Cangamba, the spirit of resistance

Recollections of Hero of the Republic Fidencio González Peraza, chief of the Cuban-Angolan troops in this small African town

Dilbert Reyes Rodríguez

"ONE can never say everything about Cangamba," confides Colonel ® Fidencio González Peraza, Hero of the Republic of Cuba.

Too many memories assault the military chief 30 years after that epic battle, given that events were too intense in that remote area of Angola, won after eight days – although the artillery siege had begun a few months previously – by more than 80 Cubans and a larger group of national combatants, overcoming the powerful enemy offensive through superhuman courage and resistance.

Speaking of Cangamba, Peraza prefers the legacy, the symbol, rather than going into the chronological history of events between August 2 through 10, 1983. In any event, he relives it, in recalling every fallen compañero, every dawn under machinegun fire, the bloodiest trials, thirst and hunger…

"But we had the irrevocable conviction of resisting at all costs, in accordance with the teachings of Comandante en Jefe Fidel. Surrendering was never an option. We had learnt that from our finest patriotic traditions."

"For that reason, in the hardest moments, sown in the trenches, our most heartening moments were remembering [General Antonio] Maceo in combat, Comandante Almeida in Alegría de Pío. However depleted our forces, they always managed to shout at the enemy various times every night, "Here, no-one surrenders!" and a good few more swear words."

In Cangamba, the spirit of irrevocable resistance exceeded the limits of the humanly possible because, beyond winning a protracted battle, the critical position besieged at a distance of barely 20 meters by enemy forces, the irrational anguish of surviving without provisions or water, personal stories reveal heartbreaking chapters which, in the example of Colonel Peraza, prompt respect and tears.

"War is hard and difficult, that is well known, but for me, being in Angola for 29 months, the trials of our resistance presented themselves in tragic ways, beyond the dynamic of combat.

"For example, taking the decision to get out of the trench, having to use the mutilated body of a friend as a support; accepting the terrible chance occurrence of a missile which entered through the narrow ventilation of a tunnel and killed the doctor and other valiant men; or enduring a sudden bombardment alone in the refuge designed for the corpses of my young compañeros, while the idea hammered at my conscience: Goddamn, they are my dead! And it wasn’t for fear of death, but because they were my soldiers."

For Peraza, collective courage surpassed the defensive trenches of Cangamba, "The fact that the final victory was possible was also due to the essential support of the combat pilots; the Special Destination troops who weakened the siege; the military leadership of the Comandante en Jefe from Havana, and the high command in Angola; the inestimable letter to us from Fidel, asking for resistance at all costs, and confidence in the troops charged with the rescue."

"Even with so many efforts, we could have lost everything, even our lives, but never our dignity. Nor did the real possibility of death ever break our decision to resist, and in the end, we won."

Looking back 30 years later, Cangamba is no longer the name of a small African town, the battle which surprised him there when he had already completed his mission and handed over his command.

"Cangamba is a reflection of the spirit of resistance. That was our spirit, as the spirit of Cubans in the defense of just causes has always been." •

Pies de foto:

The Menongue Column (Armored Tank Detachment No. 2) left this city in the evening of August 6. I encountered large natural obstacles en route to Cangamba, the basic reason for its delay, and also experienced enemy action. On the 9th, when the enemy retreated from Cangamba, its members created the conditions for crossing the River Cuito.

The first task, after the victory, was to evacuate the wounded and the bodies of the dead.

Outside the house which served as the command post for the Cuban advisors, shortly after the end of the battle. From left to right: Captain Fernando Fuentes Rivero, Lieutenant Colonel Fidencio González Peraza and Major Diógenes Bell Sessé, with some of the weapons taken from the enemy and selected in order to send them to the Comandante en Jefe.

The state of the buildings in the inner ring indicates the intensity of the battle.

The command post of the Cuban advisors was converted into a medical post on August 3 and partially destroyed on the 7th by a mortar grenade fired by the enemy. The doctor, Lieutenant Luis Galván Soca, Captain Bernardo Rodríguez, Deputy Lieutenant Olivio C. Iznaga, and soldier Mario Enrique Pavón were killed in the explosion.

In order to facilitate unloading, the helicopters’ back exit was removed in the afternoon of the 4th at Menongue airport. They remained in this condition until the end of the operation.

GRANMA