Cuba solidarity protests target US consulates in South Africa : Peoples Dispatch
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Recalling the sacrifices made by Cubans alongside the combatants of the liberation movements in Africa, protesters expressed unconditional solidarity with Cuba, and condemned the illegal US blockade choking the small island nation.

Condemning the illegal US blockade choking Cuba, trade unions, political parties, Palestine solidarity organizations, and veterans of the historic anti-Apartheid struggle picketed US consulates in the South African cities of Johannesburg and Durban on April 17.​

“65 years ago, the American imperialists sent their mercenary bands to invade the young, revolutionary country of Cuba,” recalled Ronnie Kasrils, a stalwart of the South African Communist Party (SACP), addressing the protest in Johannesburg, held on the 65th anniversary of the Bay of Pigs Invasion in 1961.

The 87-year-old, who was a commander leading armed guerrillas against South Africa’s Apartheid regime at the time, added, “They thought the people would rise up against Fidel Castro and overthrow him. But … the people were ready, and they defeated the American scum.”

Ever since the Bay of Pigs, he argued, “US imperialism”, from Kennedy through to the Bushes and Clintons, well before the current President Donald Trump, have tried to defeat the Cuban revolution by blockading the country. Trump has tightened the blockade, choking the supplies of essentials for the people of this small island nation. “We are raising funds. We are sending food … medicines … solar panels,” he added, calling for contributions.

Read more: Trump once again threatens to attack Cuba. Havana vows to resist

The Cuban sacrifice for African liberation

“All of us must make the necessary contribution to save thousands of Cuban lives, because they were here, fighting [against the Apartheid regime] alongside our own combatants of the African National Congress,” said the ruling party’s First Deputy Secretary-General Nomvula Mokonyane.

Cubans also fought alongside the anti-colonial forces in Angola, Guinea-Bissau, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, and Namibia, Kasrils recalled.​

And when these wars were won, all the Cubans took back home with them were the remains of their dead, Mokonyane pointed out. “They never took any mineral [wealth]. They didn’t believe we owed them anything. They believed this was about humanity. This was about justice. Therefore, the Cubans will forever remain in our minds and in our hearts, and in our actions.”

“Destabilizing the entire world”

Protesters and speakers also raised placards and slogans in solidarity with the people enduring the US-Israeli attacks in Iran, Lebanon, and Palestine.

The US, which is “destabilizing the entire world,” is the “biggest terrorist organization in the world,” general secretary of the Zimbabwe Communist Party (ZCP), Ngqabutho Mabhena, who also participated in the protest, told Sputnik Africa.

“Colonialism, imperialism, and injustice are still rife amongst us”

Activists also organized the “Bay of Pigs remembrance event,” including a documentary screening and a roundtable discussion on history and contemporary global politics at the Castle of Good Hope, a historic monument in Cape Town.

“Colonialism, imperialism, and injustice are still rife amongst us,” said Calvyn Gilfellan, CEO of the public entity responsible for managing, maintaining, and promoting the castle as a heritage site and a tourist attraction.

“Let the Bay of Pigs be a reminder that we need to stand up and stand together against imperialist powers and the threat to sovereignty across the Global South.”

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