Fidel Castro returns to Santa Clara for historic 1996 visit

On September 30, 1996, Fidel Castro returned to Santa Clara, Cuba, for a significant public appearance after a twenty-year absence from addressing the city. The visit was organized following a suggestion by Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez, who was then the First Secretary of the PCC in the province, to hold an event at the Plaza del Che.

Despite heavy rainfall that threatened to deter the public, a large crowd gathered to meet the leader. Upon seeing the massive turnout, Castro remarked on the scale of the crowd, stating, ‘the things are not done for a man, the things are done for an idea.’