| It is with deep regret and searing pain that the Cuban government and people received the news of the death of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez Frias and prepare to pay him due homage as he goes down in history as a hero of Our Americas. Cuba expresses its deepest condolences to President Chavez's parents, his siblings, his daughters and sons and to all his relatives, who are already our own, just as Chavez is also a dignified son of Cuba, Latin America, the Caribbean and the whole world. At this particular moment of profound sadness, we express our solidarity with his people, our Venezuelan brothers and sisters, whom we will always accompany under any circumstances. The Bolivarian Revolution can count on our complete, unequivocal support at this particularly difficult time. To our Venezuelan comrades, the Bolivarian government and military forces, we reiterate our strong support and solidarity as well as our faith in victory. Throughout his short, but highly fruitful life, President Chavez was the main protagonist of a huge battle. We will always remember him as a soldier, a patriot defending his country and Our Americas He was an honest, clear-sighted, brave and daring revolutionary fighter, a founding leader of the Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our Americas and of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States. His heroic, inexhaustible fight against death constitutes an incomparable example of personal strength. The tireless efforts of his medical team also constitute a commendable example of true humanism and devotion. The president's return to the Venezuelan Nation, which he loved so much, changed history. "We have a homeland," Chavez said with emotion on December 8th, and returned to it to confront the growing risks imposed by the disease. Nothing and no one can take away the reclaimed Homeland from the Venezuelan people. Chavez's work appears undefeated before us. The victories won by the revolutionary people who saved him from the coup of April 2002 and have followed him without hesitation are already irreversible. The Cuban people consider him one of their most prominent sons and admired, followed and loved him as one of their own. Chávez is also Cuban! He suffered our difficulties and problems and did his best, with extraordinary generosity, especially in the most difficult years of the Special Period. Chavez accompanied Fidel as a true son and was a very close friend of Raul. He excelled in the international battles against imperialism, always in defense of the poor, of the workers, of our people. Passionate, persuasive, eloquent, witty and moving, Chavez spoke from the hearts of the people, sang our joys, and recited our passionate verses with constant optimism. Tens of thousands of Cubans working in Venezuela will pay homage to him with an ardent sense of internationalist duty and will continue to accompany, with honor and altruism, the Bolivarian people's heroic deeds. Cuba will be eternally loyal to the memory and legacy of Commander President Chavez and pursue his ideals of unity of the revolutionary forces, integration and independence of our America. His example will lead us in the coming battles. |