The Militant (logo)  

Vol. 74/No. 10      March 15, 2010

 
Chinese-Cuban general
to start tour in Montreal
 
BY BEVERLY BERNARDO  
MONTREAL—Armando Choy, one of the authors of Our History Is Still Being Written: The Story of Three Chinese-Cuban Generals in the Cuban Revolution, will be on a speaking tour here March 15-20. Choy’s visit has sparked considerable interest in hearing about his decades of experience as a leader of the Cuban Revolution as described in the book.

The Observatoire des Amériques (Americas Observatory) and Pathfinder Books, the book’s distributor in Canada, are organizing a public meeting for him March 19 at the University of Quebec at Montreal (UQAM). Victor Armony, director of the Observatoire will cochair the meeting with law student Patrick Véronneau. Also speaking at the meeting will be Cuban ambassador Teresita Vicente; Mary-Alice Waters, president of Pathfinder Press and the book’s editor; and Timothy Chan, president of the Chinese-Canadian Historical and Cultural Society.

Political Science Department head Jean-Guy Prévost will welcome Choy to the university. Several UQAM student organizations, institutes, and departments have endorsed the meeting.

Following a 1952 military coup in Cuba by Fulgencio Batista, Choy joined the anti-Batista organization Joven Patria (Young Homeland). He was a founding member of the July 26 Movement, which led the armed struggle against Batista, and in 1958 was promoted to captain, the third-highest rank in the Rebel Army.

During the April 1961 U.S.-backed mercenary invasion of Cuba at the Bay of Pigs, Choy was head of one of the units engaged in combat. The mercenaries were defeated in 72 hours. Promoted to brigadier general in 1976, Choy later participated in Cuba’s internationalist mission in Angola to repel the invading South African army.

Choy is a founding member of the Communist Party of Cuba and belongs to the Association of Combatants of the Cuban Revolution. He is currently president of the State Working Group for the Cleanup, Preservation and Development of Havana Bay.

The Third World Studies Certificate at Marianopolis College has invited Choy to speak at a meeting March 16. The following day he will address the political science class of Prof. Dominique Caouette at the University of Montreal.

Later that day, the Chinese-Canadian Historical and Cultural Society of Montreal will host a banquet in Choy’s honor at the Ruby Rouge restaurant in Chinatown. In addition to a short presentation by Choy, the program features a musical performance by Montreal artists. For more information on Choy’s visit, contact the Student Association for the Faculty of Law and Political Science at afesped@uqam.ca. Telephone: (514) 987-3000 poste 2632.
 
 
Related articles:
U.S. doctors leave Haiti as Cubans expand care
Three of Cuban Five moved from Miami jail
Write to the Cuban Five
Cuban book fair travels throughout provinces
Panel discussions present literature on Cuban Revolution and communist strategy
An intertwined history: Chinese in Cuba and U.S.  
 
 
Front page (for this issue) | Home | Text-version home