Four Cuban workers received the honorary title of Hero of Labor of the Republic of Cuba this May Day, presented to them by Army General Raúl Castro Ruz.
Following the ceremony, they agreed to share their sincere emotion on receiving such recognitions with reporters.
I receive this award on behalf of all Caribbeans, all those from Santa Clara, from Granma and Santiago de Cuba; and many cadre who have been in combat alongside me, said Lázaro Expósito Canto, member of the Party Central Committee and first secretary in Santiago de Cuba.
“The people are the most important thing, they are my reason for being,” he said, adding “My task is to defend the people, and I fight tooth and nail every day to do so.”
In these moments, I recall my father and Fidel. They were the ones who taught me that hatred should not be multiplied, that the only thing that is multiplied is love, Carlos Alberto Cremata, general and artistic director of the La Colmenita children’s theater group noted.
Martí wrote: “If they were to open up my breast, I should now have a very beautiful heart.” That’s what I feel, he added.
I never dreamed that this award would be presented to me by Raúl,” stated Juan Ricardo Santiesteban, a mason from the province of Granma, adding, “I’m ready for anything, but I never thought I’d shake hands with the Army General.”
“When I return to my province I am going to incorporate myself into the trade school, to teach the new generations; to instill in those youth the little knowledge that I have,” he explained.
Inorbis Román Caraballo, a teacher at the Mártires del 12 de abril primary school in Guantánamo, also stated that she was immensely proud to receive this distinction, which further committed her to “take education forward as one of the trenches of the Revolution, as with educators the population has a secure future.”
She added that upon returning to her province, she would aim to “convey to workers, students and parents the emotions I’ve felt here, because we also have an army of young people who are enthusiastically preparing to move forward with the work of the Revolution.”
The parade and this act have shown us that Cuba is steadfast, we will defend our principles at any cost, she added.
Cuban women, she concluded, have always been present in the revolutionary process. “That is why we must continue calling on them; because when the strength of women is imposed, any effort is invincible, as our National Hero said.”
(Granma)