In an event convened by the Chair that he heads, León urged the people of the region to reconnect with his great heroes, including Simón Bolívar, José Martí, Juan Pablo Duarte and the Dominican-Cuban patriot Máximo Gómez.

The tribute to the general-in-chief of the Cuban Liberation Army took place at the Faculty of Arts of the Autonomous University of Santo Domingo (UASD), and was attended by the dean of that institution, Arelys Subero.

Also present at the event were the dean of the Faculty of Humanities, Gerardo Roa; the director of International Relations of the UASD, Antonio Medina; and diplomats from Cuba and Venezuela.

On the occasion, De León referred to the need to preserve and elevate the values of identity, sovereignty and self-determination, as well as the cultural and educational heritage of each nation.

The event was also attended by a representation of the Máximo Gómez urbanization, in Santo Domingo Norte, next to the avenue that bears the name of that patriot, whose relationship with Cuban National Hero José Martí symbolizes the patriotic unity and friendship between the two nations.

On the occasion, De León proposed to the UASD Council to declare March 25 International Dominican Solidarity Day in tribute to Máximo Gómez.

On March 25, 1895, Martí and Gómez signed the Montecristi Manifesto, a transcendental document that constituted the program of the Revolution and sealed the unity between both liberators.

José Martí wrote about the generalissimo in the Patria newspaper: “(…) and there, in Santo Domingo, wherever Gómez is, is what is healthy about the country, and what he remembers and what he hopes for. At a brisk pace he does not beat any young or courteous; and in judgment, few are equal to him.”

The history of Cuba’s independence cannot be separated from the figure of Gómez, who never stopped, like Martí and Mambí Army Lieutenant General Antonio Maceo, from conspiring to achieve the freedom of their homeland.

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