or other local leaders in my tours of the country.As a point of fact, I am not used to making frequent appearances in public, except at times when it is required. Many tasks related to defense should not be made public and have to be handled with maximum care, and that has been one of my fundamental responsibilities as FAR minister. Moreover, I have always been discreet, that is my way, and in passing I will clarify that I am thinking of continuing in that way. But that has not been the fundamental reason why I don’t appear very often in the mass media; simply, it has not been necessary.No essential orientation has been overlooked…Effectively, the Comandante en Jefe’s Proclamation gave the information that could be given at that time and moreover, proposed specific tasks for everyone. The main thing is to dedicate oneself in body and soul to fulfilling them. That is what all the leaders at different levels have been doing, together with our people who have known how to maintain an exemplary discipline, vigilance and working spirit.On behalf of the Comandante en Jefe and the Party leadership, I will take the opportunity of thanking everyone for the innumerable displays of support for the Revolution and for the content of his Proclamation, as well as the demonstrations of affection that have been expressed by figures from the cultural sector; professionals and workers in all sectors; campesinos, soldiers, housewives, students, pioneers; among them numerous believers, public figures and religious institutions from the overwhelming majority of denominations; finally, the people of Cuba. It has been a conclusive demonstration of their unbreakable unity and their revolutionary consciousness, essential pillars of the fortitude of our country.The breadth of support coming from all over the world has also been impressive.Yes, really heartening. That is why I should also like to express thanks for the numerous messages of solidarity and respect from all over the world, from people of the most diverse social categories, from simple workers to intellectual and political figures, as well as a significant and representative number of religious institutions and figures. All of them have done so without any conditions whatsoever. Messages from the few who did not act in that way were not accepted or acknowledged.Also, they have been joined to date (August 17) by some 12,000 signatories supporting the call made 10 days ago by prominent cultural personalities from more than 100 countries, among them various Nobel Prize winners, condemning the interfering and aggressive statements of the government of the United States, and which also exposes the openly interventionist nature of the Bush Plan, as we are calling that monster that would seem to be dusted off from the times when – as at the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th – they frustrated the independence of Cuba and imposed their administrators on us.Now they have also designed one for the supposed "transition." One McCarry, who recently stated that the United States does not accept the continuity of the Cuban Revolution, although he didn’t say how they are thinking of averting that.One gets the impression that the enemies of the Revolution have been left speechless by the conclusive reaction of the Cuban population, immune to their giant and disgraceful campaign of offenses and lies. They are talking with surprise at the calm reigning in Cuba, as if it was something unusual and not exactly normal, and which all of us here knew would happen in a situation such as this.Yes, it would seem that they have come to believe their own lies. The most probable is that their "think tanks" and many of their analysts are now drawing other conclusions.As you were saying, absolute tranquility is reigning in the country. And something even more important, the serene, disciplined and decisive attitude that can be felt in every workplace, in every city, in every neighborhood. The same one that our people always assume in moments of difficulty. If we were to be guided solely by the internal situation, I am not exaggerating in affirming that it would not have been necessary to mobilize even one pioneer from among those who guard the ballot boxes in the elections. But we have never ignored a threat from the enemy. It would be irresponsible to do so when faced with a government like that of the United States, which has is declaring with the greatest audacity that it does not accept what is established in the Cuban Constitution. From over there, as if they were the rulers of the planet, they are saying that there must be a transition to a social regime of their liking and that they "would take note of those who oppose that." Although it seems incredible, this boorish and at the same time stupid attitude was assumed by President Bush a few days ago. They’ll have to waste a lot of paper and ink...A lot. For that reason I would advise them to do the opposite. To "take note," as they say, of the annexationists on the payroll of the U.S. Interest Section here in Havana, those who are going to receive the crumbs of the announced $80 million earmarked for subversion, because the bulk of it will be distributed in Miami, as is usually the case.On the contrary, the list is going to be interminable. They would have to list the names of millions and millions of Cuban men and women, the same ones who are ready to receive their designated administrator with rifles in hand.At this juncture, they should be very clear that it is not possible to achieve anything in Cuba with impositions and threats. On the contrary, we have always been disposed to normalize relations on an equal plane. What we do not accept is the arrogant and interventionist policy frequently assumed by the current administration of that country.Recently rereading Party Congress documents, I found ideas that seemed to have been written today. For example, this excerpt from the Central Report presented by Fidel to the Third Congress in February 1986:"As we have demonstrated many times, Cuba is not remiss to discussing its prolonged differences with the United States and to go out in search of peace and better relations between our people."And he continued:"But that would have to be on the basis of the most unrestricted respect for our condition as a country that does not tolerate shadows on its independence, for whose dignity and sovereignty entire generations of Cubans have fought and sacrificed themselves. This would be possible only when the United States decides to negotiate with seriousness and is willing to treat us with a spirit of equality, reciprocity and the fullest mutual respect."Similar formulations are contained in the documents from the other Party Congresses and have also been reaffirmed by its first secretary on diverse occasions. Nevertheless they are continuing with the same aggressive and arrogant policy as always.That is the reality. More than 20 years have passed since Fidel pronounced the words that I have just cited; they have that 485-page interventionist plan that I already mentioned, approved in 2004, in which they detail how they propose to dismantle the achievements of the Revolution in health, education, social security; agrarian reform and urban reform; in other words, to kick the people off their land, out of their homes so as to hand them back to their