Havana, Cuba.- Havana residents today commemorate the 61st anniversary of the triumphant entrance to the capital of the Caravan of Liberty, led by Fidel Castro.

According to historic reports, the Caravan left the eastern province of Santiago de Cuba on January 2, and triumphantly travelled along the Central Highway across the country, after the Rebel Army dealt the final blow to the Fulgencio Batista dictatorship (1952-1958).

The journey of about 1,000 kilometers to the capital lasted six days and millions of men, women and children eagerly waited to see the heroes dressed in olive green, with thick beards and rifles in hand pass by.

About 1,000 fighters, including members of the Jose Marti Column One of the Sierra Maestra, accompanied the leader of the Rebel Army during the journey from the East to Havana.

Flowers were thrown from balconies and along Havana’s Paseo del Prado avenue, its Malecon, and the Vedado district, where huge crowds gathered to celebrate the triumph of the Cuban Revolution.

Every year, in the outskirts of the capital, in the municipality of Cotorro to what is today Ciudad Libertad (former military Columbia Camp), residents recall the events of 1959, when the distinguished guerrilla leader arrived here to confirm the triumph of a Revolution aimed at consolidating the true independence of the country.

There, Fidel assured those present that the Revolution had among its goals to guarantee the freedom and full sovereignty of the nation, but above all, to ensure the welfare of the people, oppressed for years by corrupt governments which were always manipulated by the US.