CSC REVOLUTIONARY ROUTE TOUR 2006

BY GEOFF BOTTOMS

When Che Guevara exhorted us to be realistic and attempt the impossible he could have been referring to the recent CSC Revolution Route Tour that covered the Central Provinces in just a couple of weeks with its many visits and activities aimed at introducing the twenty members of the group to the Cuban reality.

The whole island was gearing itself up for the 80^th birthday celebrations of its Commander-in-Chief Fidel Castro Ruz and the 50^th anniversary of the Granma Landing so everywhere was literally buzzing with excitement and anticipation. Billboards and banners loudly proclaimed “Viva La Patria” and “Viva Fidel por siempre” and foreign guests were pouring into the country in their thousands.

 Not that this affected the group’s programme significantly although there were a few hiccups along the way that were to be expected under the circumstances. Yet it was a good time to visit and feel part of the preparations as we made our way from Havana to Santa Clara, Trinidad, Camaguay, Cayo Santa Maria and finally back to the capital.

 Along the way we were privileged to take part in a special CDR meeting in Santa Clara where young pioneers sang and read poetry welcoming their visitors and extolling the virtues of the Revolution. Of course it was not long before the meeting was transformed into one great street party as everyone danced to familiar Cuban music with its infectious rhythms ending up with a conga that stretched through the whole neighbourhood.

 Apart from a surprise birthday party for two members of the group that was arranged by ICAP in Santa Clara the highlight of the few days spent in the City of Che was the visit to his Memorial where all who share his legacy can only fall silent as they pay their respects before his mortal remains and those of his comrades in the hushed atmosphere of their resting place. Flowers were placed at the foot of his monumental statue overlooking Revolution Square outside while photos were taken marking this special occasion.

 Among the busy visits to a home for the elderly, a foster home, the Mariana Grajales Maternity Hospital, a social workers’ college and an organoponico was a meeting with the rector, staff and students of the Central University “Marta Abreu” of Las Villas so closely identified with Che and the Battle of Santa Clara in 1958 that was a defining moment leading to the Triumph of the Revolution just days later. An hour was hardly long enough in this prestigious seat of learning yet it was a supreme example of the many social achievements of the Revolution that have benefited the majority and not the few.

 After a whistle-stop tour of the UNESCO World Heritage Site that is Trinidad with its beautiful square flanked by historic colonial buildings conjuring up another age it was on to the cowboy country of Camaguay where a visit to Los Pinos farm held a few surprises. Although owned by the state it is run by the family of a farmer known as Jesus who breed boer and Nubian goats imported from Canada together with the odd antelope or two! Picking your way through new-born kids, a few distracted chickens and a selection of pigs was quite an experience especially as animals outnumbered humans by about ten to one.

 All of which contrasted with the more sophisticated visits to Vicentina de la Torre Arts School with its emphasis on teaching ballet, painting, sculpture and drama that extends into the local community and the breath-taking home of the Camaguay ballet where the group was treated to part of Act II of “Giselle” during the company’s rehearsals.

 After a busy schedule that proved non-stop for over a week it was time to relax in the beautiful hotel resort of Cayo Santa Maria off the northern coast of Cuba that is reached by a causeway stretching 48 kms and took ten years to build before being completed in 1999. Of course this is not the real Cuba as it is an all-inclusive resort pampering foreign tourists a million light years away from the lives of those on the mainland yet it is one of the mainstays of Cuba’s economy enabling it to survive and develop in the face of a forty-seven years old blockade imposed by its northern neighbour.

 And that is why it was included in the itinerary that was deliberately designed to show all aspects of the Cuban reality from meeting the people in their neighbourhoods, workplaces and organizations to witnessing something of the measures taken by the revolutionary leadership in response to the changing conditions of a unipolar world.

 With the US adopting a more aggressive position towards Cuba with its blueprint for regime change under the terms of Plan Bush there has never been a more vital time to express solidarity towards this small socialist island with its fierce and proud tradition of resistance. The CSC Revolutionary Route Tour was just one practical example of such solidarity and the group returned to the UK even more committed to campaigning for Cuba’ right to pursue its independent socialist course free from external interference. As the Cubans would say, “Together we will win!”