In 1966-67, he led a nucleus of revolutionaries from Bolivia, Cuba, and Peru who fought to overthrow the military dictatorship in Bolivia. In the process, they sought to forge a Latin America-wide movement of workers and peasants that could lead the battle for land reform and against U.S. imperialist domination of the continent and advance the struggle for socialism. Guevara was wounded and captured on Oct. 8, 1967. He was shot the next day by the Bolivian military, after consultation with Washington.

As part of the commemoration of this anniversary in Cuba, dozens of articles, speeches, and interviews by those who worked with Che are being published, dealing with the Cuban revolution, its impact in world politics, and the actions of its leadership.

Many of Guevara's collaborators and family members have spoken at conferences and other meetings, bringing Che to life for a new generation and explaining the importance of his rich political legacy today. These materials contain many valuable firsthand accounts and information, some of which are being written down and published for the first time. They are part of the broader discussion taking place in Cuba today on how to advance the revolution.

The Militant is reprinting a selection of these contributions as a weekly feature, under the banner "Che Guevara and the Cuban Revolution."

The following speech was given by Cuban president Fidel Castro in the city of Santa Clara, Villa Clara province, October 17. Castro was addressing the main ceremony marking the 30th anniversary of the death in combat of Che Guevara, during which the remains of Guevara and six other combatants from Bolivia, Cuba, and Peru who were part of Che's guerrilla in Bolivia were interred. The speech was published in the October 18 issue of the Cuban daily Granma. Translation, subheadings, and footnotes are by the Militant.

Relatives of the comrades who died in battle; invited guests; residents of Villa Clara; compatriots: [Applause]

With deep emotion, we are living through one of those moments that is not often repeated.

We did not come to bid farewell to Che and his heroic comrades. We came to greet them.

I view Che and his men as reinforcements, as a detachment of invincible combatants that this time includes not just Cubans. It also includes Latin Americans who have come to fight at our side and to write new pages of history and glory.

I view Che, furthermore, as a moral giant who grows day by day, whose image, whose strength, whose influence has multiplied throughout the world.

How could he fit below a tombstone?

How could he fit in this plaza?

How could he fit solely in our beloved but small island?

Only the world he dreamed of, which he lived and fought for, is big enough for him.

The more that injustice, exploitation, inequality, unemployment, poverty, hunger, and misery prevail in human society, the more Che's stature will grow.

The more that the power of imperialism, hegemonism, domination, and interventionism grow, to the detriment of the most sacred rights of the peoples - especially the weak, backward, and poor peoples who for centuries were colonies of the West and sources of slave labor - the more the values Che defended will be upheld.

The more that abuses, selfishness, and alienation exist; the more that Indians, ethnic minorities, women, and immigrants suffer discrimination; the more that children are objects of sexual trade or forced into the work force in their hundreds of millions; the more that ignorance, unsanitary conditions, insecurity, and homelessness prevail - the more Che's deeply humanistic message will stand out.

The more that corrupt, demagogic, and hypocritical politicians exist anywhere, the more Che's example of a pure, revolutionary, and consistent human being will come through.

The more cowards, opportunists, and traitors there are on the face of the earth, the more Che's personal courage and revolutionary integrity will be admired. The more that others lack the ability to fulfill their duty, the more Che's iron willpower will be admired. The more that some individuals lack the most basic self-respect, the more Che's sense of honor and dignity will be admired. The more that skeptics abound, the more Che's faith in man will be admired. The more pessimists there are, the more Che's optimism will be admired. The more vacillators there are, the more Che's audacity will be admired. The more that loafers squander the product of the labor of others, the more Che's austerity, his spirit of study and work, will be admired.

Forger of others like himself
Che was a true communist and today he is an example and a model of what a revolutionary is and what a communist is.

Che was a teacher and forger of human beings like himself. Consistent in his actions, he always did what he preached, and he always demanded more of himself than of others.

Whenever a volunteer was needed for a difficult mission, he would be the first to step forward, both in wartime and in peacetime. He always subordinated his great dreams to his readiness to generously give his life. Nothing was impossible for him, and he was capable of making the impossible possible.

Among other actions, the invasion from the Sierra Maestra westward through immense and unprotected plains, and the capture of the city of Santa Clara with just a few men, testify to the feats he was capable of. (1)

His ideas concerning revolution in his country of origin and the rest of South America, despite enormous difficulties, were possible. Had they been achieved, perhaps the world today would be different. Vietnam proved that it was possible to fight the interventionist forces of imperialism and defeat them. The Sandinistas [in Nicaragua] defeated one of the most powerful puppets of the United States. The Salvadoran revolutionaries were on the verge of attaining victory. In Africa, apartheid was defeated despite the nuclear weapons it possessed. China, thanks to the heroic struggle of its workers and peasants, is one of the countries with the greatest prospects in the world. Hong Kong had to be returned after 150 years of occupation, which was originally carried out to impose the drug trade on an immense country.

A combatant may die, but not his ideas
Every epoch and every circumstance do not require identical methods and identical tactics. But nothing can stop the course of history; its objective laws have enduring value. Che based himself on those laws and had absolute faith in human beings. Often humanity's great revolutionaries, those responsible for great transformations, did not have the privilege of seeing their dreams realized as quickly as they hoped or desired, but sooner or later they have triumphed.

A combatant may die, but not his ideas.

What was an agent of the U.S. government doing there, where Che was wounded and held captive? Why did they believe that by killing him he would cease to exist as a combatant? Today he is not in La Higuera.(2) Instead, he is everywhere; he is to be found wherever there is a just cause to defend. Those with a stake in eliminating him and making him disappear were incapable of understanding that he had already left an indelible mark on history; that his shining, prophetic vision would become a symbol for all the poor of this world, in their millions. Young people, children, the elderly, men and women who knew him, honest persons throughout the world, regardless of their social origin, admire him.

Che is waging and winning more battles than ever.

Thank you Che, for your personal history, your life, and your example.

Thank you for coming to reinforce us in this difficult struggle we are waging today to save the ideas you fought so hard for, to save the revolution, the homeland, and the conquests of socialism, which is a realization of part of the great dreams you held so dear! [Applause] We are counting on you to help us carry out this enormous feat, to defeat the imperialist plans against Cuba, to resist the blockade, to achieve victory. [Applause]

As you can see, this land, which is your land; this people, which is your people; this revolution, which is your revolution, continues upholding with honor and pride the banners of socialism. [Applause]

Welcome, heroic comrades from the reinforcement detachment. The enemy will never be able to conquer the fortress of ideas and the fortress of justice that you will be defending alongside our people! And together we will continue fighting for a better world!

Hasta la victoria siempre! [Ever onward to victory]

[Ovation]

Notes
1. Guevara commanded the forces that liberated Santa Clara on Jan. 1, 1959, in the last major battle of the revolutionary war that brought down the U.S.-backed Batista dictatorship.

2. La Higuera is the town where Guevara was executed by the Bolivian army.  
 
 
Front page (for this issue) | Home | Text-version home