World reacts to Fidel Castro's death..........
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World reacts to Fidel Castro's death with 'hope' and 'disappointment'
Heads of state and leaders around the world have reacted to the death of longtime Cuban president and revolutionary Fidel Castro. For many, he represented pride in his country's independent development.
Shortly after the announcement that Fidel Castro had died,messages of condolence poured in from heads of governments around the world on Saturday, remembering the leader and the revolution he fostered in Cuba.
In a statement, French President Francois Hollande said Castro embodied the Cuban revolution in both its "hopes" and "disappointments."
"An actor of the Cold War… he represented, for Cubans, pride in rejecting external domination," Hollande added, referring to Castro's decision to distance himself and his country from the United States in the late 1950s.
Russian President Vladimir Putin praised the leader saying, "The name of this distinguished statesman is rightly considered the symbol of an era in modern world history…Fidel Castro was a sincere and reliable friend of Russia." Cuba's relationship with the former Soviet Union gained new heights in the late 1950s and early 1960s following the island nation's standoff with the United States, which many see as the closest the world has come to a nuclear war. Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev tweeted a picture of himself with the Cuban leader, saying Castro had " a keen interest in events in the world and Russia."
For former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, Castro left a clear legacy for his island nation.
"Fidel stood up and strengthened his country during the harshest American blockade when there was colossal pressure on him and he still took his country out of his blockade to the path of independent development," Russian news agency Interfax quoted Gorbachev as saying. Castro would be remembered as a "prominent politician" who managed to leave " a deep mark in the history of mankind," he added.
Castro's close ally Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro offered words of condolence, saying, "We will keep on winning and keep fighting. Fidel Castro is an example of the fight for all the people of the world. We will go forward with his legacy," he told television station Telesur.
Cuba's socialist-era ally, India, also reacted to the island leader's death, with President Pranab Mukherjee offering "heartfelt condolences on the sad demise of Cuba's revolutionary leader, former president and friend of India."
Italian Foreign Minister Paolo Gentiloni said on Twitter that Castro's death marked the turning of "one of the great and tragic pages of the last century."
Press and people react
In Miami, thousands of people celebrated the news of Castro's death. Many Cubans fled the island after 1959, soon after Castro took over as the country's president, and settled in Miami, New Jersey and elsewhere. Many of these were loyalists of President Fulgencio Batista, who had been overthrown by Castro's revolution. Many others felt that the Cuban leader's policies were too oppressive.
"We are all celebrating, this is like a carnival," 72-year-old Jay Fernandez told the Associated Press. "Satan, Fidel is now yours. Give him what he deserves. Don't let him rest in peace."
US newspapers were awash with the news of Castro's demise, with "The New York Times" describing the leader as one who "bedeviled 11 American presidents and briefly pushed the world to the brink of nuclear war." Castro "became a towering international figure whose importance in the 20th century far exceeded which might have been expected from the head of state of a Caribbean island nation of 11 million people," the paper wrote.
The "Washington Post" wrote that the revolutionary leader was a "spiritual beacon to the world's far-left," but that "his detractors saw him as a repressive leader who turned Cuba into a de facto Gulag."
Cuba has meanwhile declared a nine-day mourning period for its former president, who will be cremated on Saturday. His ashes will be buried in the southern city of Santiago after a four-day procession through the country, the government said in a statement.
mg/sms (dpa, AFP, AP)
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