Cuba’s political future remained uncertain on Monday as senior members of Fidel Castro’s government made apparently contradictory remarks about whether the President’s 47-year rule had come to an unofficial end.
Castro, who will be 80 next week, transferred his powers to his brother Raúl last week as he had intestinal surgery. Though his administration has repeatedly claimed he will reassume the leadership once he has recovered, a well-known writer and veteran member of the council of state said on Monday that a ”peaceful succession” had taken place in Cuba.
”Fidel is not at the helm of Cuba and there has been no chaos to overpower the Cuban people,” said Robert Fernández Retamar. However, he went on to add that he was convinced that Castro would eventually return to his duties.
Retamar’s assessment of the country’s political stability was echoed by Ricardo Alarcón, the president of the National Assembly. ”All those who have been dreaming, or trying to fool the world and put out the idea that something terrible would happen in Cuba, that people would take to the streets, that there would be great instability — all those, the door slammed on them, and they must have very swollen hands now,” he told Venezuela’s Telesur network.
Despite the hint of a changing of the guard, Alarcón again warned the United States not to meddle in Cuba’s affairs. If Washington tried to invade or interfere in ”sovereign decisions”, he warned, ”it’s going to become a hell for them from the first day”
His remarks came as more than 400 people — among them former Archbishop Desmond Tutu of South Africa and Rigoberta Menchu of Guatemala — signed an open letter calling on the US not to interfere with Cuba while Castro recovered.
Such suggestions were dismissed on Monday by the US Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice, as ”far-fetched”. But she told NBC television: ”The United States wants to be a partner and a friend to the Cuban people as they move through this period of difficulty … But what Cuba should not have is the replacement of one dictator by another.”
Allies have issued messages of support for the Cuban leader, who will be 80 on August 13. ”How are you, Fidel?” asked the Venezuelan President, Hugo Chávez, during his weekly TV and radio programme. ”We have reliable information of your quick and notable recovery … Fidel Castro, a hug for you, friend and comrade, and I know you are getting better.”
The former Nicaraguan president and Sandinista, Daniel Ortega, arrived in Havana at the weekend. ”I am sure that we will soon have Fidel resuming his functions and leading his people,” he said.
Cuba’s youth newspaper also reported that Elian González, the young Cuban boy who prompted a showdown between Washington and Havana almost seven years ago when he survived the dangerous crossing from Cuba to Florida, had sent Castro a card.
The message, published in Juventud Rebelde, read: ”Dear Grandpa Fidel, this card is to let you know that we’re worried about your health. We wish you a speedy recovery and want to congratulate you on your birthday. We wish you many more.” — Guardian Unlimited Â