With the presence of Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez; and heads of state Nicolás Maduro, from Venezuela; Evo Morales, from Bolivia; Salvador Sánchez Cerén, from El Salvador; and more than 630 delegates and guests, the Final Declaration of Havana was read, as well as an action plan for the coming year.

Mónica Valente, executive secretary of the organization, described the event as emblematic and thanked the leadership of the Communist Party of Cuba and our people for the effort made to host the event, opening our arms to the struggles of peoples around the region and the world.

Resolutions from sector meetings were presented, and debates summarized, while an international campaign to demand “Freedom for Lula now” was launched, with a worldwide twitter effort planned for this coming August.

The closing remarks were made by José Ramón Machado Ventura, Party second secretary, who recalled that, for Fidel, the word ‘defeat ‘ never existed, only temporary setbacks, since as long as there is injustice, there will be revolutions.

(Granma)

For obvious reasons, a personal and more wide-ranging interview with this journalist could not be conducted. However, the fact that Lula took some of his time while imprisoned to answer our questions makes this interview particularly significant, not only for Cuban readers, but all those around the world.

As a candidate for the Presidency of Brazil, with the greatest popular support and all polls indicating you are the favorite to win, how would you describe the persecution and imprisonment to which you have been subjected?

It’s a political process, political imprisonment. The case against me fails to point to a crime, nor is there any evidence. They had to disrespect the Constitution to arrest me. What is becoming increasingly transparent to Brazilian society and the world is that they want to take me out of the 2018 elections. The coup in 2016, with the removal of an elected president, indicates that they don’t accept the people voting for whoever they want to vote for.

For many leaders imprisoned simply for fighting for the people, prison has served as a place for reflection and the organization of ideas to continue the struggle. In your case, how are you dealing with these first days, since you are preventing from being in contact with the people?

I’m reading and thinking a lot, it’s a moment of much reflection about Brazil and especially everything that has happened in recent times. I am at peace with my conscience and I doubt that all those who lied against me sleep as peacefully as I do.

Of course I would like to be free and doing what I have done all my life: dialoging with the people. But I am aware that the injustice that is being committed against me is also an injustice against the Brazilian people.

How important is it for you to know that across all Brazilian states there are thousands of compatriots in favor of your release?

The relationship that I have built over decades with the Brazilian people, with social movement organizations, is a very trusting relationship and it is something that I greatly appreciate, because in my entire political career I always insisted on never betraying that trust. And I would not betray that trust for any money, for an apartment, for nothing. That was the case before being president, during my presidency and afterwards. So, for me, that solidarity is something that moves me and encourages me to stand fast.

How would you define the concept of democracy imposed by the oligarchy to exclude leaders of the left and ensure they don’t come to power?

Latin America has experienced its strongest moment of democracy and social gains in the last decades. But recently the elites of the region are trying to impose a model where the democratic process is only valid when they win, which, of course, is not democracy. So it is an attempt at democracy without the people. When it doesn’t turn out the way they want, they change the rules of the game to benefit the vision of a small minority. That is very serious. And we are not only seeing it in Latin America, but throughout the world, an increase in intolerance and political persecution. It has happened in Brazil, Argentina, Ecuador and other countries.

What message do you send to all those who, in Brazil and around the world, are showing solidarity with you and demanding your immediate release?

I really appreciate all the solidarity. It is necessary to be solidary with the Brazilian people. Unemployment is rising, more than a million families have returned to cooking with firewood because of the increase in the price of cooking gas, millions who had left poverty behind are once again facing the situation of having nothing to eat, and even the middle class has lost jobs and income.

Brazil was on a path of decades of democratic progress, of political participation, and together with this, social advances, which accelerated with the governments of the PT (Worker’s Party), which won four elections in a row.

They have not only dealt the PT a blow. They didn’t arrest me just to malign Lula. They did so against a model of national development and social inclusion. The coup was to do away with the rights of workers and retirees, gained over the last 60 years. And the people are realizing that. And we are going to need a lot of organization to return to a popular government in Brazil, with sovereignty, social inclusion and economic development.

Lula, the same friend who kindly sent us the answers to this interview, also passed on two special messages: “I take this opportunity to thank compañeros Raúl Castro and Miguel Díaz-Canel for their solidary greetings, which were transmitted to me by Frei Betto.”

(Granma)

And there is also disinterest in this act of ceding, that does not imply quitting. There is much humility in those who leave to others the leadership of the great work of the Revolution to which they have given their all – to now accompany those bearing the responsibility, in Raúl’s case, as the highest authority in the political vanguard and from his seat as a deputy.

