Castro's Cuba, beacon in Latin America's leftist tide

Yahoo – AFP, Alexandre Grosbois, November 27, 2016

A billboard depicting Cuban revolutionary leader Fidel Castro and reading "The
 Revolution Will Go On," is seen in Havana, on November 27, 2016 two days after
his death (AFP Photo/Yamil Lage)

Havana (AFP) - Beyond his native Caribbean island, Fidel Castro's revolutionary fire set alight much of Latin America, helping drive numerous leftist allies to power in a tide that is now turning.

"Cuba was a model, a beacon for the left in Latin America," said Gaspard Estrada, head of the Latin America Observatory at the Sciences Po politics institute in Paris.

Over the decades, Cuba became a mecca for Latin American leftist dissidents. Thousands of men trained at the Punta Cero military camp near Havana and took up arms against the US-backed right-wing regimes that prevailed in the region.

Here are some of Castro's most prominent friends and admirers across the continent over the years.

Venezuela's late socialist leader Hugo Chavez (L) possibly shared the most 

similarities with Fidel Castro's revolutionary fervor (AFP Photo/Pablo Porciuncula)

Chavez

Venezuela's late socialist leader Hugo Chavez possibly came closest to matching Castro's revolutionary fervor and charisma in recent times.

Castro had backed guerrillas in Venezuela in the early 1960s, as in various other countries.

But it was not until 1998 that Chavez was elected, ushering in what he called "21st-century socialism" strongly influenced by the Cuban revolution.

Often appearing in public with his friend Fidel, Chavez became the Latin American left's provocateur-in-chief with respect to the United States.

Chavez died in 2014 and his protege Nicolas Maduro was elected to replace him. Maduro is now facing pressure to quit over a grave economic crisis.

Brazil's former president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva (L) became Cuba's second

most prominent ally after Chavez (AFP Photo/Roberto Stuckert Filho)

Lula

Brazil's former president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva became Cuba's second most prominent ally after Chavez.

A working class union leader, Lula came to power in 2003 and presided over a boom in Latin America's biggest country, winning international plaudits.

But Brazil plunged into recession in 2015 under Lula's successor Dilma Rousseff. She was impeached this year, when conservatives came to power.

Kirchner

Castro allies dominated politics in Argentina from 2003 under Nestor Kirchner and his wife Cristina, who succeeded him in 2007.

Reacting after Castro's death, Cristina Kirchner called her friend Castro and Cuba "an example of dignity and sovereignty."

She became one of the most outspoken anti-US figures in the so-called "pink tide" of leftist governments that swept Latin America from the late 1990s.

She left office a year ago, replaced by conservative Mauricio Macri in another shift to the right.

Bolivia's president Evo Morales (L) hailed Fidel Castro as "the master of

revolutionaries" after his death (AFP Photo/Adalberto Roque)

Morales

Bolivia's president Evo Morales is a confessed admirer of Castro, whom he has called "wise grandfather."

A former farmer and unionist, Morales became the first indigenous person to become Bolivia's president in 2006.

He hailed Castro after his death as "the master of revolutionaries."

"He guided us to raise our voices against those who tried to impose policies of domination to rob us of our natural resources," Morales said in a speech.

Morales lost a referendum in February on whether he should be allowed to stand for a fourth term in office.

Ortega

Castro backed the 1979 Sandinista revolution in Nicaragua, a staunch ally of its guerrilla leader, Daniel Ortega.

Unlike some leaders in the "pink tide," Ortega is hanging on. He won re-election this month to a third consecutive term. His opponents say the poll was rigged.

Castro also helped the rebel groups that formed the Farabundo Marti front in nearby El Salvador in the 1980s. One of its former commanders, Salvador Sanchez Ceren, is currently president.

Castro "is mourned in Cuba, across Latin America and in other places because of what he symbolized for the independence of his country and national pride, as a fighter for self-determination," said Geoff Thale of the Office on Latin America, a Washington-based NGO.

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World reacts to death of Cuba's Fidel Castro

Kryon Q&A

QUESTION (2005): Dear Kryon: I read in a spiritual article that Fidel Castro's mission is to show how to do things without money, that this is the reason why he and the tropical revolution have been kept alive. Is that true? If not, then why didn’t Cuba change when Eastern Europe changed? Has Fidel Castro been working for the light or is he a part of the old energy?

Answer: This leader is of the old energy, but was needed for the time. The real reason was to bring the Soviet Union close to your shores in order to help with the year 2000 Armageddon scenario that didn’t happen. His earthly masters would have played a very important part in Cuba with the nuclear war you didn’t have.

That’s the whole reason, and now he exists as a relic of what didn’t happen. His society is poor, and the culture is not elevated or pleased with itself. This energy will change soon… sooner than you think. Then you will see a Cuba that has been “hiding” for a very long time, and also realize the unbalance and cultural richness that has been there all along.

"Recalibration of Knowledge" – Jan 14, 2012 (Kryon channelled by Lee Carroll) - (Subjects: Channelling, God-Creator, Benevolent Design, New Energy, Shift of Human Consciousness, (Old) Souls, Reincarnation, Gaia, Old Energies (Africa, Terrorists, Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Venezuela ... ), Weather, Rejuvenation, Akash, Nicolas Tesla / Einstein, Cold Fusion, Magnetics, Lemuria, Atomic Structure (Electrons, Particles, Polarity, Self Balancing, Magnetism), Entanglement, "Life is necessary for a Universe to exist and not the other way around", DNA, Humans (Baby getting ready, First Breath, Stem Cells, Embryonic Stem Cells, Rejuvenation), Global Unity, ... etc.) - (Text Version)

"... I want you to watch some countries. I don't have a clock [this statement is Kryon telling us that there is no time frame on his side of the veil, only potentials]. I'll just tell you, it's imminent [in Spirit's timing, this could mean as soon as a decade]. I want you to watch some countries carefully for changes. You're going to be seeing changes that are obvious, and some that are not obvious [covert or assumptive]. But the obvious ones you will see sooner than not - Cuba, Korea [North], Iran, of course, and Venezuela. I want you to watch what happens when they start to realize that they don't have any more allies on Earth! Even their brothers who used to support them in their hatred of some are saying, "Well, perhaps not anymore. It doesn't seem to be supporting us anymore." Watch the synchronicities that are occurring. The leaders who have either died or are going to in the next year or so will take with them the old ways. Watch what happens to those who take their place, and remember these meetings where I described these potentials to you.

The Old Energy is Alive, But Not Happy

I want to tell you something: Old energy dies kicking and screaming. Old energy does not surrender, ever. Old energy simply dies hard and slow. There will be hold-outs for a long time. There will be those who are convinced that the only way to get what they want is to create drama, war, and fear. They continue to want to spring up in places you felt were safe, and to pull you backwards with them. They hate the fact that the earth is going soft on them, and they continue to rattle their sabers, make threats, and make news doing it. They're not the majority, Human Being, but often they are the loudest. When you walk around in perfect health and you are feeling great except for your sore toe, what do you think about? Your SORE TOE! So then you watch your media talk about sore toes for endless hours, and you get depressed. I know you understand the metaphor. ..."