Fidel's short speech in Caracas in 1959:
http://lanic.utexas.edu/la/cb/cuba/castro/1959/19590124

GRANMA INTERNATIONAL
Havana.  January 27, 2007
http://www.granma.cu/ingles/2007/enero07/sabado27/fidel-i.html

January 23, 1959
Fidel took Caracas

BY LUIS BAEZ

FRIDAY, January 23, 1959. Early in the morning there was unusual movement in Columbia Airport (now Ciudad Libertad). The motive: A revolutionary delegation headed by Commander in Chief Fidel Castro was Ieaving for Venezuela.

Fidel signed the Book of Gold at the Municipal Council of Caracas.

It was Fidel's first journey abroad. His visit constituted a sentiment of gratitude for the moral and material aid given by Venezuelans to the cause of Cuban freedom and of reciprocity toward al¡ the institutions that had invited them to celebrate the first anniversary of the fa¡¡ of the dictator Marcos Pérez Jimenez.

Two aircraft were on the runway: a Britannia belonging to the Cubana Aviation Company and a Venezuelan Aeropostal Superconstellation. More passengers had arrived at the airport than there were seats on the two planes. Nobody wanted to miss the historical visit. Fidel ordered the incorporation of an Air Force plane.

Captain Enrique Jiménez Moya gave us journalists our boarding passes.

Jiménez Moya, a Dominican aged 47, came to the Sierra Maestra on December 7, 1958, from Venezuela. The aircraft Ianded in Cienaguilla. Manuel Urrutia, Luis Bush, Luis Orlando Rodríguez and W¡IIy Figueroa also came.

The aircraft, a C-46 piloted by José R. Segredo, transported significant military aid in the form of weapons and supplies for the Rebel Army, sent by Rear Admira¡ Wolfgang Larrazábal.

In his turn, Flight Lieutenant Carlos Alberto Tayhardt, chief of La Guaria naval station, sent Fidel a FAL rifle as a present in acknowledgement of his integrity and valor.

Jiménez Moya was the bearer of a message for the guerrilla Ieader from the Dominican Patriotic Union of Venezuela, who appointed him its representative in the mission to baptize by fire in the guerrilla struggle a group of young Dominicans due to arrive in the Sierra Maestra.

He took part in the Maffo combat where a piece of shrapnel from a mortar grenade pierced one of his kidneys. He was operated on a park bench and ended the war with the rank of captain.

On June 1959, with other patriots, he Ieft for his country at the head of the Constanza expeditionaries Maimón and Estero Hondo, with the objective of defeating the dictator Leónidas Trujillo. A few days after Ianding at Constanza he Iost his ¡¡fe combating the army.

Fidel and his delegation: Celia Sánchez, Pedro Miret, Paco Cabrera, Violeta Casals, Luis Orlando Rodríguez and other comrades, made the journey aboard the Venezuelan aircraft. The crew was headed by Captain Julio Araque.

The plane took off in the direction of the Grand Caymans, subsequently following the Colombian coastl¡ne until ¡t reached Caracas. It was not the normal route but ¡t was diverted for security reasons.

Trujillo and the Batista forces hiding out in the Dominican Republic were constantly threatening the triumphant (Cuban) Revolution. The pilots took appropriate measures to avoid any kind of provocation.

Fidel could barely sit down in his seat. He got up and walked from one end of the aisle to the other. He talked, asked, commented.

—I asked them to suspend televised transmissions of the trails of the war criminals. It is a disagreeable spectacle. They are damaging to public sensibility.

The roar of the engines had their effect on some of the travelers who were overcome by sleep. The only ones not to let themselves be overcome by tiredness were the brave combatants of the Sierra Maestra, who talked and joked animatedly, crowding up to the windows to contemplate the horizon.