The events were as natural as they were transcendental.

On the first day of the Assembly’s constituent session, we saw Raúl take his seat in the first row, exercise his right to vote, ballot in hand, showing with his unassuming conduct that the time had arrived, the moment that always seemed so distant.

And when Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez was elected as President of Cuba, Raúl stepped up, without any unnecessary protocol or solemn posture, to receive him, embrace him, show his confidence in the man, the future.

Speaking of Díaz-Canel, Raúl emphasized that he is no rookie, noting his work as an engineer, an officer in the Revolutionary Armed Forces, a youth leader and later a professional Party cadre in Villa Clara and Holguín. He spoke of his performance as Minister of Higher Education, and for the last five years, as First Vice President of the Councils of State and Ministers.

The new President spoke of Raúl as a statesman, of his leadership in the development of national consensus on the updating process underway in the country, as well as his rich history as a participant in the Moncada assault, a Granma expeditionary, a guerilla, military commander, and political leader.

“I’m not here to promise anything,” Díaz-Canel said, “as the Revolution never did over all these years. I’m here to offer commitment,” to continue working and creating tirelessly, in step with the people.

In this endeavor, we are not alone, because “even our dead accompany us.”

It may not be easy to do all that needs to be done, but this April 19, there was no parting. The continuity has a face, faces.

(Granma)

If Washington once fantasized about a world in its own image and likeness, in which progress would spread to countries that did not challenge its hegemony, it is now clear that there is only room for one country at the top. And anyone who disputes U.S. dominance must face “fire and fury.”

What can Latin America and the Caribbean expect of their northern neighbor? The next meeting of the continent’s heads of state, in mid-April in Lima, Peru, will be an opportunity to see.

With the opening of the 8th Summit of the Americas – an initiative of Bill Clinton’s administration to promote free trade – a month off, the White House must prepare the ground.

This is the task of Vice President Mike Pence today, during the Organization of American States Council meeting in Washington, where he will offer an unusual speech on his government’s priorities in relation to the continent.

Pence will be the first U.S. Vice President to address the body since Democrat Al Gore did so in 1994, reflecting the lack of importance Washington gives this “council of colonies,” except when the U.S. is looking to attack or promote coups in sovereign countries.

U.S. officials have already announced plans to redouble aggression against Venezuela, with the overthrow of its government an obsession for this administration, as it attempts to extend an olive branch to others countries in the region and soften its offences.

The Summit in Lima will be the first time Trump comes face to face with his Latin American and Caribbean counterparts, who still hold fresh in their memories the xenophobic rhetoric he used in his 2016 election campaign; his threats to make Mexico pay for a border wall; his description of Haiti and El Salvador as “shithole countries” and immigrants from the region as “murderers and rapists.”

As Pence speaks to the OAS in Washington, meeting in Lima will be representatives of civil society from across the continent, in what is being called a Hemispheric Dialogue, to address issues like forced disappearances, neoliberal austerity measures, lay-offs and pension cuts, murders of journalists, corruption, and the “soft” coups taking place in our region.

Simultaneously in Cuba, a Thinking the Americas Forum will take on the challenge of addressing the diversity and richness of Cuban civil society in times of change, to pave the way for a prosperous and sustainable socialism.

Three events in three distinct locations, at a key moment in the region, again facing the confrontation of two Americas, two different historical projects, on the same continent.

As our emancipators did 200 years ago, this appears to be the time to say: “Latin America and the Caribbean first.”

(Granma)

With the announcement that the United States is set to raise taxes on steel and aluminum imports, the Donald Trump administration might has just launched the first bomb of a trade war with unpredictable consequences.

Following an intense White House meeting – it was reported that some of Trumps’ closest advisors categorically oppose the measure – the President announced he would impose duties of 25% on imported steel and 10% on aluminum imports.

The United States is one of biggest purchasers of steel and aluminum worldwide. Last year, according to Reuters, the country acquired around 36 million tons of steel from a hundred or so countries.

Trump intends to impose duties of 25% on imported steel and 10% on aluminum imports. Photo: Getty Images
Trump tried to justify the measure claiming that the current state of the national steel industry poses a threat to national security, given the rise of emerging powers like China.

However, Canada and South Korea, both stanch allies of Washington and two of the biggest suppliers of steel to the U.S. could also be affected; while Brazil and Mexico are the Latin American countries that are set to suffer the most damage.

Although it has continually subsidized strategic sectors like agriculture and the military industry, over recent years the United States has been one of main defenders of free trade.

