Gerardo Hernández is the new head of the Committees for the Defense of the Revolution

September 7, 2020

The members of the National Board of the Committees for the Defense of the Revolution approved the release by renewal of comrade Carlos Rafael Miranda Martínez from his responsibility as National Coordinator of the CDR, a position he had held for more than nine years.

The outgoing coordinator was recognized for his ascending trajectory in the organization, his constancy and dedication. He will be assigned other tasks.

To occupy the position of National Coordinator of the CDR organization, comrade Gerardo Hernández Nordelo was elected, who had been serving as Vice National Coordinator.

Gerardo, 55 years old, holds a degree in International Relations. He holds the status of Hero of the Republic of Cuba and has a fruitful political and revolutionary trajectory, holding various responsibilities since his student years.

He completed an internationalist mission in the People's Republic of Angola, where he stood out for his bravery and determination in several combat missions. He has been decorated with the medals of International Fighter and For the Friendship Cuba-People's Republic of Angola, as well as with the Order Playa Girón.

In the mid-nineties, he completed missions in the United States, aimed at preventing terrorist actions against Cuba. After serving more than 16 years in prison in that country, he returned to Cuba in 2014. He has high recognition and influence among our people. He is a deputy to the National Assembly of People's Power in its 9th Legislature.

To perform the position of Vice National Coordinator, comrade Vladimir Sauri Bermúdez was elected, until now Provincial Coordinator of the Committees for the Defense of the Revolution in Havana.

The Second Secretary of the Central Committee of the Party, José Ramón Machado Ventura, participated in the expanded meeting of the National Secretariat of the CDR, where the vote concluded, which was carried out by the rest of the members of the National Board, in their provinces of residence.

Hernández Nordelo, 55 years old, considered the leader of the five Cuban agents of the regime who were imprisoned in the United States for espionage, was until now vice national coordinator of the CDR. He is currently a deputy to the National Assembly of People's Power.

The CDR were created in the 1960s by Fidel Castro with the objective that they be "the eyes and ears of the Revolution" in the neighborhoods. In practice it was an effective system that for decades led neighbors to watch and denounce each other.

Hernández Nordelo in recent months has been a promoter of the movement to plant patios and plots in cities in order to alleviate the severe food shortage in Cuba. Among them planting a squash, a pineapple and harvesting a bunch of bananas per CDR.