Raúl Roa García (1907-1982), the "Chancellor of Dignity," was in Cuban Convention Center today. Along with his friends, co-workers and disciples, they all gathered to remember anecdotes and memorable episodes in his life as a student leader, university professor, intellectual, journalist and diplomat.

In a "Public Audience," convened by the Presidency of the Cuba National Assembly, homage was paid to the centennial of the outstanding revolutionary's birth. The life of Rao, who was the islands foreign minister from the victory of the 1959 revolution until his retirement in 1976, was discussed and analyzed. Particularly noted were the contributions he made to the history of the Cuban Revolution, with a unique style that was characterized by its distance from any and all types of formalism.

Disciple and friend Ricardo Alarcón, president of the National Assembly, recalled the "Doctor," as Roa was known in the hallways of the Ministry of Foreign Relations, and called on people to keep his memory alive and to follow his legacy and work.

After pointing out his participation in the so-called 1930 Revolution and in the overthrow of Gerardo Machado dictatorship, Alarcón noted that Roa defended the position of Cuba masterfully before the principal main international organizations of the time.

"More than speeches and formal praises," added Alarcón, "we should take advantage of Roa García as a source of education for our youth and leadership cadre "be they diplomats, representatives or in any other sphere" because he is a source of inspiration."

For Armando Hart, director of the National Office of the Jose Marti Program, one will not be able to write the history of Cuban diplomacy without mentioning Roa. Hart recalled the historic epoch of the Bay of Pigs when Roa made the UN General Assembly tremble when reaffirming the decision of the Cuban people to win or die trying.

Source: By Yailé Balloqui Bonzón, Juventud Rebelde