On October 23, the 55th anniversary of the National Revolutionary Militias (MTT) – officially October 26 - was celebrated in a cultural-political act in the José Martí Technical Military Institute, which has been decorated with An­tonio Maceo and Carlos J. Finlay Orders. During the ceremony Lieutenant Ernesto Mar­cos López, squad leader of the MTT 120 Battalion, commented on the organizations historic roots with the formation of the Malagones and later its development and decisive role in the battle of Playa Girón, serving the country wherever it has needed them.

In the name of the present and future generations Mar­cos promised to exert all efforts to ensure that the country’s struggle remains the most complete expression of the Cuban Military Doctrine, as the “guarantor of the nation’s military invincibility and safety of the homeland.”

Division General, Ro­berto Legrá Sotolongo, director of the General M­á­xi­mo Gómez Academy of the Revolutionary Armed Forces (FAR), Antonio Maceo Order, recalled how the first and emblematic squad of militias - the Malagones - was formed.

The ceremony was presided by members of the Political Bureau of the Party Central Committee; General Álvaro López Miera, first vice minister of the FAR and head of General staff; and Mercedes López Acea, a vice president of the Council of State and first secretary of the Party Provincial Committee in Havana

Among the invited guests was the accredited Diplomatic Military Body, in addition to members of the militia, students from Ca­milo Cienfuegos military academies, and representatives from FAR higher education institutions.