Goodbye, Mr Castro

It would be a betrayal of my conscience to accept a responsibility requiring more mobility and dedication than I am physically able to offer,8221; Fidel Castro announced on Tuesday. His statement, ending his 49-year rule, was by turns bullish and nostalgic; it was unexpected too, tripping up enemies who had assumed he would cling on until death. It also closed an extraordinary half-century in which Cuba gained greater fame than its size would otherwise have commanded, thanks to a leader who painted his revolution in vivid colours 8230;Castro8217;s resilience in itself secures him a place in history. But it cannot disguise the fact that his Cuba was undemocratic, sometimes cruel and by its own terms a failure on most measures other than longevity. He did not create an equal or prosperous society, though America8217;s thuggish treatment is one reason why8230; Yet more than almost any other communist state, Cuba8217;s revolution8230; retained an element of promise. Progress in healthcare and education was real8230;Raul Castro, who at 75 will succeed his brother8230; is talked of as an enthusiast for change, and may recognise that it is necessary, but his age and long service at the head of the army make him part of his country8217;s past. The hope is that he will allow others to develop Cuba in ways which take it to democracy without collapsing into the arms of American businessmen and Miami exiles. This unhappy outcome would be made more likely by attempts to sustain Castroism without Mr Castro, a defiance that will surely fall apart, since Cuba8217;s people will not endure it indefinitely.

Excerpted from a Guardian leader, 8216;Farewell, Comrade Castro8217;, February 20