A.J.P. Taylor says somewhere that only pre-modern societies throw up heroes. Modern societies are too institutionalised to do so. There are exceptions such as that of Winston Churchill and Charles de Gaulle, but these heroes arose in times of extreme crises.

Fidel Castro, on the other hand, is a hero not only because he personifies the Cuban revolution but because the revolution took place in ordinary times, at a time when there was no world crisis. 

The general law, up to now, seems to be that every socialist revolution, once it has laid the material basis for a new society, moves over to capitalism. Castro's Cuba moved in the opposite direction.

The 26th of July Movement was authentically bourgeois, with some communists supporting it individually, as is evident from the programme outlined by Castro at his trial after the attack on the Moncada Barracks. In fact, the initiation of armed struggle in the Sierra Maestra was criticised by the Cuban communist party as adventurist.
It was only two years after the seizure of power that the two parties united (together with the Revolutionary Directorate).

The US State Department had correctly assessed, against the opinion of its ambassador in Havana, that Castro was a bourgeois democrat. It had, however, underestimated Castro's commitment to change in the country even if the reforms were in conflict with US interests.

In assessing Castro the US may have drawn upon its experience in other Latin American countries, thus it had probably expected Castro to be won over and, after expelling and killing the leftists in his party, become cooperative with Cuba's giant neighbour to the North. And if that did not happen there was always the Cuban army to overthrow him.

By November 1958 the US government and those who mattered in Cuba were convinced that the existing regime in Cuba was dissolving; the army leadership confessed that it had lost the fight against Castro. The US then decided to execute a plan which had always worked in such situations American-allied President Batista was to hand over power to a nominated civilian junta and leave the country.

The junta would hold elections and install a new president, thus effectively pre-empting Castro and any radicals who hoped to take advantage of the chaos.

But Batista delayed his departure until the regime's dissolution was far advanced with the result that soldiers deserted their ranks in hordes to join Castro.

The failure of the US in Cuba was ensured by Castro's dissolution of the old Cuban army immediately upon victory and in defiance of explicit US advice. Thus the US lost an effective instrument of maintaining its domination of Cuba. The new army was loyal only to Castro.

The book showcases how with every test of wills in relations with America and every act of pressure and threat from it the Cuban leadership moved one more step to the left, until on December 2, 1961 Castro declared himself a Marxist-Leninist.

Even today, when Cuba is almost the only socialist country in the world, its humanitarian assistance to other Third World countries is commendable.

Writers, especially historians, have not, till now, been able to resolve the question of the role of individuals in mass action; in short the role of the hero. Dr Nagi has dealt with this issue in the book by wrapping the narrative around the persona of Castro.

The individual remains intact, but he becomes a hero by absorbing the will and dedication of the masses and giving them clarity of thought and expression.

The author seems to be initiating a new style of prose in Urdu by using a language which has thus far been confined to poetry. It seems that his inspiration is from Faiz. The romantic language presents the revolutionary narrative in a more attractive way than the prose normally associated with historical research would have.

When the Soviet Union collapsed and its allies in Eastern Europe joined NATO and the EU, western states and their publics expected a quick end of the regime in Cuba because of the end of Soviet assistance.

Today their hopes are pinned on Castro's death.

The reviewer is a former ambassador to Cuba

Fidel Castro Latini Amrika aur Amriki Samraj
(POLITICS)
By Dr Saulat Nagi
Fiction House, Lahore
372pp. Rs350