By Syara Salado Massip on March 15, 2023 in Havana
delegates from 14 countries at the Patria Colloquium. photo: Ismael Francisco
The emblematic “Che Guevara” hall of Casa de las Americas hosted, once again, the second edition of the International Colloquium “Homeland”. Organized by the Union of Cuban Journalists (UPEC) under the auspices of Casa de las Americas and Resumen Latinoamericano. The meeting brings together theorists, specialists, communicators, organizers and artists, who face every day a scenario where hate speech, disinformation and digital blockade prevail, but all with one thing in common: the passion for the truth.
With the participation of more than fifty guests from 14 countries, issues of communication, culture, education, disinformation and social networks were discussed. The meeting made it possible to articulate a joint plan of action to create tools for training, unity and knowledge to confront the digital imperialism that hides the progress and struggles of our peoples and especially the digital blockade affecting Cuba.
On this occasion, it was attended by two great international journalists: Patricia Villegas Marín, president of Telesur and Ghassan Ben Jeddou, president of Al Mayadeen Television. Both summarized the efforts of journalists, filmmakers, communicators, editors and workers to bring the truth that imperialism denies to our peoples. The spirit of José Martí, 131 years after the founding of the newspaper Patria, was present during the two days of debate.
Final Declaration of the Second International Colloquium “Patria”
The blockade against Cuba, an illegal policy of economic asphyxiation promoted and sustained by the United States, has reached a new level with the offensive of digital imperialism. One of the least visible forms of this situation is the digital blockade which implies much more than an act of censorship and exclusion, it is a restriction to individual and collective development, to the formation of citizenship, to integral participation in human development. This blockade operates in both directions, it not only obstructs access to culture for the people of Cuba, it also prevents the rest of the world from knowing the social, cultural and political alternatives based on solidarity and brotherhood that nurture Cuban history.
That is why journalists, intellectuals, activists and politicians from 14 countries gathered for two days of intense debate at the Second International Colloquium “Homeland”, held in Havana, call on the media, organizations, governments and companies to join in condemning the blockade, which has intensified in recent years, and to take action in favor of Cuba, its people and its future. Breaking the blockade is not only a necessity for Cuba, but also for international law, the essential exchange of all countries with an island that in the face of a global crisis did everything possible to save its people and help others by sending doctors and vaccines.
We also propose to strengthen the communication networks of our peoples and to design strategies for public intervention in the face of the proliferation of disinformation campaigns and attacks on those who militate in the popular movements of Latin America and the Caribbean, and in general of the global South. We also agreed to develop a comprehensive program of research and political education that will allow us to better understand the complex situation we are going through as an indispensable stage in our struggle against imperialism and the ambition of the big information corporations.
The process of capitalist accumulation has given rise to a depredation of the world that now seems uncontrollable. In this moment of almost terminal crisis, where life is seriously threatened, the Cuban people embody a promising bifurcation of the model of Western civilization where possibilities of a livable future for all humanity nest.
– Cuban Press Day, Casa de las Americas, March 14, 2023
Source: Cuba en Resumen