YouSaid · the spoken record

CASTRO

lines on the record: 272
first: 1960-09-24
most recent: 1979-09-24
sittings or episodes: 2
sources: un-general-debate

Every line below is reproduced as it was said and linked to the record it came from. Nothing here is summarised or generated. Directory · Search · Corrections

“In Nicaragua there is now no longer a government of force but a kind of monarchy, which is almost as constitutional as that of the United Kingdom, in which power is handed down from father to son. And the same would have happened in our country. The Government of Fulgencio Batista was atypical government offeree, a government which suited the United States monopolies in Cuba. But it was not, of course, the type of government which suited the Cuban people. With great loss of life and much sacrifice the Cuban people overthrew that Government. 74. What did the revolution find after it succeeded in Cuba? What wonders did it find?”
1960-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 15 (1960)
“Because by force any demand by the people can be repressed; by force strikes for better living conditions were repressed; with force peasant movements for ownership of the land were repressed; with force the dearest aspirations of the people were repressed. 72. That is why governments of force were preferred by those directing United States policy. That is why governments of force remained in power for so long and still remain in power in America. Clearly, it all depends on the circumstances whether or not there will be support from the United States Government. For example, the United States Government now says that it is against one of these governments of force, the Trujillo Government, but it does not say that it is against any other such governments, that of Nicaragua or of Paraguay for instance. 73.”
1960-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 15 (1960)
“Do we need to explain here to the representatives of our fellow countries of Latin America what military tyrannies are? Do we need to explain to them how they have remained in power? Do we need to explain to them the history of some of these tyrannies which have already become a byword? Do we need to explain to them on what strength these tyrannies rely, from what national and international interests the military group which oppressed our people drew its support? It was supported by the most reactionary Circles in the country and most of all by the foreign economic interests which dominated our country's economy. Everyone knows — and. we believe that even the United States Government admits this — that it was the type of government preferred by the monopolies. Why?”
1960-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 15 (1960)
“Let no one be deceived because if we are, we shall only make fools of ourselves. Let no one be deceived. There was no independent republic in Cuba. It was a colony where the orders were given by the Ambassador of the United States of America. We have no shame in proclaiming this because any shame is offset by the pride we have in saying that today no embassy rules our people because our people are governed by the people. 71. Once again the Cuban people had to resort to Strife to win their independence and they achieved it. They achieved it after seven years of bloody oppression. By whom were they oppressed? By those in our country who were merely the tools of those who dominated it economically. How can any unpopular regime, inimical to the interests of the people, remain in power except by force?”
1960-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 15 (1960)
“The new colonization of our country then began: the best agricultural land was acquired by United States companies; concessions were granted for exploiting our natural resources and mines, concessions for the operation of public utilities, commercial concessions, concessions of every kind which, combined with the constitutional right, based on force, to intervene in our country transformed it from a Spanish into a United States colony. 70. Colonies have no voice. Colonies are not recognized in the world as long as they have no opportunity to make themselves heard. That was why the world knew nothing of this colony or of its problems. Another flag, another coat of arms, appeared in the geography books. Another colour appeared on the maps; but there was no independent republic in Cuba.”
1960-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 15 (1960)
“In other words, our country was forced by the legislature of a foreign country to grant that country the right to intervene and to hold naval bases or stations. 68. It is well for countries which have recently become Members of this Organization, countries now beginning their independent life, to bear in mind the history of our country because of the similar conditions that they may encounter along their own paths, or which those who come after them may encounter, or their children, or their children's children, although it seems that we are not going to get as far as that. 69.”
1960-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 15 (1960)
“Just when the Cuban people, through a Constituent Assembly, were drafting the basic law of the Republic, another act was passed by the United States Congress, an act proposed by Senator Platt, of unhappy memory for Cuba, in which it was laid down that a rider was to be attached to the Cuban Constitution whereby the United States Government would be granted the right to intervene in Cuban political affairs and, in addition, the right to lease certain parts of Cuban territory for naval bases or coaling stations; in other words, under a law enacted by the legislative authority of a foreign country, the Cuban Constitution had to contain this provision, and it was made very clear to the members of our Constituent Assembly that if no such amendment was made, the occupation forces would not be withdrawn.”
