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PRESIDENT HIGGINS HAS come in for some strong criticism over his statement on the death of the former leader of Cuba Fidel Castro.
Higgins spoke of the former leader in glowing terms in his statement, calling him a “giant among global leaders” and commending the social and economic reforms introduced to the country during Castro’s reign.
However, the statement was criticised for not acknowledging the various human rights abuses that were committed during Castro’s reign and for speaking too highly of the former leader.
“I, personally, cannot accept that the President speaks for me when he talks of him as a champion of the oppressed and the excluded,” said Renua leader John Leahy.
So, what’s your opinion? Do you think President Higgins’ tribute to Fidel was appropriate?
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Did we not lower the flag for the Saudis when King abdullah died. Have people forgot that.
It’s all one big conspiracy…there’s the rulers and then there’s the puppets i.e the ruled.
The U.S capitalist elite hated and feared Castro because he set a very dangerous example for them. This is why the illegal embargo of Cuba has lasted for decades and why they’ve attempted to murder Castro hundreds of times. Despite this, a small country under the jackboot of the world’s leading imperial power has an infinitely better public healthcare system and lower infant mortality rates than its “free market” imperial tormentor.
So the most powerful empire in the history of the planet with untold resources at its disposal is being outperformed in key areas of human wellbeing by a tiny isolated island nation that it’s trying desperately to crush.
Cuba has developed the Meningitis-B, Hepatitis-B and Dengue vaccines a treatment/vaccine for lung cancer and in a moment of supreme irony are making it available to the U.S.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2016/02/22/cuba-lung-cancer-vaccine_n_7267518.html
Cuba has also sent 300,000 health workers on international missions to over 150 countries worldwide and it’s literacy campaign has educated 10 million students around the world.
Though far from perfect, Cuba shows the potential of what can be achieved if society’s resources are used to meet the needs of the majority and not funneled into the gaping maw of the elite under the exploitative ideology of capitalism.
Here’s a socialist analysis of the key failing of the Cuban revolution:
“At first, Castro and his movement were democratic nationalists not socialists or communists. But hostility from the old Cuban ruling class and US imperialism pushed Castro and Cuba into nationalisation of various industries and into the Soviet camp. Castro in 1961 announced that the Cuban revolution was a socialist one…………..For socialists, as for Marx himself, socialist revolution is the act of the working class itself – it is a process of self-emancipation in which working people take control of society and run it democratically in their own interests. This did not happen in Cuba. Rather, Castro’s small guerrilla army acted “on behalf of the people” and established, together with the old Cuban Communist Party, its rule from above. This became, and remained, a one-party state with no real democracy and very little political freedom. It was a state capitalist rather than a real socialist society……Socialists today can recognise Castro’s achievements while also explaining that we have a very different conception of socialism as a real people’s democracy of equality and freedom based on workers’ control of workplaces and communities.”
Yet as you have said yourself there is very little freedom in Cuba. Or chickens, massive shortages of chickens too.
As explained, Cuba has elements of socialism but ncannot be defined as socialist though it’s notable that it manages to protect the welfare of its people far far better than the poorest countries on the planet which all struggle under capitalism with billions living in abject poverty. And all this is achieved despite being under an illegal 60 year embargo from the most powerful empire in the human history.
Socialists can’t even do socialism properly.
Billy Cuba is one of the few states in the region that hasn’t seen a rise in the standards of living of its people, apart from the elites like Castro who never really suffered like his people.
@Billy Mooney:
It is not all black and white, there was some good, however it was a dictatorship and had all those elements of a dictatorship that both left and right possess. No Democracy, political prisoners and worse executions, The state controled media and all other aspects of culture and censorship. People could not leave the country without state permission ( those who left in rafts were considered dissidents). Apparently being gay was not a good idea, and people did not have the free will to express there opinions. It was extremism and a dictatorship, there is no other way a person can stay in power for over 50 years, and all the above are common traits of a dictatorship weather they be left or right.
I think Micheal D, took on the goods aspects such as medical and education, but grossly neglected the above and was blinded by a political ideology that he grew up with, where Castro and Che would have been the poster boys.