Thus the hours went by. When the strong outline of the Andean Massif became visible, Fidel placed himself in the command cabin with Captain Araque. It was midday, the Venezuelan capital glittered before his eyes and the chief of the Revolution exclaimed:

—Ah! If Havana had been surrounded by those mountains the war wouldn't have lasted so long. He was interrupted by the radio operator who gave him a message sent by the crew of an Aeropostal aircraft, Flight No. 254, welcoming the Cuban Ieader. It was signed by the Commander René Arreza. It was the first greeting from the noble Venezuelan people.

From the Superconstellation we could see the imposing panorama of the crowd. It could not be heard because of the noise, but was distinguished by the spirit of the warm hum of thousands of Caracas people.

The plane described circles over the city. Below, a fleet of cars was heading for the airport terminal. Banners and flags could be leen. Caracas was in fiesta. The landing was delayed while contact was made with the radio stations that were going to transmit Cuba's greetings and gratitude in the voice of its leader.

More than a message – were the Commander in Chief's words – this is the expression of the exceptional moment that I am experiencing. I am dazzled by the panorama offered me of the city of Caracas. When we flew over the Caracas mountains I had the impression that I was in the Sierra Maestra. I send my deepest gratitude to the people of Caracas and Venezuela for the opportunity you have given me to attend the anniversary of your liberation. I am very moved by this blue sky which looks even more beautiful because it is embellished by freedom.

A Venezuelan announcer responded to the emotive message by reading a note from La Razón daily:

—Today, the Venezuelan people are exper¡encing their most profound Martí emotion. A son of Cuba, of the lame material as José Martí and the make-up of Maceo, he has come to share the January 23 victory with us. And he has come after having undertaken the most surprising liberationist and liberating feat of our American time.

When the plane Ianded on the runway, the crowd broke through the protection cordon. Nothing could contain ¡t. For a few seconds ¡t seemed as if there was going to be a disaster, because the area in the track of the powerful apparatus, still with its propellers turning, was flooded with people.

The pilot made a sharp turn to the left, with the prow to the distant sea, avoiding the people who almost wanted to stop the plane with their hands. There were a few shudders and the powerful four-engine machine stopped. It was immediately engulfed in a human tide. The marine infantry responsible for airport security tried to contain the multitude.

The doors opened and the rebel Ieader appeared waving his right hand in greeting to the people who responded:

Long ¡¡ve Cuba! Long ¡¡ve Venezuela! Long ¡¡ve Fidel!"

They didn't cal¡ him by his last name. In Venezuela as in Cuba, ¡t is simply and flatly Fidel with the right that affection given to familiarity.

Not one more soul could have fitted into Maiquetía Airport. From dawn thousands of Venezuelans had gathered there carrying Latin American flags and placards supporting revolutionary justice in Cuba. Those present to greet the hero of the Sierra Maestra included Rear Admira¡ Larrazábal. For him ¡t was a great day. Exactly one year earlier, his warships had entered into coordinated action with the general strike that precipitated the defeat of Pérez Jiménez.

Also part of the human tide were Fabricio Ojeda, president of the Patriotic Junta that contributed to forging the victory of January 23; Luis Beltrán Prieto, on behalf of Democratic Action (AD); Jóvito V¡Ilaba, maximum Ieader of the Democratic Republican Union (URD); and other figures. It was 1:25 p.m., Caracas, Venezuela time.

HEADING FOR CARACAS

Once on the ground, Fidel and those accompanying him went toward the cars that were waiting to take them to Caracas. They only needed to cover a few meters. He was stopped. He was embraced. The multitudinous reflection jostled him from side to side. Somebody, doubtless an admirer, pulled the pisto¡ out of his belt. In coming years he could show ¡t to his grandchildren as a historic relic.

It wasn't easy to organize the convoy. Since dawn the highway Iinking Maiquetía and Caracas was congested with women, men and vehicles. As he passed the rebel Ieader was cheered by thousands of Venezuelans who had gone there carrying Latin America flags and placards supporting revolutionary justice in Cuba. It seemed as if Fidel was never going to reach his destination.

