Diaz-Canel's Speech at Conference on Nation and Emigration

HAVANA, Cuba, Nov 20 (ACN) On behalf of the Cuban government, I reiterate the willingness to continue developing a frank and broad dialogue, based on mutual respect and defense of the homeland, said President Miguel Diaz-Canel on Sunday, at the closing of the 4th Conference The Nation and Emigration, which brought together in the capital 361 Cubans living in 54 countries.

Due to its importance, the Cuban News Agency broadcasts below the speech of the first secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Cuba and President of the Republic at the closing of the event, held at the Convention Palace on November 18 and 19.
Dear compatriots:

"Truly the feeling of the Homeland is strong". That phrase of Fidel at the end of the meeting with the boys of the Antonio Maceo Brigade, 46 years ago, we can repeat it here today.

If those of us who live there feel proud to sing the National Anthem, to listen to its chords on Alexander Abreu's trumpet or to watch the clapping of hands from the windows of an airplane when returning from a trip, it is not difficult to imagine the emotion of those who, like you, feel the same way living far away from Cuba.

It is that feeling that has driven all the dialogues since then until today. It is the one that has allowed us to grow between encounters and disagreements, successes and failures, always saving what unites us above everything that could separate us.
And it is what has constantly moved us in these days of exchanges and deliberations which, however topical their content, activate our memory and increase our gratitude to those who, with patience, faith and patriotism, have forged the path of dialogue, respect and understanding when it seemed impossible.

Recently, at home with our family, just last week, we watched again the documentary 55 Brothers. Five of those boys are present here today. The traces of time have not changed their feelings. We must thank them for paving the way, for not tiring, for making the refrain they all sing at the end of the documentary come true: "The Homeland has grown, said the Commander..." (Applause).

That beautiful group of young compatriots was the advance guard of other emigrants to the United States who accepted the invitation of the Cuban authorities to, together, participate in the design of a new model of relationship between the nation and its children living abroad, based on the unrestricted respect for the sovereignty and independence of Cuba.

Those patriotic gestures were accompanied by many challenges and dangers. Those in attendance were forced to defy threats and violence from opponents of the dialogue, who were, and are, backed by the U.S. government, whose policy against Cuba has varied little or not at all in so many years.

It was also necessary to overcome doubts and prejudices, to know how to differentiate between the interests and concerns that Cubans living in the United States had and the hostility of the U.S. government towards Cuba.

Today we are in a very different moment. The world in which we live has changed, our own country has continued to deepen its transformation process, the presence of Cubans living abroad is much more numerous and varied and is settled or remains in very different latitudes.

Army General Raul Castro Ruz acknowledged this when he said: "Today, the overwhelming majority of Cuban emigrants are there for economic reasons [...] almost all of them preserve their love for their family and the homeland where they were born, and show [...] solidarity towards their compatriots "1.

But thanks to the protagonists of that first rapprochement and those who came after, the links are more frequent, active, open, influential and more and more natural.

It is impossible to forget in any account of this long and dramatic history Carlos Muñiz Varela and Jose Eulalio Negrin Santos (Applause), defenders of the Dialogue and of the ties with Cuba, vilely assassinated by ruthless enemies of the nation and of their children's ties with it. Our greatest recognition goes to their comrades, present here, who have fought tirelessly for justice to be done.

Every act of rapprochement and solidarity with the homeland will be the most heartfelt and the best of tributes to the martyrs and other compatriots who are not physically among us and who gave themselves completely to Marti's mission of achieving unity in pursuit of the defense of the homeland.

The efforts made, the risks taken and the blood shed are the most fertile seeds of the national tree. Nothing was in vain!

During these days, in addition to honoring the word pledged when, as a cause of COVID-19, we were forced to suspend the meeting scheduled for 2020, we are fulfilling a historic duty:to continue the path undertaken with the visit to Cuba of the 55 brave young men and women of the Antonio Maceo Brigade in December 1977, prelude to the so-called Dialogue between the Government of the Republic of Cuba and personalities representing the Cuban community abroad or Dialogue of '78 and the three subsequent conferences of The Nation and Emigration, held in April 1994, November 1995 and May 2004.