The only reason they have the most superior health system is because they had to become good at preventative health care as they couldn’t access medicine and began creating their own pharmaceuticals it’s an excellent system, the doctors live in the community as part of their training and see all their patients at least twice a year, if BP, weight etc start going up its nipped in the bud and they are put on a diet and monitored! The world needs to look at Cuba and cop on, the epidemic of obesity and diabetes is going to cripple the health systems of the “first” world
@ktsiwot:
The socialist revolution was never completed in Cuba resulting in many of the problems you listed though most are exaggerated of course by Cubs’a ideological opponents. However it’s laughable to hear the West criticize Cuba’s lack of “democracy” . Look at how the U.S crushed democracy in Chile and many other nations when it wasn’t a democracy which suited U.S interests.
In fact there are no real democracies where society is government to provide for the welfare of all. We have a veneer of democracy only with elections etc where we periodically swap one bunch of representatives of the billionaire class for another.
The parliamentary democracy system is the preferred form of rule for the capitalist class. It gives the majority working class the veneer of democracy while suppressing the possibility of any fundamental systemic change. This is typically achieved by having 2 parties with superficial differences but which both represent the capitalist ruling class. Tory Vs Labour in Britain, FF Vs FG in Ireland, Republicans Vs Democrats in the U.S. etc etc.
Big capital has always largely owned “democracy”. It’s a more resource efficient way of controlling the majority working class in comparison to brute force oppression. Democracy is not possible without an informed electorate and that is why the capitalist elite expend so much effort in keeping the majority misinformed as to the nature of the socio economic model which exploits them. The strategy is to control the information rather than direct control of the population by force which cannot be sustained indefinitely in any case.
P.S. it was illegal in Ireland for men to engage in sex together until 1993 while it was 1979 when Cuba decriminalized same sex relations. If Ireland was held to the same standards as Cuba then we would rank behind them in many many areas including health , education, homelessness etc.
@Billy Mooney:
Billy Democracy is often described as the least worst form of governance, nothing is perfect, but think about this for a moment , if we were in Cuba we could not have this conversation as any criticism of the system is not allowed, I would be considered a dissident.
@ktsiwot:
Criticism of Castro was allowed. Plots to assassinate him, and there were many, were not.
Have a look here when the BBC invites a University professor from the Southampton business school with the expectation of feeding their anti-Castro propaganda, and something different happens
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WApT5wYHSCg&feature=youtu.be
P.S. I’m considered to be a dissident here as are the people of Jobstown. We’ve already seen a Labour appointed judge convict a 15 year old boy of falsely imprisoning the Labour leader in front of 100 Gardai and the riot squad.
The ‘evidence’ against the boy amounted to: 1. He may have said into the megaphone at one stage: “Joanie in your ivory tower – this is called people power” 2. He walked around. 3. He sat down and encouraged others to sit down. 4. He waved his arms. 5. He filmed Joan Burton & said “Talk to us Joan”
This is the political policing, prosecution, show trial and conviction of a juvenile is an attempt to criminalize protest and strike back at the magnificent mass movement which has beaten the government on their water charges (banker tax) plans. Jobstown is a perfect example of the police, the DPP, the judiciary and the media colluding to try and crush political dissent.
The state is utterly ruthless when it’s authority and the interest of the billionaire class is threatened.
Surveillance operations against anti water charges activists, dawn raids by squads of Gardai to arrest elected representatives and children, pending arrests and prosecutions leaked to the RTE, collection permits denied to the AAA by a Labour affiliated judge, armed Gardai present at water meter installation protests etc etc etc.
Before the formal trials began we’ve seen Claire Byrne (You falsely imprisoned the Tanaiste), Olivia Mitchell (these were acts of violence and terrorism) and Ryan Turbridy (The Deputy Prime Minister trapped in a car for over 2 hours against her will) convict the people of Jobstown in trial by media.
This is a systematic assault on the rights of a working class community and the water charges movement generally. The intent is to remove hard won civil liberties, criminalize protest and intimidate the population into submission as the looting of the nation continues to pay for the debts of speculative financial capitalism. We don’t have a functioning democracy here or in the U.S, U.K etc, just the illusion of it. When you scratch the surface as the water charges movement did, then illusion disappears very quickly
Castro never had a bank account. Not a dollar.
Jesus Billy, start a blog for yerself and leave us alone
Ian, not having a bank account doesn’t mean not having dollars. Look no further than our own Bertie Ahern
@Jimmyjoe Wallace:jimmyjoe bit like the irish where most people haven’t seen a rise in the standards of living of in 8 yrs,,,seriously though they have in cuba especially in the last 14 yrs
No that is ok because ireland is like saudi an organised religion running the state, corrupt and the rich can do what ever they want
Neither had Bertie.