former owners, etc. etc. etc.To cap it all, just a few days ago, on July 10, President Bush officially approved a document complementing the former one, and which they had posted with a very low profile on the Internet in June. They have openly stated that it includes a secret appendix that is not being published "for reasons of national security" and "to ensure its effective implementation;" those are literally the terms that they used, and which constitute a flagrant violation of international law.For a while now we have been adopting measures to confront those plans. These were reinforced particularly when the current U.S. government initiated the unbridled warmongering policy that it has maintained to date, including the announced intention to attack without previous warning any of those places that they call the "sixty or more dark corners of the world."A notable escalation of aggression…Effectively, and in 2003 the plans became more explicit. On December 5 of that year, Mr. Roger Noriega, then assistant secretary of state for Western Hemisphere Affairs, declared – I don’t know if it was intentional or a slip – that "the transition in Cuba – in other words – the death of Fidel – could happen at any moment and we have to be prepared to be agile and decisive." That "the United States wanted to be sure that the regime’s cronies have no hope of holding onto power" and, so as to leave no doubt, he added that they were working "to ensure that there was no succession to the Castro regime." Subsequently he and other senior U.S. officials have returned to the theme insistently. What other form exists for obtaining these goals that is not military aggression? Thus, the country adopted the pertinent measures for counteracting that real danger. Faced with similar situations, Martí taught us what to do: "Plan against plan. Without a plan of resistance, a plan of attack cannot be defeated," he wrote in the newspaper Patria on June 11, 1892. The United States government is not revealing the contents of that appendix because it is illegal. Its publication must be demanded, above all now that they have spoken about its existence in order to threaten Cuba. On the contrary, our defense plans are transparent and legal, simply because they do not threaten anybody; their sole objective is to guarantee the sovereignty and independence of the homeland; they do not violate any national or international law whatsoever. The country’s media has informed about the seriousness and reach of the measures that we have been adopting recently to steadily strengthen our defense. Just over a month ago, on July 1, the issue was analyzed extensively by the Fifth Plenum of the Central Committee of the Party. Some of the empire’s war hawks thought that the moment had come to destroy the Revolution this past July 31. We could not rule out the risk of somebody going crazy, or even crazier, within the U.S. government. Consequently, at 3 a.m. on August 1, in fulfillment of the plans approved and signed on January 13, 2005 by compañero Fidel, and after having made the established consultations, I decided to substantially raise our combative capacity and readiness via the implementation of the projected measures, including the mobilization of several tens of thousands of reservists and militia members, and the proposal to our principal units of regular troops, including the Special Troops, of missions demanded by the political/military situation that has been created. All of the mobilized personnel has completed or is currently completing an important cycle of combat training and cohesion, part of that under campaign conditions. These troops will rotate, in approximately equal numbers, as the proposed objectives are attained. All of the reservists and militia members who are to participate in these activities will be informed, with the necessary anticipation, of the date of incorporation into their units and the time that they will remain in these to fulfill their guard duty to the homeland. To date, the mobilization that we began on August 1 has developed satisfactorily, thanks to the magnificent response by our reservists and militia members, as well as the commendable labor undertaken by the military commands and especially by the Defense Councils, under the leadership of the Party, at every level. It is not my intention to exaggerate the danger. I never have done so. Up until now, the attacks during these days have not gone further than rhetorical ones, except for the substantial increase in subversive anti-Cuba broadcasts over radio and television. They have announced the use of a new airplane...Previously, they were using, at varying intervals, a military airplane known as Comando Solo. From this past August 5, they began using another type of aircraft that has effected daily transmissions. On August 11, it did so in conjunction with the aforementioned Comando Solo. In fact, on the 5th and 6th, our radars detected that transmissions were being made from international waters, in outright violation of the agreements of the International Telecommunications Union, to which the United States is a signatory, which once again we are condemning via the corresponding channels and agencies, given that moreover these transmissions are affecting broadcasting in our country.In reality, we are totally unconcerned at the hypothetical influence of this crude and abysmally-made propaganda, very much below the cultural and political levels of the Cuban population and which moreover our people reject, just as they reject the little signs on the U.S. Interests Section. That is not what this is about; it is above all a matter of sovereignty and of dignity. We would never passively allow the consummation of that aggressive act, and that is why we interfere with it. All things considered, they are spending millions in U.S. taxpayers’ money to achieve the same result as ever: a TV that is not seen. I add to these reflections on the country’s defense an idea expressed by Fidel in 1975, in his Central Report to the First Party Congress, which I have quoted so much that I know it by heart: "As long as imperialism exists, the Party, the State and the people will give their utmost attention to the services of defense. The revolutionary guard will never be neglected. History shows with too much eloquence that those who forget this principle do not survive the error." That has been our guide throughout many years, and continues to be today for more than enough reasons. I think that we Cubans have shown during these days that we all share that conviction. I agree with you, and that is why I conclude by ratifying my congratulations to the Cuban people for their overwhelming demonstration of confidence in themselves; a demonstration of maturity, serenity, monolithic unity, discipline, revolutionary consciousness and — put this in capital letters — FIRMNESS, which reminded me of the conduct of the Cuban people during the heroic days of the so-called Missile Crisis in October 1962. They are the fruits of a Revolution whose concept Fidel summed up in his speech of May 1, 2000, in 20 basic ideas that constitute the quintessence of ideological political work. They are the results of many years of combat that, under his leadership, we have waged. Let nobody doubt, as long as we remain like that, no enemy will be able to defeat us. •