At that memorable meeting in 1978, promoted and encouraged by Commander-in-Chief Fidel Castro Ruz, it was ratified that the Revolution wished to strengthen ties with Cubans living abroad, for which it took into account, first and foremost, the interests of that community.
Fidel clearly stated: "In one way or another, by different means, we had already become aware of the problems of the Cuban community abroad, of its desire to maintain its identity, of its desire to preserve its moral values, its cultural values; in short, an effort of identity ".
As Jose Marti would say, in the end, what is the Homeland if not "community of interests, unity of traditions, unity of goals, sweet and consoling fusion of loves and hopes".

As in 1978, on behalf of the Cuban Government, I reiterate our willingness to continue developing a frank and broad dialogue, based on mutual respect and the defense of the Homeland. Today as yesterday, with the commitment to not relent in the battle to put an end to the genocidal blockade that has caused so much deprivation, pain and fracture in the Cuban family.

As direct or indirect victims of this criminal policy, all of us gathered here are aware that it constitutes the greatest obstacle to the strengthening of the country's relations with the majority of Cubans living abroad, since it hinders the regular, orderly and safe flow of travelers, affects the links between the nationals living in the United States and their relatives and friends in Cuba, restricts the rights of our fellow citizens abroad and affects, in the first place, their families.

I am not going to dwell on data that more than figures are open wounds in the body of the nation and in the center of its soul, which is the Cuban family. Behind each action of blockade, threat, intimidation; behind each one of the 15 million dollars a day of affectation that were quantified in the first 14 months of an administration like Biden's; behind the number, huge but inert, there are children, young people, the elderly, mothers, grandparents..., there is a country punished for the audacity of being free, independent and sovereign 90 miles away from an empire.

But this rebellious and imperfect country not only quantifies and denounces the crime, Cuba resists and creates! Neither six decades of blockade that bet on human exhaustion, nor more than 200 measures of brutal demolition of the few previous advances have been able to defeat the creative resistance of this people from which you and we were born, a formidable mixture of ethnicities, cultures, spirituality, which can only be defeated by itself the day we lose the dreams of a possible better world.

That creative resistance is what explains Cuba's successful confrontation with the pandemic when the blockade tightened and the United States hindered even the acquisition of medical oxygen. It is the idea and the consecration from which five vaccine candidates sprouted, including three vaccines that have been efficiently and effectively tested, as well as Cuban pulmonary ventilators that, due to their performance, compete with the best in the world.

A government management program based on science and innovation translates ideas into achievements and works that make us proud, without us renouncing self-criticism and awareness of all that is lacking to overcome the walls of the blockade.

Our greatest strength lies in the talent, the effort and the invincible creativity of the Cuban people, and in the work of six decades of the Revolution.

In that work we include, of course, the solidarity we give and receive from all corners of the planet, from all the people of good will who accompany us in the fight against the blockade, and, to our satisfaction and joy, first and foremost, from the Cubans who have the homeland geographically far away, but sentimentally in the center of their hearts. Feel, then, acknowledged in this daily victory over those who oppose us, which we call creative resistance.

Compatriots:

Despite the aggressive policy of the U.S. Government, the tightening of the blockade, the financial persecution, the slanderous, false, unacceptable classification of Cuba as a State sponsor of terrorism and media campaigns riddled with lies and manipulation that seek to discredit and undermine all the Government's efforts to overcome the economic siege, numerous measures have been promoted and implemented from the harassed Cuba over the past 45 years, and significant progress has been made in strengthening and diversifying ties with Cubans living abroad.
Our foreign minister recalled the words of Commander-in-Chief Fidel Castro and Army General Raul Castro, historic leaders of the Revolution, which we, his followers, defend with respect and admiration for their work in favor of the normalization of the nation's relationship with its emigrants, over and above political situations promoted by those who insist on defeating the Revolution by all possible ways and means.

