PEOPLE READ EVEN MACHIAVELLI?"
Castro's Speech to the Bank Workers
The following is a translation of the text of a speech made by Fidel Castro at a meeting of bank employees in Havana February 4:
ou 4% Companero Bank Workers,
Although time does not happen to be what we have most of, I accepted with pleasure the invitation to attend the closing meeting ‘of this assembly in view of the brilliant work that has been accom~ plished on this front of the Revolution.
For my part I can add very little to what has been explained here by the director of the National Bank,.Companero Marcelo Ferndndez; I believe he has made a very instructive and eloquent presen= tation .of the big process of change that has taken place in this sector of our economy, and above all has shown many of the advantages which a socialist bank has over a capitalist bank; he demonstrated many of the advantages of a planned economy with regard to a whole series of questions, above all those referring to the rational use of resources and labor power in contrast to the private banking system, And because of this his report is worth being studied and analyzed, since it presents many details of the progress that has been made w= step by step -- in this field,
I, for my part, made some calculations on the significance, for example, of the savings made in the matter of personnel through the rationalization of the enterprises, and came me) with a figtre of 5,000,000 pesos a year. Many of these companeros have been working in other areas where a need was felt; others are studying; others, a small number, have been laid off; and twenty-five per cent ~- it wassaid =~ can be placed elsewhere, and because of this we have to find a way to transfer them where thei> labor will be more productive,
But this means a lot and says a lot about how the Revolutionary : Administration has been progressing ~- the fact that in a single sec» tor 5,000,000 pesos a year are being ‘saved. And with this 5,000,000 — pesos many things can be done, With 5,000,000 pesos it is possible to underwrite the costs, for example, of sending something like 10,000 children to primary school; with 5,000,000 pesos we can establish a thousand new classes; with 5,000, 000 pesos we.can plant 2,000 caba- Isrias [66,666 acres] of sugar cane, which, cultivated well, at a
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price of six centavos, signifies more than 30,000,000 pesos. (Applause,) And 30,000,000, pesos can buy many things] Translated, for example, into cloth, it would correspond to practically four and a half square meters per person, (Applause,) Translated into toys, candy, wine, it would signify a Christmas like we have known and even incomparably better. Converted into agricultural equipment, it would signify thousands of agricultural machines, This is what is meant by rationalization of labor3 this is what is meant by the adequate utilization of resources{ And this has been gained in a single sec~= tor, . And because of this it must serve as an example and a model in the Year of the Economy, And it is very good, of course, that this ~ example should be set by the bank workers, ss
Companero Marcelo said, very eloquently, that you can have a bank without a banker, but not without bank workers, This is true, And you are not bankers; you are bank workers, But for those who ne still wasteful about things, you have to be bankers (applause), order to carry out the functions that. the banking system has in our economy, which are those enumerated by Companero Marcelo in his report,
Cuban Economic Perspectives
The perspectives for our country are extremely brilliant; the real. possibility of being able within ten years to produce 10,000,000 tons annually, the prices that have been gained, the guaranteed mar kets which our country has and, above all, the possibility of doing this by solving the problem of the mechanization of cane cutting,
These two facts in themselves ~- the Sugar Agreement with the . Soviet Union and the mechanization of the sugar cane harvest, are two factors of extraordinary importance for our economy and for our future which must inspire everyone, To be able to reach a production of 10,000,000 tons of sugar, at good prices, means a basis for our country £0 develop all that it needs; it means a basis for utilizing our national resources and our human resources.
The mechanization of cutting, added to the mechanization of planting and cultivating cane, which we must complete, will make it possible to produce up to 7, 000, 000 tons without employing more than _ 15,000 workers in the fields, “ine Luding the "zafra" [sugar-cane harvest] and all. Of course on "hilly land these machines can't be used and we have to work out a system of semimechanization, But this will give an idea of what it will mean in riches and well-being ~~ the correct utilization of labor power which we now lack; everything that we can devote to the country's economy increating wealth, employing men well, labor power, machines, which when they are not needed in agriculture are needed in construction, in the factories, on all fronts, Our economy will improve,
In relation to our visit to the Soviet Union, the enemies of the Revolution were saying that one of the reasons for our trip was to
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take up a failure to carry out the sugar. agreements so as to be able to dispose of this: sugar on the world market, They were way off the right track, One of our reasons for going to the Soviet Union was pre=cisely to show our satisfaction over the certainty that we would be able this year to send more sugar than last year, Last year a certain amount of. sugar destined for the Soviet Union was. diverted in order ‘to live up to other agreements, However, this year. we were able to assure the Soviet Union, with whom we carry on the major volume of our trade, that we would send not 1,000,000 tons of sugar like iast year, put, 1,600,000 tons,
For us it is a great satisfaction to be able to carry out our economic promises. And, in addition, we will be able to carry out our agreements to supply various countries with sugar as a result of an improvement in attention to agriculture and to work in general,
When we were in a situation where we decided we had to divert sugar, we were just establishing the basis for long-range trade, of optimum profits for our country, which, in addition, would set a model that would be of interest to all the underdeveloped countries, ‘to all those that have to sell their products, who have never had sure markets and stable prices,
The perspectives for our economy are magnificent, “not only in| this respect, but because we have natural resources to develop which can mean an even better income for our country than a "zafra" of: 10,000,000 tons would signify. This would be the case if we develop our Livestock to the maximum, This would signify resources for all the other plans: of the Revolution,
We have gained in experience, Many cadres have been formed, because there is something that is not visible -- as in a building, or in a factory --which is the accumulation of experience, the cadres that are formed, Pirate Raiders of Fishing Boats
In this way the Revolution has been overcoming obstacles, has been overcoming the blockade, And in recent months, a series of things have occurred which show that the whole policy of blockading our country is coming to pieces, How are the Yankee imperialists reacting? The way defeated people react, the way impotent people react, the way frustrated people react.
