All posts by JaimeM

1976 bombing of a Cuban airliner

A political-cultural event was held on October 6, to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the 1976 bombing of a Cuban airliner

October 7, 2016 JaimeM

Cuba will never forget

Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez presided the political-cultural event held in Havana’s Lázaro Peña Theater to commemorate Victims of State Terrorism Day october 7, 2016 09:10:14

The political-cultral act was held in Havana’s Lázaro Peña Theater. Photo: Jorge Luis González

A political-cultural event was held on October 6, to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the 1976 bombing of a Cuban airliner mid-flight off the coast of Barbados, and Victims of State Terrorism Day in the capital’s Lázaro Peña Theater.

The encounter – presided by Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez, a member of the Party Political Bureau and first vice president of Cuba’s Councils of State and Ministers – provided the opportunity to remember and honor those who lost their lives on October 6, 1976.

On behalf of the families of the victims, Wilfredo Pérez Rodríguez called for long awaited justice to be served.

He recounted the long list of terrorist attacks perpetrated against the country since the beginning of the Revolution.

Terrorism didn’t end with the Barbados crime, he noted, but rather the attacks continued against diplomats; bombs were places in tourist areas; Luis Posada Carriles, principle author of the crime, tortured Venezuelans, Nicaraguans; planned the planting of bombs in hotels, one of which killed the young Italian Fabio Di Celmo; and conspired to assassinate Fidel, emphasized Pérez Rodríguez.

For her part, Sucelys Morfa González, first secretary of the Young Communist League (UJC) National Committee, described the Barbados crime as one of the most brutal attacks on the Cuban people.

The authors of the crime and irrefutable evidence linking them to it were immediately discovered and revealed, she noted.

Morfa González also recalled how Fidel, speaking in Havana’s Plaza de la Revolución, condemned the role played, since 1959, by the U.S. Central Intelligence Service (CIA) in counterrevolutionary subversion, including airplane hijackings; terrorist attacks; sabotage; and destabilization attempts against foreign governments.

She also noted that Posada Carriles walks the streets of Miami publicly expressing his lack of remorse for his crimes, which he would repeat if given the opportunity again, he has said.

Meanwhile, Morfa González concluded by noting that “the youth will never cease to be revolutionaries,” because we are heirs to the legacy of Martí and Fidel, and demand that long awaited justice be served.

Also participating in the act were members of the Party Political Bureau, Central Committee Secretariat, and Councils of State and Ministers, as well as leaders of the Communist Party of Cuba, government, mass organizations, the UJC, and others.

Hurricane Matthew

Hurricane Matthew, Recovery efforts begin in Baracoa

October 6, 2016 JaimeM

Recovery efforts begin in Baracoa
Brigades from different sectors are arriving in Baracoa to reestablish basic services and begin recovery efforts. The bridge over the River Toa is one of many structures affected by the hurricane, with only 50 of the 200 foot construction remaining

Author: Redacción Nacional | internet@granma.cu
october 6, 2016 09:10:58

Works are underway in Baraco to restablish basic services as soon as possible. Photo: @labaracoesa
The Ministry of Construction; Etecsa (national telephone service provider); Basic Electricity Enterprise; and Sanitation Services in Baracoa are working to reestablish basic services as soon as possible, according to a post by journalist Arelis Alba Cobas – reporting from the city – on her Twitter account.

The reporter stated that the preparation and transportation of food to evacuation centers has been ensured. However, “new facilities to produce other supplies are needed, as the existing ones collapsed.” Meanwhile a series of generators will be made available to support the handling of meats, she added.

Brigades of electricians from Las Tunas, Camagüey and Guantánamo, as well as other provinces, are set to join recovery efforts in Baracoa, while earth-moving teams from Villa Clara and Gramna are active on the La Farola highway.

Alba Cobas also reported that five brigades are working simultaneously to clear roads and remove debris, noting that authorities have already begun to demolish unsalvageable dwellings.

The bridge over the River Toa is one of many structures affected by the hurricane, with only 50 of the 200 foot construction remaining, noted the reporter.

Cuban Revolution

Campesino Congress in Arms: the birth of the agrarian Revolution

September 28, 2016 JaimeM

Campesino Congress in Arms: the birth of the agrarian Revolution
On the morning of September 21, 1958 a transcendental event featuring over 200 delegates, was inaugurated
Author: Pedro Antonio García | internet@granma.cu
september 21, 2016 17:09:54

Raúl Castro speaking during the First Campesino Congress in Arms, accompanied by Vilma Espín (seated behind him), Rebel soldiers and campesinos. Photo: Archive
Before 1959 Soledad de Mayarí Arriba was a place forgotten by those who governed in Cuba. A truck, in 1958, would have a difficulty accessing the area, and often need help to make its way out of the tricky terrain. A cock fighting ring and a bar with an adjacent dancehall were the only facilities there. Sick people would have to be carried on foot in hammocks to receive medical attention in La Prueba, located close to Alto Songo, some 40 kilometers away; some dying along the way.
When the Second Front, led by then Commander Raúl Castro Ruz, established itself in the region, the first Revolutionary Campesino Committees (CRC) were created, based on the experience of the Rebel Army in the Sierra Maestra, with a secretary as leader, and civil and military delegate. These committees, in addition to maintaining order in their respective areas, were responsible for gathering supplies and information for the guerillas. Expanding its activities, the directorate of the Second Front created the Agrarian Bureau, a body which would function as a link between the masses and Rebel Army military commanders.

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Solidarity