I will not repeat them. The most transcendental changes in that policy began 45 years ago with those historic dialogues; they were strengthened in the last decade with important decisions to favor institutionality and the rights of the Cuban citizenship, a process to which we have the duty to give continuity and, moreover, we do so.

This happens while the U.S. administrations tighten coercive measures and threaten Cuban families with new punishments. They are not only hindering visas and regular access to a country where most Cuban emigrants live. A very influential anti-Cuban congressman in Cuban politics is demanding that those who return to Cuba on vacation lose their refugee status. To demand this is the biggest lie to the campaigns that politicize all Cuban emigration.

The creators and supporters of the economic war against Cuba try to break, through discrediting and defamation campaigns generously financed with their taxpayers' money, our natural and growing link with the emigrants.

In spite of the continuous feeding of hatred, at present there are 138 associations of Cubans in 57 countries. Even in places where these organizations are not formally created, there are many who participate in support tasks and in activities organized jointly with solidarity movements and with our diplomatic and consular representations.

I want to tell you that we are very proud and heartened by the different messages of condolences, offers of help and donations sent by you during the COVID-19 pandemic, and when we suffered the unfortunate accidents at the Saratoga Hotel, at the Supertanker Base in Matanzas and the damage caused by the scourge of Hurricane Ian in the west of the country, just to mention the most recent cases.

"You can always leave the homeland, but never when it is in difficult times," Marti said, and you honor that principle. You are at the side of the homeland when it needs you. Cuba recognizes, values and counts on your help.

Most of the Cuban nationals maintain a stable and fluid link with the homeland, share its successes, show solidarity with our causes, show interest in the situation of the country and in contributing and contributing to its socioeconomic development. Moreover, when they do so, that mysteriously deep feeling that provokes what Martí also described as the sweetest word: "Cuban" emerges and becomes contagious.

That Cubanness, which does not depend on ethnographic characterizations, was defined like no one else by the wise Don Fernando Ortiz: "It is not enough for Cubanness to have in Cuba the cradle, the nation and the life; it is still necessary to have the conscience. I think that for us Cubans the distinction of Cubanness, generic condition of being Cuban, and that of Cubanness, full, felt, conscious and desired Cubanness; responsible Cubanness, Cubanness with the three virtues: of faith, hope and love, would be convenient for us Cubans".

We insist on Marti's formula of a Cuba with all and for the good of all, making it clear that this "all" does not include those who conspire against the nation to attack and offend it, those who call for invasion and license to kill their own people, nor those who stain the Lone Star Flag with the annexationist vocation of turning us into the 51st State of the American Union, and harass and attack the artists and athletes who represent us on international stages and events.

We will never refuse to grow in rights for all, except for those who live and work in the pay of another government with the declared purpose of destroying our project and its always unfinished work of battle for the highest degree of social justice possible.

Our arms will be open with grateful recognition to receive and embrace those who risk their personal integrity and even their lives to defend and support the homeland in difficult times, such as the legendary Alianza Martiana, Puentes de Amor, the solidarity groups that every month, under the cold, the rain and the attack of the haters, take to the streets of hundreds of cities around the world to demand the end of the blockade against Cuba (Applause).

We could say, looking at what has been said and discussed here, that this conference has allowed us to make a comprehensive assessment of what has been achieved in the field of ties with nationals abroad and to identify the areas in which we still have to work together, but, more importantly, it constitutes a new starting point towards higher and therefore more challenging goals.

I would venture to say, without fear of being mistaken, that all of us present in the room share the appreciation that the links between Cuba and its nationals abroad are today at one of their best moments. The tree planted 45 years ago is strong, vigorous and protective like a ceiba.
One of the virtues of these meetings and of the long process initiated in 1978 is that it does not depend on the relations, contacts or even the opinion of other governments. This is a strictly Cuban exercise, among Cubans and for Cubans! (Applause.) (Exclamations of: "Long live free Cuba!")

