Remarks Made During a Meeting with Delegations and Distinguished Guests from Eight Latin American Countries (May 8, 1960)  Chairman Mao Zedong expressed his gratitude to these friends for their friendship toward the Chinese people. The Chairman said that, like the peoples of Latin America, the Chinese people had long been subjected to oppression and exploitation by imperialism. Relying on their own unity and on the support of the peoples of all countries, the Chinese people waged a protracted and arduous struggle, ultimately overthrowing the rule of imperialism, feudalism, and bureaucratic capitalism in China. They are now engaged in building their own nation and transforming the country’s former state of poverty and backwardness. The Chinese people are fully confident that they can successfully build their country; to this end, they need time, peace, and friends.  The Chairman pointed out that the Cuban people, the peoples of Latin America, and the peoples of the entire world are all friends of the Chinese people, whereas imperialism and its lackeys constitute our common enemy—though they are few in number. He emphasized that the attainment of world peace depends primarily on the struggles of the peoples of all countries.  The Chairman voiced his admiration for the Cuban people’s heroic struggle against U.S. imperialism. He noted that the struggles of the Cuban people and those of other Latin American nations have assisted the Chinese people, just as the Chinese people’s own struggle has, in turn, aided Cuba and the peoples of other Latin American countries. The people are the decisive factor: by upholding popular unity and engaging in struggle, it is possible to defeat imperialism and its lackeys and secure lasting world peace.  Printed according to the news release in the People’s Daily of May 9, 1960.

Note [1] On the afternoon of May 8, 1960, Chairman Mao Zedong received in Zhengzhou delegations and prominent figures from eight Latin American countries who were currently visiting China. These included: a delegation from Chile’s United Workers’ Union; a delegation from Colombia’s Oil Workers’ Federation; a delegation from Costa Rica’s trade unions; a delegation from Ecuador’s Workers’ Federation; and distinguished representatives from cultural, educational, and political-legal circles of Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Ecuador, and Peru. Also present at the meeting were Major William Galvés Rodríguez, Chief Inspector of the Cuban Armed Forces, and his wife.