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Fidel Castro (1927- )Cuban president. Born on 13 August 1927, the son of a sugar planter, he studied law at Havana University in the 1940s, and then as a lawyer worked to help the poor. After leading an abortive revolt on 26 July 1953 against the hated dictatorship of Fulgencio Batista, he was imprisoned for two years. Released under a general amnesty, he went to Mexico, where he formed a group of about 80 guerrilla fighters, including his brother Raul and Che Guevara. On 2 December 1956, they returned secretly to Cuba, and began a guerrilla war against the regime. In March 1958, Castro called for an all-out popular insurrection. As the campaign developed, his undoubted leadership skills and personal charisma combined to become the myth of the revolutionary hero. His group of fighters became known as the romantic 26 July Movement, and Castro himself had the popular aura of a Robin Hood. He entered Havana in January 1959 and was hailed as Cuba's liberator. As prime minister of the new regime, he stood up to the United States, which supported Batista and his corrupt government in exile. Castro survived their attempt – sponsored by the US – to invade the country during the Bay of Pigs fiasco in 1961. His popular image was further improved when it became known that the CIA had tried to assassinate him using such clumsy devices as explosive cigars. During the Cuban missile crisis in October 1962, Castro's authority held during a highly dangerous situation. Since 1975, he has been president of Cuba. Despite adhering to a Communism that is, to many, outmoded today, he has maintained popular support, having ensured that the Cuban population is better educated (and perhaps healthier) than its counterpart in the United States. Much given to long public speeches, Castro also retains moral authority despite Cuba's poor economic record and the disadvantages suffered by minority groups such as gays. |
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