2006-08-16T14:08:00.000-07:00

The New Hitler Is Bush

When an astronaut was asked how he saw the Earth from the moon, he responded: "Fragile." He also noted that no divisions could be seen between nations. Life, the greatest flowering of evolution, is threatened today and there is great urgency to take care of it, says Leonardo Boff.
I congratulate all of you gathered at a peace congress in Berlin and as I have been officially asked to send you a message since I couldn’t be present, I’m sending this: Just as at one time the cause of the wars was Hitler, now the cause of the wars is Bush. In a conference like yours it would be hypocritical not to say it.
Bush has stated that he does not rule out the use of any weapon. And therefore, not even nuclear ones. In fact, he has used arms of mass destruction to fight non existing arms of mass destruction in Iraq. US author Noam Chomsky has stated that the greatest State terrorism is that practiced by the United States. Before, Martin Luther King had said that his government was the greatest perpetrator of violence in the world. The United States has invaded countries 216 times (including mine, Nicaragua). A long time ago, Mark Twain said his country’s flag should remain the same but with the white stripes painted black and the stars replaced by skulls and cross-bones. Bush has turned even worse, because the president has put himself above the Constitution and above national and international law.
The governments of Europe should demand the United States to submit a report on its secret prisons in Europe and on using European airports to transfer prisoners to countries where torture is a routine, as has been denounced by several US papers. The Washington Post itself has reported that there are secret US prisons in eight foreign countries.
Amnesty International has talked about the US Gulags stating that one of those Gulags is the Guantanamo Base. There all human rights and all international laws are violated; a territory where the United States has no right to be and where even the right to visit is illegal.
In Guantanamo, one of the interrogators told a teenager named Mohamed: "This camp is for those who are going to be here forever. Don’t think that you will ever return to your home. You will be here for the rest of your life. Don’t worry; we will keep you alive so that you can suffer more." The young man responded: "Before, I had hope. Now that I am at Guantanamo I’ve lost all hope." (I took this statement from a US Catholic worker).
In Guantanamo there have been hundreds of suicide attempts (350 during the first year and a half) which authorities insist on calling: "Manipulative actions to hurt oneself."
The United States has a new Gestapo. I’ve been there and many people are aware of it. However, many are either not aware, or are in agreement with it, just as occurred in Germany many years ago. The churches are also responsible because of their silence.
The world should not continue to tolerate this, nor should the secrecy or silence continue. At the beginning of the Nuremberg Tribunals a US prosecutor, Judge Robert Jackson, declared that to avoid that these crimes occur, government leaders had to be held responsible. I say the same should happen with Bush, Condoleezza Rice, Donald Rumsfeld, Paul Bremen and others. I think they should be tried in Nuremberg.
The war in Iraq is a prolonged war crime. What’s worse is that many other countries are also threatened. As a Latin American, I raise my voice in defense of Cuba and in defense of Venezuela, both seriously threatened (and Cuba being subjected to the longest economic blockade in history).
We don’t deny that Bin Laden and Al-Qaeda are satanic, but agree that both were created by the United States during its conflict with the Soviet Union in Afghanistan. I am in agreement with Gunter Grass in that "terrorism can only be fought with more economic justice."
There is a psalm that says: "Justice and peace will kiss." It’s because justice and peace go together. There’s no justice without peace and no peace without justice. Our weapon against war is humanism, because as Marti said, "Homeland is Humanity." War is a major threat to this planet and the solar system. And the human race is a species threatened by extinction.
I end by joining German theologian Karl Rahner in saying that the human body is sacred. It is sacred because it was created by God, as all the religions on Earth profess, and God created all of its functions, including its sexuality. And besides, we Christians believe that in the human body the Word was made flesh. We defend peace and justice and defend the human body.

