Internationalism of the Cuban Revolution

On January 1 falls the 51st anniversary of the Cuban revolution. This article written in commemoration of that event gives the secret how a small country such as Cuba could withstand five decades of hostility and aggression from its giant neighbour, the United States and build an independent country where social justice reigns.

Jayatilleke DE SILVA

“Humanity is my homeland”
- Jose Marti

One wonders how a small nation, just 90 miles (a distance less than that from Colombo to Matara) from the world’s only superpower could survive for over five decades despite the hostility of that superpower and the criminal blockade imposed by it.

The answer lies in the policy of solidarity and proletarian internationalism revolutionary Cuba practised from the time of its inception. As Che Guevara said for the Cubans proletarian internationalism is both a duty and a necessity.

The triumph of the revolution saw an avalanche of support throughout the world. People all over the world, including those of far away countries such as Sri Lanka, wished the new regime success and saw in it the fulfilment of dreams similar to theirs.

Following the words of the Apostle “The world is my home”, Cubans have fulfilled many internationalist missions, especially in the developing world. On September 8, 2000 Fidel told residents of Harlem, New York “half a million of our compatriots have carried out internationalist missions in numerous countries in different parts of the world, especially in Africa. They have been medical doctors, teachers, technicians, construction workers, soldiers and others.”

Over 25,000 Cuban health workers including doctors have served voluntarily in 93 countries including Sri Lanka. After the destructive tsunami that hit our shores in December 2004 a contingent of health workers came to Sri Lanka with a load of medicines and other medical requirements.

An illustrious example of the Cuban internationalism was given by Cuban health personnel who performed an arduous mission in the mountainous region of Pakistan amidst a severe winter where a severe earthquake left thousands homeless few years ago. In a matter of weeks they treated more than 300,000 patients.

Cuba has formed a special brigade named after Henry Reeve to undertake urgent disaster relief missions anywhere in the world. Henry Reeve was a US national who fought in Cuba’s War of Independence. Formed at the time of the Katrina hurricane which devastated the Gulf region in the United States medical volunteers were ready to leave for emergency operations in that region. However, due to political reasons the United States did not respond favourably to the Cuban offer.

Special mention must be made of the Miracle Mission under which thousands of Venezuelans were flown to Cuba for delicate eye surgeries. The Mission still continues. Besides the Miracle Mission, a large number of Cuban doctors serve in Venezuela. Taking part in a project called the ‘Barrio Adentro Mission’ they work in remote and poor neighbourhoods where local doctors refuse to serve.

Cuba has opened the Latin American School of Medicine to train doctors for Third World countries. During the next ten years it is expected to train 100,000 doctors from other countries free of charge. In the United States such a project would cost $ 25 billion.

Cuba also has established medical colleges in African countries where Cuban medical specialists train local doctors.

In the field of education Cuba has developed a low cost program, “Yes, I can” to teach people how to read and write using radio and television. It was first implemented in Haiti and later in New Zealand, Nicaragua, Mozambique, Venezuela, Guinea Bissau, Mexico, Guatemala, Belize, Argentina, Paraguay, Ecuador, Bolivia, Honduras, Peru, Brazil and Nigeria. UNESCO termed the program a success, which among its main achievements has taught one million 300 thousand Venezuelans, 109 Haitians, 6,000 Mexicans and some 4,000 Nicaraguans and Argentineans to read and write.

Cuba has also provided scholarships to Cuban Universities for Third World students free of charge. 47,000 foreign students from 125 nations graduated from Cuban educational centres from 1961 to 2005. Today, Cuba has become the nation with the largest number of foreign students per capita. Unlike other countries one of the fundamental conditions for granting scholarships to foreign students is their commitment to return to their country of origin once their studies are concluded. Cuba has no need to drain professionals from other countries.

In 1973, a group of 40 Spanish langauge professors travelled to Equatorial Guinea to teach lessons there, marking the beginning of Cuba’s cooperation with another people in the field of education. To date, more than 22 thousand Cuban teachers have carried out similar tasks in some 20 nations in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean.

One of the noblest international missions undertaken by Cuba was the provision of military assistance to the Angolan people to win their national liberation. Without the participation of the Cuban Army it would have been difficult for the Angolans to withstand the concerted onslaught of South African and Zaire Forces in 1975 that wanted to prevent Angola wining freedom. Once again in 1987 when South African and United States Forces attacked the Angolan Army advancing on the last stronghold of counter-revolutionary Savimbi, Cuban Army came to the assistance of Angola at its request. At that time there were 55,000 Cuban troops in Angola.

These solidarity actions prevented the isolation of revolutionary Cuba and foiled the attempts of US imperialism. On the other hand, Cuba’s prestige in the community of nations has grown over the years. For example, in November 2005, 182 nations supported a resolution calling upon the United States to lift the blockade of Cuba. Only four countries including the United States and Israel opposed the resolution.

What added to the prestige of Cuba in the international arena was its consistent policy. Granma, the official organ of the Communist Party of Cuba stated it clearly in its editorial on October 27, 2001: “We Cubans have the privilege of having never changed our stripes, of never betraying or selling out a person, a country, a cause, a just word, not for all the gold, well-being or convenience in the world. We Cuban revolutionaries do not belong to that moral breed.”

Cuba did not waver even when the United States declared war on all nations in the aftermath of the 9/11 tragedy in the United States in 2001. Replying to President Bush’s message “Every nation in every region now has a decision to make. Either you are with us or you are with the terrorists”, Fidel declared that Cuba is opposed to terrorism, and opposed to war, the “lengthy and unparalleled war in history” which President Bush threatened to unleash.

Hours after the war on Terror began with the invasion of Afghanistan, Granma, the official organ of the Cuban Communist Party said in its Editorial on October 8, 2001: “This is not a war against terrorism... It is a war in favour of terrorism, since the military operations will make it more complicated and difficult to eradicate terrorism. War is like pouring oil on flames”. Since then the United States invaded Iraq and we witness the unprecedented resurgence of terrorism there.

(The writer is President, Sri Lanka National Committee for Solidarity with Cuba)