After three days of coordinating projects, experiences, and communication strategies to create, together with the public, a space for ideological debate, the 1st Granma-Rebelde International Festival concluded yesterday in Havana.
At the closing ceremony, attended by Yudí Rodríguez Hernández, member of the Secretariat of the Party's Central Committee and head of its Department of Services, and Yuniasky Crespo Baquero, member of the Central Committee and head of the Ideological Department, the newspaper Juventud Rebelde was recognized for its 60 years of history and activism with Cuba and with the young people reflected in its pages.
In his report on the event, Yuniel Labacena Romero, editor-in-chief of Juventud Rebelde, said that the Festival had established itself as a "massive and open space that successfully integrated debate, cultural expression, the fair's offerings, and direct community participation."
Yoerky Sánchez Cuellar, editor-in-chief of the Granma newspaper, announced the second meeting, which will take place next year, and pointed out that one of the main conclusions that stands out is the need to continue defending peace in the face of illegal blockades and the direct threat of imperialism.
According to Labacena Romero, the true magnitude of the Festival was evident not only in the participation figures, but also in the quality of popular interaction and the combination of political and cultural activities, which allowed the people and the media—both national and international—to shape a collaborative communication project for a better possible world.
The event was also attended by Emilio Lozada García, head of the CCPCC's International Relations Department; Roberto Pérez Jiménez, head of the Organization Department; and Meyvis Estévez Echevarría, first secretary of the National Committee of the Young Communists Union.