2006-08-15T13:53:00.000-07:00

Fidel Castro’s 80th Birthday to be Celebrated in Harlem

The revolutionary life of the man whose death was recently prematurely celebrated in Miami will be the object of celebration in downtown Harlem on Monday. To mark Fidel Castro’s 80th birthday "a cake with 80 candles, and more, to make it known that what is loved never dies" is being prepared, said Father Luis Barrios, one of the event coordinators.
"It's a celebration of the Cuban Revolution and Fidel's birthday," said Vicente ‘Panama’ Alba, one of the organizers of the party to be held at the St. Ambrose Church, on 130 Street between Lenox and Fifth, deep in the heart of Harlem.
The celebration will also be a reply to those in Miami who, shortly after news broke of the temporary transferring of powers in Cuba, went out to Calle 8 to celebrate.
"The Cuban worms [in Miami] and the US government hope for a transition when Fidel dies," said Alba, who added with a smile, "they are way behind, because that process began in 1959."
According to Father Barrios, "the serious matter here is that the United States dares threaten the sovereignty of another country. It is amazing that the United Nations Security Councils permits this."
Father Barrios said that in addition to paying homage to Cuba and Fidel, afternoon festivities will feature a wide variety of topics including current events in Lebanon, Venezuela and Puerto Rico, US immigration, the war against Iraq, and those who are looking forward to the impeachment of George W. Bush.
Previous to singing Happy Birthday to Fidel, a documentary on the Cuban Five —five Cubans that have been unjustly held in US jails since 1998— will be shown.
"Since [the triumph of the Revolution] in 1959, Cuba has not invaded a single nation," how many countries has the US invaded since then?" asks Alba.
As Harlem celebrates, Fidel has asked that celebrations in Cuba for his August 13, 80th birthday be postponed while he recovers from an operation.
"This is a message of love, unity and community, based on everything that Fidel has taught us," says Father Barrios. When asked about the fundamental lesson he has learned from the Comandante he says "to be subversive all the time."
(El Diario/La Prensa, Nueva York)

