More Than 500 People Commemorate the Centenary of Fidel Castro’s Birth at the Cuban Embassy in Mexico

ByJosé Shaddai Olvera Torres

This article by José Shaddai Olvera Torres originally appeared in the August 15, 2026 edition of El Chamuco y los Hijos del Averno, Mexico’s iconic political satire magazine.

The Cuban Embassy in Mexico commemorated this Thursday the centenary of the birth of Commander in Chief Fidel Castro Ruz with an event that brought together more than 500 people and that reaffirmed the historic ties of friendship and solidarity between Cuba and Mexico.

The diplomatic mission welcomed federal deputies, representatives of the Secretariat of Foreign Relations (SRE), members of the diplomatic corps accredited in Mexico, the general secretary of Morena, members of the Vanegas family, organizations and movements in solidarity with Cuba, members of the Association of Cubans Residing in Mexico, representatives of political parties, graduates from Cuba, business owners, journalists, academics, intellectuals, artists, Cuban medical collaborators serving in Mexico, and numerous friends of the island.

Representing the Mexican Foreign Secretariat, Carlos Imanol Belausteguigoitia Reyes, director general for Central America and the Caribbean at the SRE, emphasized that Mexico and Cuba share 124 years of relations marked by friendship and solidarity.

The official recalled that Mexico has provided aid to Cuba and has served as a bridge to channel humanitarian assistance from third countries. He also recognized the capacity for struggle, solidarity, ingenuity, and resilience demonstrated by the Cuban people throughout their history.

During the event, federal deputy Dolores Padierna, deputy coordinator of Morena’s parliamentary group in the Chamber of Deputies, highlighted the influence of the Cuban Revolution and of Fidel Castro in Latin America, as well as the relevance of his thought in the face of current challenges.

“To speak of Fidel is to speak of Cuba,” the legislator said, affirming that the revolutionary leader’s legacy remains relevant because many of the problems he identified are still present and because the current times demand new forms of resistance.

Padierna added that, on the hundredth anniversary of his birth, the figure of Fidel Castro “grows larger” and continues to inspire solidarity with the Cuban people.

For his part, the ambassador of Cuba in Mexico, Eugenio Martínez Enríquez, took up words from the Cuban president, Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez, who has said that remembering the Commander in Chief “is not to manage nostalgia,” but because his thought remains a guide for confronting Cuba’s current challenges.

The diplomat highlighted Fidel Castro’s ability to anticipate historic events and asserted that his main legacy is a people who are “dignified, noble, brave, and in solidarity,” as well as a sovereign, secure nation determined to defend its rights.

The sin of being free and sovereign is a hard-won right that we Cubans will never renounce.

Eugenio Martínez Enríquez, Ambassador of Cuba in Mexico

He also thanked the president of Mexico, Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo, for the moral and material support given to Cuba, and maintained that the future of the island will continue to be marked by resistance, struggle, and international solidarity.

“The flag of the lone star, high and worthy of the Cubans, cannot fall and will not fall,” the ambassador said.

As part of the commemoration, the Cuban duo Buena Fe offered a musical performance before those in attendance.

The ceremony concluded with a symbolic moment in which those present sang Las Mañanitas and shared the cakes prepared to celebrate the hundred years of Fidel Castro’s birth, in a day that reaffirmed the relevance of his memory and the attendees’ commitment to solidarity between Mexico and Cuba.