Pretoria - The recently released Cuban Five will visit South Africa next month to express support for SA's leading role in raising international solidarity with their plight.
Rene Gonzales, Ramon Labanino, Gerardo Hernandez, Antonio Guerrero and Fernando Gonzales were arrested and convicted in the US in 1998 for espionage.
The last three of the former Cuban intelligence operatives, who were found guilty of spying on the United States, were released in a prisoner swap last year.
The tripartite alliance of the ANC, SACP and Cosatu have been expressing support for the global movement for their release.
Cuban ambassador to SA, Carlos Fernandez de Cossio, told the Gauteng SACP provincial congress today that they would be coming to South Africa to express their appreciation for support given over the years.
“They are coming here because South Africa has always been in solidarity with Cuba at played a leading role in the global movement for their release,” said de Cossio.
The provincial SACP is holding its provincial congress in Benoni this weekend, where it will elect new leadership.
Deputy national chairman Thulas Nxesi is currently addressing congress, where he is lamenting, among others, the party's failure to lead grassroots struggles.
According to Nxesi, the alliance faced was facing the danger of curruption and the use of state resources for political gain.
Pretoria News