http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2010\07\01\story_1-7-2010_pg3_6
Thursday, July 01, 2010
BOOK REVIEW: The Cuban saga -by Dr Amjad Parvez
Fidel Castro: Latin Amreeka Aur Amreeki Saamraj
By Dr Saulat Nagi
Fiction House; Pp 372; Rs 350
When Dr Saulat Nagi, a Marxist-Leninist, voiced his desire to write on
Fidel Castro, he faced many raised eyebrows as to why he desired to write on a
country like Cuba, ruled by a single party and being thousand miles away from
his own country. He came out with reasons. He said that pre-1959 Cuba had
similarities with today's Pakistan. He has revealed them in his book Fidel
Castro: Latin Amreeka Aur Amreeki Saamraj. The question often raised in
Pakistan is whether we are still floundering in feudalism or have we managed to
part ways with it and entered the domain of capitalism (page 23). A cursory
look at the structure of Pakistan depicts a picture of vast lands owned by
feudal lords denying other classes' access to means of production. Dr Nagi says
that this feudal class is the continuity of the landed aristocracy that had
betrayed the nation and thereby strengthened the rule of British imperialism
and still continues to be the ally of the post-colonial rulers - the same path
that Cuba trod before 1959.
An article placed before the main text of the book gives the history of
Cuba that was then ruled by the autocratic general, Fulgencio Batista, a puppet
of the US government. Suffering and agony were the norms of the day. Dr Nagi
suggests that the United Fruit Company of Cuba, that had masterminded the
government of Jacobo Arbenz in Guatemala, was strikingly similar to the East
India Company. Then he goes into the details of the plight of the people of
Cuba under Batista's rule. On December 2, 1956, Fidel Castro, Raul Castro and
Che Guevara, along with 79 other revolutionaries landed on the eastern coast of
Cuba. In the ensuing fight with the army, 70 died. The rest hid in the
mountains of the Sierra Maestra but went on to achieve a historic victory in
the shape of a peasant revolution against an army of 40,000. Ever since the
1959 revolution, the CIA has made 600 attempts to eliminate Castro and Cuba has
been under an economic blockade. The western empire has continued to impose
dictators in Latin America like Somoza in Nicaragua and Pérez Jiménez in
Venezuela. The author contends that despite the embargo, Cuba has emerged as a
state where problems such as illiteracy, gambling, and drug abuse are minimal.
The first chapter of the book goes on to give details of the journey of
Fidel from childhood to youth. He was born as Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz on
August 13, 1926 near Birán in Cuba's eastern Oriente province. Originally
hailing from Spain, his father Angel was a rich sugar businessman. His mother,
Lina Ruz Gonzalez, was a servant of Angel's first wife. His father divorced and
wed Fidel's mother after some time. After his graduation from El Colegio de
Belen, Castro entered law school at the University of Havana. Here he joined
politics at a time when Cuban nationalism, anti-imperialism and socialism were
shaping society. His first adventure involved the toppling of the Dominican
Republic's dictator Rafael Trujillo. Despite the failure of the coup, Fidel's
spirits were not dampened and he went on to join an anti-communist political
party founded to uproot corruption in Cuba.
In 1948, Castro married the wealthy Mirta Diaz Balart. The marriage
exposed Castro to a wealthier lifestyle and political connections. He pursued
his political ambitions as a candidate for a seat in the Cuban parliament, but
a coup led by Batista resulted in the fall of the government and cancellation
of the elections. Castro found himself without a legitimate political platform
and little income with which to support the family. His marriage to Mirta
eventually ended in 1955. In 1953, Castro and approximately 150 of his
supporters attacked the Moncada military barracks in an attempt to oust
Batista. The attack failed and Castro was captured, tried and sentenced to 15
years in prison. However, the incident fostered an ongoing opposition to the
government and made Castro famous throughout Cuba. In 1955, when all prisoners
were pardoned, Fidel went into self-exile in Mexico. The essence of the third
chapter is that history would absolve him. It comprises an 80-page translation
of the arguments offered by Fidel to a panel of judges hearing his case. Those
were the days when the Americans were strangling the throat of the Arbenz
government in Guatemala. During this time, many communists escaped to Mexico
and Che Guevara met Fidel there through a mutual friend for the first time. It
was the beginning of a long association and struggle against imperialism. When
Batista absconded in 1959, Castro surrounded Santiago. After the fall of the
dictator, the number of revolutionists surged.
Dr Nagi then discusses the aftermath of the revolution, joint actions
taken by Castro and Guevara, the link between Cuba and Africa, while also
exposing the realities of western propaganda against Castro's Cuba. The writer
tries to explain the internationalisation of wealth and how Castro's revolution
had an impact on the Soviet Union.
This book decodes the many complexities of today's Cuba for the layman.
Cuban Ambassador Gustavo Machin appreciated Dr Nagi's approach towards the
historical phenomenon of Fidel Castro, the Cuban Revolution, and Latin America
as well sustained. He adds that for good or bad, for his supporters and
detractors, Fidel Castro is one of the most outstanding personalities of the
last as well as this century.
The reviewer is based in Lahore and can be reached at
[email protected]
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