The fact that it is precisely the independence and sovereignty of the nation that is the shared priority has made it possible to advance resolutely and irreversibly toward common objectives, without political, ideological or other differences being able to impede it.
In almost all of you, I am impressed by the way in which you approach the homeland, with an attitude of respect and understanding towards the realities of the country and the legitimate rights of those who live, work, sacrifice and struggle in it, which also contributes to the strengthening of our relations.

I hope that all the presentations made during the Conference have allowed, as we intended, to transmit to you first hand the perception of the advances in the complex universe of the relations between the nation and its emigrants, and to update you with frankness about the reality that the country is living today. From the debate, rich in ideas and nuances, which took place both in the plenary and in the corridors of the Convention Center or in the scenarios of the collateral activities, we have all learned.

Eliminating the blockade, preserving the indisputable social conquests, not returning to the horrors of the past of exploitation and subjugation of the homeland have been fundamental proposals of broad agreement among the participants, which show us the sincere patriotism that survives in the Cuban community settled abroad.

So is the unrenounceable defense of the right to self-determination and the prerogative to settle, solve and overcome our own problems without foreign interference and without the permanent coercion of the U.S. Government. It is a right that every nation has or should have and that we Cubans treasure as a just conquest that we will not renounce.

The exchanges held during the last 48 hours have allowed us to outline the path to follow in order to increase the participation of Cubans living abroad in the socio-economic development of Cuba, and in processes of an eminently political nature, such as the popular consultations on the new Constitution and the new Family Code, in order to continue the process of transformation and consolidate the indigenous socialism focused on achieving greater social justice for all.

We have had the opportunity to exchange widely on the opportunities represented by the development of technologies and information technology, in order to project a living image of Cuba, with lights and shadows, but always proud of our history, of our capacity for resistance and of the legacy of social justice achieved in this rebellious and dignified land.

Once again, culture is confirmed as the main factor that identifies us, unites us and makes us proud. By highlighting our Cuban identity, we aspire to stimulate the links with the new generations of Cubans living abroad, through the strengthening of cultural and historical ties with their country or that of their parents.

I would also like to ratify that wherever they are, consular assistance and protection will also reach them whenever required and possible. It is our policy and a duty of Cuban embassies and consulates to accompany, assist and protect Cubans living abroad whenever necessary and feasible. The facts save my words. In the event of a natural disaster, war conflict, accident or other calamity, our officials were there and have the instruction to come to the aid of Cubans who require it.

At this moment, a genocide of Dantesque proportions is being committed against the Palestinian people. As we have said repeatedly, Cuba will continue to support the just cause of the Palestinians, and we demand an immediate ceasefire (Applause). There we also have Cubans who have formed families and work for that nation.

My fellow countrymen:

Allow me to evoke dear Eusebio Leal, who did so much for our culture and for the homeland, when referring to those who have decided to take up residence abroad, he expressed:

"I do not believe that by itself migration has to be considered, and more so today, a strictly political event. It is an economic issue, a family issue, or it is an optional issue [...] Those who have gone and have founded and have created, have in their homeland a point of reference, they have a tomb to go to, a town to return to, a mother to kiss, a child to recover [...] And it is possible that those who go and do not forget, extend their hand to us. "

"Those who have to stay in other lands -as Eusebio himself said on another occasion- have children who will carry and multiply in their hearts the blood of Cuba and for generations will repeat the brief and sonorous name of the land where their parents and grandparents were born ".
On behalf of our people, I reiterate that the commitment to strengthen ties with Cubans living in any latitude of the world is invariable and irreversible! (Applause).

We invite you to join with renewed energy in this new stage in defense of Cuba.

All those who want to build and contribute to this collective work that is the Cuban Revolution will always be welcome (Applause).

The homeland is all of us, and with you it grows!

Long live free, independent and sovereign Cuba! (Exclamations of "Long live!").

Thank you very much.

(Applause.)