The protectionist rhetoric however, entered the White House with the arrival of Trump and his “America first” discourse. Although many believed that his message was intended more to win the election than actually reshape the country’s economic policy maintained by the Republicans and Democrats since WWII, the recent announcements show that the President is ready and willing to take concrete action.

The rise of rival powers such as China and Russia, and what President Trump calls “unfair trade” practices with allied nations, seem to have convinced some in Washington of the need to change the rules of the game.

However, experts agree that it will be difficult for Trump to maneuver in the tangled system of international trade without exposing himself to a trade war.

For example, Jean-Claude Juncker, President of the European Commission described the new tariff plan as “a blatant intervention to protect US domestic industry,” promising countermeasures by the bloc if Trump goes ahead with his decision.

China, supposedly the source of Trump’s concern, also has a few cards up its sleeve to offset U.S. markets, with Beijing stating that it will “take necessary measures to safeguard its legitimate rights and interests.”

On March 2, Trump confirmed analysts’ worst fears after posting the message: “Trade wars are good, and easy to win” on his Twitter account.

On March 5 however, the U.S President made another announcement which could explain his reckless policy, stating that he would be willing to review tariffs if a new and “fair” North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) is signed with Mexico and Canada.

Although the president claims that his actions come in response to the United States’ geopolitical confrontation with China, the move could also be seen as an attempt to extract concessions from its neighbors, at a time when the almost 30 year-old trade agreement is be renegotiated and Washington is claiming that it has large trade deficits with the two nations.

In any case, if the measure is eventually implemented, the changes will have an immediate impact on the price of steel and aluminum in the U.S., benefiting national producers, but harming the rest of the industry which depends on such materials to manufacture aircrafts, cars, and even cell phones and household appliances.

The last time Washington applied a similar measure was in 2002, during the George W. Bush administration, which saw around 200,000 industry workers lose their jobs. The Republican President reversed the measure less than two years later.

However, a contradiction exists between the economic thought which has predominated in United States since 1945 and the country’s protectionist actions. Experts meanwhile, blame the trade war – which occurred from the end of the WWI through the start of WWII – for worsening the Great Depression in the 1930s and are advising not to make the same mistake again.

(Granma)

(Granma)

It is therefore the researcher’s job to revive this legacy and organize it in such a way as to help one understand the scope of a figure, and the historic moment they were destined to live.

This is precisely what researcher and essayist Abel González Santamaría has done in his book Raúl Castro y Nuestra América. 86 discursos, intervenciones y declaraciones (Raúl Castro and Our America. 86 speeches, remarks and statements) which was presented in the Nicolás Guillén at Havana’s Cabaña Fortress on February 7, as part of activities during the latest edition of Cuba’s International Book Fair.

González Santamaría’s new book is more than a simple historical account, instead offering us Raúl the statesman, whose work – defined by over half a century of revolutionary efforts – stands firm.

With Raúl Castro y Nuestra América the Cuban researcher leaves a tool for present and future generations to continue the journey initiated over 200 years ago toward achieving the unity and integration of Our America.

The book, Fidel Castro y los Estados Unidos: 90 discursos, intervenciones y reflexiones(Fidel Castro and the United States: 90 speeches, remarks and reflections) was presented during the last Havana International Book Fair; while a similar compilation dedicated to Army General Raúl Castro is also being presented this year by Capitán San Luis publishers. What’s the link between the two works?
Both books share a dialectical link, because their authors, Comandante en Jefe Fidel Castro Ruz and Army General Raúl Castro Ruz, are two men who share the same ideas and attitude when it comes to revolutionary theory and practice. The book Raúl Castro y Nuestra América: 86 discursos, intervenciones y declaraciones is like a second edition of Fidel Castro y los Estados Unidos: 90 discursos, intervenciones y reflexiones.

Can you describe the legacy of both leaders in regards to Latin American integration?

For over half a century of intense struggle they have shown that it was possible to integrate all the countries of our Great Homeland into one organization dedicated solely to “Our America” and without the presence of nations from outside the region. Fidel and Raúl, together with other revolutionary and progressive leaders from the continent, made a decisive contribution to the creation of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC).

Don’t forget that in order to do so they (regional leaders) were first obliged to unite to defeat the “Free Trade Area of the Americas” (FTAA) agreement, an imperialist initiative by the United States’ which it attempted to implement in the region in the early 21st century. This victory was decisive toward advancing integration efforts.

How important is Cuba’s role as a key promoter of ‘unity within diversity’ to progress made in regional integration efforts?

