Cuban VP Calls for Strengthening Unity in the ALBA
June 26, 2010, 4:50 pm

By Pedro Rioseco
Translation: Ernesto Gutierrez Pino

Otavalo, Ecuador .- Cuban Vice President Esteban Lazo called the countries participating in the Summit of the Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of the Americas (ALBA) to strengthening the unity and the integration, as well as preventing a possible division.

Speaking at the meeting of Heads of State which was in sesion this Friday in the Ecuadorian city of Otavalo, 110 kilometers from the capital, Lazo recalled that the Cuban people's unity has been the main strength in the Caribbean island.

Lazo passed on Fidel Castro’s greetings to the presidents, ministers, 300 delegates of ALBA countries plus the guests of Guatemala and Paraguay and the Ecuadorian people.

He also passed on the greetings of the Cuban President Raul Castro and confirmed the previous speakers´ statement after qualifying this 10th Summit as historic, since it is the first on indigenous and African descent.

"Since ALBA was created in 2004, it has made a sustained effort to pay the social debt, bequeathed by years of colonialism and neocolonialism in our towns", he explained.

"Today, it is necessary to make much more, but we can speak of the positive impact in many sectors thanks to policies implemented by the governments of this Alliance", Lazo stressed.

In this regard, he highlighted the successful development of the psychosocial and clinical genetic study carried out on disabled people in six countries of the Alliance and announced that there will be another soon.

"Under this program, with the participation of Cuban specialists over 2,500,000 households have been visited, many of them located in indigenous communities", he said.

"More than 970, 000 cases have been reported by means of more than 72,000 specialized medical consultation that will favor the integration of disabled people in the society", said Lazo.

"Only in this province of Imbabura, where the Summit took place, in the Mission "Manuela Espejo", 35, 213 households have been visited and 432 cases have been studied", he stated.

The Cuban vice president also referred to the Operation Miracle, free eye operations, in which 1, 440, 000 patients have been benefited in our countries.

"Only in Ecuador 102, 912 people have been operated by Cuban specialists in this joint mission, characteristic of ALBA", he emphasized.

"There is also progress in the creation of the Regulatory Center of ALBA Medicines, ALBAMED, which will favor the accessibility of medicines to the health of our people".

Esteban Lazo also referred to support in literacy campaigns, through the Cuban program "Yes I can", and the Cultural ALBA activity in the countries of the region.

Finally, Cuban Vice President stressed the clear political will of our governments to promote strategies in benefit to the whole people.
"True democracy, human rights and freedoms can not coexist with racism, racial discrimination, exclusion and xenophobia," he stressed

"In the current international situation it is imperative to defend cultural diversity against hegemonic visions and business approaches, he said and reiterated that Cuba will continue supporting that purpose. he. (Prensa Latina)