Imagen / Yolier Izquierdo/ RHC.

Havana, June 16 (RHC)-- The Havana International Poetry Festival concluded with a meeting of poets at the Rubén Martínez Villena Center, belonging to the Association of Writers and Artists (UNEAC). The closing session was dedicated to Ernesto Guevara de la Serna (Che) and Mayor General Antonio Maceo on a new anniversary of their birthday, on June 14^th.

Over 40 days, the poetry festival included virtual poetry readings, recitals and meetings of poets from across Cuba and the world.

Participants took the opportunity to express their support for just causes around the world, including the Cuban people’s cause against the US blockade of Cuba, particularly the damage caused by the US siege to Cuba’s artistic sector and the slander campaigns against Cuba. Participants reflected also on the situation in countries like Colombia, Palestine and the Sahrawi Arab Republic.

Organizers said this 27^th edition has been the largest ever held with the participation of record numbers of poets from Asia-Pacific, Central Asia, United States, China, Latin America.

The Havana International Poetry Festival had the support of the Association of Writers and Artists (UNEAC), the Havana-based ALBA Culture Center, the Cuban Ministry of Culture, the Cuban Book Institute, the Cultural Project Sur and the world poetry movement.

Cuban National Literature Prize laureate Nancy Morejón stressed that the more than 12 thousand visits to the YouTube channel of the international poetry festival fully demonstrated once again that literature, specifically poetry has followers, particularly young people, around the world and plays an important role in today’s society.

Organizers said the call for a new edition of the Havana poetry festival will be launched in September, and that it will be dedicated to Cuban poet Jesús Orta Ruiz –better known as Indio Naborí—on his 100^th birthday anniversary.