The working class across the whole world celebrates the 58th anniversary of the formation of the July 26 movement.

Next week friday the 26 of July 2013 the Cuban revolution and the world will be celebrating the 58th anniversary of the formation of the July 26 movement. We are proud to take the opportunity of this rare historic moment to convey our profound appreciations to the heroic people and the collective leadership of the Communist party of Cuba, under the leadership of the Commander in Chief Cde Fidel Castro and President Raul for the achievements of the revolution.

The working class movement across the world celebrates a momentous event that has changed the coarse of events in the struggles of the people of the world against imperialism and colonialism. We celebrate the achievements of the Cuban people against the forces of oppression and exploitation.

We celebrate the birth of a revolutionary movement that has ushered in the triumph of the first socialist revolution ever in the history of the western hemisphere. The formation of the July 26 movement was indeed an epic event in the calendar of the history of the struggles of the working class movement.

The progressive movement of the world celebrates the achievements of a revolutionary movement that has over the years advanced the first socialist revolution at the backyard of the world biggest imperialist power, the USA. Without fear of any favour or any contradictions, the Cuban revolution remains to be a living testimony that socialism is the only future for humanity. 

The celebration of the 58th anniversary of the formation of the July 26 movement is also a living testimony that the working class has the capacity to become the architects of their own future. That the working class has the capacity to lead any revolution to its eventual conclusion. 

The Cuban revolution remains to be the most advanced school which is still consistent with the traditions and principles of the international proletariat movement. Therefore the 58th anniversary celebrations of the formation of the July 26 movement represents a hallmark achievement of the struggles of our people against imperialism and colonialism.

On the 26 July 1953 a group of young Cuban revolutionaries under the leadership of Cde Fidel Castro attacked the Moncada and Carlos Manuel des Cespedes garrisons in the cities of Santiago de Cuba and Bayamo respectively. The attack became the birthplace of the July 26 movement.

An hour before the attack on the 26 of July 1953, the Commander in Chief of the Cuban revolution Fidel Castro had to express the following words of courage to his fellow combatants" 

Comrades, within a few hours, we will either succeed or be defeated. But regardless of the outcome, listen well, comrades, this movement will triumph. 

If we win tomorrow, we will achieve that much faster what Jose Marti aspired to. 

If the opposite were to occur, the action will serve as an example to the people of Cuba, to raise the flag and continue forward. The people will support us in Oriente and in the whole island.

As in 1868 and 1895, here in Oriente we raise the first shout of "Freedom or Death".

These historic and courageous words propelled the end and the beginning of a new forms of armed struggles that saw the collapse of the Batista dictatorship and therefore the birth of the first socialist revolution at the doorstep of the American imperialist power. We congratulate the Commander in Chief for having led a revolution that has shaken the foundations of imperialism and colonialism throughout the whole world.

We indeed take pride to be representing a generation of mankind during this historic period of the 58th anniversary celebrations of the birth of the Cuban revolution. The declaration of the socialist character of the Cuban revolution in 1959 was a source of inspiration to the struggles of the working class across the world. 

The international working class movement celebrates the formation of the July 26 movement, twenty three years after the collapse of socialism in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe. The collapse was a tremendous event that signified a paradigm shift in the class balance of forces throughout the world.

We found ourselves having to take forward the tasks of our revolution under the most complex and hostile terrain dominated by a unipolar world. The balance of forces have changed significantly in favour of the dominant forces of imperialism and neo colonialism.

We celebrate the achievements of the Cuban revolution during the most fragile conjectural period when the world capitalist system is in a virtual stage of collapse. The present world socio economic contradictions is a confirmation that capitalism cannot resolve its own crisis. 

The present world financial crisis collapsed the most powerful economies of the USA and the European Union. This has confirmed our long held view that capitalism cannot resolve the socio economic challenges facing humanity. The mismanagement of the world economic system by the imperial forces has plunged the world into the worse crisis ever in the history of civilization. 

The world socio economic crisis has compelled most of the European governments to impose severe austerity measures that have a far much consequences on the living conditions of the working class. The working class is under severe economic pressure. 

There are massive budget cuts on social spending, increasing tax rates, massive privatization of state assets, high unemployment rates and widening gap of inequalities between the rich and the poor.

The European Union is in a deep structural crisis. Over twenty six million europeans are unemployed. There is a widening gap of inequality within countries and between countries. The poor is at the brunt of stringent austerity measures in the name of fiscal consolidation and competitiveness. 

The conditions are aggravated by the aggressive and hostile posture of the world military industrial complex. There is an increased spending on military budget whilst the levels poverty, disease and underdevelopment continue to inflict misery to the living conditions of the millions of the people of the world.

The catastrophic effects of climate change are exposing society into severe vulnerabilities whilst in contrast propelling the captains of industry to explore the possibilities of an alternative living space on the moon. Our biodiversity is under constant thread. We are loosing spices that are important to our ecosystem, making the future of humanity vulnerable.

In most parts of northern Europe the melting ice over the past ten thousands years has elevated the soil surface to a level of one meter above the sea level. This is posing serious consequences on the sustainability of their developmental infrastructure and therefore their economies. 

Some of these questions will obviously provide a platform for a critical analysis of our environment and the extent to which this fragile world arena influences the cause of the struggles of the working class movement. The platform will assist us to understand the present hostile unipolar world and the extent to which it impacts on the terrain of our struggles in which we want to create the new world social order.

The most important question we need to ask ourselves is the extent of the influence of the unipolar world on the overall strategic posture and character of the struggles of the working class in the world and therefore our own respective countries. In other words we need to comprehend the influence of the hostile world circumstances on the pace and the direction of our own national democratic revolution. 

We take the opportunity of the 58th anniversary celebrations of the formation of the July 26 movement to thank the generosity of the Cuban revolution. The people of the African continent will forever thank the Cuban revolution and its Commander in Chief Fidel Castro, for the immeasurable contribution during our struggles for independence.

We again thank you very much for the continuing efforts of the revolution to assist in the reconstruction and development of our continent. Your contribution towards the improvement of the living conditions of our people is what defines the internationalist character of your revolution.

Your contribution in the field of health, education, sports and culture and variety of economic bilaterals with our continent will go a long way in improving the living conditions of our people. Your contribution is a gesture of human solidarity.

We are making a clarion cal to the US administration to end the fifty years old economic blockade against the people of Cuba and the revolution. The unilateral imposition of the blockade is a crime against humanity.

We demand the immediate release of the Cuban heroes incarcerated in the American jails. The world knows very well that those leaders of our tomorrow languishing in your jails, were arrested for the mere reasons that they exposed covert terrorists activities against the innocent people of the world.

We convey our best wishes to our two most revered world revolutionaries of our century. On the occasion of the celebration of the 58th anniversary of the formation of the July 26 movement, we convey our best wishes and good health to President Nelson Mandela and our Commander in Chief Fidel Castro.

We also convey our profound appreciation and best wishes to our struggles icon President Nelson Mandela on his birthday. We wish him well from his hospital bed. We hope that he will be back home soon. Our people, our country and the whole world still need his outstanding leadership.

We again congratulate the Cuban people for the achievements of the revolution. We will forever be inspired by their determination to make the world a better place for humanity. 

The world celebrates with you the birthday of the July 26 movement. Your revolution is our revolution. 

Phatse Justice Piitso is the former Ambassador to the republic of Cuba and the former provincial secretary of the SACP writing this article on his personal capacity.

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