Fidel Castro as a Leader of Cuba - Essay Example

Fidel Castro Fidel Castro was born in 1926 in Oriente, a province in eastern Cuba. He is the son of Angel Castro who was a rich man who had his sugarplantations and Lina Ruz Gonzalez who was the maid of Angel Castro’s first wife. When Castro was 15 years old his father officially married Rina Luz Gonzalez and ended his first marriage. Fidel Castro was the third child to his parents and he had two elder brothers and four younger sisters. He started his education in private catholic schools. He was a good all rounder with a good record in his studies as well as in sports. Castro chose law as his field and entered the University of Havana for his degree in law. It was in this university that he became involved in politics. In 1947 he entered the group of Eduardo Chibas known as Partido Ortodoxo which was involved in the process of explaining the corruption that was prevalent in Cuba and it stress upon developing independence in Cuba from foreign intervention in the issues of the country particularly the involvement of the United States. Though Chibas was not successful in his mission and he shot himself because of his failure to win elections, Castro was inspired by him and worked on his principles. Castro got married in 1948 to Mirta Diaz Balart who belonged to a very rich family. Though, he received an exposure to the elite and political figures through this marriage but it did not prove to be a successful marriage and he separated from his wife in 1955. Castro completed his education in 1950 and started practicing law and at the same time became politically active. He had very high hopes of achievement in the upcoming elections and expected himself to be elected in the parliament in 1952. But events took a different turn when General Fulgencio Batista formed a coup against Carlos Prío Socarrás who was the then ruling president and took over and suspended the upcoming elections. Batista was very influential. He legalized his actions with the United States with the help of his sources and started dictating the land of Cuba. Castro stopped his law practice and directed himself entirely towards politics. Fidel Castro and other members of the Partido Ortodoxo party who were looking forward to elections were disappointed with this action. This group revolted against the government by attacking Moncada Barracks on July 26 1953 but they were unsuccessful. Most of them were killed and Fidel Castro and his brother Raul Castro were given sentences of 15 years of imprisonment. Castro was released two years later only. Castro was very determined. He moved to Mexico and started forming another group. There, he also received assistance from Ernesto Che Guevara who joined Castro and he was of great help to them as he was an expert in guerilla warfare which was their new tactic to cope up with the forces this time. Towards the end of 1956 Castro with his small force of around 80 men launched an attack near the city of Manzillino but the forces of Batista again overpowered them. Fidel Castro and Raul Castro managed to escape and they took refuge in the mountains of Sierra Maestra. From then on they reformed in small groups as they received the support of the locals. It took two years for them to completely disintegrate the government of Batista and in January 1959 Batista left Cuba. José Miró Cardona was declared prime minister and Manuel Urrutia Lleó was sworn in as president and above all Fidel Castro was now the Commander in Chief of the Armed forces. Soon within a month the prime minister resigned and Fidel Castro was made the prime minister of Cuba. As soon as he took power, Castro introduced reforms in the country to reduce its foreign economic dependence. He nationalized many industries and implemented similar reforms in the sector of agriculture which restricted the amount of land one owner could have and put a ban on foreign ownership of land. Tension between the United States and Cuba began and in the same year when Castro visited United States, President Dwight Eisenhower did not see him. Diplomatic relations between Cuba and the Soviet Union developed and Castro signed a deal with them that they would buy oil from the soviet. The U.S. oil companies were taken possession of as they refused to provide oil to the country. The relations between the United States and Cuba became worse. In 1961 the people who had migrated from Cuba to U.S. because of their resentment of the policies of Fidel Castro hatched a conspiracy against his government in 1961. This was known as the invasion of the Bay of Pigs. This invasion was not successful and the forces of Castro won against the enemies. In the following year the U.S. imposed complete ban on trade with Cuba. Castro increased his relations with the Soviet Union and other third world countries. He worked for the education and healthcare system of his country. With all the reforms that he introduced, certain strict regulations were imposed which included restrictions on religion, media and opposition. Many Cubans left their country and migrated to the United States due to these reasons. Castro became the president of the country in 1976. In 1991 after the breakdown of Soviet Union Castro lost his biggest ally and economic supporter. There was a sharp decline in the economy of Cuba but Castro came up with new policies for his country. He permitted foreign ventures in his country and the U.S. dollar was made legal. Castro was a proud man and he did not take the humanitarian aid that was offered to him by the United States after Hurricane Michelle in 2001. He bought food supplies from them. He worked for Cuba until his health started deteriorating. In 2008 he handed over his presidency to his brother Raul Castro and resigned himself. Fidel Castro is considered to be a great leader of history who revolutionized the state of Cuba. Though Cuba was independent since 1902, there was great interference of the United States of America in all its policies. Its leaders were all pro American, working according to the demands of the United States. It was Fidel Castro who got Cuba its true freedom. He is considered to be a brave figure because he took a stand against the United States by overthrowing Fulgencio Batista, a dictator who shaped the policies of Cuba according to the commands of United States. He brought with him a revolution changing Cuba to a communist country. This led to a tension between the United States and his country. But Fidel Castro was not a man to be shaken. He implemented his policies and his friction with the United States made the relations between Cuba and the Soviet Union develop which proved to be beneficial for Cuba. He worked towards the development and prosperity of his country and was faithful to his people. He escaped many attempts made on his life which were plotted by many foreign agents as well as by some people of his own country. Gabriel Garcia Marquez a great writer described Castro in these words “One thing is certain: wherever he may be, however and with whomever, Fidel Castro is there to win. I do not think anyone in this world could be a worse loser. His attitude in the face of defeat even in the slightest events of daily life seems to obey a private logic: he will not even admit it, and he does not have a moment’s peace until he manages to invert the terms and turn it into a victory.” References: Top of Form Balfour, Sebastian. Castro. Profiles in power. Harlow: Longman, 2008. Bottom of Form Top of Form Bockman, Larry James. The Spirit of Moncada: Fidel Castros Rise to Power, 1953-1959. Student research and writing, AY 1983-1984. Quantico, Va: Marine Corps Command and Staff College, Education Center, 1984. Bottom of Form Top of Form Coltman, Leycester, and Julia Sweig. The Real Fidel Castro. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2003. Bottom of Form Top of Form Top of Form Ramonet, Ignacio, Fidel Castro, and Andrew Hurley. Fidel Castro: My Life : a Spoken Autobiography. New York: Scribner, 2008. Bottom of Form Bottom of Form Top of Form Skierka, Volker. Fidel Castro: A Biography. Cambridge, UK: Polity, 2004. Bottom of Form Read More