2006-08-13T12:35:00.000-07:00

Acquitted by history
I have not forgotten when the 23 of January of 1959 the "Operation was celebrated in Havana Truth" in the occasion of the international campaign against the executions; then hundreds of representatives of mass media occurred to appointment in the capital and, in that occasion, a Mexican journalist commented to me:"I remained pasmado with the way to speak of Fidel I castrate. With him, an honest man made his appearance."To Fidel nobody him inculcó its political ideas; it arrived at them like result from his meditations, reflections, observation of the reality, and the analysis of which other many did and thought.During years I have looked for the valuations emitted on Fidel by outstanding international and national personalities of the policy, the art, the education, the medicine, the sport and others.Many of these considerations I have gathered them of diverse interviews that I have made throughout the revolutionary process. Others I have discovered them in memories, speeches and in different journalistic works. With them, more than 400, I have prepared a special edition of a book that will come next to the public light. Several of those opinions appear now in this Special Supplement of Granma.Fidel is one of the figures of this time. Its name is repeated with admiration in all the continents and all the languages.Wanted by its town and respected by its enemies. It is a flag and a symbol of the humanity.The legendary soldier of the Masterful Mountain range has seeded itself in the heart of the humble ones. He has been inserted in history. He is in favor already acquitted of history.

2006-08-10T12:59:00.000-07:00

Benicio del Toro calls for respect for Cuban sovereignty
Hollywood actor, Benicio del Toro, winner of an Oscar for best supporting actor in Traffic, by Steven Soderbergh, has called for respect for Cuban sovereignty.
Del Toro, an actor of Puerto Rican nationality, added his voice to the 3,780-plus intellectuals and artists from more than 50 countries who are condemning the aggressive and interventionist tone of the George W. Bush government toward Cuba.
The movie star, a man dedicated to bringing art to the masses, through which he came to identify with Cuba, visited Havana a few years ago with director Soderbergh and the producers of Traffic to premiere that film on the island.
In this way he joins a prestigious gathering of actors and artists who are defending Cuba’s sovereignty in the face of the powerful forces that are threatening it.
Danny Glover, Harry Belafonte, Leticia Spiller, María Rojo, Gael García Bernal, Rodrigo de la Serna and Santiago García can also be found in this sizeable group.
Other signatories are Nobel Prize winners Nadine Gordimer, José Saramago, Wole Soyinka, Darío Fo, Adolfo Pérez Esquivel, Rigoberta Menchú, Desmond Tutu and Zhores Alfiorov.
In addition Brazilian musician Egberto Gismonti, for many the new Heitor Villa Lobos due to his vast experimental work, has spoken out in favor of Cuba’s defense in the face of threats from the United States.
Gismonti, just before leaving Havana where he offered an unforgettable recital with the Camerata Romeu, expressed his sentiments of solidarity on this issue in a letter.
The renowned director of Reed: Insurgent Mexico, currently retired, added his name to the document which calls on the U.S. to respect of Cuba’s sovereignty.
In other news, Catalan writer Rosa Regás, 2001 Planeta Award winner for the “Dorothy’s Song” yesterday alerted the world regarding about a possible U.S. aggression against Cuba.

