Miami Cubans Await News On Fidel Castro Health Crisis

Fidel Castro Health Crisis - Cuban Dictator Requires Emergency Surgery Fidel Castro has temporarily relinquished the presidency of Cuba to his younger brother and chosen successor Raul because of a sudden health crisis. It is the first time since he came to power in 1959 that the Cuban dictator has given up power.

The surprise move was announced live on television by his secretary, Carlos Valenciaga, who read a letter purportedly written by Castro to explain the crisis. “The operation obligates me to undertake several weeks of rest,” said the letter. Extreme stress from recent public appearances in Argentina and Cuba “had provoked in me a sharp intestinal crisis with sustained bleeding that obligated me to undergo a complicated surgical procedure.”

The relinquishment of power was said to be temporary, and of “a provisional character.” There was no immediate appearance or statement by Raul Castro.

Cuban exiles take to the streets in Miami's Little Havana following news of Fidel Castro's illness and rumors of his death

Celebration and hope in Miami’s Little Havana at news of Fidel Castro’s illness

Cubans exiles took to the streets in Miami’s Little Havana district Monday night after news spread of Castro’s sudden illness. In the wake of the statement concerning Raul’s “temporary” succession, one question is running through the exile community in the United States.

Is Fidel Castro already dead?

The story continues below the fold with details from the Associated Press, the Miami Herald, Reuters and other sources.

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John Kirk, professor of Latin American Studies at Dalhousie University in Halifax, said the somber tone of the official proclamation in Cuba, Castro’s age and the “ominous ring” of his concluding sentiment that “imperialism will never be able to crush Cuba,” suggested his condition was serious.

Many Cuban expatriates in Miami believe that, as in the Old Soviet Union, the announcement of sudden illness and immediate surgery for the 79 year old Cuban dictator is a cover story to prepare the population — and the military — for his passing. Its purpose is to give Fidel’s brother, Raul, time to consolidate his position as the next leader of communist Cuba and ensure a smooth transition of power.

That belief was typified by 34 year old Isabel Aguero Kling. “They are preparing to tell the people slowly,” she said.

Arturo Cobo, a Cuban exile activist, said it seemed strange that the secretive Cuban government had disclosed Castro’s operation.

“Either he is dead or this is an elaborate practice for the Cuban government to test the reaction of its military, its ministry, its people and the American government,” Cobo said.

While watching the news from his Miami home, Cobo speculated that the “practice” could be a way for Castro to test who his enemies are and who his friends are on the island.

Cobo, who also was in charge of helping Cubans who landed in Key West after fleeing Cuba during the 1980 Mariel boat lift, said he has been told by close friends in Cuba on Monday night that the military has taken over the big cities of the island nation.

‘’So it must be really bad,'’ said Cabo’s wife, Aleida. “I think he’s dead.'’

Cobo is concerned that if Castro is dead, there could be an uprising.

‘’If there is war inside of Cuba with people demanding their freedom, I will get in my boat and fight for my country like I was 20 years old,'’ he said. “Now I’m 65, but I’d do it again. Fight again.”

Cobo added: “After he’s dead, anything is possible.'’ Cobo said that this was an event that the exile community had been waiting for. “There is exultation and joy in the exile community tonight,” he said.

Exultation indeed. As the facts about Castro’s illness, and the rumors of his death, spread through the community, people poured into the streets. They waved Cuban flags on Little Havana’s Calle Ocho, shouting “Cuba, Cuba, Cuba,” hoping that the end was near for the man most of them consider a ruthless dictator. Cigars were lit, pots were banged and there were hugs, cheers and dancing as drivers honked their horns. Many of Miami’s exiles fled the communist island or have parents and grandparents who did.

Celebration in Hialeah, Florida, at news of Cuban dictator Fidel Castro’s illness (AP Photo)

The celebration and hope are not limited to Little Havana. In Hialeah, a heavily Cuban-American city northwest of Miami, Armando Tellez sat on the hood of his red truck and watched as hundreds of cars lined the streets. Tellez, who came from Cuba in 1995, said he was not sure how the community would react in the long run, but he said Cuban Americans deserve to celebrate.

“This is a singular event in Cuba’s history because there has never been anything that has given the people so much hope,” said Tellez, 33. “My first reaction was disbelief. My second reaction was hope.”

