Esteemed heads of state and government,
Distinguished heads of delegations,
Mr. Secretary General of the United Nations,

Mr. President,
Seventy years ago, on behalf of their peoples, the member states of this organization signed the United Nations Charter. We pledged to protect future generations from the scourge of war, and to build a new type of relationship guided by a set of principles and purposes that could bring about an era of peace, justice and development for all of humanity.
However, since then, there have been constant wars of aggression; interference in the internal affairs of states; violent overthrowing of sovereign governments; so-called “soft coups,” and the re-colonization of territories. All of these perfected with non-conventional strategies and new technology, under the guise of alleged human rights violations.
The militarization of cyberspace, and the covert and illegal use of information and communications technologies to attack other states is unacceptable, as likewise is the distortion of the advancement and protection of human rights used with a selective and discriminatory approach to justify and impose political decisions.
Despite the fact that the Charter calls to “reaffirm faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity and worth of the human person,” to millions of people the fulfillment of human rights remains a utopia.

Continue reading Army General Raúl Castro Ruz, President of the Councils of State and Ministers at the United Nations →

Santiago has shown that, without losing its hospitality, it remains rebellious and heroic
As the July 26 commemoration in Santiago concluded, after the central remarks made by José Ramón Machado Ventura, President Raúl Castro Ruz shared a few words. Machado Ventura recalled that the July 26 commemoration is held not only to honor the past, but to reaffirm that the heroic 1953 actions were not in vain, that the seeds sown have borne fruit.
Author: Redacción Nacional | internet@granma.cu
july 26, 2015 09:07:33

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Foto: Jose M. Correa

“I could not pass through here without saying something to you. Three or four words. I am leaving confident and hopeful that Santiago will always continue to be Santiago,” said Army General Raúl Castro Ruz, as the commemoration of the assaults on the Moncada and Carlos Manuel de Céspedes Garrisons in Santiago concluded.

Continue reading The July 26 commemoration in Santiago →

MID-TERM VOTE

Cuban elections during historic times

Some 88.3% of eligible voters cast ballots during the first round of mid-term elections, on April 19, to select delegates to Municipal Assemblies of People’s Power
Author: Livia Rodriguez Delis | livia@granma.cu
april 21, 2015 09:04:24

Photo: Juvenal Balán

This April 19, Cubans participated in another historic event reflective of the times. More than 7.5 million voters, 88.3% of eligible voters, exercised their right to vote to reaffirm their commitment to the future of the Revolution, on a day when the country also celebrated the 54th anniversary of Cuba’s victory over the U.S. backed invasion at Playa Girón, on the Bay of Pigs.
Alina Balseiro, president of the National Electoral Commission (CEN), presented preliminary results to the press, assessing the vote as satisfactory, with 90% of the ballots ruled valid, 4.54% submitted blank and 4.9% considered invalid.
She reported that 11,425 delegates were elected during this first round, having won over 50% of the vote as required, while 1,164 constituencies will return to the polls April 26 for a second round vote, since no candidate reached the necessary percentage.
Balseiro noted that the number of female delegates rose to 34.87% of the total and that 14.95% were youths, while 54.87% of current delegates were reelected.
She emphasized that only 59.24% of those elected to the Municipal Assemblies of People’s Power are members of the Communist Party of Cuba, while 6.75% are members of the Young Communist League, saying, “This demonstrates that political affiliation is not required to be a delegate.”
More than 24,600 polling stations were established for the elections, with 20,000 young people serving as observers, of special relevance during the public count of the vote, also witnessed by members of the community, as any interested party has this right.