1960-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 15 (1960)
“The Cubans who fought for our independence, those Cubans who at that time were laying down their lives, trusted, completely in the Joint Resolution of the United States Congress, of 20 April 1898, which declared that "The people of the island of Cuba are, and of right ought to be, free and independent". The people of the United States sympathized with the Cubans in their struggle. That joint declaration was an Act of Congress of this nation under which war was declared on Spain. 67. That illusion ended in cruel disappointment. After two years of military occupation of our country. something unexpected occurred.”
1960-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 15 (1960)
“But in the opinion of John Adams, one of the Presidents of the United States in the early years of last century, Cuba was a fruit, an apple, as it were, hanging from the Spanish tree, destined, as soon as it was ripe, to fall into the hands of the United States. Spain’s power had wasted away in our country. She had neither men nor money left to continue the wax in Cuba. Spain was routed. Apparently the apple was ripe and the United States Government held out Its hands. It was not one apple that fell into its hands but several: Puerto Rico fell, heroic Puerto Rico, which had begun its fight for freedom together with the Cubans; so did the Philippine Islands and a number of other possessions, 66. However, some different pretext had to be found for subjugating our country. Cuba had fought a tremendous fight and world opinion was on its side.”
1960-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 15 (1960)
“Our little people, numbering hardly more than one million at that time, had for nearly thirty years to fight alone against an army which was regarded as one of the strongest in Europe. Against our small national population the Spanish Government mobilized a force as large as all the forces which had fought against the independence of all the nations in South America put together. Nearly half a million Spanish soldiers fought against our people's heroic and single-minded determination to be free. The Cubans fought alone for their independence for thirty years; thirty years which laid the foundation for our country's love of freedom and independence. 65.”
1960-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 15 (1960)
“On the map we were shown in a different colour from the United States; in reality, we were a colony. 63. How did our country come to be a United States colony? Not through its origins; the United States and Cuba were not colonized by the same people. Cuba has a very different ethnic and cultural background, built up over several hundred years. 64. Cuba was the last country In America to free herself from Spanish colonialism, the Spanish colonial yoke, if the representative of the Spanish Government will forgive me, and because it was the last, it had to struggle much more desperately. Spain had only one possession in America left and she defended it obstinately and with every means at her disposal.”
1960-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 15 (1960)
“Since that hope was lost a long time ago — and there was never any reason to entertain it-after it was alleged that the Cuban delegation had taken up residence in a brothel, it had to be recognized that imperialist capital is a prostitute who cannot seduce us, and not exactly "the respectful prostitute" of Jean-Paul Sartre. 62. The problem of Cuba? Some representatives are perhaps well-informed; some of them not so well it depends on your sources of information but there is no doubt that for the world as a whole the Cuban problem is one that has arisen in the last two years; it is a new problem. Formerly the world had little reason to know that Cuba existed. To many people it was rather like an appendix to the United States. Even for many citizens of this country, Cuba was a colony of the United States. It was not so on the map.”
1960-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 15 (1960)
“As it had not been possible to prevent our stay in Harlem, a whispering campaign was started at once and the world was told that the Cuban delegation had taken up residence in a brothel. 60. No doubt to some gentlemen, a modest hotel in Harlem, where the Negroes of the United States live, could not be anything but a brothel. But besides this it was a matter of trying to cast a slur on the Cuban delegation, thus showing no respect even for the women members of our delegation or of Its staff. 61. If we were the sort of men that they are trying at all costs to depict us as being, imperialism would not have lost its hope, as it did long ago, of buying us off or seducing us in some way.”
1960-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 15 (1960)
“But that was not all. When we were forced to leave one of the hotels in this city and come to United Nations Headquarters while other arrangements were being made, a modest hotel here, a Negro hotel in Harlem, offered us accommodation. The offer came during our conversations with the Secretary-General. Nevertheless, an official of the State Department did everything in his power to prevent us from being accommodated in this hotel. 59. At that moment, as if by magic, hotels began to spring up all over New York, hotels which had previously refused to house the Cuban delegation, offering to do so for nothing. Naturally, out of common courtesy, we agreed to go to the Harlem hotel. We thought that we had a right to hope that we would be left in peace. But we were not left in peace.”
1960-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 15 (1960)
“Much less was the Cuban delegation guilty, and yet all of you have undoubtedly seen these headlines in the newspapers saying that pro-Castro groups had lulled a ten-year-old girl; with the characteristic hypocrisy of all those who have anything to do with relations between Cuba and tills country, a spokesman for the White House immediately made a statement drawing the whole world’s attention to this act and to all intents and purposes laying the guilt at the door of the Cuban delegation. The United States representative to this Assembly added the crowning touch to the farce by sending a telegram to the Government of Venezuela and another telegram of condolences to the little girl's family, as though he felt obliged to give an explanation from the United Nations for something for which the Cuban delegation was virtually responsible. 58.”