At WQBA-La Cubanisima, radio personalities said they had seen a copy of the statement issued by Castro and the signature did not appear to be the Comandante’s, giving fuel to the ‘’he’s dead'’ theory.

Aiza Rodriguez, 33, said though they hadn’t pronounced Castro dead she felt it inside.

‘’It reeks of death,'’ she said. ‘’The Cuban government never says it all,'’ she said. “Either way, one thing is for sure, Cuba is free. Raul Castro can’t stop us, nobody can.'’

“We long for the day when power transfers in Cuba are the results of a free, democratic process and reflect the wishes of the Cuban people, not the preordained wishes of a dictator” said Joanna Gonzalez, spokeswoman for Raices de Esperanza, or Roots of Hope. “Although this transfer of power is being characterized as temporary, the oppression under which the Cuban people live is enduring and continues.”

Miami Mayor Manny Diaz predicted that the next few days would be “very tense.'’

He called it ‘’unusual'’ that Castro would be willing to cede power, even temporarily, and suggested that it was a sign that the Cuban leader’s health was deteriorating sharply.

‘’Obviously, we’re all going to be very, very happy the day that he dies,'’ Diaz said. “We’ll be keeping a close eye.'’

U.S. Rep. Lincoln Diaz-Balart, a Miami Republican, added: “This is a clear reminder that the end of the Castro regime is approaching, and that the only solution is free elections and the rule of law.”

White House spokesman Peter Watkins said: “We are monitoring the situation. We can’t speculate on Castro’s health, but we continue to work for the day of Cuba’s freedom.” The State Department declined to comment Monday night.

As reported previously here at Cigar Envy, the United States has plans to move within weeks of Fidel Castro’s death to support a transitional government in Cuba and move the country toward democracy. The Commission for Assistance to a Free Cuba, created by President Bush in 2003 and co-chaired by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Cuban-American Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez, has recommended creating an 80 million dollar fund to promote opposition to Castro, tightening economic sanctions on the island nation, and other measures that remain classified ‘’for reasons of national security and effective implementation.’’

Raul Castro, brother and chosen successor of Cuba's Fidel Castro Cuban Defense Minister Raul Castro is President Fidel Castro’s staunchly loyal younger brother and his designated successor. At 75 and five years younger than Fidel, Raul is far less charismatic than his brother though far more radical.

Three weeks after taking power in January 1959, Fidel named Raul his successor, telling supporters: “Behind me are others more radical than I.”

He officially designated Raul as his successor at a Communist Party congress in October 1997, saying “Raul is younger than I, more energetic than I. He can count on much more time.”

As head of Cuba’s armed forces, Raul has been deeply involved in Cuba’s military involvement in Angola and Ethiopia during the 1970s — as well as with the military’s successful peacetime efforts to help rescue Cuba’s economy following the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991.

In one rare interview in early 2001, Raul spoke with unusual frankness about his older brother’s eventual death and encouraged the United States to make peace with Cuba while Fidel was still alive.

“I am among those who believe that it would be in imperialism’s interest to try, with our irreconcilable differences, to normalize relations as much as possible during Fidel’s life,” Raul said in the interview. Later, he said, “it will be more difficult,” implying he would be harder to deal with.

Raul, a political hardliner, belonged to a Communist youth group even before the revolution. The elder Castro didn’t publicly embrace socialism until 1961. But on the economic front, Raul showed signs of flexibility.

As defense minister, Raul has overseen some of Cuba’s most important experiments with limited market-style reforms. Military units produced and sold food at free markets and the military ran an important tourism company, Gaviota.

He also expressed interest in China’s version of free-enterprise socialism during a November 1997 visit to that Asian nation.

Raul Castro has taken on a more visible role in public in recent weeks, but indicated in June that a collective leadership would probably govern post-Castro Cuba. Only the Communist Party can succeed his brother, he said. “That’s the way it will be,” he said. “The rest is pure speculation.”

Many Cuba analysts say that Raúl Castro lacks the political skill, the health or even the ambition to succeed his brother and lead Cuba’s economically crippled one-party state. Some see him serving as a brief transitional figure who would open up Cuba, a mediator for a “softer” communism or a figurehead for a younger collective leadership.

The upcoming celebration of Castro’s 80th birthday on Aug. 13 will be postponed until Dec. 2, the 50th anniversary of Cuba’s Revolutionary Armed Forces. More news as it develops.

Posted on Tuesday, August 1st, 2006 at 12:29 am.