Cuba's Tribute to Solidarity, Peace and Friendship

Díaz-Canel paid tribute to Nelson Mandela and the martyrs of the African liberation struggle, especially the Cubans.

Author: Yaima Puig Meneses | informacion@granmai.cu

Author: René Tamayo León | internet@granma.cu

August 31, 2023 

Pretoria, South Africa- The first tribute to Nelson Mandela, on behalf of the Cuban people, was paid by the Cuban delegation headed by the First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party and President of this nation, after concluding intense days of his State visit to Angola.

Díaz-Canel was bid farewell in Angola, at the Presidential Palace, by the president of the brother country, João Manuel Gonçalves Lourenço. On the day of his farewell, he paid tribute to Cuban hero Raúl Díaz Argüelles and, on his behalf, to all the internationalists of the island who died while fighting in the emancipating epic of that nation.

His presence at the Angola-Cuba school, a Sandino-type construction built decades ago by Cuban builders, with materials brought from the island, and where even the granite slabs of its floors are typical of our schools, was also very emotional.

The Head of State also held a meeting with the staff of the Cuban diplomatic headquarters and their families before leaving Luanda for South Africa.

TRIBUTE TO MANDELA

The tribute took place a few meters from where Mandela was inaugurated, in 1994, as the first Head of State elected in this country, after democratic, multiracial and universal suffrage elections.

It is an impressive monument, built in bronze, nine meters high, which stands in front of the Government Palace Union Buildings, and was unveiled on December 16, 2013, just 11 days after the death of the historic South African leader, whose close friendship with Fidel cemented the foundations of the deep ties that unite our peoples.

In this moving and peaceful space, which has become a symbol of reconciliation and national unity, Cuba's affection and admiration for the man who, as Army General Raúl Castro Ruz said at the African leader's funeral, is considered "a prophet of unity, reconciliation and peace" was once again expressed.

FREEDOM PARK, A PLACE FOR ETERNAL TRIBUTE

The tour of Freedom Park in South Africa, a monumental site of this nation, which collects the history of the African continent, and has become an essential space for the tribute, was an emotional one.

President Diaz-Canel also arrived here to pay tribute on behalf of our people. The Head of State laid white and red flowers in front of one of the huge walls, called the Wall of Names, where the names of the martyrs of the struggle for the liberation of Africa are engraved. Next to them, the Cubans who died in this country during the liberation process or contributed to it in a decisive way.

There are 2,289 names of Cubans collected there, including that of Commander-in-Chief Fidel Castro Ruz, and Cuba is the country most represented in this sacred space.

Right in this place, every year the anniversary of the victory in Cuito Cuanavale is commemorated, a celebration in which Cuba is a special guest.

This is also the tribute to our people, who did not come to Africa looking for any benefit, but to help, and as the General of the Army once said, “they only took from here the remains of their dead.”

"We came to share with you what was a debt," said the First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party and President of the Republic, who thanked for the construction of this monument.

“We came,” he assured, “simply to pay homage to our heroes.”

Díaz-Canel also held a friendly meeting with the leaders of the Tripartite Alliance - made up of the South African Communist Party (SACP), the African National Congress (ANC) and the Congress of South African Tradde Unions (COSATU) - which has governed this nation since the fall of the apartheid regime in 1994.

During the visit, about 800 people gathered in Freedom Park to sing in solidarity with Cuba. Amidst the chants and exclamations characteristic of this multicultural country, they expressed their unconditional and grateful support for Cuba and its Revolution. Tribute was paid to the more than 300,000 Cuban internationalists who contributed to the liberation movements in Africa, especially in Angola, Namibia and South Africa. (Editorial Staff International)

Translated by ESTI