2006-08-08T08:39:00.000-07:00

The sovereignty of Cuba must be respected

As a result of the communication of Fidel Castro on his state of health and the provisional delegation of his responsibilities, high ranking U.S officials have formulated more and more explicit declarations about the immediate future of Cuba. The Secretary of Commerce Carlos Gutiérrez said that “this is the moment for a true transition towards a true democracy” and the spokesman of the White House Tony Snow said that his government is “ready and eager to grant humanitarian and economic assistance and of any other nature to the people of Cuba”, which has been already being stated by President Bush.
The “Commission for a free Cuba”, presided over by the Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, had already pointed out in a report issued on June, “the urgency to work today to guarantee that the strategy of succession of the regime of Castro does not succeed” and President Bush indicated that this document “demonstrates we are working actively towards a change in Cuba, not just waiting for it to happen”. The Department of State has emphasized that the plan includes measures that will remain secret “for reasons of national security” and to assure its “effective accomplishment”.
It is not hard to imagine the character of such measures and the “announced assistance”, considering the militarization of the foreign policy of the present American administration and its performance in Iraq.
Given the increasing threat against the integrity of a nation, the peace and security of Latin America and the world we, the signatories listed below, demand that the government of the United States respect the sovereignty of Cuba. We must prevent a new aggression at all cost.
Signed by:
José Saramago, Portugal • Wole Soyinka, Nigeria; • Adolfo Pérez Esquivel, Argentina • Dario Fo, Italy • Desmond Tutu, South Africa • Rigoberta Menchú, Guatemala • Nadine Gordimer, South Africa • Zhores Alfiorov, Russia • Noam Chomsky, USA • Oscar Niemeyer, Brazil • Harry Belafonte, USA • Mario Benedetti, Uruguay • Ignacio Ramonet, Spain-France • Danny Glover, USA • Samir Amin, Egypt • Alfonso Sastre, Spain • Francois Houtart, Belgium • Eduardo Galeano, Uruguay • Juan Gelman, Argentina • Frei Betto, Brazil • Pablo González Casanova, Mexico • Russell Banks, USA • Bernard Cassen, France • Ernesto Cardenal, Nicaragua • Angela Davis, USA • Ariel Dorfman, Chile • Tom Morello, USA • Walter Salles, Brazil • Manu Chao, France • Blanca Chancosa, Ecuador • Egberto Gismonti, Brazil • Alice Walker, USA • István Mészáros, Hungary • Fredric Jameson, USA • Jorge Enrique Adoum, Ecuador • Fernando Birri, Argentina • Leonardo Boff, Brazil • David Viñas, Argentina • Emilio Carballido, Mexico • José Luiz del Roio, Italy • Hebe de Bonafini, Argentina • Thiago de Mello, Brazil • Boaventura de Sousa, Portugal • Armand Mattelart, Belgium • William Blum, USA • Miguel Bonasso, Argentina • Chico Whitaker, Brazil; María Rojo, Mexico • Idea Vilariño, Uruguay • Belén Gopegui, Spain • Diamela Eltit, Chile • Atilio Borón, Argentina • Luciana Castellina, Italy • Ramsey Clark, USA • Luis Britto García, Venezuela • Stephen Rivers, USA • Miguel D’Escoto, Nicaragua • Stella Calloni, Argentina • Emir Sader, Brazil • Daniel Viglietti, Uruguay • Lucius Walker, USA • Piero Gleijeses, Italy- USA • James D. Cockcroft, USA • Aníbal Quijano, Peru • Theotonio dos Santos, Brazil • Pablo Guayasamín, Ecuador • Leonard Weinglass, USA • Susu Pecoraro, Argentina • Francisco de Oliveira, Brazil • Graciela Duffau, Argentina • Fernando Rendón, Colombia • Luis Sepúlveda, Chile • Fernando Pino Solanas, Argentina • Michael Löwy, Brazil • Pascual Serrano, Spain • Jorge Rufinelli, Uruguay • James Petras, USA; Keith Ellis, Jamaica- Canada • Tristán Bauer, Argentina...

2006-08-01T00:18:00.001-07:00

Proclamation of the Commander-in-Chief Fidel Castro Ruz to the Cuban people.

Because of the enormous effort I have made at visiting the Argentinean Córdoba City, participating at the meeting of MERCOSUR, participating at the closing of the Summit of the people in the historical University of Córdoba and at the visit to Altagracia, the city where Che lived when he was a child, and together with this my immediate attendance to the commemoration of the 53rd Anniversary of the attack to the Moncada and Carlos Manuel de Céspedes Garrisons, on July 26th, in Granma and Holguín, and days and nights after a continuous work without sleeping, brought about a wane of my health, which has resisted a lot of proofs, and my health got stressed and is having problems.

It caused me a high intestinal crisis with a continuous bleeding which obliged me to face a complicated surgery. All the details of this health accident are in radiographies, endoscopes and filmed materials. The surgery obliges me to stay in bed for several weeks, away from my responsibilities and charges.

As our country is been threaten nowadays by the Government of the United States, I have made the following decision:

1) For the time being, I authorize Mr. Raúl Castro Ruz as Second Secretary to take the charge of First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Cuban Communist Party.

2) For the time being, I authorize General of Army Mr. Raúl Castro Ruz, to play the role of Commander in Chief of the heroic Revolutionary Armed Forces.

3) For the time being, I authorize Mr. Raúl Castro Ruz as Vice-president to take the charge of President of the Council of State and Ministers of the Government of the Republic of Cuba.
4) For the time being, I authorize Mr. José Ramón Balaguer Cabrera as Member of the Politic Bureau and Minister of Public Health to take the charge of main impeller of the National and International Program of Public Health.

5) For the time being, I authorize Mr. José Ramón Machado Ventura and Mr. Esteban Lazo Hernández as Members of the Politic Bureau to take the charge of main impeller of the National and International Program of Education.

