Speech delivered by the President of the Council of States and Ministers, Raul Castro during the second extraordinary session of the National Assembly of the People’s Power in its 8th Legislature on June 1st, 2017 at Havana’s Convention Center, Year 59 of the Revolution.
Dear comrades:
I will be brief due to the extraordinary character of this Assembly summoned by the Council of State to analyze comprehensive and complex documents, as was established in our Central Report at the 7th Party Congress which will mark the path of the Cuban Revolutionary Process, the Party and the society towards the future in the construction of our socialism.
First, we will refer to the Conceptualization of the Cuban Economic and Social Model of Socialist Development.
At that time, the National Assembly of the People’s Power, as did in July of last year, supported in its spirit and text the updating of the Guidelines of the Economic and Social Policy of the Party and Revolution for the 2016-2021 period, approved by the 7th Party Congress, which includes the opinions issued after that date.
The National Assembly also learned, of the results on the debating process of the Basis of the National Economic and Social Plan to the year 2030, starting from which the plan was elaborated and will be submitted for approval by the Parliament in December of 2018.
The elaboration of these three documents has its history in the resolutions approved by the 6th Party Congress in 2011. Since then, several versions were elaborated which was submitted to the consideration of the Political Bureau for its presentation at the 7 th Party Congress.
Previously, consultations were taken to 971 delegates and 3 thousand 617 guests to the Congress in each of the provinces where one thousand 345 proposals were generated and allowed to clarify concepts and expand its fundamentals.
The 7th Party Congress, favorably welcoming the projects presented, agreed in initiating a broad and democratic discussion on the Conceptualization of the Economic and Social Model and Basis of the National Plan of Economic and Social Development up to the year 2030, with all the members of the Party and the Young Communist League, representatives of grass roots organizations and diverse sectors of society. In addition to taking into consideration the outcome of the consultations that adjusted the Guidelines in whatever way necessary.
In compliance with the accord, 47 thousand 470 meetings were held, in which over one million 600 thousand Cubans participated, generating 208 thousand 161 proposals leading to the modification of a significant part of the contents or the original draft of the documents.
This activity, which showed the preparation of the participants, also allowing the improvement of the already mentioned documents, constituted an important way for the participation of the people in the debates and in the decisions adopted. It also served as an effective tool of communication and socialization in the fundamental transformations that proposes the updating of the Model and demonstrated the support to the economic and social policy of the Party and Revolution approved in the 6 th Congress.
The new projects, a result of the referred process, were debated by the members of the Central Committee and the deputies in their respective provinces, whose proposals were analyzed in the Third Plenary of the Party’s Central Committee, entity that approved, according to the power granted by the 7th Congress, the Conceptualization of the Cuban Economic and Social Model, Basis of the National Economic and Social Development Plan to the year 2030 and the new modifications of the Guidelines of the Economic and Social Policy of the Party and Revolution for the 2016-2021 period, agreeing to submit to the consideration of the National Assembly the documents that we have analyzed in this extraordinary session.
This summarized, but necessary recount, allows me to ratify today what I expressed last May 18th in the Third Plenary of the Central Committee that «these are the most analyzed, discussed and re-discussed documents in the history of the Revolution», and maybe in the history of the Republic of Cuba.
These programmatical fundamentals, recently approved by the Party’s Central Committee and supported now by the National Assembly of the People’s Power reaffirms the socialist character of the Cuban Revolution and the role of the Communist Party as superior leading force of society and State, according to what is established, with absolute clarity, in Article 5 of the Republic’s Constitution.
This will allow us to continue advancing in updating our economic and social model, which is the same as saying, «changing all that must be changed». We will do so at the speed in which allows us to reach a consensus in that we are able to shape the inside of our society and the capacity in which we are able to demonstrate that what we are doing is correct in order to prevent serious mistakes that can compromise the successful compliance of this giant and honorable task.
The Cuban Parliament approved a declaration in support of the people and government of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela in this same session and in representation of the will of our people.
On the issue, I want to emphasize that it is necessary to denounce and stop the aggression against our sister nation. Imperialism’s political and economic interests attempt to stop the Venezuelan people to exercise their self-determination. The OAS’s and several government’s intervention, distortion and gross manipulation of the reality of Venezuela’s internal affairs are joined by arbitrary and unjust unilateral sanctions of the US aimed at ousting the constitutionally elected government of the Venezuelan people.
Many that are leading the protests and demand international recognition are the same that carried out the military coup in 2002, they are those of the oil coup in 2003 and of the violent acts of 2014.
They attempt to hypocritically justify foreign intervention, saying that they want to help the Venezuelan people, however, the only way to do so is respecting the sovereignty of Venezuela and encouraging constructive and respectful dialog, as the only way to channeling the differences.
The violence that has inflicted in the deaths and injury of people must be condemned if in reality what is of concern is human rights and the integrity of the population.
The images of the Venezuelan youth being beaten, stabbed and burned alive by the violent opposition reminds us of the worse acts of fascism.
I reiterate our solidarity with the Bolivarian and Chavista Revolution, with the civic-military unity of the Venezuelan people and with the government headed by constitutional President Nicolas Maduro Moros.
We are also concerned with the development of the events in Brazil, consequences of the methods in which Comrade Dilma Rouseff was separated from her Presidency and the Workers Party and its historic leader, Comrade Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.
We are convinced that only respecting the sovereign will and the mandate of the people will return legitimacy to the political system of this sister nation.
In that struggle, the Brazilian people has and will always have Cuba’s solidarity.
Comrades:
Before ending, I wish to express to the deputies and all of our people, as we traditionally do in each ordinary session of the Assembly, we will discuss other issues related to national and international events next July.
Thank you. (Taken from Cuban News Agency)
