Tuesday, May 02, 2017

A May Day of Commitment
The march celebrating International Workers Day begins in Havana with President Raúl Castro on hand

National news staff | informacion@granma.cu
May 1, 2017 08:05:55
                       
Today May 1, a march celebrating International Workers Day is taking place in Havana, with Army General Raúl Castro, first secretary of the Communist Party of Cuba and President of the Councils of State and Ministers, on hand.

Fifty thousand youth led the parade of workers in the capital on May Day which was dedicated to them this year, as the present and future of the homeland.

Cubans are motivated to march today by the Revolution's social conquests, its continuity into the future, and the challenges of building a more just, prosperous, and sustainable society.

Many generations of Cubans are coming out to pay tribute to Fidel and to Che, on the 50th anniversary of his death in combat; to defend the country's sovereignty, demanding an end to the U.S. economic, financial, commercial blockade and the return of territory illegally occupied by the Guantánamo Naval Base.


Minute by minute: Following Cuba's celebration of International Workers Day

Granma | internet@granma.cu
May 1, 2017 07:05:08
Primero de Mayo en la habana

09:15-.Fidel on May Day, 2000, "Revolution is having a sense of the historic moment; it is changing everything that must be changed; it is full equality and freedom; it is being treated and treating others like human beings; it is emancipating ourselves on our own and through our own efforts; it is challenging powerful dominant forces in and beyond the social and national arena; it is defending the values in which we believe at the price of any sacrifice; it is modesty, selflessness, altruism, solidarity, and heroism; it is fighting with courage, intelligence and realism; it is never lying or violating ethical principles; it is a profound conviction that there is no power on earth that can crush the power of truth and ideas. Revolution is unity; it is independence, it is struggling for our dreams of justice for Cuba and for the world, which is the foundation of our patriotism, our socialism, and our internationalism."
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09:05-.To the rhythm of congas, and carrying hundreds of Cuban flags, Cuban men and women bring up the rear of the 2017 May Day march in Havana.
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08:55-. Fidel on May Day, 1961, "I only want to remind everyone of what this country's situation would have been if imperialism had been able to get its way. What a May Day our workers would have had, if imperialism had gotten its way! That is why, why we think about all we owe those who died; that is why we think that every smile today is a tribute to those who made possible this wonderful, hopeful day. (Applause)"
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08:55-. Fidel on May Day, 1961, "… it must be all the peoples of America who rise up indignant, because the disregard of one Latin American country's sovereignty by yankee imperialism is disregard for all other peoples of Latin America; it is an attack on the sovereignty of all sister peoples of Latin America."
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08:50-.Colorful contingents from the capital's educational institutions joined the May Day march, including the Hermanos Tamayo Vocational Pre-university High School.
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08:50-.Marching are representatives from Minint and FAR medical services, including workers at the Carlos J. Finlay and Naval hospitals;
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08:42-.We defend the Revolution's conquests this May Day with the joy that characterizes Cuban families and workers, insisting, "Unity is our strength!"
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08:40-. Fidel on May Day, 1972, " The Revolution is solid. The Revolution is strong. The Revolution is not the work of a single day, nor of a year. It is work forever, into the future. It is an eternal work, in which the fundamental actors are the people, workers."
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08:38-.Also marching were the people's diplomats at the Cuban Foreign Ministry, and People's Power Assembly members, as well as representatives from the Attorney General's Office.
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08:38-.The public administration sector joined the May Day celebration with their own banners, flags and chants.

08:38-.Workers from the non-state sector, including members of cooperatives and the self-employed, join the May Day march, celebrating the Revolution's conquests.
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08:32-.Marching through the Plaza are workers from the National Bus Company, Cubana Airlines, the mining, forestry and tobacco industries, along with the National Association of Small Framers and the Ministry of Agriculture.
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08:30-.Marching are Committees for the Defense of the Revolution, workers from Radio Taino and the Ministry of Energy and Mines, carrying a giant flag and shouting, "Long live a free Cuba! Long Live Raúl and Fidel!
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08:30-. José Martí International Airport workers join the May Day march.
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08:28-.Contigents from Radio Enciclopedia, celebrating its 55th anniversary and news station Radio Reloj.
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08:25-.Workers from the sugar industry, Etecsa telephone company, Labiofam, the Ministry of Economy and Planning, Lenin Park, and the Egrem music label.
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08:25-.In his 1962 May Day speech, Fidel said, "It was made clear here today that not only the great majority of the people are with the Revolution - if their was any doubt among a few naïve who are happy to deceive themselves or let themselves be deceived - but also, even more importantly, the great majority of the organized people, because coming together today is the organized people. That is why we are even stronger than last year, because the Revolution not only has the majority, but has also organized this majority."
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08:22-.Also joining the May Day march are workers from the Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology Center, the National Botanical Garden and other scientific institutions, as well as more than 30,000 workers from the Citma and BioCubaFarma state enterprises.

