Officials of the Cuban embassy in the highland country, authorities of the Plurinational State, ambassadors and representatives of the accredited Latin American diplomatic corps, members of the solidarity movement with the island and the people in general attended the tribute.
After the interpretation of the national anthems of Bolivia and Cuba by the Music Band of the Military Police Regiment number one Captain Saavedra, the general director of State ceremonies, Giovani Salguero, presented a wreath at the foot of the monument to the architect of the last stage of the independence struggle against Spain(1895-1998).
A crown of white roses, as requested in his lyrics by the author of Versos Sencillos, was presented by the charge d’affaires (a.i) of the Cuban embassy in Bolivia, Arcenis La O.
The Cuban diplomat, in his words, affirmed that due to his independence ideals, Martí suffered imprisonment and exile in adolescence, which illuminated his purest ideals of justice and patriotic feelings.
He signified his brilliance as a poet, teacher, writer, diplomat, journalist, statesman, and strategist of the fight for independence, frustrated by intervention of United States troops.
The anti-imperialist character of Martí shines in the letter that he wrote 24 hours before his fall in Dos Ríos, eastern territory of Cuba.
“(…) I am already in danger every day of giving my life for my country, and because of my duty -since I understand it and have the strength to do it- to prevent in time with the independence of Cuba that the United States spreads throughout the Antilles and fall, with that force, on our lands in America (…), he said.
The president of the Solidarity Movement with Cuba in La Paz, Jorge Barrón, for his part, assured that faithful to the Marti legacy, the socialist island is “the summit of Latin Americanism and anti-imperialism in resistance for more than six decades against the economic blockade of the United States”.
When speaking in her capacity as vice president of the Bolivia-Cuba Parliamentary Friendship Group, national deputy Amanda Iriarte highlighted how Martí thought and acted not only in favor of the independence and sovereignty of her country, but also that of Puerto Rico and all of Latin America, ideas that are the common thread of an extensive bibliography.
She underscored the importance she gave to cultural resistance when she expressed that it was necessary “to be educated to be free,” and warned that his thoughts served as a guide to the historic leader of the Cuban Revolution, Fidel Castro.
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