Raul Castro Turns a Quiet 83
HAVANA TIMES — Cuban President Raul Castro turned 83 on Tuesday amid no celebrations and little mention in the official press, reported dpa news.
Raul Castro, who began his second five-year term in 2013, is seen little in public and is reluctant to give statements or make long speeches like his brother Fidel.
The state media released only two brief congratulations to Raul, one from North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and the president of Belarus, Aleksandr Lukashenko, two countries ideologically close to the Cuban leadership.
Since coming to power in 2006, the younger Castro has pushed a series of reforms to “update” the economic model of the island including the introduction of market elements.
His government has opened up opportunities for private initiative, with more than 440,000 people having taken out licenses according to official figures. However, the government has never stated how many of that number are still in business.
Cuba also recently passed a new foreign investment law to facilitate the arrival of capital from abroad into its economy, characterized mainly by decades of state monopoly.
Raul Castro took power in 2006 on an interim basis after the serious illness that put his brother Fidel on the brink of death. He was formally elected president by the Council of State in 2008. Last year, when beginning a second term, he said he will leave office in 2018.
Fidel Castro, 87, ruled the island for nearly half a century. In recent years he lives almost completely out of the public spotlight.
Raul is but a stripling compared with his good and equally beneficent friend Robert Mugabe. Asad was probably too busy with his election to be able to send his congratulations and as for Maduro he has his hands full with the various fascist groups lurking in the bushes and on Aruba. Putin following grabbing Crimea has been busy inteferring in Ukraine and Xi has problems shipping Chinese nationals back from Vietrnam where they are being victimised for China’s blatant seizure of Vietnamese waters. But perhaps Raul will have a big fiesta with cerdo asado and Buc hanero beer (if available) for his 85th and invite the whole merry lot.
Excellent comment. Right on topic.
How can a person be so dishonest and in such a need of power
that can assume he is the best to run a country that was ruled by his brother
for 45 years, knowing that all opportunities were given to him and denied to
the rest of all good people that were capable to run the country in a better
direction.
Not quiet enough.
God bless Native Americans.
‘La China’ turned 83? Seriously, does anyone really believe he would have been anything other than someone’s grandfather by now except for the fact he is Fidel’s younger brother. Even his reputation for ruthlessness while head of the Armed Forces was a poor copy of his Soviet betters.