Fidel Castro Reaffirms Cuban Revolution's Struggle Against Exploitation, For True Equality And Justice

Workers' Daily Internet Edition : Article Index :

Fidel Castro Reaffirms Cuban Revolution's Struggle Against Exploitation, For True Equality And Justice

89 MPs Protest at Cuba Slur

Workers’ Party of Korea Calls for Heightened Vigilance against US "War against Terrorism"

Despatch of British Youth in Palestine

Mass Protest outside Downing Street and Human Chain against War and Communalism
"No War in South Asia!" "Stop British Arms Sales to India and Pakistan!" "Vajpayee and Musharraf Must Negotiate!"

Radio Havana Cuba reported from Havana on June 1 that Cuban President Fidel Castro has reaffirmed that the end of the exploitation of human beings and true equality and justice is, and will be, the objective of a Revolution whose essence will remain unchanged. In another response to US President George W Bush's May 20 speech on Cuba, speaking last Saturday before more than 400,000 people at a rally in Holguín province, President Castro stated that it was shameful and ironic to listen to Bush call for independence and freedom, not for Puerto Rico but for Cuba – and to talk about democracy, not for Florida but for Cuba.

Renouncing any return to Cuba's so-called "democratic" past, as demanded by the US president, the Cuban leader recalled his own childhood when the West Indies Sugar Company and the United Fruit Company owned tracts of land up to almost 300,000 acres while tens of thousands of landless Cuban farmers could only work part of the year cleaning or cutting sugar cane, going hungry and barefoot, dressed in rags and living in terror of the special "rural guard" repressive force that would ruthlessly put down strikes or revolts. He recalled how votes were bought or coerced from a mostly illiterate and semi-illiterate population in elections that had nothing to do with changing the political or social system.

In reference to Bush's call for private property in Cuba, Fidel Castro stated that the only property rights known by most Cubans before 1959 were the rights of large foreign companies and their allies of the national oligarchy to own enormous amounts of farmland in Cuba, as well as the country's natural resources and biggest factories, crucial public services, the banks, the storage facilities, the ports, the hospitals and the private schools that served with excellence a negligible minority of privileged individuals. In the cities, he added, very few owned their own homes for which they had to pay very high rents, whereas the Cuban Revolution has converted into land and homeowners hundreds of thousands of rural families and city dwellers who do not even have to pay land or property taxes.

The Cuban leader noted that out of historical necessity because of a legacy of underdevelopment, Cuba shares with foreign companies that production that it would not have access to with its own technologies and funds, but that no international financial institution or foreign private capital can determine Cuba's destiny. He said that the foreign companies doing business in Cuba know that not a single penny ends up in Castro's pocket or those of his followers, that no senior Cuban revolutionary leader has a dollar in a bank or personal account in hard currency in Cuba or anywhere else, that none of them can be bribed, and that unlike the president of the United States, none of them are millionaires.

Fidel Castro said none can be included on the long list of Bush's neo-liberal friends in Latin America who are Olympic champions of misappropriation and theft since the few who do not steal from the public coffers and State taxes steal from the poor and the hungry while killing hundreds of thousands of Latin American children every year whose lives could be saved. That, he said, is the system that Bush longs to impose on Cuba as a model, adding that his insults are unwarranted, so he should not complain about Cuba's tough responses.

The previous week, President Fidel Castro affirmed on May 25 that the US people can count on "this friendly, co-operative and generous" people of Cuba in the battle against terrorism. Fidel addressed more than 300,000 people gathered in Los Olivos plaza, in the central province of Sancti Spíritus, in what constituted a mass act of protest against the blockade, calumny and threats of the US government and the terrorism that has afflicted the island for over 40 years.

While he clarified that he was not going to respond personally to recent statements by the US president – who has announced a fresh escalation of anti-Cuban policies – Fidel affirmed that "all of us Cubans are going to respond to Mr Bush. His arguments will be analysed one by one, nobody should be impatient, it is a task that will take some time, and we have barely started," he added.

He went on to say that he would take advantage of the opportunity to direct a few brief words to the US people.

