Fidel Castro’s international allies and leftist leaders from around the world paid their respects to the deceased Cuban ruler Tuesday night at a massive outdoor farewell ceremony, honoring him with effusive praise that cut a stark contrast with his negative reputation in the United States.
From a parade of foreign leaders, glowing farewell to Fidel Castro
STEPANAKERT, NOVEMBER 30, ARTSAKHPRESS: Castro’s death Friday at age 90 brought jubilant celebrations among Cuban exiles in Miami, but the solemn event here was a reminder that his socialist idealism and clash with the United States made him a powerful symbol in many other nations, and especially in the global south, the Washington Times reported.
The event stretched late into the night as presidents and foreign dignitaries from Russia, Iran, China, South Africa, Vietnam and across Latin America came to the podium in Havana’s Plaza of the Revolution, praising Castro as a towering figure and tireless advocate for the world’s poor and downtrodden.
“His will could never be broken, nor the will of the Cuban people,” said Vyacheslav Volodin, the speaker of Russia’s parliament, who came on behalf of Vladimir Putin. “Fidel’s strength has been an example for all the people of the world who want to choose their own path of development.”
The sea of Cubans who came to say goodbye was massive, spilling out of the capacious plaza into the surrounding boulevards. Nicaragua’s President Daniel Ortega, whose revolution Cuba supported in the 1970s, told the crowd that Castro would live on in all of them. “I am Fidel! I am Fidel!” they chanted.
It was the final act of government-scripted tributes in the Cuban capital, after two days during which hundreds of thousands filed past memorials to say goodbye. On Wednesday, Castro’s ashes will travel by caravan to the eastern end of the island, retracing the journey he and his rebel army made in triumph after seizing power in 1959.
Castro will be buried Sunday morning in Santiago de Cuba, the island’s second-largest city.