The first stop was at the El Pinar restaurant where the government junta was giving a lunch. It is only 17 kilometers distant from the airport and ¡t took three hours to get there.

The lunch in the elegant El Pinar restaurant went on until around six in the afternoon. Foreign Minister René de Sola and Interior Minister Augusto Márquez Cañizares sat on either side of Fidel.

Al¡ ceremony and protocol were dispensed with. They talked Iaughed and told anecdotes from the Sierra, and recalled dramatic episodes of January 23, 1957, which marked the fa¡¡ of the dictator Pérez Jiménez, the evil General "Tarugo."

Also present were Gustavo Machado, general secretary of the Communist Party; Miguel Otero Silva, editor of La Nacional daily; Gonzalo Barrios from AD; Fabricio Ojeda; Larrazábal and other politicians.

Foreign Minister De Sola spoke a few words of welcome. The hero of Moncada responded:

—I want the concept of homeland to have a greater reach, so that when we say homeland, we are referring to the Greater America comprising our little homelands.

He Iooked at his watch.

Now we have to go. The people have been waiting for us for hours. We can continue talking there.

Meanwhile Caracas was waiting for Fidel in the Plaza del Silencio. It was as wild as at Maiquetía Airport. A sea of heads extended as far as one could see. People were squeezed onto balconies and flat roofs draped with flags. The Caracas press certified that the turnout was in excess of 300,000 people.

The public tried to climb up onto the platform, which threatened to collapse. Pleas and appeals for calm were made over the microphones. Shortly afterwards, calm was restored and the disorder transformed into applause and cheers when the people were told of Fidel's appearance.

It was Fabricio Ojeda, on behalf of the Patriotic junta that forged the victory of January 23, who opened the event. He was brief. And he ended his introduction with a sentence that translated the decires of the continent:

The hour of America, the hour of justice has arrived. The spirit of popular revolution is riding over the Iands of America.

And Larrazábal:

Today 1 am speaking as just another Venezuelan who feels happy and fortunate because we have here the maximum Ieader of the Cuban Revolution who has come to share there hours of joy with us. 1 have been accompanying this maximum American figure, the 'lightning of the Sierra Maestra,' al¡ day. Venezuela is now a Iand that there eminent American people can visit.

Machado, V¡Ilaba, trade union Ieaders José González Navarro and Jesús Carmona also spoke, as did Sierra Maestra combatants Jorge Enrique Mendoza, Orestes Valera and Luis Orlando Rodríguez.

When they announced Fidel the ovation was interminable. He gave the impression that there would be no silence for him to speak and began

—Brothers and sisters of Venezuela!

There was a profound mutism and for two hours he gave an account of the liberation struggle on the island and Cuba's right to apply revolutionary justice. He achieved silence. He grew as he spoke and his words took on an exceptional American accent. He spouted forth the names of Bolívar and Martí. And, finally

—I carry in my heart the impact of the crowds.

The morning papers highlighted Fidel's presence and popular support for the Cuban cause on their front pagel. The Pregón tabloid headline in large letters proclaimed: "Fidel took Caracas."

It is a fact, the noble city and the cradle of Bolívar surrendered to the son of Cuba. Fidel is a symbol of the vigorous delire of economic and political surrender that is shaking the American subsoil. In order to revitalize, at Ieast in the field of ideas and spirit the colossal dream of the Liberator there was no better scenario than the very homeland of the hero of Junín.

The taking of Caracas had a reverse side. It was Caracas that has taken over Fidel. When he passed by, mothers Iifted up their Iittle ones for a glimpse of the hero. Those fingers that never tired on the trigger of a gun held a ballpoint, signing autographs.

On a white sheet torn out of a notebook

he wrote the greeting asked for by a reporter from El Nacional. The journalist examined the document and made an observation

Comandante, you wrote People with a capital Ietter. And Fidel

—Let's see! Democracy can even be expressed in writing!

