Recovering Castro says worst is over, though no return yet

AILING Cuban leader Fidel Castro said in a new statement which was released yesterday that he has lost more than 41 pounds in about a month since undergoing intestinal surgery but he added the “most critical moment has been left behind”.

“Today I am recovering at a satisfactory rhythm,” read the statement, published in the Communist Party daily Granma.

The statement was accompanied by 10 photographs of Castro during his convalescence. In all of them he is sitting up and wearing either short-sleeved navy blue or light-blue pajamas and in several, he is reading or writing.

Most of the pictures show the Cuban leader from the waist up, although one shows his whole body as he sits in a rocking chair reading a newspaper.

In another, Castro holds up a broadsheet-proof of a new book written from a series of interviews he gave to French journalist Ignacio Ramonet.

“In the coming days I will be receiving distinguished visitors,” he added, apparently referring to some of the heads of state and government who will be travelling to Havana for a summit of non-aligned nations.

“This doesn’t mean that every activity will be immediately accompanied by video or photographic images, although news will be provided of every one,” the statement said.

The Cuban leader announced on July 31 that he was stepping aside as president to recover from the operation. It remains unclear when he had the surgery.

He said he was temporarily turning over power to his 75-year-old brother Raul, the defence minister. It was the first time in 47 years of rule that Castro had stepped aside, even temporarily.

In the weeks since, the nature of his surgery and his specific ailment have been treated as a state secret.

“All of us must understand that it is not convenient to systematically offer information, nor give out images of my health situation,” Castro added.

“All of us must also understand realistically that the complete recovery time, whether we like it or not, will be prolonged.

“At this moment I am not in a hurry, and no one should be in a hurry. The country is marching and moving ahead,” he said.

The Cuban government has not announced whether Fidel or Raul will represent the country during next week’s summit.

Castro came to power after a military coup in 1959.