Editorial
Castro walks into the twilight
He played a pivotal role in our times
Ideally, Fidel Castro would have done himself a whole lot of good had he decided to leave office years ago when he was in a much better state of health than he is at present. That way, Cuba by now might have been home to a strongly rooted political system without the kind of uncertainty which follows in the wake of the departure of a strongman. Additionally, it does not much help that it is his brother, the 76 year-old Raoul, who now governs the country. The question still remains: what happens when both Castros are gone?
All said and done, though, the move by the Cuban leader to relinquish power is in many ways an act most to be admired. Fidel Castro leaves a legacy that most men in leadership positions around the world can look upon with envy. The revolution he brought about on New Year's Day in 1959 electrified people everywhere, for two reasons. In the first place, he had sent the detested regime of Fulgencio Batista packing. In the second, he was promising Cubans leadership that was young and idealistic. At that early stage, Castro had little way of foreseeing the long, hard struggle he would soon be put through. With considerable credit to himself and his band of revolutionaries, he swiftly crushed his US-backed enemies at the Bay of Pigs in 1961 and so left President Kennedy with egg in the face. The next year, he survived the fierce row between the United States and the Soviet Union over the missiles of October. No other political leader in memory has had to undergo so much of intrigue against him as has Castro. Almost every American president since 1959 has tried to bump him off. He ended up seeing nine of them come into and leave office in his period in power. He has escaped assassination authorised by powerful men in Washington; and he has successfully withstood American economic sanctions since 1961.
Resilience has been Castro's forte. That has underscored the global role, be it in the non-aligned movement or in assisting liberation movements in Africa, he has played in his time. At home, against the odds, he has provided excellent health and education systems to his people. In terms of history, therefore, Fidel Castro goes into the sunset as a man who made history. Other men will find it hard to replace him.
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