José Ramón Machado Ventura

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
José Ramón Machado Ventura
Second Secretary of the Communist Party of Cuba Central Committee
In office
19 April 2011 – 19 April 2021
LeaderRaúl Castro
Miguel Diaz-Canel
Preceded byRaúl Castro
Succeeded byPost Abolished
First Vice President of Cuba
In office
24 February 2008 – 24 February 2013
PresidentRaúl Castro
Preceded byRaúl Castro
Succeeded byMiguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez
Personal details
Born (1930-10-26) 26 October 1930 (age 91)
San Antonio de las Vueltas, Cuba
Political party26th of July Movement (1955-1962)
Communist Party of Cuba (1965–present)
ProfessionPhysician

José Ramón Machado Ventura, M.D. (born 26 October 1930) is a Cuban revolutionary and politician who was the First Vice President of the Council of State of Cuba from 2008 to 2013. With the election of Raúl Castro as President of Cuba on 24 February 2008, Machado was elected to succeed him as First Vice President, serving until 2013.[1] He was elected Second Secretary of the Communist Party of Cuba in 2011.[2]

Biography[]

Early life[]

José Ramón Machado was born in San Antonio de las Vueltas, in the former province of Las Villas, and was schooled in Camajuaní and Remedios.[3] He is a medical doctor by profession, graduating from the University of Havana in 1953. Machado joined the revolutionary movement immediately following Fulgencio Batista's coup d'état of 10 March 1952, while still a medical student, and was an early member of the 26th of July Movement opposing the dictatorship. Later, under the command first of Ernesto "Che" Guevara and subsequently of Fidel Castro, he was one of the original revolutionaries who fought the guerrilla war in the Sierra Maestra. In 1958, promoted to the rank of captain, he was sent to the province of Oriente under the command of Raúl Castro as part of the rebels' bid to open up a second front. There he was placed in charge of the guerrillas' medical service, establishing a network of hospitals and dispensaries, and was promoted to the rank of major "comandante" (top rank on Castro's rebel army).[1][4]

After the Cuban Revolution[]

Following the revolutionaries' victory on 1 January 1959, he was appointed the director of medical services in Havana and later served as the national Minister of Health from 1960 to 1967, during which time he was responsible for the development of the country's health sector.[3] In January 1968, reportedly in the aftermath of a personal conflict with Fidel Castro over the running of the health sector,[3] he was appointed to serve as the Politburo's delegate in the province of Matanzas. He remained in Matanzas until mid-1971; his administration of the province's economy and health sector was successful, particularly in terms of crop outputs, public transport and reduced infant mortality.[3] Upon leaving Matanzas in 1971, he was appointed first secretary of the Cuban Communist Party in the province of Havana and was elected to the Politburo in December 1975.

He is a member of the National Assembly of People's Power, representing the municipality of Guantánamo. In 2006, he became responsible for overseeing Cuba's international education programs.[1]

José Ramón Machado has been described as "a hardline communist ideologue and old guard revolutionary."[1]

On 10 January 2007, he represented Cuba at the inauguration of Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega.[1]

Machado was elected by the National Assembly of People's Power as First Vice-President of the Council of State on 24 February 2008, at the same time as Raúl Castro's election as President.[5][6]

On 19 April 2021, Machado retired from the Politburo of the Communist Party of Cuba following the .[7][8] However, the party's national newspaper Granma confirmed on April 21, 2021 that Machado still functioned as Second Secretary.[9] The position of Second Secretary has been abolished.

References[]

  1. ^ a b c d e "Factbox: Facts about Cuba's new No.2,MachadoVentura". Reuters. 24 February 2008. Retrieved 8 January 2014.
  2. ^ "Cuba's new leadership will have to deliver results fast". The Economist. 24 April 2021. Retrieved 22 April 2021.
  3. ^ a b c d "Los Culpables de Cuba: La Elite de Poder (Cuba's Guilty: The Powerful Elite)" (in Spanish). Gadcuba.org. Archived from the original on 2004-09-21.
  4. ^ "Elegido José Ramón Machado Ventura primer vicepresidente cubano (José Ramón Machado Ventura Chosen as First Cuban Vice President)" (in Spanish). Prensa Latina. Archived from the original on 2007-06-21.
  5. ^ "Results of Council of State elections". Havana: Granma International. 29 February 2008. Archived from the original on 17 September 2008.
  6. ^ "Raul Castro named Cuban president". Al Jazeera. February 25, 2008. Retrieved 8 January 2014.
  7. ^ "Díaz-Canel sucede a Castro al frente del Partido Comunista".
  8. ^ Marsh, Sarah; Acosta, Nelson (April 19, 2021). "Cuban President Diaz-Canel made Communist Party leader, ending Castro era". Reuters. Retrieved April 19, 2021.
  9. ^ Meneses, Yaima Puig (April 21, 2021). "Díaz-Canel chairs the Extraordinary Plenary of the Party in Havana (+ Video)". Retrieved April 21, 2021.

External links[]

Political offices
Preceded by First Vice President of Cuba
2008–2013
Succeeded by
Party political offices
Preceded by Second Secretary of the Communist Party of Cuba
2011–2021
Succeeded by
position abolished
Retrieved from ""