Posted on Thu, Sep. 11, 2008
By WILL WEISSERT
Associated Press Writer
HAVANA --
The day after Hurricane Gustav roared through western Cuba, families
were salvaging belongings from their flattened homes when
state-television cameras turned up.
Storm victims posing among the rubble soon began chanting "Fidel!
Fidel!" Nearly a half-minute went by before anyone realized they were
forgetting the man who replaced Fidel Castro as Cuba's president six
months ago.
"And Raul! And Raul!" someone yelled. Then came a revised chant: "Fidel
and Raul!"
It was an easy mistake, considering the 77-year-old Raul Castro has not
addressed the nation or appeared in public during the past three weeks -
even though a tropical storm and two monster hurricanes have battered
the island over the same period.
Tropical Storm Fay crashed ashore near the Bay of Pigs on Aug. 17, two
weeks before Gustav slammed into the west, damaging at least 100,000
homes and crippling industry, food production and infrastructure. Then
Hurricane Ike hit eastern Cuba on Sunday, killing five people, damaging
at least 200,000 homes and forcing nearly a fourth of the population to
evacuate as it moved nearly the length of the island before moving into
the Gulf of Mexico.
Rather than tour the hardest-hit areas after each storm, Raul has
dispatched vice presidents and army generals. Instead of a televised
address, he has appeared only in a few shots, speaking by phone to
officials in devastated areas and presiding over a closed-door meeting
of civil defense leaders as they prepared for Ike in Havana.
His hands-off style is a far cry from that of Fidel Castro, who was fond
of jumping in a jeep and following storms to see the damage and greeting
the victims in person. The elder Castro often gave long speeches after
hurricanes and appeared on government TV before they hit, quizzing
Cuba's top meteorologist for hours about computer models and possible
storm paths.
The ailing, 82-year-old Fidel has not appeared in public since
undergoing emergency intestinal surgery in July 2006. He continues to
release newspaper columns every few days, however, and has written about
the recent storms, noting that Gustav left parts of western Cuba looking
like they were hit by an atomic blast.
Raul's low profile has not been lost on Cubans.
"I think Raul should go out and see the victims," a maintenance worker
named Tomas said as he cleared debris from the damaged roof of a
building in El Florida, a town in central Cuba where Ike washed out rows
of sugar cane.
Referring to the 1959 rebel uprising that brought the Castro brothers to
power, he added: "This revolution is good, but we need Raul to be in
charge of it."
The man declined to give his full name, saying he feared being
identified as having publicly criticized the government.
Another El Florida resident, Magdalena Gonzalez, defended the communist
government, saying that thanks to policies under the Castros, storms
that kill hundreds in other poor countries claim almost no lives here.
Cuban officials routinely and effectively mobilize mass storm
evacuations on the island, sending police and soldiers door-to-door to
enforce compliance.
"We have a civil defense system that protects us," said Gonzalez, a
66-year-old retired teacher who took in two elderly neighbors during the
storm.
Nevertheless, others complained that Raul Castro's government has not
done enough to help those left homeless by Ike.
"With so much damage everywhere in the country, they haven't done
anything to help Las Delicias," said Maria Gomez, referring to her city
in the eastern province of Las Tunas. "No support has arrived, no food."
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