Minister Blade Nzimande: Seminar on “Fidel and Mandela: The legacy of great leaders

Program Director, Mrs. Lauren Luis Acosta from the Cuban Embassy;
Professor Francis Petersen, the Vice Chancellor of the University of Pretoria;
Your Excellency, Ambassador Fakri Rodriguez Pinelo, Cuban Ambassador to South Africa;
Honourable, Dr. Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma, Former Chairperson of the African Union, and Former Minister of International Relations, among others;
Ambassadors and Members of the Diplomatic Corps;
Distinguished guests;
Academics;
Friends and Comrades:

I am deeply honoured to be a part of this important reflection on the legacies of two of the most iconic figures of the past century- President Fidel Castro and President Nelson Mandela. 

Given the prevailing geopolitical environment, the choice of topic for today’s discussion is profoundly timely. We are honouring and celebrating these two heroes at a time of great provocation and extreme aggression by the US empire against the people of Cuba.

Like in previous decades when Cuba was under attack by imperialist forces, today we must resist the illegal actions of the USA and its allies, and rally in support of the great people of Cuba. 

Hasta la victoria siempre! (Ever onward to Victory!). 

Madiba and Fidel- A bond forged in the crucible of anti-imperialist struggle

Secondly, as we know, the bond between President Castro and Madiba has its basis in Cuba and South Africa’s gallant histories of anti-imperialist and anti-colonial resistance.

Like South Africa’s liberation movement, Cuba understood that the struggles for national self-determination within the Global South in the 20th century, have their genesis in the globalised system of imperialism.

For this reason, Cuba felt a deep connection with our struggle and as an expression of their solidarity, Cuba supported our liberation movement the African National Congress (ANC) by providing military training and equipment. Cuba also offered thousands of its sons and daughters to fight alongside the armed wing of the ANC, uMkhonto WeSizwe.

As we know, one of the most notable expressions of Cuban-South African solidarity was the 1988 Battle of The Battle of Cuito Cuanavale, whose outcome gave impetus to the independence of Namibia and the eventual fall of apartheid.

Cuba’s support was not limited to the liberation movement in South Africa-it was also extended to the liberation movements in other African countries such as Angola, Zimbabwe, Congo, Guinea Bissau, and Cape Verde.

You may also recall that, when Madiba was released from prison in 1990, he undertook a visit to Cuba to go and personally thank President Castro for Cuba’s support to our struggle.

One of the things that Madiba said during this visit was that the Cuban victory in Angola "shattered the myth of the invincibility of the white oppressor". 

It is also worth remembering that Cuba never sought to use its support for our struggle as the African continent for material gain or reward. Cuban solidarity has been a shining example of the highest form of revolutionary morality. 

South Africa and Cuba- From anti-colonial resistance to state-to-state cooperation

Thirdly, when South Africa gained political independence, the bond between Madiba and President Castro evolved to solidify comprehensive state-to-state relations.

This led to the signing of over thirty bilateral agreements covering such critical areas as health, agriculture, defense, education, science and technology, arts and culture, home affairs, infrastructure and public works and many others.

Furthermore, in platforms such as the United Nations, South Africa consistently voted in favour of the lifting of the immoral U.S. economic embargo and illegal blockade being imposed against Cuba and we continue to strengthen South-South Cooperation with Cuba through forums such as the Non-Aligned Movement and the Group of 77. 

Currently, Cuba is also one of several countries that have filed to join South Africa's legal action in defense of the people of Palestine at the International Court of Justice.

How do we advance the values of Madiba and Castro in the 21st century?

My fourth and final point, in the context of the challenges I have articulated, how do we advance the values of Madiba and President Castro today? There are a number of things I believe we must focus on.

1.    We must intensify and scale-up international solidarity with the Cuban people in all areas of scientific, technological, social, cultural, and economic life to ensure Cuba’s future is secured and its people are protected and can find pathways of prosperity. For this reason, I am committed for us to step up efforts for Cuban and South Africa science, technology and innovation cooperation in healthcare, renewable energy, food production and sovereignty, trade, and industrial development, following my visit to Cuba in 2024;

2.    We must make renewed efforts to strengthen Global South networks in which Cuba and South Africa participate alongside other progressive countries from the Global South, in order to scale up cooperation on alternative paths of development that put the interests of the people first, not predatory corporations and elites;  

3.    At a time when neo-liberal capitalism has plunged the world into a series of poly-crises on a virtually effort front of human existence– from financial collapse, climate destabilisation to unprecedented levels of global social dislocation and inequality –Cuban and South African scholars and intellectuals at our universities and think tanks must provide alternatives visions and models of progressive development. Surely the answers to the crisis of neo-liberal capitalism cannot be found within the system; 

4.    I think Cuba and South Africa need to cooperate specifically around the challenge of technological sovereignty– a critical challenge at a time when technology is increasingly being weaponised and used to advance narrow nationalist and outright imperialist interests. We clearly saw this during the 2019/20 global COVID-19 pandemic when anti-virals, vaccines and active pharmaceutical inputs were callously hogged by western nations with little if any care about the fate of nations of the South. Surely, based on these bitter lessons, it must be our obligation to work together to develop sovereign technological solutions that puts the interests of the people first; 

5.    In response to the Triple Planetary Crisis of the interlinked environmental challenges of climate change, biodiversity loss, and pollution environmentally, we need to strengthen regional and global scientific cooperation so as to strengthen the development of climate resilient technologies;

6.    As countries in the Global South, we need to develop resilient innovation ecosystems that will enable us to respond innovatively and proactively to the challenges and opportunities that come with emerging technologies such as Artificial Intelligence and Computing, Physical Systems and Robotics, Connectivity and Space; and  

7.    In the face of growing authoritarianism and the calculated attacks on multilateralism, we need to deepen progressive multilateralism by strengthening the architecture for cooperation and solidarity within the Global South.

In conclusion, the personal bond between Madiba and President Castro was not only predicated on their life-long struggle against injustice, but it was also fueled by their shared commitment to building a world wherein there will be no nation or group that will oppresses or impose itself will on another.

Viva Madiba! Viva President Castro! Hasta la victoria siempre!

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