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Vol. 72/No. 33      August 25, 2008

 
Event on Cuban Revolution
held in Equatorial Guinea
 
The following news release, issued by Cuba’s foreign ministry, reports on the July 26 celebration held in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea. The event marked the anniversary of the 1953 assault on the Moncada army barracks in Santiago de Cuba by a group of Cuban revolutionaries led by Fidel Castro, which launched the revolutionary struggle leading to the overthrow of the Batista dictatorship in 1959, opening the door to the first socialist revolution in the Americas.

The program, which highlighted the campaign to free Gerardo Hernández, Ramón Labañino, Antonio Guerrero, Fernando González, and René González, five Cuban revolutionaries framed by Washington who have now been imprisoned in the United States for 10 years, was hosted by members of the Cuban volunteer medical brigade serving in that Central African country (see related news item in the August 4 Militant). The translation is by the Militant.
 

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Equatorial Guinea, July 29, 2008—In the modest neighborhood of Nguema, where members of the Cuban medical brigade reside, a moving event was held on the 55th anniversary of July 26, as well as to publicize the struggle to free the Five Compatriots imprisoned in the United States.

Students and professors from the university extension program read biographical sketches on René, Antonio, Fernando, Ramón, and Gerardo. A Cuban volunteer gave details of their imprisonment, the rigged trial, and the current state of their legal cases. Another compañero gave a PowerPoint presentation, showing the places where they’re imprisoned, the conditions of jail life, and the violations of their right to receive visits from family members.

Participating in the activity were Cuban volunteers from all fields, Equatorial Guinean and Ethiopian students who graduated in Cuba, members of friendship associations and of the Cuban community living in the country, the ambassador and other officials of the Cuban embassy, the chargé d’affaires of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela and his family, a delegation from the U.S. publisher Pathfinder, and numerous friends of Cuba.

Mary-Alice Waters, the president of Pathfinder, spoke about the Five Heroes and said they were in prison because it was one of the ways the U.S. government was punishing Cubans for not giving in to the empire’s pressures.

The second part of the event was devoted to the 55th anniversary of Moncada. A detailed historical account with slides was presented, along with quotes highlighting the ideas of the Commander in Chief in the speech he gave in his defense, “History Will Absolve Me.”

Certificates of recognition were awarded to individuals who stood out in carrying out their tasks of cooperation in this country.
 
 
Related articles:
Gov’t of Equatorial Guinea honors Cuban ambassador
 
 
 
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