Posted on 07/31/2006 9:01:11 PM PDT by STARWISE
Cubans exiles took to the streets in anticipation Monday night after news spread that Cuban President Fidel Castro temporarily relinquished power to his brother Raul and underwent surgery for intestinal illness.
People waved Cuban flags on Little Havana's Calle Ocho, shouting "Cuba, Cuba, Cuba," hoping that the end is near for the man most of them consider to be a ruthless dictator. There were hugs, cheers and dancing as drivers honked their horns. Many of them fled the communist island or have parents and grandparents who did.
"We long for the day when power transfers in Cuba are the results of a free, democratic process and reflect the wishes of the Cuban people, not the preordained wishes of a dictator" said Joanna Gonzalez, spokeswoman for Raices de Esperanza or Roots of Hope. "Although this transfer of power is being characterized as temporary, the oppression under which the Cuban people live is enduring and continues."
U.S. Rep. Lincoln Diaz-Balart, R-Miami , said, "This is a clear reminder that the end of the Castro regime is approaching, and that the only solution is free elections and the rule of law."
Castro said in a statement read on Cuban television that he had suffered intestinal bleeding, apparently due to stress from recent public appearances in Argentina and Cuba.
Castro said that extreme stress "had provoked in me a sharp intestinal crisis with sustained bleeding that obligated me to undergo a complicated surgical procedure."
Castro also requested the celebration of his 80th birthday on Aug. 13 be postponed until Dec. 2, the 50th anniversary of Cuba's Revolutionary Armed Forces.
Raul Castro, who turned 75 in June, has been taking on a more public profile in recent weeks.
Coast Guard officials said they were on standby, awaiting further orders. The agency has a plan in case Cubans begin a massive exodus for Florida on boats and rafts.
"No ships have moved, no cutters have moved, everything is on standby," Coast Guard spokesman Dana Warr said. "We have units underway, but no plans from the Coast Guard have been put into action yet."
U.S. officials have long had plans in place to head off any possible mass exodus from Cuba by sea in case that the government suddenly opened the island's borders as occurred during the Mariel boatlift in 1980 and again during the rafter crisis in 1995.
"Certainly we have our officers in the areas where the celebrations are taking place," Miami police spokesman Delrish Moss said.
"Over the years there have been rumors that Castro has passed on, but there is no belief that it will be a bad time, that there will be mass riots," he said. "Just the opposite, lots of celebration, lots of joy and happiness."
A spokesman for federal Department of Homeland Security said there had been no changes in national security measures.
Some Cuban exile leaders said they were surprised that the announcement of his illness was done in such a public manner.
Arturo Cobo, a Cuban exile activist who once ran the home for Cuban rafters in Key West, said it seemed strange to him that the Cuban government was disclosing Castro's operation because of its secretive nature.
"Either he is dead or this is an elaborate practice for the Cuban government to test the reaction of its military, its ministry, its people and the American government," Cobo said.
While watching the news from his Miami home, Cobo speculated that the "practice" could be a way for Castro to test who his enemies are and who his friends are within the island.
Cobo said that the exile community had been waiting for this "forever."
"There is exultation and joy in the exile community tonight," Cobo said.
Cindy Sheehan and Danny Glover are deeply saddened.
El Reno, Jimmah Cahtah, and Dan Ratherbiased are preparing a raft to float to Cuba as we speak.
His brother is just as bad.
"E's just restin..."
Do they think they can just up and go back to Cuba after Castro dies? Not likely.
Don't forget Jimmy Carter, Barbara Walters and Dan Rather.
I can see all three attending the state funeral, and extolling the "free" healthcare. LOL
See post 9. :o)
I'm with Cobo, thinking he's dead already.
Bartender, I'll have a Cuba Libre and please turn up the sound of your cable TV, I wanna know when he goes, okay?
I wonder if Raul is as tight with Chavez as Fidel is.
I can't see the difference.... except a communist government a bit more gay perhaps? LOL.
I think so. We'll see if Raaaa-oooool (Werewolves of London) has the "charisma" to keep the peasants under his thumb. I think not.
I really hope you are right. I doubt it though, just not that lucky. The guy aint going to be around that much longer, but I still don't think he is on his death bed quite yet.
On the other hand, the docters just might screw up. I think thats the best we could hope for. Not only does he die, but we can all point and laugh at their "great" docters and medical system.
Haha! Well, wait and see what happens! It could open up a whole new festive era for Cuba! Haha! :-)
'Cause tonight we're gonna party like it's 1959.
Notice the liberal slant. They only consider him to be a ruthless dictator, as if it weren't an established fact.
I haven't read too much about Raul but what little I have I got the impression he is a weak sister compared to Fidel. He might not last long as you say.
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