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08:20-.Present in Havana's Plaza de La Revolución to express their solidarity are more than 1,630 friends of Cuba, from 86 countries and more than 300 organizations.

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08:20-.Workers from the Ministry of Communications, wearing blue, march carrying images of the Comandante en Jefe and Hugo Chávez.

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08:18-.Workers from the International Neurological Restoration Center, the Pradera Health Center, and the Cira García International Clinic.

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08:15-.Tourism workers in the Plaza, including those from the iconic Hotel Nacional de Cuba, the Tropicana night club, the Gran Caribe, Isla Azul, and Cubanacán hotel chains, as well as the country's Campismo Popular enterprise.

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08:15-.Joining the May Day march is a group from Havana's Water Department, along with workers from enterprises and cooperatives involved in construction, the production of building materials, project managment, and support services in the sector.

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08:12-.Parading through the Plaza de la Revolución is the Construction bloc, led by the Blas Roca contingent, carrying signs saying, "Revolution is building!"
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08:12-.Marching are members of the Cuban Medical Cooperation Unit, the Latin American Medical School for international students, and Havana's University of Medical Sciences.

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08:12-.Posters from healthcare centers around the city abound in the plaza, while workers shout, "Down with the blockade!"

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08:10-.Public health workers advance, representing those who are working around the world, sharing their skills on a daily basis.
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08:10-.It is no accident that educational and health care workers are marching together today; they are two of the Revolution's strongholds.

08:08-. The Education bloc continues to advance toward the plaza, led by teachers committed to the importance of the country's history.
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08:05-.The Education bloc includes teachers from the 1,216 middle schools in the capital.
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08:05-.Students from Eduardo Garcia Delgado Pre-university High School march by the image of working class leader Lázaro Peña, along with those from the Manuel Fajardo Sports University, where the country's future sports legends are training.

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08:00-.This bloc of young members of the Revolutionary Armed Forces and the Ministry of the Interior carry banners from their student organizations and Cuban Flags. Also participating are youth from the University of Havana and the Institute of International Relations.

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08:00-.Cuban youth carrying the image of our Comandante en Jefe, in a giant photo along with Raúl, while Martí, Che and Camilo witness the march.

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07:55-.The CTC leader concluded with shouts of "Onward, comrades, more united than ever! Long live workers of Cuba and the world! Long live Fidel and Raúl! Long live the Cuban Revolution! Hasta la victoria siempre!"

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07:50-. Guilarte continued, saying that there are every day more reasons to struggle and win. Cuba will not renounce its ideals of independence and social justice, he said, adding that we have won this right with great sacrifice.

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07:45-.The CTC leader reiterated Cuban's demand that the U.S. blockade be eliminated and territory illegally occupied by the Guantanamo Naval Base returned, while reaffirming solidarity with Venezuela's Bolivarian Revolution, and with struggles of workers around the world against capitalism.

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07:40-. Guilarte reaffirmed workers' unwavering commitment to continue building a sovereign, prosperous, sustainable nation, emphasizing this year's May Day maxim, "Unity is our strength."

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07:35-.Guilarte noted that joining Cubans in José Martí Plaza de la Revolución are more than 1,630 friends from 86 countries and 349 trade union federations from around the world, expressing their solidarity.

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07:35-.Ulises Guilarte de Nacimiento, secretary general of the Federation of Cuban Workers, begins his speech recalling that every year the May Day celebration begins with tributes to our undefeated, unforgettable Comandante en Jefe.

07:30-.In Havana, Army General Raúl Castro Ruz, President of the Councils of State and Minister, arrives to the city's José Martí Plaza de la Revolución.
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07:20-.Santiago's people advance toward Antonio Maceo Grajales Plaza.
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07:15-.María de los Ángeles Tamayo: "We return to this plaza to demonstrate with this massive march that we continue to defend our prosperous, sustainable socialist system."
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07:10-.María de los Ángeles Cordero Tamayo, secretary general of the Cuban Workers Federation in the province, noted that this is the first May Day celebrated without Fidel's presence, but that his concept of Revolution wil always be upheld.

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07:10-.Leading the parade in Santiago is José Ramón Machado Ventura, second secretary of the Communist Party of Cuba's Central Committee.

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07:05-. Being heard in the city's Antonio Maceo Plaza de la Revolucion is the speech Raúl presented here December 3, 2016, during the commemoration of Fidel's life.

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07:05-.The country's first march of the day begins in Santiago de Cuba.

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07:00-.Cuba's parks and plazas are ready for May Day marches.

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