Million march in Cuba: "US Hands off!"
On Friday May 14, a massive sea of people flooded through the streets of the Cuban capital, marching on the US Interests Section to protest the latest brutal measures against Cuba adopted by Washington. Just before the march stepped-off, Cuban President Fidel Castro addressed the huge crowd, estimated at more than one million. The leader of the Cuban Revolution read an open letter to US President George W Bush, accusing him of knowing nothing about Cuba and its people — who are ready to not only march, but willing to give their lives to preserve their country's sovereignty. Fidel Castro said that Cuba could be erased from the face of the earth, but it would never become another neo-colony of the United States. The Cuban leader said that the objective of his open letter was not to offend or insult the US President — but simply to remind him of reality. Given that Bush has proposed to intimidate and even destroy Cuba's social and political system, Fidel Castro affirmed that to do so would require its physical elimination. He said that Bush has no moral authority to talk about freedom, democracy and human rights — charging the Bush administration with attempting to impose a worldwide tyranny, ignoring and destroying the United Nations, violating the rights of sovereign countries and launching wars of conquest to take over the earth's resources. Reading his open letter to the US President, the leader of the Cuban Revolution said: "In the world that you seek to impose on us today, there is not the slightest notion of ethics, credibility, standards of justice, humanitarian feelings or the elementary principles of solidarity and generosity. Everything that is written about human rights in your world — and in the world of your allies who share in plundering the earth — is an enormous lie. "Billions of human beings live in subhuman conditions — without enough food, medicine, clothing, shoes or shelter and without even a minimum amount of knowledge or enough information to understand their tragedy and that of the world in which they live." Fidel Castro said that it is almost laughable to hear the US President talk about the alleged violation of human rights in Cuba — where people are guaranteed free health care and education. The leader of the Cuban Revolution noted that "this is one of the few countries of the hemisphere where there have been no cases of torture, no death squads and no government leader who has become a millionaire." The Cuban leader emphasised that "while Cuba struggles for life, Bush fights for death". And Fidel said that while Cuba saves the lives of thousands of children and mothers around the world, Bush kills innumerable people with indiscriminate and pre-emptive attacks. Fidel Castro affirmed that if George W Bush makes the mistake of attacking the island, the leader of the Cuban Revolution will be on the frontline in defence of his country. After addressing the crowd for about 20 minutes in front of the US Interests Section, Fidel Castro took his place at the head of the march. The crowd chanted: "Bush, fascist! There is no aggression that Cuba doesn't resist!" and "Down with Fascism!" During the early morning hours on Friday, young and old — men, women and children — made their way toward Havana's seaside drive. Hundreds of thousands walked for several kilometres, as many of the streets were closed off to traffic and most of the city's busses were dedicated to carrying people longer distances. People gathered on streets and boulevards leading into the Malecsn and the huge march stepped-off just a little past 8am local time — and didn't end until after 2 o'clock in the afternoon. For more than six hours, well over one million people — initial estimates put the number at 1,200,000 — passed by the US Interests Section. Marchers carried Cuban flags and raised them high as they approached the building on Havana's seaside drive. Some held photos of Bush, sporting a moustache and dressed in a Nazi uniform. Radio and TV commentators noted that while the marchers are extremely angry over Washington's latest measures against the island, the Interests Section must be one of the safest diplomatic missions in the world; not a single stone has ever been thrown against the building that represents the interests of the US Empire. One young marcher commented to a reporter from Radio Havana Cuba: "The United States thinks it owns the world. Well, they don't own Cuba... and they NEVER will."* * * http://http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CubaNews