HAVANA: Communist country Cuba bid final farewell to revolutionary leader Fidel Castro; a leftist revolutionist who ruled for half a century and managed to resist the United States throughout the Cold War. Castro died last week at the age of 90 following a long history of ill health, and handing over power to his brother Raul.
Thousands of Cubans dressed in red, white and blue national flags, paid their respects chanting "Long live Fidel! We can hear him, we can feel him, he'll always be here," and holding up banners that read "We are Fidel". The government invited masses to the Havana's Revolution Square for a two-day commemoration that began with a 21-gun salute. Raul Castro and his top lieutenants held a separate, private ceremony, where they signed a book in front of an identical portrait and laid white flowers. Castro was always admired by leftists, many saw him as a revolutionary champion of the poor, but there were others who saw him as a dictator who oppressed Cubans and ruined the country's economy. He was cremated over the weekend, with the government declaring a nine-day period of mourning. His ashes will be carried in a cortege to a final resting place in Santiago de Cuba, the city where he had launched the revolution.
While a handful of world leaders sent admiring messages of condolence, Castro was also condemned by critics including Trump who chose to call him a "brutal dictator who oppressed his own people." Before the leader's death, Trump had threatened to reverse President Barack Obama's rapprochement with the country that included restoring diplomatic ties, increasing trade and pressing the US Congress to end years of economic embargo.
The ceremony only saw so many world leaders in attendance, mainly from Latin America, the Caribbean and Africa. The Kremlin said Russian President Vladimir Putin would not attend as he was preparing for a major speech, while Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau also skipped after his positive comments on the Cuban leader garnered backlash. Reacting to the death, North Korea called for three days of mourning and said it would keep flags at half mast to honour Castro. An Indian delegation lead by Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh left for Havana on Tuesday.
Castro's 1959 revolution toppled a dictatorship with the promise of bringing justice and equality.
