The streets of the city of Ciego de Ávila were illuminated on Friday night with the fire of hundreds of torches, in a march of young people called to not let the legacy of José Martí die.

The action, which took place within the framework of the 70th anniversary of the first March of the Torches, also had the objective of celebrating the 170th anniversary of the birth of the National Hero of Cuba and the 34th anniversary of the creation of the Martí Youth Movement (MJM).

We are marching to demonstrate that the defense of our America and the unity of the Cuban people is a duty of all of us, Alejandro Cosme Quiñones, a member of the MJM provincial executive, told the Cuban News Agency.

The youth leader stressed that Martí has ​​become a nourishing sap for the thought of each new generation of Cubans and a necessary inspiration for unity, truth and sacrifice of all those who feel as patriotic people.

Pedro Julio Gandia Muñoz, provincial president of the Federation of High School Students, highlighted that for days the students from Ciego de Ávila have been engaged in making many of the torches that were used in the activity.

The historian Ángel Cabrera pointed out the historical significance of the date and urged that the institutions committed to safeguard the Martí legacy have a greater presence in the territory's media.

At the end of the march, the participants camped in the Máximo Gómez Revolution Square, where each student organization and youth movement had their space to present initiatives aimed at celebrating the anniversary of the Apostle's birth.

The member of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Cuba and first secretary of that political formation in Ciego de Ávila, Liván Izquierdo Alonso; Tomás Alexis Martín Venegas, governor of the province; and Nailyn Machado Ávila, first secretary of the Union of Young Communists in Ciego de Ávila, participated in the march.This Saturday morning, a Martí pioneer parade will take place through the streets of the city of Ciego de Ávila, as a tribute from the José Martí Students Organization to the most universal of Cubans.

The first March of the Torches was organized in Havana by a group of young people from the Centennial Generation and it took place on January 27, 1953, in the context of the military dictatorship of Fulgencio Batista.