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The Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on International Relations and Cooperation, Mr Siphosezwe Masango, has said that the death of the former Cuban president, Mr Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz, should encourage us to deepen the internationalist legacy he bequeathed to us all.

Mr Masango said it was important for South Africans of all political persuasions to acknowledge the role that Mr Castro and the Cuban people played, not only in South Africa’s liberation from apartheid, but also more broadly in southern Africa and the African continent.

“Besides fighting with us for our freedom, in the new South Africa he continued to avail Cuban skills and allowed South African students to visit Cuba on exchange programmes in such fields as engineering, medicine, sport and the arts. It is indeed a special revolutionary bond that South Africa has with Cuba. This strong bond, founded in the crucible of the liberation struggle, should be continued long after Mr Castro is gone,” Mr Masango concluded.

Mr Castro died on 25 November 2016. He had handed over the reins of power to his brother, Raul, in 2008. The Parliament of the Republic of South Africa will hold a special debate to pay tribute to Mr Castro, bearing in mind that, at the invitation of former President Nelson Mandela, he addressed Parliament in 1998 and received a standing ovation for his address.

Issued by Parliamentary Communication Services on behalf of the Chairperson, Mr Siphosezwe Masango