CUBA/USA: Reactions and hopes after the announcement of Fidel Castro's frail health are opposite both in Cuba and the United States

Hopes for the future of Cuba and the health of Cuban leader Fidel Castro run opposite in Havana and Miami's Little Havana. The announcement that Castro was ill set off street parties in Miami among Cuban exiles who yearn for the demise of the West's only communist government, although many remain skeptical. "Fidel Castro loves to steal the show world wide. He pretends to be dead, pretends to be hurt, pretends to be ill and then he turns up with a cigar in his mouth smiling and saying he is very healthy," said a Cuban exile who attended a party in Little Havana. Meanwhile, Fidel Castro, who has dominated Cuba for nearly 50 years, told his people on Tuesday he was in good spirits and stable after undergoing surgery and temporarily relinquishing power to his brother. "I can say it is a stable condition, but a real evolution of the state of my health needs time," Castro, 79, said in a statement read out on state television. He did not appear on the screen. "I am in perfectly good spirits," he said. "The most I can say is that the situation will remain stable during many days before a verdict can be given." The ailing communist leader handed over the presidency temporarily to his younger brother Raul on Monday after having an operation to stop gastrointestinal bleeding. Castro, who had claimed he delegated power because Cuba was under threat from the United States, said the Cuban armed forces were prepared to defend the nation. Television journalist Randy Alonso said he spoke to Castro minutes before going on air and the Cuban leader asked him to broadcast his words to the nation. It also prompted speculation that Castro, who took power in 1959, would not return to office. In Washington, the Bush administration, which has tightened the decades-long U.S. embargo with Cuba, dismissed any possibility of a softer stance toward the provisional new leader Raul Castro. "The one thing that this president has talked about since the very beginning is his hope for the Cuban people finally to enjoy the fruits of freedom and democracy and for the dictator Fidel Castro to hand off power to his brother who's been prison keeper is not a change in that status. So Raul Castro's attempt to impose himself on the Cuban people is much the same as what his brother did so no, there are no plans to reach out. The one thing we want to do is continue to assure the people of Cuba that we stand ready to help," said White House Spokesman Tony Snow. In Cuba, where Castro's guerrillas once swept down from the Sierra Maestra hills to overthrow a U.S.-backed dictator, word of his illness brought apprehension over the future of the Caribbean island nation of 11 million. National Assembly President Ricardo Alarcon sought to calm concern that Castro was dying. "The Cuban leader will always fight until the last moment. But that last moment is very far away," he said. Many Cubans, whether admiring of Castro or not, seemed stunned by the temporary exit of a figure who has run their lives for decades. There was no sign in public of Raul Castro, 75, long-time defense minister who has now taken over his brother's posts of Communist Party head, armed forces' commander-in-chief and president of the executive Council of State. Party officials expressed support for Raul, an ex-guerrilla who has spend decades in his brother's shadow and is seen as ensuring continuation of the one-party political system. "We want to reiterate to everyone, especially our comrade Raul Castro, who along with us has in his reins the destiny of the revolution, that the people are aware of what must be done and we are going to do it. The response will be massive against those who may want to seize this moment," said party leader Armando Diaz. Castro, who last appeared in public giving a July 26 speech, said in a "proclamation" read out by an aide on television on Monday that his ill health was caused by overexerting himself during travels last month. His health has been an issue since he fainted during a speech in 2001. Cubans went about their lives calmly with no sign of increased police presence in Havana. Many expressed their undying support for Castro. "You don't measure the stature of a man by how many times he falls. You measure it by how many times he rises and I am convinced that the Commander will recover very soon," said a woman resident of Havana. Venezuela, whose leftist President Hugo Chavez has become a close ally of Castro, said in a statement that Castro's recovery was "advancing positively," citing information from the Cuban government. But medical experts said surgery for major bleeding in a elderly man is risky and could require several months of rest.

ITN Source | August 2, 2006

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