Galeano, who will inaugurate the 53rd Casa de las Americas Literary Prize in Havana next Monday, was welcomed by Cuban poet Roberto Fernandez Retamar, president of the Casa de las Americas cultural center.

Speaking to reporters and referring to the Cuban revolutionary process, Galeano said that he never hid his discrepancies or doubts, but neither his admiration for a Revolution that is an example of national dignity. He also praised Cuba’s solidarity with many nations of the world saying that he had never seen such dedication to the others as that of the Cuban
Revolution.

Considered one of the most brilliant intellectuals of his generation, the author of ‘Las venas abiertas de America Latina’ will be a special guest of the 53rd Casa de las Americas Literary Prize contest, created in 1959 by Cuban heroine Haydee Santamaria.

The jury of the event, composed of renowned personalities of the continent, will assess works received in several modalities: theater, literature for children and young people, and Brazilian literature and Caribbean literature in French or Creole, as well as in the category Studies on Latinos in the United States. A Special Prize will be granted in Studies on the presence of black people in contemporary Latin America and the Caribbean.

Also given will be the following prizes: the Jose Lezama Lima, in Poetry; the Jose Maria Arguedas, in Narrative; and the Ezequiel Martinez Estrada, in Essay.

For ten days, there will be panels, keynote lectures, and the presentation of the 2011 winning works, among them La bota sobre el toro muerto, by Cuban Emerio Medina Peña (Short Story) and Su paso, by Argentinean Carlos Enrique Bischoff (Testimony).

(Published ACN)