Right now, at the present time, we have been given good proof of this, While the blood spilled in Panama was still fresh, they committed another crime, the seizure of four fishing boats that were not in North American jurisdictional waters, which were fishing in a zone in which our boats have fished before, at least two miles away from where the jurisdictional waters begin «= five miles from the nearest tiny . key. Nevertheless, they boarded them; they seized them, Thirty-eight of our fellow countrymen were taken prisoners there in an act of arbi-~ trary, illegal force.
But these are things which the impericlists do with their policy that is becoming more ond more stupid, And when they do such things, you wonder, "Haventt those people read even Machiavelli, even Machi~ avelli?" (Leughter,) Because Machiavelli said,. "When you must do -injury to someone, do it in such a way that he Gantt retaliate, -or dontt do it." And this is an injury which does no injury whatever to our economic - order 3 it is not going to hinder the thrust of our econ= omy; it is not going to hinder the thrust of our fishing fleet, It is simply 2 provocative act, .an irritating act, but a stupid act, from which they are already reaping ~~ but an abundant, a very abundant harvest -- from ell the stupidities which they he ve been committing in all parts of the world, He who sows stupidities also gathers storms, (Applause,)
How have the imperialists ended up? As pirates, as raiders of fishing boats}! A symptom of a system in complete decadence, Because the imperialists are getting kicked out of all parts of the world, And we can witness this process serenely, tranquilly, because we know that this is their inoéxorable destiny, This can only cover them with more opprobium, reduce their prestige still more, if it is possible to reduce ths prestige of imperialism any lower than it is,
Our country has protested this arbitrary, vandalistic, piratical act.,. It has presented a complaint before the Security Council, place ing before the Secretary General of the United Nations a demand for the veturn of the boats and the release of our fellow countrymen.
But with these companeros, humble fishermen, kidnapped by the imperialists =~ who, naturally, are not big landlords, big million= aires like those they have granted asylum there -- with these thirtyeight fishermen, workers of the sea, who were peacefully carrying out their task of bringing more fish, more food for our population w- which is what distressed the imperialists -- our entire nation is expressing solidarity,
And we are sure that the imperialists will have no other remurse but to release them, We are surc that before world public opinion they will not be able to justify an act proper to bandits. And because of this, once again, we feel we have the full right to tell them that they are utter bandits, (Applause, ) This won't make the least impression, not the slightest impression, on them. What , bhey are doing is to make themselves more and more ridiculous, and to show themselves up more and more, Their acts nave not been able to hinder, and will be increasingly lcss able to hinder, the victorious process of the Revolution, the rise of our economy, the triumph of our efforts, the triumph of our system, which just as it is today showing its superiority in the banks, will increasingly show it on all the fronts of labor,
And it is the legitimate reward for the efforts of a people that struggles; it is the legitimate reward of a people that does not take away anything from anybody, that works honestly ond thet has had the valor and the will to defend its right to a bettcr future, its right
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to a better destiny.
Because of this, this nocomplishment -- the results of efforts on this front of labor -- merits congratulations from the whole nation; it merits being taken as an example by the other sectors of our admin= istration end our cconomy, And with. this, in the neme of the Revolutionery Government and in the namc of our party, we congratulate the bank workcrs sector and we congratulate the leaders of this sector «= trade unionists as well as administrators ---and we congratulate Come ‘panero Mercelo, who-has taken the place of another companhero, well loved and well remembered, who diced carrying out his duty, Companero | Cepero Bonille.
Patria o Muertc}! [Country or doath.]
“Venceremos! [We will win. ]
(Ovation, )
NEW IDEA SENT TO WHITE HOUSE ~ One of Johnson's great steps forward in carrying on Kennedy!s New ‘Frontier was opening a