Special distinction awarded
Mexican deputy

Nuria Barbosa León

IN recognition of his meritorious work promoting solidarity between Cuba and Mexico, the Cuban Friendship Institute (ICAP) has awarded Alberto Anaya Gutiérrez, a founding member of the Mexican Labor Party (Partido del Trabajo), the institution’s 50th Anniversary Special Recognition, during a ceremony held in Havana.

Anaya, a deputy in the Mexican national legislature, has worked tirelessly to implement the Cuban eye surgery collaborative project, Operation Miracle, in his country. He has facilitated the recognition of degrees earned by Mexican students studying in Cuba and supported cultural exchanges, especially the participation of Mexican publishing houses in the Havana Book Fair. He played an important role in organizing the 6th Cuba Solidarity Continental Conference, held in October of 2011, in Mexico City.

This is the first time the 50th Anniversary Special Recognition has been awarded to a visitor, since the prize was originally conceived to honor ICAP leaders, workers and collaborators, according to Kenia Serrano Puig, president of the institution.

Anaya is well-known for his long-standing support of the Cuban Revolution, over more than 20 years, both in his nation’s Congress and in support of solidarity efforts across the continent.

When expressing his appreciation, in the name of his party and country, the honoree hailed the opening of a new era in relations between Mexico and Cuba and supported the process underway to update Cuba’s economic model, directed toward promoting development.

Anaya was also thanked by Cuba’s Committees for the Defense of the Revolution (CDR), by way of Carlos Rafael Miranda, a member of the Communist Party of Cuba’s Central Committee and national coordinator of the country’s largest mass organization, with more than eight million members.