50TH ANNIVERSARY
SANTIAGO DE CUBA. - President Raúl Castro Ruz described the half century that has passed since the triumph of the Revolution as the most fruitful in Cuban history.
In a closing speech at the main event celebrating 50 years since the clarion call of January 1959, Raúl paid tribute to Cuban leader Fidel Castro.
After evoking excerpts of his speeches at key moments of the nation’s history, he reiterated that individuals don’t make history, but there are essential men capable of influencing its course, and Fidel, he said, is one of them.
The Cuban president said that the Commander in Chief has always fought against what is fatuous and fleeting; hence, he has held up the maxim of José Martí that all the glory of the world fits on a grain of corn.
In that sense, Raúl called on the leaders of tomorrow to follow that example, to never forget that this is the Revolution of the humble, with the humble and for the humble.
He called on them to avoid faltering in face of the siren’s song of the enemy and to be aware that, because of its very essence, the enemy will never stop being aggressive, dominant and treacherous, and he emphasized that it is essential to never become separated from workers, farmers and the rest of the people.
Let us learn from history — he emphasized — and if you act like that, you will always have the support of the people, and you will not lack for the moral authority that is only granted by the masses to those who do not cede in struggle.
He warned that on the contrary, you could end up being impotent in the face of external and internal dangers and incapable of preserving the project that is the fruit of the blood and sacrifice of generations of Cubans.
If that should happen, our people will know how to put up a fight, and the Mambises of today will be on the front lines; they will not be disarmed ideologically nor will they let their swords fall, the Cuban president affirmed in a resounding speech.
After dedicating his first words to those who have fallen during this long struggle, Raúl Castro reviewed the history of events since the attack on the Moncada.
It was in the heat of struggle that we learned how to turn dreams into reality, he said, and to not lose our heads in the face of danger and threats; to raise our spirits when we suffered setbacks.
Those of us who have had the privilege of living through this stage of history in all its intensity know how true Fidel’s assertion was on January 8, 1959, when he warned that much remained to be done, and that perhaps everything would be more difficult from then on, Raúl said.
He noted that nothing morally valuable has been alien to the revolutionary whirlwind in Cuba, and that even before January 1st, it began to sweep away dishonorable things and inequalities, and open the way to the entire people.
Raúl referred to the many acts of aggression and sabotage suffered by Cuba, including the Bay of Pigs invasion, the state terrorism that has left more than 3,000 dead, the plans for assassinating Fidel and other leaders and the murders of farmers, fishermen and students.
One after another, every U.S. administration has tried to force Cuba to change its system one way or another, with more or less aggressiveness, and resistance has been the watchword of all of these years, he emphasized.
He stated that the resistance of the Revolution and its people has been firm, free of fanaticism, based on solid convictions and on the determination of an entire people to defend itself at whatever price necessary.
One example of that, he said, is the steadfast firmness of the five glorious heroes, the Cuban Five.
Today we are not alone in facing the empire on this side of the ocean, as was the case in the 1960s; today the Revolution is stronger than ever, and it has never ceded one millimeter in its principles, the Cuban president affirmed.
Reflecting on the future, especially the next 50 years, Raul said that they would also be years of ongoing struggle, and we should not think that they will be easier considering the turmoil in the world.
More than 3,000 people from Santiago, representing all Cuban people, attended the celebration of the 50th anniversary of the triumph of the Revolution, held in the eastern city of Santiago de Cuba, known as the “heroic city,” birthplace of the triumph of January 1959. (AIN)
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