Fanny Garrison...Irish Writer

Havana Trump

Back in dreary Belfast it is hard to believe that I was speaking with Fidel Castro. But I was, and he spoke to me. He is good friends with a good friend of mine, Gerry Adams, and I had the distinct honour of standing near both of them while in Cuba on a short holiday break.

Cuba is a warm country, surrounded by a lot of water. It does not look much different from how it looked in the Godfather II. The sweet smell of cigars drifts above the heads of everyone, and the children all wave little Cuban flags. Luckily I had brought photos of schoolchildren in West Belfast waving their little tricolours with me, and I was able to give them to some schoolteachers I had met, who promised me that they would include Irish Republicanism in their curriculum.

All of this reminds me of some writing that I did while I was in Cuba. I'd like to share with you a few lines that to me best illustrate the feeling I had, being an Irishman, spending time in Cuba with my friends Fidel and Gerry.

Being in Cuba reminded me that Cuba has many heroes. Ireland also has many heroes, and many of them are dead. Gerry was in Cuba to honour the dead hunger strikers, who are heroes to many in Ireland and Cuba. Both Gerry and I knew the hunger strikers personally. It is a privilege to honour their memory here in Cuba, where it is warm and the beaches are beautiful. Whatever one thinks about Cuba, it is true that people here like people worldwide were moved and remember still the sacrifices of the Irish prisoners. Whatever one thinks about anything, people somewhere in the world were moved about something. That is important to remember, and being in Cuba talking with Fidel and Gerry reminded me of that.

I had the chance to listen to Fidel give an hour and a half long speech to an enthusiastic crowd. Again there were many people waving little Cuban flags. I watched them wave their flags with interest. Some of them waved their flags very fast, while others waved their little flags slowly. Others still waved their flags sometimes slowly and sometimes fast. All of this I watched while Fidel gave his hour and a half long speech. I saw that the people were listening, and I was listening, too - I shared a translator with Gerry as he and I were standing near each other listening to Fidel's hour and a half speech. The fact that people were listening shows how important it is that people listen.

There are a lot of people in Cuba with Irish roots.

And that is why I am here. Nollaig Shona Daoibh. Bliain Ur Faoi Mhaise Daoibh. Happy Christmas and a Happy New Year. Feliz Navidad.

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