1960-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 15 (1960)
“At once they were welcomed by the Press; they were welcomed by the authorities and naturally they reflected this welcome in their conduct and that is the reason for their many clashes with Cuban immigrants who had been working honestly in this country for years. 57. One of these incidents, provoked by persons who feel themselves strengthened by the systematic campaign against Cuba and the complicity of the authorities, resulted in the death of a little girl. This was a matter for regret, for all of us. But the guilty parties were not the Cubans who live here.”
1960-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 15 (1960)
“Over the years there has been considerable Cuban immigration into this country. During the last twenty years over 100,000 Cubans have come to this country from their own homeland, where they would have liked to remain always and where they wish to return as do all who are forced for social or economic reasons to leave their country. This Cuban population is employed; they respected and still respect the law and, very naturally, they felt deeply for their country and for the revolution. They never had any problems. 56. But one day there began to arrive in this country another kind of visitor; war criminals began to arrive; there began to arrive persons who, in some cases, had murdered hundreds of our compatriots.”
1960-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 15 (1960)
“It was high time for us to get to our feet and speak out. People have been talking about us for many days now; the newspapers have been talking and we have been silent. We cannot defend ourselves from the attacks made on us here, in this country. Now we have an opportunity to tell the truth and we shall not fail to do so. 54. Personal humiliation, attempts at extortion, eviction from the hotel in which we were staying, and our removal to another hotel, after doing everything possible to avoid difficulties, refraining absolutely from leaving our lodgings, going nowhere except to this Assembly hall at the United Nations (on the few occasions when we have been present), and to a reception at the Soviet Embassy, in order to avoid problems and difficulties, even all this was not enough for us to be left in peace, 55.”
1960-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 15 (1960)
“Cuba has sent many delegations to the United Nations. Cuba has been represented by many different persons, and yet, these exceptional measures were reserved for us: confinement to the island of Manhattan; instructions to all hotels not to rent us rooms, hostility and, on the pretext of security, isolation. 52. Probably none of the representatives here, who represent not any individual person but their respective countries and who must therefore be concerned over something that applies to any one of them because of what they represent; probably none of them, I say, on their arrival in the city of New York had to endure personal and physical humiliation of the kind which the Chairman of the Cuban delegation had to undergo. 53. I am not trying to stir up feeling in this Assembly. I am merely telling the truth.”
1960-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 15 (1960)
“Reference has been made to the universal desire for peace, which is the desire of all peoples and accordingly the desire of our people also. But this peace which the world wishes to preserve is a peace which we Cubans have been without for a long time. The perils which other peoples of the world may regard as more or less remote are problems and anxieties which are very close to us. It was not easy to come here to lay Cuba’s problems before this Assembly. It was not easy for us to get here. I do not know whether we received special treatment. Can it be that we, the members of the Cuban delegation, represent the worst type of government in the world? Can it be that we, the representatives of the Cuban delegation, deserve the bad treatment which we have received? Why our delegation in particular?”
1960-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 15 (1960)
“We of the under-developed countries have very little money to spare but what we have we will spend in order to speak frankly at this meeting of representatives of neatly all the countries of the world. 50. The speakers who took the floor before me expressed their anxiety over problems which are of concern to the whole world. We are also interested in these problems. Moreover, in Cuba’s case, there is another special circumstance: at this moment, Cuba itself is of concern to the world, for various representatives have stated here quite rightly that Cuba is one of the many problems existing in the world at the present time. 51. This is true; in addition to the problems which are today of concern to the whole world, Cuba has problems which are of concern to her, of concern to our people.”
1960-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 15 (1960)
“Although we have been given the reputation of speaking at great length, the Assembly need not worry. We shall do our best to be brief, saying only what we regard it as our duty to say here. I also intend to speak slowly, in order to co-operate with the interpreters. 48. Some people may think that we are highly displeased with the treatment meted out to the Cuban delegation. That is not the case. We understand the reason for these things perfectly and so we are not annoyed. No one need be concerned lest Cuba be discouraged from making her small contribution to this effort to bring about world understanding. We shall continue to do so and we shall speak frankly. 49. It costs a great deal to send a delegation to the United Nations.”
1960-09-24 · UN General Assembly · General Debate, Session 15 (1960)