Cuba's 49-year ruler relinquishes the reins
By Anthony DePalma, New York Times News Service | February 20, 2008
HAVANA - Fidel Castro, bedridden for 19 months, gave up the almost unlimited power he has wielded in Cuba for nearly 50 years yesterday, but whether the surprise announcement represented a historic change or a symbolic political maneuver remained unclear.
It is expected that his brother Raúl, 76, will be officially named president, and some analysts consider him more pragmatic. Raúl Castro has talked about bringing more accountability to government and of possibly working to improve relations with the United States. But since taking over temporarily in the summer of 2006, he has largely operated in his brother's shadow, and, except for facilitating huge foreign investment by Canadian and European resort developers, he has brought about little change.
Under Cuba's Constitution, a newly chosen legislative body, called the National Assembly, is scheduled to select a 31-member Council of State on Sunday. In turn, the new council will select the next president. Fidel Castro said he would not accept the position even if it were offered.
In a letter read over early morning radio and television programs across the country, the 81-year-old Castro - who has appeared frail in the few videos released by the Cuban government - was said to be too ill to continue as head of state and would not stand in the way of others who were ready to take over, a sentiment he first expressed in December.
Specialists on Cuban politics say the decision on a successor remains in the hands of the Castro brothers and their inner circle, many of whom hold positions in the Cabinet. Others said that it was possible that a younger president could be brought in or that the posts of prime minister and president could be divided between Raúl Castro and one of the ministers.
It was not clear what role, if any, Fidel Castro would play in a new government, or whether he would retain other powerful positions, including head of the Communist Party. But he signaled that he was not ready to completely exit the stage.
It is not certain that Castro was well enough to write the letter of resignation. Doubts have arisen over the state of his health and whether he could have written a series of essays that have been published over the last year and a half in Granma, the official Communist Party newspaper.
"I am not saying goodbye to you," said Castro in the letter written under his name and addressed to the people of Cuba. "I only wish to fight as a soldier of ideas."
The confusion of analysts in both Cuba and the United States about the extent to which Castro would withdraw from day-to-day government operations or continue to wield power from behind the scenes was reflected in the mix of opinions of people from the luxury beaches at the seaside resort of Varadero to the central park of Old Havana.
There was little evidence in the streets of the capital and in other cities to suggest that a monumental change was taking place in the Cuban hierarchy. But that could be because the accrued experience of nearly 50 years of state security efforts made open demonstrations unlikely.
Cuba's leading dissident tried to dampen expectations.
"This isn't news," said the dissident, Elizardo Sanchez, in a phone interview, after learning from friends that Castro was ceding power. "It was expected and it does nothing to change the human rights situation, which continues to be unfavorable, or to end the one-party state. There's no reason to celebrate."
The pace of ordinary Cuban life continued.
In Varadero, workers collected garbage and cleaned pools as they normally would. On the highway, workers whitewashed barriers.
In the seaside city of Matanzas, Eliana Lopez, a transportation inspector who had heard the news on her way to work, said she expected the revolution to continue, with change coming slowly but surely. "There is no surprise," Lopez, 55, said. "This is the correct decision," she added, referring to Castro's declaration.
In Havana, an older generation of Cubans who maintained their admiration for Castro, despite the crumbling condition of the capital, were disappointed. Alba, a 67-year-old retired nurse who, like many Cubans, was afraid to give her full name, told Agence France-Presse that she had expected Castro to be president for life and to "die with his boots on."
However, members of a younger generation, tired of what they saw as empty promises for a better life that never materialized, said they hoped there might be significant change.
In trying to assess the future, analysts pointed to signs that Raúl Castro has a pragmatic streak.
As acting president, he has encouraged more debate about Cuba's economic woes, sponsoring a series of town-hall-style meetings last fall to allow people to speak freely about their economic woes and the limits on travel.
He has also brought up issues his brother never addressed. He has lambasted farmers for being inefficient. He has criticized the high cost of milk. He has acknowledged that the official salaries the Cuban government pays are woefully low and do not meet the minimum needs of a family. He has criticized the level of corruption in the society, even letting state-controlled newspapers publish investigative reports about the looting and bad management practices going on in many state-controlled companies.
The younger Castro also has a reputation as a manager who demands results from his Cabinet members. Unlike Fidel, who liked to manage every detail of government himself, Raúl has delegated authority and held his Cabinet ministers accountable.
After decades in which Fidel Castro's grip on the government seemed unbreakable, uncertainties arose in July 2006. Castro, suffering from an undisclosed abdominal ailment, underwent surgery and temporarily handed over power to Raúl Castro.
In yesterday's letter, which was also published in Granma, Castro said he had declined to step down earlier to avoid dealing a blow to the Cuban government before the people were ready for a traumatic change "in the middle of the battle" with the United States over control of the country's future.
"To prepare the people for my absence, psychologically and politically, was my first obligation after so many years of struggle," he said.
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