Friends of Cuba:
Today, May 1st, we gather here in the same spirit that inspires Cuban workers on our island. In Cuba, since the early hours of the morning, International Workers’ Day has been celebrated with parades and events in every workplace, town, municipality, and province, with the prudence we have had to adopt in the face of the restrictions imposed by the intensified blockade.
This year, the slogan uniting us from Havana is clear: “The Homeland Must Be Defended.” We say this because we are facing a renewed aggressive offensive by the U.S. government. This year, the U.S. president’s executive order of January 29 added an energy blockade to the already cruel economic, commercial, and financial blockade that for more than 65 years has sought to bring our people to their knees through hunger and exhaustion.
Today, the intensification of the blockade strikes every sphere of Cuban life: it limits the procurement of fuel, affects our energy matrix, hinders food production, and threatens the functioning of our hospitals and schools. But the Cuban people do not give up. The Homeland is defended from every neighborhood and every workplace.
On this day, we also remember, with deep respect and affection, Comrade Tibor Zenker, who is no longer physically with us.
I would like to publicly acknowledge the constant and active support of the Austrian Labor Party. Their statements, their meetings with our youth, the Jugendfront’s participation in solidarity brigades, and their steadfast presence at the United Nations each year denouncing the blockade are just a few examples of what international solidarity means.
Comrades:
Defending Cuba today means defending the right of a small nation to exist with dignity in the face of U.S. imperialism. And in that defense, we are not alone. You are with us.
Long live the working class of the world!
Long live the Cuban Revolution!
Until victory, always!
Thank you very much.