In the morning of Saturday 24, in a solemn session the Caracas Municipal Council declared him a Guest of Honor.

Fidel thanked the council for the distinction. An oil painting in the hall caught his attention. It depicted the moment when the Venezuelan national heroes signed the independence agreement.

—Imagine that July 5, 1811, he stressed, those heroes felt happy that day because they believed that they had obtalned the people's definitive freedom. Nonetheless, how much has Venezuela had to fight since that date. It is a fact that the history of America has been written with pain, with sweat, with tears, with blood!

The congressional committee componed of Jóvito Villalba, Gonzálo Barrios, Miguel Angel Landáez and César Rondón Lovera was waiting in the main hall, to accompany him to Parliament.

At midday, exactly at 12:00, the joint meeting of Congress began to pay tribute to the illustrious visitor. Among the deputies the poet Gonzálo García Bustillos, who 40 years later would be the Venezuelan ambassador in Cuba, applauded with euphoria.

Rafael Caldera, president of the Chamber, declared the session open and gave the floor to Domingo Alberto Rangel of Democratic Action, who spoke on behalf of the Congress members.

—We are receiving a son of Venezuela, he affirmed, because Fidel Castro has official citizenship in our country. Venezuela, the mother of liberators, has to prize as its son the man who was able to liberate a sister country from oppression and terror.

The speaker highlighted:

The figure who is now visitin us, and 1 wish to say this without incurring in the sin of sacrilege, possesses traits that evidently resemble those of the young Simón Bolívar.

And he noted:

—Castro is today a hero, maybe the only hero that Latin America has produced lince the heroic deeds of the liberators.

It was Fidel's turn to reply. He stood up. The public filling the galleries asked him to come down from the platform. He asked permission to satisfy them and went to the place left empty by Rangel. It was his fourth speech in the last 24 hours.

From high up in the public gallery someone exclaimed: "There hasn't been a real revolution here."

Fidel raised his head as if seeking the person who had shouted. He wasn't ruffled. Slowly, he began his speech

—But you can have one. Not al¡ revolutions have to be violent. Here in Venezuela, now that the constitutional government is beginning its functions and laws are being discussed in this Congress. The spirit of the revolution must not be allowed to die, the spirit of the people.

In his speech he deliberately and serenely analyzed the drama of America. Before ending it he read out a document that he himself had signed five days after the March 10, 1952 coup. Almost leven years later its content was astonishing. He warned with an extraordinary perception of everything that did occurduring the mandate of the dictator Fulgencio Batista: embezzlement, crimen, deaths and the reaction of the people. It was a visionary manuscript.

Once again, a battle against time. They were waiting for him in Ciudad Universitaria. In the Aula Magna the rector, Francisco De Venanzi and the University Council, plus al¡ the professors and the student body were waiting to welcome him.

The rejoicing was tremendous. The students applauded, shouted, stamped rhythmically on the floor, waved white scarves. Fidel was one of them. It was a beautiful disorder.

—This reminds me of the meeting in the Cardenas Plaza in the University of Havana, Fidel commented.

It was as if he was returning to his university days, so close and yet so distant. For a moment the meeting went back to La Demajagua Bel¡, to the campaigns against K – Listo K¡Iowat – the cost of electricity – and the fights against the dictatorship's persecutors.

The rector announced the creation of the Committee for the Liberation of the Dominican Republic. Fidel was the first contributor with five bolivares after which he stated that thus the "Bolivarian March for the Freedom of the Dominican Republic" had begun. Then Rear Admira¡ Larrazábal gave his contribution.

The invited guests included the Chilean poet Pablo Neruda. The author of Residencia en la Tierra (Residence on Earth) and Veinte Poemas de amor (Twenty Love Poems) and Una canción desesperada (A Song of Desperation) approached the podium to read out his poem Un Canto para Bolívar (A Song for Bolívar). Before that, he expressed his sentiments:

—In this painful and victorious time in which the people of America are living, with changes of place my poem could be understood as directed to Fidel Castro, because in struggles for freedom the destiny of one man always emerges to attest to the spirit of grandeur in the history of our peoples.

