Cuba, The Castro Clan's Fiefdom
Fidel Castro is dead. The 90-year old communist dictator ruled Cuba like a personal fiefdom between 1959 and 2008 when ill-health forced him to hand over power to his brother, Raul Castro.
In 1959, Castro threw out the cruel and absolute despotism of the then ruling dispensation and took over Cuba. He turned the country into a socialist state and nationalised all industry and brought
almost all economic activities under state control.
On 3 May 2008, I wrote the following on an old blog site. Amidst all the hagiography of how great Fidel Castro was, here's a lowdown on his pursuit of a society free from nepotism and cronyism.
Politics is a cesspool in which
opportunists wallow in a slime of corruption and nepotism. While this is old
news in our part of the world, I found that this was pretty much the way of
life even in the Communist Utopia of Cuba.
“During the past few years family members of both Fidel and Raul Castro have
come to occupy important positions in Cuba's government. This Castro clan
represents in addition to the military, the security apparatus and the
Communist Party, a significant force in Cuba's political and economic
structures.”
The list below is in the order of Name, Relationship, and Position held.
Fidel Castro Diaz-Balart
Fidel Castro's son
Advisor, Ministry of Basic Industry
Col. Alejandro Raul Castro Espin
Raul Castro's son
Chief, Intelligence Information Services, Ministry of the Interior;
Coordinator, Intelligence Exchange with China
Ramon Castro Ruz
Fidel's and Raul's oldest brother
Advisor, Ministry of Sugar
Dr. Antonio Castro Soto
Fidel Castro's son
Investment Chief, Frank Pais Hospital. Doctor for Cuba's baseball team
Col. Luís Alberto Rodríguez López-Calleja
Raul Castro's son-in-law
Chief Executive Officer of Grupo GAESA (Grupo de Administración de Empresas,
S.A.) which supervises military enterprises
Major Raul Alejandro Rodríguez Castro
Raul Castro's grandson
Raul Castro's military guard in charge of his personal security
Deborah Castro Espin
Raul Castro's daughter
Advisor, Ministry of Education
Mariela Castro Espin
Raul Castro's daughter
Head, Center for Sexual Education
Marcos Portal Leon
Married to Raul Castro's niece
In charge of nickel industry, member of the Central Committee of Cuba's
Communist Party
Alfonsito Fraga
Related to Raul Castro
Ministry of Foreign Relations
I would not worry about this kind of naked nepotism but for the fact that the
Commies always accuse their ideological opponents of succumbing to the follies
of power politics.
The Commies with a capital ‘C’ are the same everywhere: opportunists, frauds,
and blood-suckers. A life of sweat and toil is for the masses while perks and
luxuries are for the Red Hued.
In the light of the above list, I can say that Fidel Castro was certainly NOT
the Last Man Standing (with apologies to David Baldacci).
Long Live the Revolution! The Revolution to Deprive People of their Freedom
and Happiness!
So much for equality.
