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Uganda-Cuba relations: A gift that keeps on giving
What you need to know:
- On the sidelines of these summits, a Meeting of Solidarity with Cuba had been arranged at Uganda Christian University where the VP was chief guest.
During the just concluded Non-Aligned Movement and G77+China summits, I had the wonderful and humbling opportunity of rubbing my shoulders raised in Kilembe’s foothills of the Mt Rwenzori cold, with Cuba’s Vice President Salvador Valdes Mesa and members of the Island nation’s delegation that travelled for the summits.
On the sidelines of these summits, a Meeting of Solidarity with Cuba had been arranged at Uganda Christian University where the VP was chief guest.
At this function, I was honoured to be among recipients of the Commemorative “ABRAZANDO LA AMISTAD” Friendship Seal from the Cuban Institute of Friendship with the peoples (ICAP) which is celebrating 60 years. The event also launched activities to mark 50 years of diplomatic relations between Uganda and Cuba.
My admiration for Cuba is premised on the ideals El Comandante en Jefe Fidel Castro Ruz, the historic leader of the Cuban Revolution stood for; social justice, equality. Also, his faith in using little to make great impact.
To quote him, “I started the revolution with 82 men, if I had to do it again, I do with 10 to 15 men and absolute faith, it does not matter how small you are if you have faith and a plan of action.” and most importantly, challenging all facets of colonialism.
This admiration has been captured in my articles, social media posts and discussions, and publications on some of the news websites I am associated with. This is in addition to my membership in groupings that stand with Cuba.
Cuba, which historians have described as joined to Africa by the hip because of the contribution its sons and daughters made to Africa’s struggle for independence, attracted my admiration years back when I began reading about that involvement in Africa, started by the historic leader of the Cuban Revolution, El Comandante en Jefe Fidel Castro Ruz.
Although history books give little or no mention of Cuba’s role in Africa’s quest for independence, we can no longer ignore the facts. To put it better, most of Africa’s independence heroes we celebrate, crossed paths with the comandante.
From Ben Bella, Amilcar Cabral, Sekou Toure, Julius Nyerere, Augostinho Neto, Samora Machel, Thomas Sankara to Nelson Mandela, they did not meet for cups of tea or photo opportunities but to challenge colonialism and all its siblings.
As President Yoweri Museveni has said in his televised addresses and speeches, while others sought to impose themselves on Africa, subduing most of the continent into colonies, countries like Cuba chose to fight alongside Africans to overcome that evil.
This relationship traces its roots in the Tri-continental conference held in Havana Cuba in January 1966 in which Castro promised revolutionaries that the island nation would lend its support when needed in the fight against imperialism.
A promise he fulfilled with the mentioned individuals who were the face of Africa’s struggle. It is safe to say the NRA drew some inspiration from the triumph of the Cuban revolution. Castro is popular in Harlem US that was once considered the black capital of Uncle Sam.
At the height of the civil rights movement, Castro was given refuge in the area because he challenged racism in the US while he delivered powerful UNGA speeches.
Cuba’s relationship with Africa did not stop with solidarity during the struggle against colonialism, today the island nation despite an economic blockade imposed on it by the US, offers scholarships to students across Africa to study medicine and other disciplines in Havana in addition to the contribution of the Cubans to the establishment of Mbarara University of Science and Technology.
Uganda has a number of graduates from Cuba who have benefited from this relationship between Kampala and Havana. It is something both countries can leverage on to strengthen bilateral relations as we mark 50 years of diplomatic friendship this year.
During his stay in Uganda, VP Salvador Mesa inked a memorandum of understanding with Uganda’s Vice President Jessica Alupo. Although the details are still scanty, we have high hopes that it will go a long way in deepening our cooperation. Uganda’s decision to reopen her embassy in Cuba speaks volumes of our commitment to the friendship.
Alex Maseruka, Pan Africanist, Member Uganda –Cuba Solidarity Movement.
