Castro stays away from anti-US parade
May 02, 2007 03:52am
Article from: Reuters
CUBAN leader Fidel Castro stayed away from a massive May Day workers parade overnight, apparently still too weak to appear in public nine months after emergency surgery forced him to step aside as president.
Castro had called on all Cubans to turn the parade into an anti-US protest and, after recent video footage showed him looking stronger, there was speculation he might make a triumphant return to Revolution Square.
But he did not appear on the podium to watch over hundreds of thousands marching through the square, the first time in almost four decades that he has missed a May Day parade.
Cuba's main union leader, Salvador Valdes, said the entire nation hoped Castro, 80, would be well again soon.
"I know I express the unanimous feeling of our people when I send the most fervent wishes for recovery to he who has not only been with us on days like this but has guided us with his proverbial wisdom for more than 50 years," Mr Valdes said.
Cubans were disappointed by Castro's absence and many fear he will never regain the strength he had shown until he suddenly fell seriously ill last July.
"I had hoped to see him but, even though he is not here, he is still with us. The important thing is that he gets better," said Zoraida Gonzalez, a 73-year-old retiree.
Some said it would not have been wise for a frail Castro to attend a long parade under a scorching sun, and hoped he would appear soon in public under less-strenuous conditions.
Castro's closest foreign allies had done most to raise expectations that he might return overnight.
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez said his political idol was already back "in charge" in Cuba, and Bolivian President Evo Morales said he was sure Castro would reappear on May 1.
Castro himself gave no indication he would attend in an editorial column overnight, in which he urged Cubans to protest the recent release from a US prison of Luis Posada Carriles, an anti-Castro exile and former CIA operative accused of killing 73 people in the 1976 bombing of a Cuban airliner.
Castro was forced to hand power to Raul Castro, his younger brother and defence minister, after undergoing intestinal surgery last July.
Since then, Cubans have seen him only in photographs or video footage meeting with allies and foreign dignitaries. Mr Chavez said his friend was close to death at one point, although he and Cuban officials now say Castro is recovering quickly and taking a more active role in government affairs.
Recent footage showed Fidel Castro looking stronger after regaining some weight, but he still appeared frail. His long absence and government secrecy over his illness have cast uncertainty over Cuba's political future.
Raul Castro presided over the parade but did not make a speech.
The Communist Party, neighbourhood groups and official unions organise major marches and all Cubans are expected to attend.
As marchers paraded through Havana to patriotic songs, many pledged loyalty to Fidel Castro, known as "El Comandante" for leading a 1959 revolution and setting up communist rule on the island just 145km from the United States.
"This is the unconditional support for the Comandante's ideas," said Eduardo Jimenez, a 19-year-old student.
"We need him to return," said Luisa Cuellar, who rose before dawn to walk with friends to Revolution Square, the political heart of communist Cuba. "He is the one who keeps us united."
There was a strong anti-US feel to the parade of union workers and their families.
Regardless of their views of communist rule, many Cubans were appalled when Posada Carriles was freed from a New Mexico jail on April 19. The government blamed Washington for his release and said it showed the hypocrisy of its declared war on terrorism.
A long banner stretching across a main avenue in the protest march read: "We demand prison for the executioner."
Thousands chanted "Long Live Fidel" and one placard read "Bush, murderer, president of world terrorism".
http://www.news.com.au/adelaidenow/story/0,22606,21657924-5012781,00.html-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
At 80 looks like Castros health is failing, beggs the question who will take over his leadership when he dies.
Oh and nearly forgot lets bash the Bush lol
