Nobel laureate, Professor Wole Soyinka, has been awarded the Haydee Santamaria Medal by Miguel Diaz-Canel, first secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Cuba and President of the Republic, on behalf of Cuba and at the proposal of the Minister of Culture.
As reported by the Presidency on X, Jorge Fornet, director of the Center for Literary Research of Casa de las Americas, in his remarks of praise, said that awarding Soyinka the medal that bore the name of that extraordinary woman was an act of justice that honoured them.
After the ceremony, Diaz-Canel held a meeting with Soyinka, where he gave thanks for the visit in such a complex moment for Cuba.
It is the visit of a brother who has always been fighting for the most just causes, the president noted.
The Haydee Santamaria Medal is conferred on national and foreign citizens and groups who, over the years, have shared the main objectives of the Casa: the enrichment, defense and integration of the genuine cultures of the region and the entire South.
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The event also celebrated Wole Soyinka’s 90th birthday and the 60th anniversary of his first visit to Cuba, where he had returned on several occasions.
Soyinka, who, during the tribute had stated that “Cuba is also my home”, referred during the meeting to the strong ties that united the island and Africa.
