Even though Fidel Castro has written to soccer legend Diego Maradona to vanquish these rumors, speculation about the 88-year-old revolutionary’s health has been enhanced by his lack of comment on the historic events of December 17. But Castro appears to be alive and well. Not only that, he is backing the ongoing negotiations between the two countries, despite being openly suspicious of America’s motives. “This does not mean I reject a pacific solution to the conflicts," he wrote to a student federation at the University of Havana. The letter was also published in Granma, a communist party newspaper, on Monday.
Fidel Castro has resigned from his post in 2008, and passed the reins of power to his younger brother, Raul. But Fidel has remained the face of the Cuban revolution and his opinion is apparently still very important to the Cuban people. “Many in Cuba believe that the current efforts to warm the long-frozen relations would not have started in the first place unless Fidel had given them his benign approval,” said BBC’s Will Grant in a report on this letter. While the former president has always been uncompromising in matters of the great enemy to the north, Raul Castro appears to be somewhat softer. Although still a hardcore communist, he obviously intends to maintain a more peaceful relationship with his neighbors.
The Work has Just Begun
Although Fidel appears to be generally supportive of the thawing of US-Cuban relations, he contains his enthusiasm regarding his brother’s actions. Castro simply states that the current president "has taken the pertinent steps in accordance with his prerogatives and the powers given to him by the National Assembly the Communist Party of Cuba." Other unenthusiastic concerned parties include Roberta Jackson, assistant secretary of state, who spoke to reporters on Friday, after last week’s negotiations. “It’s very hard to say exactly how this will work,” she said. “We think that we need to make decisions in our own interest and take decisions that are to going to empower the Cuban people, but the verdict on whether that succeeds is still to be made.”
Old issues like human rights are still a sticking point in these negotiations. While America dreams of empowering the Cuban people, the Cuban people are pointing fingers at American problems, like police violence. Cuban officials are generally showing a defensive attitude towards US representatives, but are willing to continue to work together. “Cuba has never responded to pressure,” Josefina Vidal, the country’s top diplomat for US affairs, told reporters last Thursday. “It was a first meeting. This is a process.”
"We shall always defend the cooperation and friendship between all people, among them our political adversaries. With this spirit, I have fought and will continue fighting until my last breath." – Fidel Castro
Despite all difficulties, certain progress is being made. The two countries have already exchanged prisoners, and President Barack Obama has promised to partially lift anti-Cuban economic sanctions and reduce restrictions for American travelers. Both these actions will have a boosting effect on the Cuban economy. Apparently, he and Fidel Castro share some positive notions of how the world should be.