"Our fight is not against the US people," he stressed before recalling that hatred of Americans for the aggression suffered at the hands of their governments has never been sown in Cuba and that they probably receive more respect and hospitality on the island than in any other country.

In spite of being influenced by the manipulation and deceptions of the propaganda, relations between the US and Cuban peoples have been improving day by day, particularly after 80% of the US population supported the return to the island of Cuban child Elián González, kidnapped by the Miami mafia and the extreme right in that country, he noted.

"It is deeply painful to witness the attempt to deceive that essentially noble people by saying that the laboratories where our selfless scientists are discovering, developing and manufacturing vaccines and therapeutic medicines and treatments are also the location of programmes into the research and production of biological weapons," he stated while confirming: "Producing such weapons has never been imagined in our country; our scientists have been educated in the mission of protecting life, not destroying it."

Fidel emphasised that sentiment is more important than knowledge, and proceeded to observe that no other country has lent as much support to other peoples’ health. Anyone acting in that way "cannot have the vocation of a biological weapons’ manufacturer".

After upbraiding Washington’s decision to include the island on the list of countries sponsoring terrorism, the Cuban president commented: "More than concern over the moral and political damage that could be derived from such base accusations, more painful is the idea that any US citizen could come to believe that some harm to his or her person, family or people could originate from Cuba."

He recalled that there had been no bloodshed in the United States during 43 years of Revolution through any act of terrorism proceeding from Cuba. On the contrary, the island has suffered thousands of lost lives and colossal figures in terms of material damage from acts originating in US territory.

"That is something the US people should be informed of instead of being saturated with slander and lies. The only truth that should be inferred is that once the absurd prohibition on commercial exchange is ended the US people will be able to receive vaccines, medicines and medical treatments that could genuinely save many lives or serve to restore wellbeing," he added.

While clarifying that he would not take the opportunity offered to criticise what was done or not done to avert the tragedy of September 11 in New York and Washington, as he lacked the evidence to do so, "as the leader of a country that has had to defend itself from terrorism," Fidel affirmed that sowing panic is not the correct way to confront that scourge.

He added that of all the measures that could be adopted against terrorism, there are certain fundamental elements, like educating the people, and transmitting security and confidence so as to obtain from them the most efficient co-operation in that struggle.

Reflecting and meditating on the cause and roots of terrorism and applying effective measures to combat it is an elemental duty of world leaders, he stressed.

Eighty-nine MPs have signed a House of Commons motion protesting at the inclusion of Cuba in the Bush administration’s so-called "axis of evil".

The Early Day Motion, entitled "US Threat to Cuba", was tabled by Jeremy Corbyn on May 7 and by the close of the Commons session on Friday, May 24, a total of 89 MPs had signed.

The motion reads: "That this House deplores the renewed threat to Cuba made by the US Under-secretary John Bolton and believes that the US should desist from threatening Cuba and instead normalise relations and lift the 40-year economic embargo."

Despite presenting absolutely no evidence to support its accusations that Cuba is involved in developing biological weapons, the Bush administration has insisted on maintaining Cuba on its list of so-called "terrorist states".

Rob Miller, Director of the Cuba Solidarity Campaign, said, "We are grateful to all the MPs who have signed this motion. We will continue to build the broadest possible alliance of people and organisations against the aggression, fuelled by lies, of the US administration."

The newspaper of the Workers’ Party of Korea, Rodong Sinmun, on June 6, noting that the US is moving from its war in Afghanistan to escalating the "war against terrorism" world-wide, says in a signed article:

The Bush administration is moving to phase two of its continued "war against terrorism" after singling out the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Iraq and several other countries as targets on groundless charges of being "sponsors of terrorism", "rogue states" and "dangerous forces".

This "war against terrorism" launched by the US is spilling over into an all-out war to eliminate progressive countries, going beyond the nature, aim and bounds of the original military operation.

As evidenced by the methods involved in the US war, its nature and aim, it is not designed to ensure stability and security and establish peace but to achieve its aggressive objective and ambition for domination.

