Raul Presides over in Havana Ceremony for Angola’s Independence

HAVANA, Cuba, Nov 12 (acn) Army General Raul Castro, First Secretary of the Central Committee of the Cuban Communist Party (PCC) and President of the councils of State and Ministers, attended on Wednesday in this capital the ceremony held on the occasion of the 40th anniversary of the independence of the Republic of Angola.

During the meeting, held at the Universal Hall of the Cuban Revolutionary Armed Forces (FAR), Raul gave the Certificate of Hero of the Republic of Cuba and the Maximo Gomez Order in First Degree, posthumously, to major generals Raul Diaz-Argüelles (1937-1975) and Victor Shueg (1936-1998).
The acknowledgements, given by the Council of State, were received by Natacha Diaz-Arguelles and Marian Shueg, daughters of the two internationalists.
He also gave the Certificate of Hero of the Republic of Cuba and the Maximo Gomez Order in First Degree to Major General Carlos Fernandez, member of the Central Committee of the PCC and Minister of the Interior, while Major General Romarico Sotomayor also received the Certificate of Hero of the Republic of Cuba and the Playa Giron National Order.
While addressing participants, Army Corps General Alvaro Lopez, member of the Politburo of the PCC, Hero of the Republic of Cuba, First Deputy Minister and Chief of Staff of the FAR, recalled the heroic events of that deed called Operation Carlota.
General Candido Pereira Dos Santos, Minister of Former Combatants and Homeland Veterans of Angola, reiterated his gratitude for Cuba's solidarity towards his homeland.
The internationalist aid that the Cuban government, the military and the people gave to Angola was decisive for the young Republic of Angola to celebrate today its 40 years of existence, he asserted.