"The point is that it is not only the warrior what we admire in Che or the man capable of great feats. And what he did, and what he was doing, that fact in itself of facing with only a handful of men an entire oligarchic army, instructed by the Yankee advisers supplied by Yankee imperialism, supported by the oligarchies of all neighboring countries, that fact in itself constitutes an extraordinary feat".
Quotes
“[…] whenever a man must face a challenge it is a test to him: a test of his character, a test of his will, a test of his courage as a revolutionary and as a man. And the concept of man implies the willingness to face tests and challenges.”
“Our country could be swept off the Earth, but it could never be conquered and submitted.”
“And our Revolution stemmed from the struggle against injustice and against tyranny, looking at the way in which our comrades were chased, assassinated and tortured everyday; and our people were educated in the most profound hatred against crime, injustice, torture and all forms of abuse against human beings […]. Our people were educated in those principles, and those principles became our people’s asset and culture. If there is something which has characterized our Revolution it has been our loyalty to principles.”
“I think we are all worthy of a better future, we have a right to a better future; nobility of spirit, the talent of our peoples, their patriotism, their courage, their feelings – all of these make them worthy of a better future.”
“A people are nothing without honour, without decorum, without independence and without dignity, never mind the life of a people!”
“That is man’s marvellous virtue, that he is capable of giving it all, of giving his life, of giving all for an idea, for a cause, for a noble sentiment, for a spirit of solidarity.”
“[…] It has been our tradition since our war of liberation; we made the war being generous, respecting our adversary, respecting our enemy. That is a basic fact of our history; if it were not so, we would not have the support of our people…”
“We shall defend sovereignty as something sacred while some are very weak and others very powerful and while not everybody is willing to relinquish it in favour of a universal sovereignty”.
"Our country lives by values. It has resisted thanks to values, waging not only economic battles but also battles against terrorism, against assassination attempts."
"(...) today tourism is a crucial need for our economy, but not gambling and casino tourism, or sex tourism. Such things are not acceptable to us and we are not willing to tolerate them because all the gold in the world is not worth more than a woman’s dignity and, even more so, a teenage girl's dignity. Selling minors to foreigners for sex or the removal of their organs is severely punished. The grotesque and repulsive raping of boys and girls with aggravating circumstances is inadmissible".
“That is why Cuba, with a high moral spirit and an extraordinary confidence in its people, in their capacity for hospitality, their organizational skills, their scientific and human resources, their customary spirit of hospitality and their wonderful tradition of respect for visiting athletes would be able to organize an Olympic Games with the highest quality and efficiency.”.