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Castro's
message doesn't herald early return, dissidents
say
By
IANS. Saturday May 26, 2007.Yahoo! News.
Havana, May 26 (IANS) There is no indication
that the ailing Fidel Castro is returning
to power, members of Cuba's internal opposition
say.
They said the most recent article by Castro,
in which he provides details about his convalescence
but does not refer to the country's domestic
situation, offers no sign that he is on
his way back.
Nearly 10 months after delegating power
to younger brother Raul Castro, the Cuban
leader ended his silence about his illness
Wednesday night to explain that he has undergone
several operations and has been 'gradually
improving,' the Spanish news agency EFE
said.
According to Elizardo Sanchez, who heads
the outlawed Cuban Human Rights Commission,
the elements that Castro refers to in the
message 'are nothing new (and) have been
present over the last 10 months of strange
paralysis that Cuba has endured'.
He said that Cuba was experiencing an 'anomalous
situation' in which 'Castro doesn't cede
(the reins of government), nor does anyone
dare take them from him; it's a strange
situation of paralysis, of lack of mobility
and a country can't go on like that'.
Miriam Leiva of Ladies in White, a group
comprising relatives of political prisoners,
said that despite the signs that the president
was recovering, 'it seems he's not in condition
to resume his work as normal and that suggests
the possibility he'll no longer carry out
the functions of government'.
According to Oscar Espinosa, a former political
prisoner, the most significant thing is
that 'the people of Cuba have been unaware'
of the evolution of Castro's illness due
to lack of information.
'It's truly worrying that this has happened,'
said Espinosa, who added that it was regrettable
that Castro had made no mention of Cuba's
reality in the series of commentaries he
has been writing since March.
'It's a bit contradictory that he's talking
about global issues when there are important
matters in Cuba that require respectful,
responsible and democratic debate,' he said.
Vladimiro Roca of the Todos Unidos (All
United) movement said the article fulfilled
the objective of 'gradually making it clear
to Cubans that they're not going to see
him anymore' while underlining that 'he
remains in charge'.
'That's how they're justifying the paralysis
that the government has maintained all this
time,' according to Roca.
The article, according to Marta Beatriz
Roque, head of the Assembly to Promote Civil
Society, 'tries to (subtly suggest) that
he (Fidel Castro) is leading the country'
but in reality 'we don't know who is governing'.
'It wasn't just one operation but several.
Initially it wasn't successful and that
caused my recovery to be prolonged,' Castro
said in a message to the Cuban people released
Wednesday.
'I tell everyone simply that I've been
gradually improving and maintain a stable
weight of about 80 kilograms (176 pounds),'
Castro said in his third commentary of the
week.
Castro, who last July 31 'provisionally'
transferred power to his brother while recuperating
from emergency intestinal surgery, added:
'I depended for many months on (intravenous
feeding), and I didn't want unpleasant disappointments
for our people.'
The Cuban leader in this way justified
authorities' decision to keep the precise
nature of his illness a 'state secret'.
'Today I receive orally everything I need
for my recovery. Now the biggest risks to
my health are those associated with old
age and (the fact that) I abused my health
during the turbulent times in which I happened
to live,' said Castro, who turns 81 in August.
The Cuban leader said he had been focusing
on the series of commentaries on current
affairs he started publishing in the official
press in March.
'The rest of the time I spend reading,
receiving information, talking by phone
with numerous colleagues and doing the necessary
rehabilitation exercises,' said Castro.
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