Electronic Telegraph
Monday 3 July 2000
Castro 'disappearance' leaves Cubans baffled
By Philip Delves Broughton in Havana
SPECULATION was rife last night over why Fidel Castro has not
been seen in public since six-year-old Elian Gonzalez returned to
Cuba from America.
The boy's reunion with his family in Havana was a great
propaganda coup for the 72-year-old Cuban leader but he has been
absent from the widespread celebrations. Three hundred thousand
Cubans took to the streets of Manzanillo, a southern port, on
Saturday to mark Elian's return and to protest against the
American embargo against Cuba. However, they had to make do with
a written statement from their president read out by one of his
subordinates.
In what should have been a moment of great national triumph,
Castro has disappeared from view. Several afternoons a week
during the seven months of Elian's stay in America, while the
boy's Cuban and American families wrangled over custody, Castro
attended a daily televised round-table discussion of the case.
He has not been on the programme for more than a week. Nor was
he at the airport when Elian and his family returned to Havana.
All public statements have been delegated to members of his inner
circle, including his brother Raul, the minister of the armed
forces and Ricardo Alarcon, the president of the national
assembly.
One interpretation of Castro's absence is that he is trying to
show America that he does not intend to use Elian Gonzalez as a
political tool. But the rally in Manzanillo and other official
statements which portray the return of Elian as victory for Cuba
suggest otherwise.
Others say that Castro's sudden and baffling disappearance
reflects his natural modus operandi. By never doing what seems
most expected of him, he has managed to maintain his mystique and
power for more than 40 years. Like a shark under the water, he is
almost more frightening when not visible.
In his written statement read out at Manzanillo, Castro said:
"Whoever is the next president of the United States should know
that here is Cuba with its ideas, its example and rebelliousness
of its people, that all aggression and all attempts to asphyxiate
us or put us on our knees will be defeated."
After the rally, Raul Castro said that Cubans must build on
Elian's return to pressure America into ending its embargo. He
said: "Now begins the second stage, that will also be
triumphant."
Responding to speculation about what might happen after the
Cuban leader dies, he said: "I have read hundreds of articles
about that famous transition. Who will come after Castro? Will
his brother be able to control the situation? Here, anybody can
control the situation. You cannot cover the sun with your
finger."
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Shalom, A Salaam Aleikum, and to all, A Good Day.
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