August 13, 1926
Birth Anniversary of Fidel Castro
Fidel Is Fidel
Excerpt of the speech delivered by Army General Raúl Castro Ruz, at that time First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Cuba, at the Posthumous Tribute to the Commander in Chief of the Cuban Revolution, Fidel Castro Ruz, in the Plaza Mayor General Antonio Maceo Grajales, from Santiago de Cuba, December 3, 2016.
[…]
With good reason, dear friend Bouteflika, President of Algeria, said that Fidel had the extraordinary ability to travel to the future, go back and explain it. On July 26, 1989, in the city of Camagüey, the Commander in Chief predicted, two and a half years in advance, the disappearance of the Soviet Union and the socialist camp, and assured the world that if these circumstances occurred, Cuba would continue defending the banners of socialism.
Fidel’s authority and his intimate relationship with the people were decisive for the heroic resistance of the country in the dramatic years of the special period, when the Gross Domestic Product fell by 34.8 per cent and the diet of Cubans significantly deteriorated, we suffered blackouts from 16 to 20 hours a day and a large part of the industry and public transport were paralyzed. Despite this, it was possible to preserve public health and education for our entire population.
The meetings of the Party in the territories come to mind: eastern, in the city of Holguín; central, in the city of Santa Clara, and western, in the capital of the republic, Havana, held in July 1994 to analyze how to face with greater efficiency and cohesion the challenges of the Special Period, the growing imperialist blockade and the media campaigns aimed at sowing discouragement among citizens. From those meetings, including the one in the west, which Fidel chaired, we all emerged convinced that with the strength and intelligence of the cohesive masses under the leadership of the Party, the special period could and would be turned into a new victorious battle in the history of the homeland.
At that time, few in the world bet on our ability to resist and win in the face of adversity and the reinforced enemy siege; However, our people under the leadership of Fidel gave an unforgettable lesson in firmness and loyalty to the principles of the Revolution.
When recalling those difficult moments, I believe it is fair and pertinent to return to what I said about Fidel on July 26, 1994, one of the most difficult years, on the Isle of Youth, more than 22 years ago, I quote: “…the most enlightened son of Cuba in this century, the one who showed us that it was possible to attempt the conquest of the Moncada Garrison; that yes, that setback could be turned into a victory,” which we achieved five years, five months and five days later, that glorious January 1, 1959, the latter added to the exact words I said on that occasion (Applause).
He showed us “that it was possible to reach the coasts of Cuba on the Granma yacht; that it was possible to resist the enemy, hunger, rain and cold, and organize a revolutionary army in the Sierra Maestra after the debacle of Alegría de Pío; that it was possible to open new guerrilla fronts in the province of Oriente, with Almeida’s columns and ours; that the great offensive of more than 10,000 soldiers could be defeated with 300 rifles,” which Che wrote in his Campaign Diary when they were defeated, that with that victory the backbone of the army of tyranny had been broken; “That the epic of Maceo and Gómez could be repeated, extending the fight from the east to the west of the island with the columns of Che and Camilo; that it could be overthrown, with the support of all the people,
“The one who taught us that it could be defeated in 72 hours” and even less, “the mercenary invasion of Playa Girón and at the same time continue the campaign to eradicate illiteracy in one year,” as was achieved in 1961.
That it was possible to proclaim the socialist character of the Revolution 90 miles from the empire, and when its warships were advancing towards Cuba, behind the troops of the mercenary brigade; that it was possible to firmly maintain the inalienable principles of our sovereignty without fearing the nuclear blackmail of the United States in the days of the Missile Crisis in October 1962.
“That yes, solidarity aid could be sent to other brother nations in the fight against colonial oppression, external aggression and racism.
“That the South African racists could be defeated, saving the territorial integrity of Angola, forcing the independence of Namibia and dealing a heavy blow to the apartheid regime.
“That Cuba could be turned into a medical power, reduce infant mortality to the lowest rate in the Third World, first, and in the other rich world later; because on this continent we at least have less infant mortality of children under one year of age than Canada and the United States itself (Applause), and, in turn, considerably increase the life expectancy of our population.
“That Cuba could be transformed into a great scientific centre, advance in the modern and decisive fields of genetic engineering and biotechnology; insert ourselves into the closed preserve of the international pharmaceutical trade; develop tourism, despite the U.S. blockade; build causeways in the sea to make Cuba an increasingly attractive archipelago, obtaining a growing income of foreign currency from our natural beauty.
“That it is possible to resist, survive and develop without renouncing the principles or the conquests of socialism in the unipolar and omnipotent world of the transnationals that emerged after the collapse of the socialist camp in Europe and the disintegration of the Soviet Union.
“Fidel’s permanent teaching is that it can be done, that man is capable of overcoming the harshest conditions if his will to win does not falter, he makes a correct assessment of each situation and does not renounce his just and noble principles.”
Those words that I expressed more than two decades ago about who, after the disaster of the first fight in Alegría de Pío, which will be the 60th anniversary the day after tomorrow, never lost faith in victory, and 13 days later, already in the mountains of the Sierra Maestra, on December 18 of the aforementioned year, upon gathering seven rifles and a handful of combatants, he exclaimed: “Now we have won the war!”
That is the undefeated Fidel who summons us with his example and with the demonstration that Yes it was possible, yes it can and yes it will be possible! (Applause and exclamations of: “Yes, we can!) In other words, I repeat that it demonstrated that it was possible, yes it can and will be possible to overcome any obstacle, threat or turbulence in our firm commitment to build socialism in Cuba, which is the same as saying that it will guarantee the independence and sovereignty of the homeland!
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(Razones de Cuba, November, 25, 2019. Translated from the original Spanish by TML.)
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