Vol. 79/No. 37      October 19, 2015

“We know there are many people of good will in the United States who would like normal relations with Cuba,” he added. “But there are powerful interests who see this as an opportunity to achieve what they have failed to do in more than 50 years of blockade and aggression,” referring to Washington’s economic war, and at times military action, aimed at destroying the 1959 revolution that overthrew the U.S.-backed dictatorship of Fulgencio Batista.

The five Cuban revolutionaries — Hernández, Ramón Labañino, Antonio Guerrero, Fernando González and René González — who each spent from 13 to 16 years imprisoned in the U.S. on frame-up charges, including “conspiracy to commit espionage,” were in Ecuador to thank the people of that country for supporting the fight to win their freedom.

They noted that Ecuador’s President Rafael Correa was one of the first heads of state to denounce the frame-up and call for their release. The announcements that the remaining three who were in jail were freed and the reopening of relations between Havana and Washington were made simultaneously last December.

Since then, the Five have helped lead the effort to build on that victory, campaigning to end Washington’s economic war and in defense of the Cuban toilers’ socialist revolution.

The Cuban delegation also included internationalist fighter Orlando Cardoso Villavicencio, who spent nearly 11 years imprisoned in Somalia after his capture in 1978 while helping to defend Ethiopia from a U.S.-promoted Somali invasion, and José Ramón Balaguer, a member of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Cuba. They participated in the second Latin American Progressive Conference, which took place in Quito Sept. 28-30.

“The Cuban Revolution is living through a decisive moment,” Balaguer, one of the featured speakers, told the more than 300 participants from 70 political parties at the conference. “Its essential characteristic is our determination to continue building socialism.”

“The Cuban government belongs to the workers,” he said. “Everything that we have done and will do is on behalf of the great majorities.”

Balaguer reiterated that while diplomatic relations have been re-established, there can be no normal relations between Cuba and the United States until the U.S. economic, trade and financial embargo of Cuba is ended; the territory of the Guantánamo military base is returned to Cuba; the U.S. government compensates Cuba for damage caused by its aggression against the island; and clandestine U.S. operations and radio broadcasts aimed at overthrowing the revolution are suspended.

“The hostility remains, the blockade is intact, as are the plans to knock us off the socialist road, but their plans will be more subtle,” Balaguer said. “We’re prepared and base ourselves on principled politics and the culture of resistance that brought us this far.”

The Cuban Five and Cardoso also participated in a ceremony in Quito at the statue of José Martí, a key figure in the fight to free Cuba from Spanish colonialism.

Paraphrasing Martí, Antonio Guerrero said, “Don’t think about where you can live better, think about where your duty lies.”
 
 
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