Page 12 - aruba-today-20161203

A12 WORLD NEWS
Saturday 3 december 2016

Adulation of Fidel Castro runs deepest in rural eastern Cuba

25. Huge crowds have Toledo said. “My parents
been shouting his name were sharecroppers, cane-
and lining the roads to sa- cutters. They did what they
lute the funeral procession could to support a family of
carrying his ashes from Ha- 12, but they couldn’t even
vana to the eastern city of sign their names. When
Santiago. they died they were liter-
By midday on Friday, the ate and had a house with
cortege had reached the electricity, television and a
city of Las Tunas, some refrigerator.”
1,450 miles (600 kilometers) For many foreigners, land-
east of Havana. ing in Havana feels like
Las Tunas residents shouted, traveling back in time, to
“I am Fidel!” as the seven- an era of 1950s cars and
vehicle caravan sped by, Art Deco homes unpainted
some waving little Cuban for decades. Heading into
flags and others capturing the countryside is another
the moment with cameras step back — to a region
on their cellular phones. where farmers plow with
In the cities some of the cer- oxen and people travel by
emony has been undercut horse-cart.
by grumbling about Cuba’s But, thanks to Castro’s
autocratic government, in- programs, there are also
Edison Garcia, 50, stands on his porch as it rains in El Guayabo village in Camaguey province, efficient bureaucracy and neighborhood health clin-
Cuba. On Friday, the residents of El Guayabo walked a mile to Cuba’s central highway for Fidel stagnant economy. The ics, small-town libraries and
Castro’s funeral procession to bid a final farewell to the man they credit for bringing medical care, outpouring has seemed specialized high schools
education and basic comforts. the most heartfelt in Cuba’s with dance and arts in-
(AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd) east, the region his ashes structors.
ANDREA RODRIGUEZ On Friday, residents of El Cuba. are crossing Friday. Castro Before the revolution, El
Associated Press Guayabo walked a mile “We owe him every- was born in eastern Cuba. Guayabo was a family es-
EL GUAYABO, Cuba (AP) down that street to Cu- thing,” said Rafael Toledo, His revolution started here, tate with a cheese factory
— The single dirt street in El ba’s central highway to a 71-year-old rancher. and it’s here and in other owned by a Cuban fam-
Guayabo runs past a few bid a final farewell to the “There’ll never be another parts of rural Cuba where ily who fled to the United
dozen cinderblock homes, man they credit for bring- one like him.” his campaigns for literacy, States after Castro and his
the medical clinic and the ing medical care, educa- Mourning for Castro has social welfare and land re- rebel army took power.
primary school to a grove tion and basic comforts to reached near-religious distribution had their deep- The land was distributed to
of 76 trees planted to hon- this hamlet in the farming peaks of public adula- est impact. “Before the those working it under agri-
or Fidel Castro on his 76th and ranching country of tion across Cuba since his revolution, the countryside cultural reforms that Castro
birthday. arid, sun-scorched eastern death at age 90 on Nov. wasn’t what you see now,” began in 1959.q

Mercosur suspends Venezuela for failure to follow rules

HANNAH DREIER four founding members— Brazil. Venezuela’s regional of pressure. dialogue with the socialist
Associated Press Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay influence also waned as Venezuela’s Foreign Min- government. The Vatican-
CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) and Paraguay — notified the country cut back on oil ister Delcy Rodriguez said mediated talks were in-
— South American nations Venezuela’s government shipments once provided Friday she had not been tended to head off a grow-
suspended Venezuela on of the decision in a letter. to allies at cut-rate prices. informed of the suspen- ing political crisis as critics
Friday from the Mercosur Mercosur accepted Ven- This strong rebuke from Ven- sion. She rejected the no- of President Nicolas Mad-
trade group over what they ezuela as a member when ezuela’s one-time friends tion that Venezuela had uro allege he has become
said was its failure to com- South America was domi- could open the door to failed to conform to the a dictator and call for him
ply with the commitments nated by leftist govern- stronger action from coun- trade group’s rules. “Ven- to resign. Venezuela has ar-
made when it joined the ments in an effort to link the tries and regional blocs. ezuela does not recognize rested hundreds of opposi-
group in 2012. region’s biggest agricultur- The head of the Organi- the null action carried out tion activists in recent years
Argentina’s foreign minis- al and energy markets. zation of American States under the law of the jun- and stifled opposition me-
try said in a statement that But the socialist-run Venezu- for months has threatened gle taken by the officials dia. A local human rights
Venezuela had failed to ela fell afoul of its neighbors moves against Venezuela who are destroying Merco- group counts 100 political
meet a Thursday deadline as it cracked down on the for its increasing authoritari- sur,” she said. Earlier in the prisoners still in jail. This fall,
to adopt certain standards opposition and conserva- anism. Some U.S. Congress week, Venezuela’s opposi- the government killed an
required for membership. tive governments assumed members have called for tion coalition threatened to effort stage a recall refer-
The foreign ministers of the power in Argentina and sanctions and other forms walk away from ongoing endum against Maduro.q