by James Tweedie

THE Miami Five arrived to a heroes’ welcome in South Africa yesterday as they began a two-week tour.

Scores of South Africans in yellow ANC and red Miami Five T-shirts met the Cuban anti-terror agents at OR Tambo airport in Johannesburg with banners and the flag of the Cuban revolutionary July 26 movement.

At a press conference, the Five thanked South Africans for their support in securing their release from prison in the US.

They said that visiting other countries gave a human face to their ordeal and that of their country, where the 55-year US economic blockade resulted in deaths due to the unavailability of vital US-produced medicines.

Gerardo Hernandez, Ramon Labanino, Rene Gonzalez, Antonio Guerrero and Fernando Gonzalez spent up to 16 years in prison after exposing anti-Cuban terrorists in Florida.

Three of them were also part of the Cuban expeditionary force which fought against invading South African forces and their local allies Unita in Angola, helping bring down apartheid.

“The critical role of the Cubans propelled the struggle to the point of a breakthrough,” South African President Jacob Zuma wrote in a statement.

“The (Miami) Five and their victory is a representation of such spirit from the Cubans. Solidarity is the lifeblood of the revolution. Let us never stop building it.”

During their trip the Miami Five will visit the apartheid-era prison on Robben Island and meet ANC MPs, members of the Friends of Cuba Society and Cuban health professionals who are working in South Africa.