Representatives of the new generations of Cubans together with veteran combatants of the Rebel Army reenact today the entrance of those troops to this capital in 1959 under the command of Fidel Castro.

The historic event, which took place a few days after the triumph of the guerrilla forces over the tyranny of Fulgencio Batista (1952-1959), allowed the first direct contact of the population with the uniformed revolutionaries and their leader.

Such triumphal tour of about a thousand combatants consolidated 65 years ago the victory of the rebel troops and announced to the country the beginning of a new stage of profound transformations.

As on that occasion, this convoy departed on January 2 from the eastern city of Santiago de Cuba, and passed through the territories of Bayamo, Las Tunas, Camagüey, Ciego de Avila, Santi Spíritus, Santa Clara, Cienfuegos and Matanzas, to reach Havana.

In each place the participants in this re-edition of the Caravan paid tribute to the heroes of that epic and reaffirmed the commitment of Cuban youth to continue with the revolutionary process that has been driving the nation since then.

On January 8, 1959, in the former military camp of Columbia, today Libertad School City, Fidel Castro said that the island was beginning an era full of difficulties and threats:

Tyranny has been overthrown. The joy is immense. And yet, there is still much to be done. Let us not fool ourselves into believing that everything will be easy in the future; perhaps everything will be more difficult, he said at the time.

He also expressed his confidence in the capacity of the Cuban people to face such challenges with the purpose of building a just society, in a sovereign nation.