Sandino Asturias, grandson of the renowned writer and co-president of the Foundation, visited the headquarters of this communication medium in Havana, where he spoke with its president, Luis Enrique González, about the possibility of promoting collaboration based on the historical relationship between the author of “El señor Presidente” and Prensa Latina.
The also coordinator of the Center for Studies on Guatemala recalled that his grandfather was one of the Latin American intellectuals who, at the triumph of the Cuban Revolution, in 1959, supported the creation of Prensa Latina and defended the need for its existence in the face of attacks from the United States.
From those years he highlighted the strong ties established with the Cuban intelligentsia, with journalist Jorge Ricardo Masetti, founder of the agency; and with Haydée Santamaría, in charge of Casa de las Américas, an institution that has always promoted the work of the great writers of the continent.
Both parties agreed to promote the exchange of information and photographs and possible projects were evaluated for the assembly of exhibitions on the relationship of Asturias with Cuba and for the presentation of some of his books on the Caribbean island.
The Guatemalan academic stressed that, in addition to rescuing the figure of the prominent journalist and diplomat, another of the Foundation’s priorities is to encourage awareness of his anti-imperialist thinking.
In this regard, he drew attention to the recent relaunching of works that address this issue, such as Week-end in Guatemala (1956), and the so-called Banana Trilogy, on the exploitation of indigenous people on plantations, made up of the novels Viento fuerte ( 1950), The Green Pope (1954) and The Eyes of the Buried (1960).
He warned that within his prolific literary production, his grandfather addressed the situation in Latin America during the era of military dictatorships, on the intervention of the United States in Central America and especially in Guatemala.
Sandino Asturias signified that the new Foundation is very interested in reactivating ties with Cuba, which is why this Friday he will also meet at Casa de las Américas with its president, Abel Prieto; at the Fidel Castro Center with its director, René González; and will visit the headquarters of the Creart channel, of the Ministry of Culture.
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