The celebrations for the 90th birthday of the historic leader of the Cuban Revolution, Fidel Castro, began today in Argentina with the unveiling of a monument to Che Guevara at the National University of Lanus (UNLA).
Dr. Ana Jaramillo, rector of the institute, told Prensa Latina that is was important to erect a tribute to Che in the Latin American Sculpture Park, where the University pays tribute to the figures who raised the flags of Latin America and fought for improvements for their people.
The first monument on the site is dedicated to the Falkland (Malvinas) Islands; the second one to Argentina's independence hero, General San Martin; the third to Simon Bolivar, "and after the one built to Che, we will erect monuments dedicated to Artigas and Zapata," Jaramillo said.
The Cuban Ambassador, Orestes Pérez, attending the unveiling said that they had chosen the site to begin the celebration of Fidel Castro's 90th birthday, as the UNLA is the only Argentinian University that has conferred the title of 'Doctor Honoris Causa' to him (a decoration granted in 2014).
The ambassador referred to the program 'Fidel: 90 years making history,' which will hold events in Buenos Aires and Cordoba.
The first ceremony was held yesterday evening in a full theater at the UNLA cinema after the unveiling of the monument to Che. The center also honors the memory of the famous actress and Peron member, Tita Merello.
The event began with the screening of some fragments of the speech by Fidel Castro Ruz at the closing ceremony of the 7th Congress of the Cuban Communist Party, which ended on Tuesday, Apr 19th. Then, Dr. Perez Jaramillo and the ambassador stressed the work carried out by Fidel and Che in the Latin American context.
At the end of the event, the documentary "Elogios de la Virtud," by Cuban filmmaker Roberto Chile, screened chronologically the life of the revolutionary leader through interviews and historical images.
An act to commemorate the feat of the attack on the Moncada Garrison, the action that sparked the Revolution, will be held in July. Art exhibits and the screening of films will be held at the Cultural Center of Cooperation for a week in August.