Valparaiso, October 16 (RHC-PL) –- Cuban Hero Fernando Gonzalez is currently visiting Chile and has met with 32 legislators of the New Majority Coalition at the headquarters of the National Congress in Valparaiso. "It was a very interesting meeting, in which I had the opportunity to see Hugo Gutierrez (Communist legislator) and in general, thank those who gave us us strength while we were in prison," Gonzalez said.
In statements to Prensa Latina, the vice president of the Cuban Institute of Friendship with the Peoples (ICAP) referred to the role of some Chilean legislators in favor of the cause of the Cuban Five.
Fernando Gonzalez, Ramon Labañino, Gerardo Hernandez, Rene Gonzalez and Antonio Guerrero, known as the Cuban Five, all served long sentences in U.S. prisons for preventing terrorist activities against Cuba.
The meeting was attended by parliamentarians who make up the Chile-Cuba friendship group with other legislators, who reiterated their willingness to accompany the Caribbean island in the struggle for lifting the U.S. blockade.
They also acknowledged Cuba's role in its support and solidarity with the Chilean people in the difficult times of the Augusto Pinochet military dictatorship, following the overthrow of Salvador Allende in 1973.
The parliamentarians stressed at the same time the valuable contribution by Fernando Gonzalez and his companions, the Cuban Five, in the battle against terrorism, in addition to their examples of resistance. They also were interested in his opinion about the new stage of Cuba regarding the process of restoring relations with the United States, amid the prevailing economic blockade.
Fernando said he was also impressed by the visit he carried out to the Mausoleum of Pablo Neruda in Isla Negra, in the Valparaiso region.
Accompanied by Cuba's ambassador to Santiago de Chile, Adolfo Curbelo, Fernando Gonzalez delivered a talk at the Main Lecture Hall of the University of Chile. Tonight, he will attend the opening ceremony of the Meeting of Solidarity with Cuba at the Universidad de Los Lagos.
