My travels is all about... My views, thoughts and experiences on/about/at/with random places of interest, persons, things, events, issues etc,. I am an eternal student with a restless mind and a tumultuous heart!

Sunday, November 27, 2016

Castro - A Complex Legacy

(Tribute - Prose)

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The first time I got to know about Castro, it was through my X class Social text book. That was, well over ten years ago. The world, from the view point of a 16 year old, was just simple and straightforward. There are the good people and there are the bad ones, you could simply categorize and get on with it. As I grew, I realized how wrong I was, and how unrelentingly the good and the bad co-exist, how inevitable and all-pervading the “grey” area in between is. Fidel Castro is one such enigma. 

Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz, the “Maximo Lider” of Cuba, passed away on 25th of November, 2016. How will this man be remembered? What would be his legacy? A leading figure of the third world nationalism, who stood up to the big brother’s ugly machinations? The leader of arguably one of the last citadels of Marxism, with a never say die attitude? A benevolent dictator of the masses, who withstood the stiffest economic sanctions? Or as the so called ‘political refugees’ celebrated his death -a stubborn president, who resisted the impending wave of globalization and indulged in mass executions and deportations? A political opportunist who played a key role in the Cuban Missile Crisis which brought the world almost to the brink of a nuclear war, at the dawn of the Cold war.

According to the now declassified documents (2007), it is no longer a secret, that the CIA made many attempts on Castro’s life. Along with Ernsesto Che Guvera, he is admired by student politicians throughout the world. Swimming against the current with all the odds stacked against, is a natural ability of Castro. But how did the citizen (let’s say, Cuban equivalent of India’s Aam Admi) fare under Castro’s rule? The quest for this question’s answer would be at best misguided and dubious, what with the biased media torn between worshiping him and demonizing him.     

And thus the question of Castro’s legacy haunts. The reverential silence in Havana and the celebrations in Miami, the messages of many condolences and few comforts uttered throughout the world, the Affordable Health-Care, the Cuban Cigar, the Missile Crisis, an icon of defiance – they all form a part of his legacy now!

And to India and Indians, Castro had always been a truthful friend. There had been many Indian Prime Ministers who had been overwhelmed by the awe and warmth of Fidel Castro. Those were the days when the Non-Aligned Movement was still relevant. Although times change, old friends don't! Respects from India, "Maximo Lider" Castro! Whatever be your legacy,  We remember you, with warmth!

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References (If any)

1. Place and Date -
@ - Home Sweet Home, # 16-7-16, Sree Bhramara, Saladi Jamindar Street, Palakollu, West Godavari, Andhra Pradesh - 534 260
On -27th of November, 2016

2. Subject - Fidel Castro - "Castro - A Complex Legacy' (Tribute - Prose)"
( Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz (1926 - 2016 CE) was a Cuban Politician and Revolutionary, governing Republic of Cuba as Prime Minister and subsequently as President for 47 years (1959 - 2006 CE). He was an iconic political figure of the twentieth century, well known around the world as a Marxist-Leninist and his Anti-American Stance.

The above is a tribute to him, and his complex legacy.  
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fidel_Castro)

3. Picture - Fidel Castro - "Castro - A Complex Legacy' (Tribute - Prose)"
All credits to en.wikipedia.org

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