Cuba’s continuous efforts to promote unity among nations of the region for over 60 years, and its respect for the political, economic, social and cultural system of each and every country, is recognized within the region. As a nation committed to its principles Cuba was selected to host the Second CELAC Summit in 2014, during which the 33 member-states declared “Latin America and the Caribbean as a Zone of Peace.” This was a transcendental and historic event, and is the most important tool for nations in their struggle against constant acts of aggression and threats to peace, in a world in which the drums of war are sounding.

What role has Raúl’s thought – as presented in the book – played in these processes?

The text includes excerpts of his revolutionary work, from interviews with the press he offered in 1959 during the Meeting of Ministers of the Organization of American States (OAS), in Santiago de Chile, to his 2017 speech at the Fifth CELAC Summit in the Dominican Republic.
The Army General stands out as a statesman with an acute understanding of the social problems affecting our people; he is a tireless promoter of integrationist processes and a staunch anti-imperialist. His revolutionary thought will transcend this era and is a necessary tool to guide youth in these times.

The Cuban Revolution has been a beacon for leftist movements not only within the region but across the entire world. How can the new generation of Cubans carry on the struggle for just causes at an international level?

The best way is to continuously fulfill the concept of Revolution every day. This is the task left to us by the Comandante en Jefe of the Cuban Revolution. Remain united and set aside everything that can divide us.
We must learn from our mistakes and failures so as to prevent being misled and divided by the oligarchs. We must remain positive and believe in the betterment of humankind.
I think it’s important that Cuba continues to offer its solidarity to Third World countries, and fulfill its commitment to cooperation based on sharing the modest resources we have and not what we have to spare. We must also preserve the achievements made to date and continue with our policies of development and social inclusion in order to achieve a fairer distribution of wealth and to reduce inequality.

Are gains made by the right wing over recent years only temporary or do they mark the end of an era in the region?
There’s a debate going on about if we are witnessing the “end of the progressive era” in Latin America and the Caribbean, following the “end of history” as proclaimed by the right wing in the early 1990s – a period marked by neoliberal domination.
I’m one of those who believe that the progressive era has not come to an end despite the right wing’s obvious advances in the region, which I believe are only temporary. They are trying to return to neoliberalism and demoralize political forces and parties, social movements, and the working class.
Political processes aren’t linear, they are constantly moving and changing; they are subject to advances, stagnation, and setbacks. What has changed in recent years is that Our America has gained a new consciousness.

What’s your opinion of the Trump administration’s policy toward the region?

There’s a marked intention to return to the failed policies of the past. The new U.S. government’s attitude toward the region closest to its territory is one of disdain and disregard. Once again it is treating us like its “back yard” and vulgar criminals. This is the reality despite the damage control they try to do during their visits to Latin America and the Caribbean; and it’s obvious why – the 8th Summit of the Americas in Lima, Peru, is approaching and they need to prepare the ground if they want to achieve their geopolitical interests.

The Trump administration is obsessed with Cuba and Venezuela. There isn’t a single document or speech in which, when referring to the region, they do not mercilessly attack both nations.
At the same time, they continue to adopt more and more measures within the framework of the economic, commercial, and financial blockade to achieve a “regime change.”

Do you believe that Donald Trump’s hateful discourse toward immigrants and lack of respect for the countries of Latin America could help to unite nations of the region?

It is definitely contributing to uniting the region. His attitudes have been widely rejected and have automatically become a key motive behind protests and efforts to unite. Trump is set on implementing an anti-immigrant policy and building a wall on the border with Mexico, who he blames for some of the serious social problems within the United States. However, the wall is in fact a symbolic expression of his xenophobic and hard-line nationalist ideology toward countries south of the Río Bravo.

The history of Latin America has left us with many unresolved issues at a time when solutions are desperately needed. What answers can readers find in your two latest books?

Exploring the continued relevance of their (Fidel and Raúl’s) words was precisely one of my main aims with these two books. I must admit that the years I spent revising and analyzing all the texts for the two volumes (1,546 by Fidel and 1,468 by Raúl) have been the best lesson I have ever had. Their words are an endless source of knowledge on various political, economic, social, cultural, and scientific issues, which motivate you to constantly reflect, to better understand Cuban history and discover the depth of revolutionary thought.

I recommend reading the book’s prologue, which was lovingly written by my friend and teacher Eusebio Leal Spengler, a true gem of Latin American and Caribbean historiography, and to whom the 27th Cuba International Book Fair is dedicated. Leal Spengler is a man whose loyalty and contributions to Cuban culture have seen him win the love and admiration of our people.
I invite readers to continue investigating and debating the prolific works of Fidel and Raúl, two great men, renowned worldwide, who have elevated the thought of Marti’s idea of the Great Homeland to its highest expression, in the belief that “One just principle from the depths of a cave is more powerful than an army.”

