Radio Cadena Agramonte emisiora de Camagüey
Havana, April 28th. - The May Day parades will have a special significance because it marks 25 years since Commander-in-Chief Fidel Castro Ruz proclaimed the concept of Revolution, which is more than an idea but a platform for struggle for the present and the future, said Ulises Guilarte De Nacimiento, member of the Party's Political Bureau and general secretary of the Cuban Workers' Central (CTC).
We might ask ourselves—he emphasized—why, given that April is a month rich in historic dates, Fidel waited for International Workers' Day; "because he was convinced that these are an army of incalculable value in supporting and putting into practice the construction of socialism in our country."
"Therefore, in the midst of a complex national and global context, he called for us to shake off inertia, to change rigid patterns of thought and action, to emancipate ourselves through our own efforts, in the face of the U.S. government's criminal obsession with subduing us with the economic, commercial, and financial blockade that has now lasted 63 years.
“And in the Open Forum of Youth, Students, and Workers on May Day, 2000, you spoke of solidarity, which has distinguished us for the just causes of the people and the labor movement. And it is also what we have received, and which is evident in May with the attendance of hundreds of friends and dozens of labor organizations from all over the world, who, among their expressions of support, have sent donations. In the last three months, this amounted to more than five containers of medicines and disposable materials, which we delivered to public health institutions.”
The Secretary General of the CTC emphasized that the anniversary, to be celebrated in a few days, will involve an unprecedented amount of activity, and he referred to three moments closely linked to the foreign delegations.
"Several groups will hold anti-imperialist forums on the 30th to denounce the blockade and Cuba's inclusion on the spurious list of alleged sponsors of terrorism. They will learn from workers and union leaders about the direct impact of this policy.
"We've been holding these meetings for several years, and it's a very practical and transparent way for them to learn about the reality in this archipelago, as some people are steeped in hostile media campaigns; the most recent one is linked to distorting the role of our medical brigades, which currently provide care in more than 50 countries, with the sole purpose of improving health indicators and developing programs associated with preventive medicine.
“On Thursday, the majority will be in José Martí Revolution Square, and others will march in Santiago de Cuba, Villa Clara, Sancti Spíritus, and Pinar del Río. On the 2nd, the International Meeting of Solidarity with Cuba will take place, another exciting opportunity because, in addition to promoting unity and condemning exploitation and genocide like the one being carried out against the Palestinians, voices will be raised there calling for us to continue resisting imperialism, because we are an example to the world.”
Guilarte de Nacimiento stated that there will be bilateral meetings between representatives of national unions and those of solidarity organizations. In addition to being interested in union issues, they also wish to learn about the results of the Caribbean nation's implementation of the Beijing Platform for Action, the Family Code, and the National Program for the Advancement of Women, as well as the Preliminary Draft of the Code on Children, Adolescents, and Youth, which is currently undergoing public consultation.
He also emphasized that the May Day parades are the largest and most massive popular mobilization taking place in Cuba.
“Attending the plazas has always been a testament to the fact that they will continue to defend their social project, even under the complex economic conditions and rising inflation, reflected in the loss of purchasing power of salaries and pensions.”
This situation, he specified, has also undermined labor discipline, increased informal employment, and job fluctuations, with a component in emigration, have increased. These phenomena are not immune to the leadership of the labor movement, which has presented proposals to the government to find solutions to this problem, burdened by the common denominator of the intensification of the US blockade and other factors such as unproductivity, bureaucracy, and corruption.
That's why the call for action on International Workers' Day emphasizes priority tasks for production and services.
"We must not allow ourselves," he reflected, "to accumulate tens of thousands of hectares of land lying idle or being poorly exploited, when there is a policy of granting usufruct land to workers who request it and to the public in general; and we have a policy of encouraging self-consumption to improve food conditions in the workplace."
"Our ongoing call, and especially on May Day, is to optimize the powers granted to the business system, to encourage ongoing creativity, grouped in the National Association of Innovators and Rationalizers and the Youth Technical Brigades; to link productive chains with new forms of non-state management; to continue promoting decent employment in accordance with the International Labor Organization conventions to which we are signatories, demonstrating our continued promotion of the policies of equity and social justice that are the work of the Revolution."
"Because prosperity and sustainability in the socialism we are building can only be achieved through the generation of wealth, and this is intertwined with the motto that governs the activities for the anniversary: ??For Cuba, together we create," he emphasized.
We are called—he emphasized—to defend the homeland and do so unitedly. It is the fusion that Fidel and Raúl have always pointed to as a strategic weapon of the Revolution and that has allowed us to reach this point, facing an enormous media campaign aimed at fracturing the consensus surrounding our history, our heroes, and the legacy of José Martí and Lázaro Peña, indispensable in forging unity among Cuban workers. (Text and photo: Trabajadores Digital)
