Yahoo! July 2, 2001.
Castro Fainting Underscores Mortality
By Anita Snow, Associated Press Writer
HAVANA, 2 (AP) - For a few minutes, this Caribbean island had its first
taste of the emotions that will surge across Cuba the day Fidel Castro dies.
Shock, sadness, and fear were the immediate reactions to what the government
said was Castro's "momentary fatigue'' at a mass rally outside Havana a
week ago. Security men led the 74-year-old off the stage after he swooned before
the microphone in the sweltering sun.
Young people at the rally gasped and wept. In Havana's residential sections,
people ran outside frantically to tell neighbors something had happened to "El
Comandante.''
Nerves were soothed minutes later when Castro returned to the podium to
ensure the crowd he was fine, but watching him grow weak reminded Cubans that
their "Maximum Leader'' is indeed mortal.
"This has never happened before,'' said Mauro Sampera, a vendor of old
books, who is in his early 70s. "We are not accustomed to this!''
Denial of death is common in Cuba, and Castro's death in particular has long
been a taboo subject in this socialist society that extolls the immortality of
ideas and principles.
It is an idiosyncrasy that Castro himself seems to understand more than
officials in his government, who shush those who dare mention the Cuban leader's
death.
"People are somewhat disturbed by the natural eventuality of death,''
Castro said to reporters Friday.
"I ask the people's forgiveness beforehand for the day that something
happens to me ... (for) the passing unpleasantness that it could cause them,''
added the Cuban leader, whose 75th birthday is Aug. 13.
In power since the Cuban revolution's triumph on Jan. 1, 1959, Castro also
recognizes there are concerns about his replacement.
Castro himself has long insisted that his brother Raul, the 70-year-old
defense minister, is his heir. He confirmed that several times after his
fainting spell.
Castro told reporters Friday that his younger brother "is in good
health ... and really after me he is the one who has the most experience, most
knowledge.'' Castro acknowledged, however, that his brother is not well-known.
"There is not only Raul, but a plethora of young people with talent''
to provide leadership, Castro added.
Raul Castro's detractors note he does not have his brother's charisma and
thus may be unable to gain the popular support necessary to rule the same way
his brother does.
But the younger Castro evidently has the loyalty of his generals, many of
whom fought with the Castro brothers in the revolution, and thus he appears to
have firm control over the nation's troops and firepower.
Also mentioned as a possible successor is Carlos Lage Davila, 49, the
architect of Cuba's modest economic reforms in the 1990s and a man with broad
experience in directing Cuba's centralized economy and government. He also is
secretary of the Council of Ministers, or Cabinet, giving him wide control over
daily government operations.
Another name that comes up is veteran diplomat Ricardo Alarcon Quesada, 64,
long Castro's point man on Cuban-U.S. affairs and president of Cuba's parliament
since March 1993. He was foreign minister for a year and served twice as Cuba's
ambassador to the United Nations (news - web sites).
Then there is Foreign Minister Felipe Perez Roque, 36, a former personal
secretary to Castro who grabbed the microphone and calmed the crowd after
Castro's fainting spell. He is the most influential of Cuba's younger leaders at
a time the government is working to instill socialist ideals in young people.
Named foreign minister in May 1999, Perez oversaw Castro's personal schedule
for seven years. The Communist Party newspaper Granma described him as "familiar,
as few are,'' with Castro's thinking.
While talk of succession is now somewhat acceptable, open discussion about a
possible change in Cuba's socialist system is not.
Cuban leaders are irritated by suggestions about a "post-Castro''
period, saying Castro's ideas will live on long after he dies.
"There will be no post-Castro era,'' Lage said Tuesday during a visit
to the United Nations. "And not because he won't die. Fidel's ideals and
the ideals of socialism are every day more entrenched in our country.''
Father Could Be Reunited With Cuban Children
Miami Herald | WPLG Click10.com. Monday July 02 08:56 AM
EDT
A father and his Cuban children could be reunited in Miami this week.
Leonel Rodriguez defected from Cuba more than seven months ago, leaving
behind his wife and two children (pictured).
While the family was starting the paperwork to be reunited in the U.S., the
mother was killed in a motorcycle accident.
Just last week, the Cuban government approved the visas for the children.
Castro Attends Rally in Cuba
By Vivian Sequera, Associated Press Writer
HAVANA, 29 (AP) - Fidel Castro asked the Cuban people for their forgiveness
in advance Friday for any "passing unpleasantness'' they may experience the
day he dies.
Speaking with reporters after his first outdoor public appearance since his
fainting spell last weekend, Castro admitted that many Cubans are upset by the
thought of him dying.
"I ask the people's forgiveness beforehand for the day that something
happens to me ... (for) the passing unpleasantness that it could cause them,''
the 74-year-old Cuban leader said.
Two hours into a speech under a sweltering sun on June 23, Castro appeared
to faint and was led off the stage by his aides. Some people gasped. Others
wept.
He returned less than 10 minutes later to assure the crowd he was fine,
attributing his "fatigue'' to the intense heat and lack of rest.
"I don't know what day I will die, but I am not worried about it, I
enjoy celestial tranquility,'' Castro said after the morning rally called to
protest a Miami jury's convictions earlier this month of five Cuban agents.
Castro on Friday confirmed once again that his heir apparent is his brother
Raul, 70, the defense minister. Raul Castro "is in good health ... and
really after me he is the one who has the most experience, most knowledge,
something that may not be well known,'' the Cuban leader said.
Castro said that if he knew that tomorrow morning he would suffer a heart
attack, a stroke or other ailment that would kill him, "the person who has
the most authority and experience'' after him is his brother.
"There is not only Raul, but a plethora of young people with talent,''
who will carry on Cuba's socialist system, Castro said. No changes will occur,
he said, because the Cuban revolution's ideals are deeply ingrained in national
society.
"Not even with the degree of authority I enjoy could I guide this
country down a road that would separate it from the revolution and I suppose I
have a high degree of authority,'' the Cuban leader said.
Dressed in his traditional olive green uniform, Castro sat in the front row
facing the permanent stage erected in the plaza outside the U.S. Interests
Section, the American mission here. The government said 40,000 people were at
the event.
Castro did not address the crowd, but afterward personally greeted other
officials and relatives of the jailed agents, whom he has described as heroes
who were merely gathering information that could protect communist Cuba from
terrorist attacks.
He then spoke with journalists for another hour, often joking about his
health.
"I'll go before I faint,'' Castro quipped. "I promise that I will
not faint again, I will not become fatigued again, because if such a disgraceful
thing occurs the (news) cables will be raining.'' | 