The US has abused the UN as a mechanism for overseas aggression in the past. And today it is launching wars of aggression against this or that country as it pleases under the pretext of "combating terrorism" in disregard of the UN.

If the US imperialists are allowed to commit reckless acts of aggression and war under the pretext of "combating terrorism", the international community will meet disasters and world peace will be harassed.

The peace-loving people of the world should never overlook even the slightest military action on the part of the US, well aware of the seriousness and gravity of the situation.

The situation where the US hawkish forces are keen to launch another war against the Korean people compels the DPRK to increase its combat capability in every way and keep itself in full combat posture, the article concludes.

Some days before the article appeared, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) pointed out that the US committed over 180 cases of air espionage against the DPRK in May by mobilising strategic and tactical reconnaissance planes on different missions, according to military sources. For example, at around 7:10 on May 31, a U-2 was sent to spy on strategic targets in the DPRK. On May 30, an EP-3 early-warning plane based in Japan flew over Tokjok Islet and the areas of Yangphyong and Yangyang from around 8:30 to 10:15. On May 2 and 10, an E-3 made shuttle flights above Tokjok Islet and the Chunchon and Yangyang areas to spy on the northern half of Korea.

Altogether, the number of espionage missions in May by U-2 and E-3 planes totalled more than 30.

In addition, the US sent eleven tactical reconnaissance planes on May 17, nine on May 23 and eight on each of May 18 and 30 over the Kanghwa Islet-Phochon and Phochon-Sokcho areas to spy on the frontline and coastal areas of the DPRK. Among those planes were the RC-7B, RC-12 and RF-4C.

Press statement on behalf of 16 British delegates of the Che-Leila Youth Brigades in Ramallah, Palestine, June 6, 0320 hrs

As expected, the Israeli "Defence" Forces have started to attack Ramallah. We heard the first shots at around 0155 hrs this morning from our positions at the UPMRC Medical Centre, UPMRC Youth Centre, Palestinian Agricultural Relief building and Health and Development Institute of Palestine building. We are staying in these buildings, where medical supplies, files etc are held, to help prevent their being targeted and ransacked by the IDF (who have targeted these buildings on previous invasions).

What Israel is trying to do with such invasions of cities and camps, with their checkpoints and subjugation of the Palestinian people, is make life impossible for Palestinians, and hence force them from their land once again. As this statement is being written we have heard that the IDF have completely taken over Arafat's compound – what can the reason for this be other than the destruction of the Palestinian people's ability to rule themselves. It is not true that Israel is just trying to protect itself – that its sole concern is its own security. If it was only interested in its own security then it could simply put a final end to its occupation of the West Bank and Gaza and its building of fascistic settlements. All the Palestinian groups which are involved in the Intifada have accepted the compromise of an independent Palestinian state based on the borders of June 4, 1967. If Israel accepts these borders (which give the Palestinian people just 21% of the territories they controlled before 1948) and stops its expansionist program then there is no more "threat to Israel's security".

We are beginning to see the reality of Zionist aggression. The people of Ramallah, who a few hours ago were working, eating, talking on the streets are now pacing their rooms listening to the sound of every shell and every bullet as the gunfire approaches. This is daily life for Palestinian people – as one of the workers here at the medical centre said to us, "this gunfire is like drums for us". In contrast to Israeli cowardice we are also witnessing the unbelievable determination, persistence, humanity and pride of the Palestinians, which is a true inspiration for all the people across the world who are struggling for emancipation.

We, as young people from Britain, express our utmost solidarity with the people of Palestine who are justly fighting for self-determination, and we demand of the British government that they immediately break all links with Israel.

Carlos Rule, Joe Hall, Angelica Orjuela

Mass Protest outside Downing Street and Human Chain against War and Communalism

"No War in South Asia!" "Stop British Arms Sales to India and Pakistan!" "Vajpayee and Musharraf Must Negotiate!"

Saturday 8 June 11.30am to 2.00pm

at 10 Downing St:

South Asia Solidarity Group:

Contact by telephone at 020 7267 0923 or by email at mailto:southasia@hotmail.com for more information.