Esteban Lazo receives the Order of Ho Chi Minh from Vietnam Author: Tony Hernandez Mena
Esteban Laso Hernandez, President of the National Assembly of People’s Power, received today in this capital the Order of Ho Chi Minh, one of the highest awards of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.
As the Assembly reports on its website, Vietnamese National Assembly President Vuong Dinh Hue presented the award to his Caribbean counterpart at a ceremony held in the Juarez Hall of the National Capitol.
I receive this order with great emotion and gratitude, an extraordinary honor given to me by the State of Vietnam, and I do this on behalf of the Cuban people, to whom we represent and to whom we owe, united – from the roots of Marti – to the heroic Vietnam, – said Lazo Hernandez.
In his speech, the Caribbean legislature recalled that the apostle José Martí was the first Cuban to speak of the greatness of the Indochinese people.
He emphasized the historical coincidence for both countries, since May 19 is the birthday of Ho Chi Minh (1890) and the fall in battle of the Cuban national hero (1895).
This coincidence could be a symbol of continuity between hard-working fighters and builders of hope, or perhaps a harbinger of an alliance between our peoples, the head of the Cuban parliament said.
Lazo Hernandez stressed that relations between Vietnam and Cuba have been influenced by leaders Fidel Castro and Ho Chi Minh for more than six decades.
He acknowledged the support of the party, the government, the National Assembly and the Vietnamese people in the face of the tightening economic, commercial and financial blockade imposed by the United States on the island over 60 years ago.
Before concluding his speech, he once again expressed his gratitude for the honor of receiving the award on behalf of the Cuban people.
The event was attended by Ana Maria Marie Machado and Homero Acosta Alvarez, Vice President and Secretary of Parliament respectively, as well as Yolanda Ferrer Gomez, Head of the Assembly’s Foreign Relations Commission, who were awarded the Order of Friendship of the brotherly Asian country.
Source: Juventud Rebelde