(Granma)

Solidarity is arriving in areas hit hard by Hurricane Matthew, with recovery efforts beginning without delay. There is much to do, and willpower is not lacking. Photo gallery features scenes along the highway between Imias and Maisí, in Guantánamo province, where the category 4 hurricane made landfall October 4.

(Granma)

This is reflected in the Declaration of the recent 22nd Meeting of such a worthy organization as the Forum of São Paulo, celebrated in San Salvador at the end of June. A usual, they repeated that “we support the heroic struggle of the Puerto Rican people for its independence and the just claim of Argentina for their sovereignty over the Malvinas Islands”. In spite of the good faith of this phrase, its scantiness makes for deficiencies. The most simple is that between the immobility of the Malvinas and the present situation of Puerto Rico there is no similarity beyond the geographical accident that both are islands. If it is related to being colonial regimes, then Aruba, Martinique and other possessions in the Caribbean should have been included.

The second error is that in the case of the Malvinas there is a question of territorial integrity, but not of self-determination of peoples. Great Britain took this land from Argentina and replaced its small population with some colonists brought from England. If their descendants were to vote on sovereignty, their choice would be for London. Puerto Rico, on the contrary, is a historic nation, where some four million people defend their own culture, which is of a purely Hispanic-American and Caribbean strain. The question here is to recover the conditions necessary in order for this people to freely decide their own destiny. This is radically distinct from the case of the Malvinas. So to put them side-by-side –while omitting the other Antillean colonies – creates more confusion than solidarity.

But the main problem is elsewhere. It is the omission of that fact that ten years of recession and an unpayable debt has made Puerto Rico a headache for the US government as well. This has created a crisis within the colonial political system and its parties. In face of Puerto Rican non-conformity and complaints, and the pressure of Wall Street creditors, the US authorities arrived at two definitive decisions that have annulled the regime of the so-called Associated Free State (AFS).

The first is that the US Supreme Court decreed that the island has no sovereignty, and that this pertains exclusively to the Congress in Washington. The second is that the Congress then agreed to create a Fiscal Control Board whose members will be named by the White House, which will not only manage the fiscal affairs and budget of Puerto Rico, but will reorganize the administration of the country over and above the government elected by the Puerto Ricans, in order to ensure that the vultures of Wall Street collect the enormous debt, at the expense of the people who live on the island. This converts the governor of Puerto Rico into a simple ceremonial rag doll.

The two parties that defend the Colonial system — one annexationist and the other autonomist — whose inefficiency and corruption as governors of the country accumulated this debt, have lost their capacity to neutralize the population politically. In order to defend their worn-out privileges they direct their complaints and claims against the new Board, but the greater part of the population already sees clearly that the cause of their social and economic drama, their unemployment and poverty, and of the discredit of the political regime, is the colonial system. The same one that, faced with the deterioration of the panorama, calls for creating this new instrument of authoritarian domination.

This in turn has brought the pro-independence party and organizations not only to their moment of greatest political growth, but also to that of the greatest progress in the construction of their unity. This means that Latin American solidarity with the independence of Puerto Rico — and the support for its actors and struggles – needs to go beyond the usual phrases and calls for new analyses and initiatives in tune with the present demands and possibilities of the situation.

(by Nils Castro, Alainet)

According to the ministry, citing figures from the Honduras Consular and Migration Observatory, in 2015, 75,785 Hondurans were deported from U.S .territory, as reported by the daily Proceso Digital.

Currently, some 65,000 undocumented Honduran immigrants must appear before U.S. immigration courts, and face being deported from the country, the publication detailed.

In recent years, the number of undocumented migrants arriving in countries such as the United States has increased, especially through the Mexican border.

According to studies, such as that conducted by the National Autonomous University of Honduras, among the causes of migration in this region are unemployment, a lack of opportunities, violence, and attempted family reunification.

Motivating the exodus of Hondurans, as well as the violence in the country, are poverty and inequality. As such, Arabesca Sánchez, a specialist in security matters, noted that the Honduran government must implement economic policies, prevent crime, and promote social reintegration, among other measures, to address the issue.

Referring to internally displaced persons in Honduras, who number more than 74,000, criminologists stress the need to reduce violence in a state with an intentional homicide rate of 60 per 100,000 inhabitants.

Among the cities where the largest number of murders occurs – most involving the use of firearms – are San Pedro Sula, Tegucigalpa and La Ceiba.

(Prensa Latina)