70 years ago, the guerrilla leader who organized the attempted surprise capture of two military fortresses in eastern Cubabecame accused the tyranny of the dictator Fulgencio Batista (1952–1959), whomm he criticized for his crimes and anger against the peopleon the island.
After the siege of the barracks in Santiago de Cuba and Bayamoon July 26, 1953, the revolutionary leader faced atrocities from the former ruler,, who ordered the execution of 10 prisoners for every soldier killed in armed action.
at order will be carried out immediately and will end the lives of more than 50 revolutionaries who were tortured and killed in the dungeons of Moncada, in its outer areas,, and around the city.
Under pressure from the Batista regime, attempts at intimidation, censorship of the press,, and acts that violate the law, Fidel Castro admitted self-defense in the trial of Case No. 37 of 1953, which will forever be known by the last sentence of his allegation: “Historyll absolve me.”
The arguments of the Cuban guerilla broke the reality of the country at that time in the economic, political, and social order, revealing major social problems.
In this scenario, the leader of the armed action described, in his opinion, the six fundamental problems that must be solved immediately once the revolutionary victory is achieved: land, housing, health, education, unemployment, and industrialization.
In the same way, he outlined five laws that must be implemented after the success of the July 26 movement. In summary, restore sovereignty and proclaim the 1940 Constitution, granting immovable land ownership to all settlers, sub-settlers, and tenants occupying land plots of five caballerÃas or less (promotion of cooperatives).
To this, he added giving workers and employees the right to participate in thirty percent of the profits of large industrial, commercial, and mining companies, which included sugar mills.
In addition to giving all settlers a 55 percent share of the sugarcane harvest and a quota of 40 thousand arrobas,
In his self-defense, Fidel Castro announced the confiscation of property from all embezzlers, a radical step that would be supported by an agrarian reform, a comprehensive education reform, and the nationalization of consortiums of electricity and telephone.
That arsenal of truths, said with dignity and eloquence, will go beyond our days as the Moncada Program, where the causes, objectives, principles, and methods of the struggle of the coming period will be determined.
For posterity, the closing phrase of his memorable plea is recorded as an expression of his willingness to face the dangers that arise in prison: “Condemn me, it doesn’t matter, history will forgive me. “