6) For the time being, I authorize Carlos Lage Dávila as Member of the Politic Bureau and Secretary of the Executive Committee of the Council of Ministers to take the charge of main impeller of the National Program of the Cuban Energetic Revolution and the Program of Collaboration with other countries in this field.

The corresponding funds to these three programs: Health, Education and Energetic, shall continue being managed with priority as I have personally done until now, it will be carried out as usual by Mr. Carlos Lage Dávila, Secretary of the Executive Committee of the Council of Ministers, Mr. Francisco Soberón Valdés, Minister and President of the Central Bank of Cuba, and Felipe Pérez Roque, Foreign Minister, who have been with me in these affairs and shall constitute a commission for fulfilling this objective.

Our glorious Communist Party, held on mass organizations and people, has the mission of assuming the assigned duty in this Proclamation.

The meeting Summit of the Non-Aligned Movement, which will take place between September 11th and September 16th, shall receive the best assistance of the State and the Cuban Nation so that it can be held brilliantly on the date that was set.

The 80th Anniversary of my birthday, which thousands of great personalities gently agreed to celebrate next August 13th, I beg you to postpone it for next December 2nd of this year, on the 50th Anniversary of the Landing of ‘Granma’.

I ask the Central Committee of the Cuban Party and the National Assembly of the Popular Power the firmest support to this Proclamation.

I have no shade of doubt about the fact that our people and our Revolution will stand up until death for defending these and other ideas and measures that will be necessarily taken in order to protect this historical process.

The imperialism will never defeat Cuba.
The Battle of Ideas will go on.
Long life the Homeland!
Long life Revolution!
Long life Socialism!
Until Victory forever!
Fidel Castro Ruz
Council of State and Ministers of the Republic of Cuba, Comander in Chief, President Fidel Castro Ruz.
July 31st, 2006
6:22 p.m.

2006-07-26T21:34:00.001-07:00

Fidel's fortune

Granma daily staff writer

SOME of those made-in-the-USA slanderous articles, the sort that circulate on newspaper stands around the world and describe it in their image and likeness, are once again attacking Fidel Castro by publishing fabulous figures related to his "personal fortune," given that they actually think they can keep fooling all of the people all of the time.But don't be fooled by those fairy tales, no sir, because out of the experience acquired by this people over the last 46 years, I can safely say to you that all the winds that blow from the North smell rotten.Nevertheless, I would be so bold as to assure you that Fidel is truly the richest man in the world, although his riches cannot be measured in dollars, in annual income [or] any other financial or stock indicator.Fidel's immeasurable fortune is rooted in knowing that he has always had the support of the immense majority of a people proud of having as president and head of state a man who has fought without rest or respite from his youth for the genuine social justice deserved by billions of this chaotic world's poorest people.His fortune, sir, consists of sleeping very little and dreaming a lot, and employing all of his inexhaustible energies, molded by his strength of courage and determination, to make all of those dreams come true, one after another.Yes, Fidel is the richest man on the planet because, in a small country, he has been able to achieve the reality that jobs, health, education, culture, sports and social security are the privileges of all Cubans, not just a few, and are not unattainable pipe dreams as they are in most countries that have not had to suffer constant threats and terrorist aggressions, nor the most prolonged, genocidal blockade ever known in history.Yes, it is true that he has real and colossal treasures hidden away in his coffers: he took heaven by storm on a July morning, with bird-hunting shotguns, and then after the setback, reinitiated José Martí's struggle that was cut short by the Yankees in 1898 by making it possible for the mambise fighters to enter Santiago as the liberating forces in January 1959.Shortly afterwards, he personally led, from the frontlines of combat·as he always has, does and will continue to do·the first great defeat of Yankee imperialism in our America, when his beloved people defeated the mercenaries at the Bay of Pigs.He did not tremble, and he taught us not to tremble in face of the nuclear holocaust that hung over our heads during the 1962 October Crisis, and the following year, once again risking his life for those of his compatriots, he faced the violent winds and rains of Hurricane Flora, because he has never abandoned anyone to their fate—neither his comrade from the Granma who fell overboard; nor those who have lost their homes in natural disasters; nor the athlete who was hurt in an accident at home; nor little Elián, who was kidnapped by the Miami mafia; nor the five Cuban heroes imprisoned in Yankee dungeons for combating terrorism in the very jaws of the real terrorists.Fidel also possesses the immense fortune of having achieved the monolithic unity of his people under the banners of socialism, proclaimed by him before a sea of workers, campesinos, students, men, women and little more than children with rifles in hand·one of whom, before being killed by Yankee shrapnel, wrote Fidel's name with his own blood.If only, sir, all of the peoples of the world had—at least for one day in their bitter lives·a president like Fidel, who doesn't make promises, but keeps them; who doesn't offer, but gives; who doesn't torture or assassinate or disappear people, but saves them, helps them, cures them, protects them and defends them tooth and nail.The president's true fortune is based on knowing what each of his people's problems are, in confronting them and seeking a solution, with everyone and for everyone, without any exceptions, to the benefit not only those who support and follow him unconditionally, but also those who have greater resources, obtained in all kinds of ways, and including those who receive their mercenary crumbs by selling their souls to the sickening and brutal devil of the North who despises us.But Fidel has another fortune, and it is that of having shown the way for his people to internalize the maxim of our national hero that "the homeland is humanity," and be capable of sharing in solidarity what they possess with other human beings in the world who have less or nothing.Believe whatever you want, sir, but billions of people in every geographical latitude will pay no attention whatsoever to those rotten, slanderous libels, because they know very well that Fidel has lived for his people and for all of the peoples of the world, willing since day one to die for them and with them on the frontline of combat, and not hiding out in a bunker in the fashion of Hitler or Mr. W, because for many years now, with the great riches of his example, he has cast his lot with the poor of the Earth, and has demonstrated that he is·among other things·the president of all of the lowly, and that is an immense personal fortune indeed.

