PL

San José, Jan 20 (RHC) Several activities in Costa Rica will recall the life and work of Cuban National Hero José Martí on the 170th anniversary of his birth, a country deeply related to the Apostle, said Thursday Havana's ambassador to San José, Jorge Rodríguez.

In statements to Prensa Latina, the diplomat referred to the imprint of the Apostle of Cuban Independence, born on January 28, 1853, in this Central American country. Martí visited that country two times, in 1893 and 1894, in preparation for the 1895 War against Spanish colonialism.

Therefore, we not only celebrate this year the 170th anniversary of Martí's birth but also the 130th anniversary of his first visit to Costa Rica to convince several of the generals of the Liberation Army (Mambí) who resided there since the early 1890s and founded the agricultural colony La Mansion de Nicoya, Rodriguez exalted.

In that site, the first and only one created by Cubans outside the Caribbean Island, settled lieutenant general Antonio Maceo, Major General Flor Crombet, and other 100 combatants and their families, said Rodriguez.

We cannot forget that it was in the Repertorio Americano magazine, of the famous Costa Rican writer Joaquín García Monge, where Martí's book La Edad de Oro was first published, as well as many of his writings, due to the Costa Rican intellectual's admiration for Cuba's National Hero, he said.

In addition, he pointed out, several schools, streets, and parks in Costa Rica bear the name of the Apostle of the Cuban Independence, such as the Liceo de Puntarenas, one of the places where Martí left deep traces in its inhabitants, mainly among dock workers.

A bust of Martí stands out in the park that bears his name in Orotina, and another was placed by the Municipality of San José in the National Park of this capital, on the occasion of the centenary of his birth, in 1953, said Rodríguez.

Likewise, in his time in this Central American country, Martí influenced the life of the Costa Rican journalist, politician, educator, writer, and poet Pío Víquez, with whom he maintained communication, he pointed out.

Martí's imprint in Costa Rica will be addressed in activities to be developed from next week until February, such as the appearance of the Cuban ambassador in the radio program Sembrando, in the Meeting of Cubans living in this country, he said.

As part of the celebration of the 170th anniversary of Martí's birth, floral offerings will be placed before his busts in Orotina and the capital's National Park, concluded the Cuban ambassador. (Source: Prensa Latina).