Rumors have been circling for a while about Cuban dictator Fidel Castro’s health. I myself believed him to have died months ago and reports of several severe illnesses have circled the press these last few months.
The Associated Press quotes U.S. officials saying that the U.S. government believes Castro’s health is deteriorating and that he is unlikely to live through 2007. Though the officials are unsure what precisely is ailing the Cuban leader, they believe he is suffering from cancer of the stomach, colon or pancreas.
This view was reinforced when Cuba’s foreign minister Felipe Perez Roque retreated from an earlier statement that Castro would return to power by December. “It’s a subject on which I don’t want to speculate”, he told the AP.
Recent photographs of Castro have shown him thinner and weaker. A defense official speaking to the AP on condition of anonymity said that with chemotherapy Castro may have 18 months left. Without it his life-expectancy is reduced to three to eight months. The official refused to comment on how the defense establishment has come to this conclusion.
A public celebration for Casto’s 80th birthday, postponed from his actual August 13th birthday, has been planned for next month. This celebration is thought to draw extensive international attention and the Cuban dictator is widely expected to attend.
I think that I speak for many when I say that I will not be particularly sad at Castro’s demise. Nor will I shed a tear when the so-called Cuban paradise collapses like a house of cards when he passes. He has brought much grief to the Cuban population and I look forward to seeing what will happen with the island in the near future. Who knows, maybe we’ll be able to import cigars again!
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