“I think that the fundamental value of this work lies in his contribution to the real study of an experience of radical transformation like the Cuban one, which undoubtedly had an impact on the history of our continent,” Larraín assured in an interview with Prensa Latina.
After participating the day before in the launching of the volume at the headquarters of the Ministry of Labor together with the head of that portfolio, Verónica Navia, and the economist Jorge Viaña, the historian also stressed the importance of that text for the Latin American progressive forces that are charging new impulse.
He explained that Che’s thinking as minister reflects a bold, genuine, forceful vision of an anti-capitalist society, “he was convinced of building something different from that system,” he told this news agency.
He commented that he made contributions in terms of theory, of the need to understand society in order to later carry out its transformation.
“He was Minister of Industries, he had to carry out the economy in the first stage of the Cuban Revolution -he recalled- ; lay the foundations for the socialist transition with an industrializing project in a country with a tradition of monoculture”.
The student of the subject underlined that in this context the author of “Socialism and men in Cuba” proposed new topics in the early 1960s such as computerized programming and automation, without forgetting that at that stage he also paid attention to aggressions that the country suffered, including an invasion like the one at Playa Girón.
Larraín insisted that the left in general, in addition to quoting Che’s phrases, should thoroughly study his thinking in this area.
Referring to his famous phrase that imperialism cannot be trusted “not even the least”, he stressed that it is also a guide in the field of international collaboration.
He evoked the speech given by Che in Algeria, in which he warned about the apparently disinterested cooperation of transnational organizations and agencies, which later led to indebtedness and loss of sovereign capacity.
He described as “important to read Che to understand how to establish a real economic integration against our common enemy, which is US imperialism”.
The historian described as “fortunate” what has been done in this direction in the last 20 years by institutions such as the Che Guevara Study Center and the publishing houses Ocean Sur and Letras Cubanas, which published a seven-volume collection compiled by Orlando Borrego.
All of this must be read carefully, Larraín said, highlighting the anti-dogmatism par excellence and the sincerity without making concessions in Che’s thoughts.
“I think the effort of the Inti publishing house, from Cochabamba, with this book and others about Che, and the attitude of the author, Tirso Sáenz, who selflessly ceded the rights for the Bolivian edition, seems very valuable,” concluded the journalist and historian.
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