Islamabad, 25 July: Senator Mushahid Hussain was the chief guest at the function marking the birth Centenary of Fidel Castro, the great leader of the Cuban Revolution, which was hosted by the Embassy of Cuba in Islamabad.
He inaugurated the photographic exhibition of historic photographs of Fidel Castro, which included his meetings with world leaders, including Nelson Mandela President Pervez Musharraf, the Pope, as well as photos of his armed struggle for liberation of Cuba, plus his speeches, including the famous historic longest ever speech made in the United Nations General Assembly, for 4 hours and 29 minutes!
Speaking on the occasion, Senator Mushahid referred to his visit to Cuba as part of a Pakistan Parliamentary delegation, and paid tribute to ‘Commandante Fidel Castro as a symbol of defiance, a symbol of dignity, Symbol of sovereignty and a symbol of solidarity amongst Third World countries’.
He said that ‘Cuba under Commandante Fidel Castro demonstrated that size does not equal strength because the small island nation of 9 million is located only 90 miles from the United States of America, but it still withstood attempts to destabilize the Revolution starting with the 1961 Bay of Pigs invasion launched by the CIA’.
Senator Mushahid Hussain also praised Cuba’s excellent healthcare system, terming it as ‘a role model for the Global South’, especially praising Cuba for its role in supporting Pakistan during the moment of need after the October 2005 earthquake when Cuba sent large teams of doctors, nurses and specialists, along with hospital equipment, which was then donated to Pakistan by the Cuban government free of charge in an expression of solidarity.
He also thanked the Cuban government for providing scholarships for 1000 medical graduates in Pakistan and now they are full fully trained professional doctors serving the people of Pakistan in different cities and he said that Cuba is an example of a country that had managed to stand on its own feet and defend it’s sovereignty and it’s national independence and it’s national dignity.
Senator Mushahid Hussain referred to Cuba before the Revolution in 1959 which was a playground for criminal activities, gambling, money laundering and social evils, citing the famous American movie, ‘The Godfather’ which presented that picture of Havana before the Revolution.
Mushahid Hussein also referred to Fidel Castro’s speech during his trial as a political prisoner in 1953, which was published under the title ‘History will Absolve me’! He expressed the hope that Pakistan-Cuba relations will continue to expand and grow and strengthen in the times to come , as South-South cooperation was the need of the hour.
