The Cuban government, seeking to reassure Cubans after
intestinal surgery forced Fidel Castro to temporarily cede power to
his brother, released a statement from him saying his health is
stable, his spirits good and the defense of the island
guaranteed.
Raul Castro, the brother and designated successor, has remained
silent and out of sight, issuing no statements of his own while the
focus of state media remained solely on Fidel.
"Fidel, Get Well," read a front page headline in the official
daily Granma. "The Revolution Will Continue While Fidel
Recovers," proclaimed Juventud Rebelde, the official youth
newspaper.
The statement by the elder Castro, who temporarily handed power
to his brother Monday night after surgery, expressed gratitude for
the good wishes he received from leaders and supporters around the
world and called on Cubans to remain calm as they carried out their
daily routines.
"The country is prepared for its defense," he said, apparently
to assure Cubans the island was safe from potential US attack.
"The important thing is that in the country everything is going
perfectly well, and will continue to do so," said the statement,
read on government television Tuesday night.
The leaders of China, Venezuela, Brazil, Bolivia and Mexico were
among many wishing Castro well. But in Washington, politicians were
already speculating about a post-Castro Cuba.
The EU forwarded a get-well wish to Castro yesterday, adding
that it has not yet planned for dealing with a post-Castro
Cuba.
Relations between Havana and the 25-nation bloc have been icy
over the past few years. The EU last year lifted sanctions imposed
in 2003 after Cuban authorities allegedly detained 75 dissidents,
which had included shunning high-level talks with Cuban
officials.
Castro, 79 and the world's longest-serving head of government,
acknowledged the operation was serious, saying "I cannot make up
positive news." But he said his health was "stable" and "as for my
spirits, I feel perfectly fine."
He apologized for not giving more details, but said the threat
posed to his government by the US means his health must be treated
as "a state secret." No images of the leader were shown.
Anxiety among Cubans
Still there was some anxiety among Cubans.
"Everything is normal here for the moment," said 41-year-old
hospital worker Emilio Garcia. "But we've never experienced this
before it's like a small test of how things could be without
Fidel."
It was unknown when or where the surgery took place or where
Castro was recovering.
Cubans were stunned when Castro's secretary read a letter on
state television Monday night announcing their leader was
temporarily turning over power to his 75-year-old brother Raul, the
island's defense minister and his designated successor.
In that first letter, Castro, who turns 80 on August 13, said
doctors operated to repair a "sharp intestinal crisis with
sustained bleeding."
The calm delivery of the initial announcement appeared intended
to signal that any transition of power would be orderly. Yet some
feared resentment over class divisions could spark conflict if a
political vacuum develops.
"It's better for things to move slowly, instead of abrupt
change," Garcia said. "But people are a bit nervous anything could
happen."
'Stay out, Americans'
In Washington, the State Department said it would support a
"democratic transition" in Cuba. "We believe that the Cuban people
aspire and thirst for democracy," spokesman Sean McCormack
said.
But a Cuban fisherman said he had a message for the US
government: Stay out.
"In my house, I don't allow any outsider to order me around,"
Lazaro Alfonso Gonzalez, 58, said at a pro-Castro rally in Havana.
"Cuba is my home, and none of us will allow anyone to come here and
tell us what to do."
(China Daily August 3, 2006)
