THE National Committee for Solidarity with Cuba, and the All India Peace and Solidarity Organisation (AIPSO), have organised a public meeting on ‘60 Years of Cuban Revolution and the Fight against Imperialism’ in New Delhi on July 24.

Pallab Sengupta, general secretary of AIPSO, invited the speakers onto the dais. R Arun Kumar, member of the National Committee for Solidarity with Cuba, chaired the session. He introduced the speakers and spoke about the current political context of the meeting.

Aleida Guevara and Fernando González addressed the meeting. D Raja, newly elected general secretary of the Communist Party of India (CPI), and MA Baby, Polit Bureau member of the Communist Party of India (Marxist), were among the speakers.

Aleida Guevara spoke about the US imperialism’s efforts to defeat socialism in Cuba and said that despite its multifaceted attempts, the US could never succeed to get Cuba to kneel before it. Though Cuba is a tiny island which is just 90 miles away from the US, and has a population of about 11 million compared to that of US which has a population of about 400 million, it could rebuff the imperialist designs of the US, primarily because of the united will of the Cuban people who could see through these designs. She asserted, “We cannot change the world all alone. But, together, we can!”  The enormous strides that Cuba achieved in education and health played an important role in defeating the US machinations. Invoking Jose Marti, the great Cuban freedom fighter and a poet, Aleida concluded by reiterating what he said about how we all should work for becoming better human beings. She later joined the students in singing songs on revolution and on Che Guevara.

Fernando Gonzalez emphasised that they have been resisting US for the last 60 years and will continue to do so till its attempts to destroy Cuba are not stopped. He underlined, “The empire can be resisted – Venezuela, Palestine, Vietnam have showed us this can be done.” Extending his gratitude to the solidarity movements for Cuba, across the world, Gonzalez said, “We’ve never felt alone. Solidarity of the peoples of the world emboldened our spirit.” He thanked the people of India, the political parties, specially the Left parties which stood in solidarity with Cuba.

Gonzalez detailed the renewed efforts of the US to asphyxiate Cuba and break the resistance and solidarity movements. These efforts have become more aggressive with Trump assuming office of the US president. He said when the Cuban Five walked out of the US prison, it signalled the victory of the world solidarity movements with Cuba. In the same manner, he concluded, Palestine, Venezuela, Cuba and other Latin American countries will overcome obstacles.

D Raja while addressing the meeting, reiterated solidarity with Cuba on behalf of Indian people and stated that Cuba is not alone in its fight against imperialism. He recalled how US was isolated in the vote against Cuba in the UN, where all the countries of the world, except two – US and Israel – stood with Cuba and voted against the US resolution to impose sanctions on Cuba.

MA Baby stated that Cuba continues to inspire people around the world with its acts of solidarity and it is hence natural for people to feel Cuban cause as their own cause. He criticised the US decision to activate the Title III of Helms-Burton Act that is intended to strangulate Cuba. He recalled the solidarity extended by the people of our country during the Special Period in Cuba and reiterated that Indian people will always stand with Cuba  and its people.

Oscar Martinez, Ambassador of Cuba to India was seated on the dais. Prof Chaman Lal author of numerous books on Bhagat Singh presented a copy of Bhagat Singh’s writings, to Aleida and Fernando, while SFI leaders presented them a copy of the poster of Fidel Castro they had brought out and an issue of Student Struggle. AISF leaders also gifted a book.

Ambassadors of Venezuela and Palestine to India, diplomats from Vietnam, Algeria, Angola, Cambodia and Iran were present in the meeting.

The Deputy Speaker's Hall at the Constitution Club in New Delhi, where the meeting was held, was overflowing with the audience. Slogans such as "El pueblo unido, jamás será vencido – the people, united, shall always be victorious" and “Viva Cuba" rendered the air in the auditorium. Cultural groups such as Dastak (JNU), students from Jamia Millia Islamia and Bangla Kala Manch sang revolutionary songs in solidarity with the people of Cuba.

The meeting is held commemorating the 60th anniversary of Cuban Revolution, 60 years of the visit of Che Guevara to India, 60 years of Indo-Cuban relations and also the 67th Moncado Day (July 26, the day on which Fidel Castro led a group of young militants to storm the Moncado garrison in 1953). The meeting concluded with a vote of thanks proposed by Devarajan, secretary of AIPSO.

CPI(M) Receives Cuban Delegation

A DELEGATION from the Cuban Institute for Friendship Among People (ICAP), visited AKG Bhavan, the CPI(M) headquarters in New Delhi, on July 24. The delegation comprised Fernando Gonzalez Llort, ICAP President, Aleida Guevara, activist and daughter of immortal revolutionary Che Guevara, Ambassador of Cuba, Oscar Martínez Cordovés and other officials. They had a meeting with CPI(M) Polit Bureau members Prakash Karat, M A Baby, Central Committee members Hari Singh Kang and R Arun Kumar.

Prakash Karat, welcomed the delegation to India and the CPI(M) headquarters and reiterated the Party’s solidarity with socialist Cuba in its fight against US imperialist attacks.

Fernando Gonzalez Llort is one of the Cuban Five, who were unjustly imprisoned on September 12, 1998, in Miami, in the United States. Fernando was released in 2014, after being confined in high security US prisons for more than 16 years. He was conferred the title, ‘The Hero of the Republic of Cuba’.

Interacting with the media, Fernando explained how, right from the first day of the Cuban revolution in 1951, they faced hostility from the US government, which is unable to accept them as an independent country and has always been attempting to destroy the socialist project of Cuba.

The US State Department papers from the 1960s, clearly indicate this. Everything was done to economically strangulate Cuba and push Cubans into misery, so that Cuban people would rebel against the socialist government. This, to the dismay of US, did not happen because of the high political consciousness of Cuban people. They could clearly see through the US machinations and the intentions of the economic embargo imposed by the US. Currently, the US government has taken this to the highest level in order to asphyxiate Cuba. It imposed restrictions on the sale of petroleum to Cuba; confiscated oil vessels from Venezuela that were coming to Cuba. The zenith of these measures is the application of the Title III of Helms-Burton Act, which enables US citizens to file law suits claiming property in Cuba.

Fernando noted that imposing sanctions and internationalising the blockade is tantamount to interfering with other countries’ sovereignty, in deciding whom to trade with, or not. It is an attack on the dignity of the people of those countries.

ICAP is mobilisng opinion against the Helms Burton Act and is seeking solidarity to oppose this cruel law. The economic embargo inflicted a loss of more than 933 billion dollars on Cuba. Health sector has been the hardest hit. Giving an example on how the embargo effects, Fernando said that many people are deprived of medical cure to their ailments, as Cuba was unable to build or import the necessary equipment and medicines.

Responding to questions from the media, Gonzalez spoke about the salient features of the new constitution that was adopted on April 19 this year. He said the old constitution was updated in accordance with the current context of Cuba, to keep in tune with the changed reality of the world and Cuba. In 1976, the economy was completely under State control. Now, even though it continues to be predominantly under State control, nevertheless, there are cooperatives, there is foreign investment – which gives rise to a need for constitutional legality to these forms.

Ambassador of Cuba, Oscar Martinez explained how limitations are imposed on Cuba from developing its relations with countries like India, because of the US economic blockade.