Port of Spain, October 6th, 2025. Cuba took part in the “Latin Nights” program at the National Library and Information System Authority (NALIS) with a photographic exhibition and the screening of the documentary “El Mérito es estar vivo” (“The Merit Is to Be Alive”), produced by Mundo Latino in 2006.
Jasmin Simmons and Paula Greene, Director of Heritage and Executive Director of NALIS respectively, cut the ribbon together with the Ambassador of the Republic of Cuba, Gustavo Veliz Olivares, and the Ambassador of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, Alvaro Sánchez Cordero, Dean of the Diplomatic Corps, thus formally opening the exhibition.
Following the inauguration of the photo exhibit, attendees enjoyed the documentary “The Merit Is to Be Alive”, after a brief introduction by its executive producer, Omar Olazabal.
In her speech, Jasmin Simmons expressed gratitude for the opportunity to host the exhibition and to screen the documentary dedicated to Fidel Castro, a figure of universal significance, she emphasized. She noted that NALIS has a Memorandum of Understanding signed with the National Library of Cuba and recalled that NALIS had the opportunity to display a similar exhibition in 2016, on the occasion of the Commander’s 90th birthday.
The Ambassador thanked NALIS for the opportunity to remember and honor the figure of the Commander in Chief on the occasion of his centenary, highlighting his international impact and his relationships with world leaders—including Caribbean leaders and those from Trinidad and Tobago in particular. He underscored the historical importance of the documentary, which reveals the numerous assassination attempts against the Commander in Chief.
In attendance were political, academic, and religious figures, ambassadors and representatives of the Diplomatic Corps accredited in the country, as well as Cuban health collaborators and members of the organization of Cuban residents, “Abraza Cuba.”
Among the guests were the Honorable Clyde Elder, former trade union leader, current Minister in the Ministry of Public Utilities and Member of Parliament for La Brea; Mr. David Abdulla, leader of the Movement for Social Justice (MSJ); Professor Rose-Marie Belle Antoine, Director of the University of the West Indies (UWI), St. Augustine Campus; and Reverend John Pereira, of Mount Saint Benedict Abbey.
(Embassy of Cuba in Trinidad and Tobago)