Senior Advocates of Nigeria (SAN) and Human Rights Activist, Femi Falana has advised South Africa to learn humanism from the people and Government of Cuba.
We thank the people of Cuba for the lessons in solidarity and resilience.
Falana made the advice even as the President of Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Comrade Ayuba Wabba, commended the people of Cuba for the lessons in solidarity and resilience; and called on the United States and its western allies to lift the economic blockade against the people of Cuba.
Speaking at the on-going sixth Cuba-Africa Regional Conference in Abuja, Falana took a swipe at the people and government of South Africa for not speaking against Afro phobia and Xenophobia; saying that the South Africa communist party must condemn it to show that they are learning from Cuba.
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He said: “The South African comrade said we must learn humanism from Cuba. South Africa must learn humanism from Cuba. We must not leave the catholic bishops to speak against Afro phobia and Xenophobia. South Africa communist party must condemn afro-phobia and xenophobia because that is the only way we can show that we are learning humanism from Cuba.”
The Deputy General Secretary (DGS ), South African Communist Party, Comd. Chris Matlhako, had while giving a solidarity message stated that Africans must learn humanism from the people of Cuba.
But to the Senior Advocate of Nigeria, South Africa Government and its people must be the first to learn humanism from Cuba; in the face of recent attacks and killings of other African nationals in South Africa, leading to the evacuation of about a million Nigerians from that country.
Falana explained further that when there were Ebola crises in West Africa, “western countries humiliated us and subjected us to terrible insults, but Cuba sent a plane of 400 doctors and other medical personals to attack Ebola and Cuba defeated Ebola.”
He added: “We must decide today; we must ensure we defeat the forces of the blockade of Cuba. The forces that are trying to destroy other countries like Venezuela and the last colonial country in Africa, Western Sahara must be freed by all of us.”
Meanwhile, he pointed out that Cuba has been praised for assisting Africa, and therefore the African-Cuban Solidarity movement and their people must now go beyond that; saying, “the greatest killer apart from poverty is malaria. While the western countries insist that we must buy a mosquito net, today we must decide. We are going to ask Cuba to come to Africa to eliminate malaria, abolish malaria and not control malaria.
“Since 1967, when Cuba abolished malaria, nobody has died of malaria in that tropical country like our own. If you travel to Cuba today, and you are found with malaria, you will be quarantined and treated like you have Ebola.
“While we go to some countries to die because our own health facilities have collapsed, Cuba is ahead of the west in many areas of medicine including cancer. America, despite the blockade, is currently collaborating with Cuba in order to put an end to the danger that cancer has constituted to the entire world.”
Also, the NLC President, Comrade Wabba said Africans cannot be said to show true affinity with Cuba if the continent is still finding it difficult to evolve homegrown solutions to our challenges without running cap in hand to countries that visited the continent with the worst crimes imaginable.
Wabba said: “We are not in true solidarity with Cuba if we fail to show love to other Africans. The recent xenophobic attacks, or rather afro-phobic attacks, would not have happened if we truly share in the Cuban ideals of shared humanity. Now is the time to show by our deeds and not just words that we truly share friendship and solidarity with the Cuban people.”
He pointed out that the inspiration for the Cuba Africa Regional meetings and conference is to re-emphasise and consolidate the age-long friendship, solidarity and historical ties between the people of Cuba and Africa.
The motivation for the meetings, according to Wabba, is to affirm international support and solidarity with Cuba and “demand respect for Cuba’s right to self-determination and sovereignty and their right to pursue the political system of their choice”.
He added: “Even in the post-colonial history of Africa, Cuba has continued to play very crucial roles to expand the frontiers of friendship and solidarity with its African brothers and sisters. When Ebola pandemic broke out in Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone, Cuba did not hesitate to send in her medical personnel and medical kits and facilities to manage and halt the spread of the Ebola virus.
“Many Africans were saved as a result of that intervention by Cuba. In many of our African cities even here in Nigeria, we can still find Cuban doctors, nurses and teachers who are still rendering humanitarian services and care to the African people.”
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