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RAÚL AT 26TH OF JULY RALLY IN HOLGUIN
The resistance, organization and
solidarity of our people has been demonstrated
HOLGUÍN, July 26.-General of the
Army Raúl Castro, president of the Cuban Councils of
State and Ministers, praised the attitude of the
Cuban people following the devastating hurricanes of
2008, and affirmed the past months have truly been
difficult ones of arduous work.
From one end of the country to
the other, the Cuban people’s capacity for
resistance, organization and solidarity has been
demonstrated, he added.
Examples abound of how work
should be done at this time; that was the attitude
assumed by the people of Holguín after Hurricane Ike
hit, and that’s how it was everywhere, he said. Many
compañeros remained mobilized, far from home, even
though their own families also were affected, he
affirmed.
They trusted in the Revolution
and fulfilled their duties, he reiterated.
Raúl highlighted the solidarity
demonstrated in facing the hurricanes, and noted
that it says a lot about our people how they
welcomed into their homes neighbors whose homes were
not safe given this type of adversity.
It is in those values that the
Cuban people are educated, in genuine solidarity;
they share what they have with their brothers and
sisters, be they Cuban or from other lands, not
their leftovers, and here, generally, nothing is
left over, he added.
To the same extent, the Cuban
people are grateful for the help, gestures of
solidarity and support received from different parts
of the world, he said, giving special recognition to
the work of the interreligious foundation Pastors
for Peace; its leader, the Reverend Lucius Walker,
the members of the 20th U.S.-Cuba Friendshipment
Caravan, and the Venceremos Brigade, now in its 40th
year.
The damage to housing from the
hurricane is a very serious affair, Raúl noted; in
Holguín alone, close to 125,000 were affected, and
about half have been recuperated.
Nationwide, when adding up all of
the damages from the last three hurricanes and
pending (work) from previous hurricanes, the total
was more than 600,000 at the close of 2008. “That is
why I warned that time was needed to resolve that
situation,” he added.
It is significant that as of July
20, some 43 percent of the losses had been resolved;
in other words, more than 260,000 homes, he said,
adding that nevertheless, “there is a large amount
of work still to be done.”
It is necessary to prevent those
enormous figures from accumulating again in the
future, taking into account that because of climate
change, scientists predict that hurricanes may grow
more intense and more frequent, he said.
Likewise, work is underway to be
able to prevent and deal with the effects of
recurring periods of drought through diverse
measures such as water pipelines, including from one
province to another, Raúl said.
Great responsibility has fallen
on Holguín, because it is a large province with more
than one million inhabitants and a large impact on
the economy, and the selection of that province as
the venue (for the national 26th of July
celebration) was a reward for the efforts and work
carried out, he said.
“We congratulate the men and
women of Holguín, Miguel Díaz Canel Bermúdez, first
secretary of the PCC in the province in those
difficult times, and in previous years, which were
also ones of intense work, and Jorge Cuevas Ramos,
now first secretary (of the Party) in Holguín,” he
added.
He also congratulated the
provinces that won the title of “outstanding” but
“without ignoring the efforts made by all”; the
compatriots of Pinar del Río and the Isle of Youth
who faced extremely severe damages, and the people
of Camagüey and Las Tunas; in particular, the
residents of Santa Cruz del Sur and Guayabal, where
there were severe damages, and in some cases total
destruction.
In his speech, the second
secretary of the Party referred to economic issues,
such as the current construction of hydraulic works,
and emphasized the need to make the land productive.
“There is the land, and here are
the Cuban people; let us see if we produce or not.
There is no other option but to make it produce,” he
said, referring to the same issue addressed two
years ago in Camagüey on a day like this one.
“We cannot sit by if there is a
single hectare that is not being utilized, waiting
to be worked,” and he reiterated that land unfit for
cultivating crops should be used for planting trees.
Raúl announced important meetings
in the coming days, including one of the Council of
Ministers, to analyze a second round of budget cuts
in face of the international financial crisis; a
plenum of the Party’s Central Committee and the
sessions of the National Assembly of People’s Power,
which will discuss, among other things, a proposed
law for the General Comptroller of the Republic. (AIN)
Translated by Granma
International
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