When Neruda ended he headed toward the presidential table. On greeting Fidel, he exclaimed

—If one day the history of this poet is written, I want it to be raid that once he saw, talked to and shook the hand of the genuine Iiberator of Cuba.

One could see that Fidel was moved. They were sincere displays of affection and warmth toward the Cuban people via his person. A young woman from Orfeón University gave him her blue beret. He put it on and moved toward the platform. He showed no signs of tiredness. Contact with the youth acted Iike a stimulant.

—No place in Venezuela has been more familiar to me than the University. As someone who has been a student, there is no other place where I could better find myself than meeting here with you.

Every speech that Fidel made represented a new thesis, an original idea. He explained the genesis and direction of the Revolution. He proponed the pressing need to create a news agency in the service of democracy, to defend American peoples and act as a counterweight to campaigns sowing confusion with the aim of distorting the truth.

In his speech he spoke of the need for solidarity with the struggle of the Dominican people. Before ending, he affirmed:

—These mountains that surround Caracas are a guarantee of freedom.

From the Ciudad Universitaria he left for M¡Iaflores Palace to meet with the government junta.

That night, the Cuban ambassador Francisco Pividal gave a reception in his honor.

The residence was very small in terms of hosting somany invitees. A press conference was organized on the flat roof. More than 50 journalists of various nationalities surrounded him to ask questions.

The rebels who accompanied the Cuban leader were very affectionately received by the inhabitants of Caracas, who called them Chivudos (Bearded Ones) on account of their heavy beards.

On Sunday 25th, Fidel moved to the Humboldt Hotel on the peak of the majestic El Avila mountain. The journey was made aboard the only transport possible: a cable railroad.

From the heights he contemplated the panorama of Caracas encircled by hills and, on the other side, the sea.

He made a tour on foot of the mountains whose topography is like the Sierra Maestra on a much larger scale. He felt at home again.

Before returning to the homeland Fidel visited Rómulo Betancourt, who had just been elected president of Venezuela, in his Marítmar residence in Baruta. Their meeting was a private one.

For the occasion Betancourt invited a large gathering of representatives of the media, who virtually prevented the two leaders from talking.

Noting all the commotion Celia Sánchez commented to Ambassador Pividal: "Hey, what's Rómulo after, a meeting or a show?"

At a particular moment Rómulo invited Fidel to move to a glass-enclosed terrace located at the back of the house. The meeting ended two hours and 10 minutes later. Nothing was leaked as to its content.

At 01:00 a.m. on Tuesday 27, Fidel was at Maiquetía Airport preparing to return. He was tired but happy. The visit to Venezuela represented a great moral victory for the Cuban cause.

The return journey was in the Cubana Britannia. Once incide the plane, Comandante Paco Cabrera realized that come personal weapons belonging to the bodyguard had been left in the aircraft that had taken them to Caracas. He left the plane to find them. He failed to notice that a Douglas C-4 was gently coasting down the runway toward him.

—Look out!

Cabrera spun round. The plane was on top of him. He made an instinctive gesture of self defense and one of the blades of the helicopter struck him brutally. When they went to get him, he was dead.

The valiant officer from Oriente province, a guerrilla in countless combats did not accompany his chief and his comrades on the return journey. Nobody talked on the return flight.

Most people slept. Others of us studied the Caracas dailies. El Nacional headlined part of Fidel's speech in the Plaza del Silencio:

—If only the destiny of our peoples could be one sole destiny! How much longer are we going to be in lethargy? How much longer divided, the victims of powerful interests? Given that the unity of our peoples has been fruitful, doesn't the unity of nations have to be more so? That is Bolivarian thinking. Venezuela must be the leader country of the peoples of America...