2006-07-18T05:46:00.000-07:00

A US publication has dealt with a crucial issue: what is Fidel Castro’s fortune.The obsession with statistics is a typical American characteristic, as the citizens of that nation consider that something which cannot be seen in the form of numbers doesn’t exist. “Tell me the truth, give me the numbers,” is a common phrase among executives, politicians and media specialists.
Along that line, Brazilian comedian and author Millor Fernandez was able to address one of the American obsessions when he said he calculated the value of the Statue of Liberty. He looked at the price paid to build the monument, as well as how much it had appreciated over time, the price of the appraisal of the structure, tour tickets, etc. He came up with a figure of several million dollars; that would be the current value of liberty, that object which materializes the vision of American eyes and those of that country’s admirers.
In assessing the net worth of Fidel Castro —a man who was the object of several hundred assassination attempts by the US government, but who above all won the prestige of Cuba by Latin America and the world— they decided to quantify him so as to arrive at their “truth.”
The appraisal done by the corporate giant Forbes magazine is simple: they took Cuba’s Domestic Gross Product and calculated the percentage of it which they assumed” to be Fidel’s fortune. They concentrated on the revenues of the Havana Convention Center, the CIMEX export conglomerate and on the sales of vaccines and medicines. That appraisal amounted to $900 million, making the Cuban president the seventh richest ruler in the world.
The intention is clear. Because the Cuban economy is centrally planned, those with a capitalist mentality assume that the highest level of government will appropriate all of the nation’s wealth. Being accustomed to how wealth is typically administered in capitalist nations, they totally confuse public and private enterprise.
Cuban Central Bank president Francisco Soberon, using those same standards —including the real costs of the Iraq war, according to Joseph Stiglits— calculated the personal fortune of the US president to surpass the fortune attributed to Fidel hundreds of times over.
Forbes is right: Fidel has a fortune that is impossible to calculate. However, that wealth is not his personal property, but that of the real owner: the people of Cuba. They attribute that wealth directly to him, because it was earned under his leadership.
It is the greatest wealth in the world, because no other country possesses it. And it is impossible to calculate, because it can not be accounted in numbers, no price tag can be placed on it, and it cannot be bought or sold.
It has to do with the economic, social and cultural rights won over almost five decades. It has to do with the human values closely associated to those above mentioned values.
This is a population where each and every person is not only literate, but also has at least nine years of schooling. This was achieved through a unique system involving all sectors of the population. We can also point to a university system which graduates tens of thousands of Cubans all across the country. That is a fortune which can not be calculated.
This is a population which has the best public health care system in the world, a population where nobody is left helpless or abandoned, probably the only population in the world which experiences such a situation; and that is a real fortune.