@Billy Mooney:here more about you darling dictator
http://nypost.com/2016/11/27/inside-fidel-castros-life-of-luxury-and-ladies-while-country-starved/
I knew those anti everything alliance essays would come in handy eventually, wally
@Val Martin:
You’re a Daily Mail fan. Everything you say can be safely ignored as extremist bile.
@Billy Mooney: Criticism of Castro was not allowed, not was peaceful political activity towards democracy. If it were, there would be no exiles in Frorida
@Billy Mooney: I have 17,000,000 in agreement with me in Britain and 62,000,000 in agreement with me in the USA, I never buy a newspaper and only read on in the dentist waiting room. I bet no one can explain why the Politicians who emerged from the Irish war of independence were democratic centrists notwithstanding they had used force, while the IRA who used force in the Northern troubles are all self declared socialist and some are communists? Why is that.?
Well said dude. Also this statement from Mr.Higgins doesnt cover over the very many right wing, capitalist pieces of legislation that he has signed into law also (Nama,Prom Notes etc…)
@Billy Mooney:
Wally, workers cannot earn more than 25 dollars a month. Top tax rate 92% and You complain about austerity here? Yet you “hail” the communist dictatorship in Cuba?
Will you do the same for China, North Korea, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam and all the other communist dictatorships around the world? Of course you would.
All (including your beloved Cuba) have one thing in common, they murder any opposition to their regime. If this democracy acted in the same way your hero’s do, you’d be pushing daisies.
@Billy Mooney:
I think Michael O’Leary has you and your lot summed up correctly.
The current Dáil is the “worst assembly of half-wits and lunatics”, according to Ryanair chief executive Michael O’Leary.
Speaking at a breakfast briefing for businesses in the Midlands, organised by Fianna Fáil TD Robert Troy, Mr O’Leary said the Irish electorate needed to take responsibility for choices made at the ballot box.
He said people needed to stop voting in the local lunatic or the village idiot if they wanted a strong, serious government.
Mr O’Leary said: “We, when given the opportunity, chose to vote in the worst assembly of half-wits and lunatics.
“I am referring to the Anti-Austerity Alliance and the Independents in the Dáil and then we wonder why we do not have decent or strong Government.
“In the worst of the property recession when the property developers had bankrupted us and the banks were bankrupt, who did we elect? Mick Wallace.”
Mr O’Leary said the electorate cannot complain about the lack of activity by this Government because it was what they voted for.
He also reserved strong criticism for The Irish Times and RTÉ for prioritising cyclists in Ranelagh and Drumcondra over others.
The businessman said The Irish Times was a “Pravda” (Russian broadsheet newspaper) while the broadcaster was run by “left-wing communists”.
The airline executive claimed the state broadcaster should be privatised.
‘Diatribe’
He said RTÉ prioritised public service union stories over issues such as Donald Trump’s pending presidency, the refugee crisis in Europe and the war in Syria.
@Jimmyjoe Wallace: Sounds like Ireland.
Paul MacNulty, except that in ireland we are not starting of from a state of abject poverty, ie an average salary of $15 a month like they have in Cuba. Many of the Latin American states were run by right wing dictators similar to Cuba, they have mostly managed to liberate themselves without the need to replace the right wing despots with left wing ones, and they have benefited more than the Cubans have.in Venezuela which followed the Cuban route, the currency is now almost worthless and the country is in turmoil.
Bertie never had back account but loads of money
@Alan Cooke: Michael o Leary is an ignorant self serving bellend as is any person who quotes him.
Renua leader John leahy, who’s he leader of? Himself? Must be a great moment for him getting a mention in the journal
Got a pain in my thumb scrolling past Billy’s rubbish.
@alwaysrightokay: Renua ha ha look how that went LOL
To this day, according to Amnesty International, thousands in Cuba are disappeared, tortured, killed, and imprisoned without charge. Internment, in other words.
Last year President Higgins said about British internment of Irish suspected of terrorism that “a plicy of amnesia will not do”.
It seems that Higgins view of political amnesia is selective, depending on how it enacts – enforces – socialism.
Higgins was so effusive in his praise of Castro you wondered if he was going to open a book of condolence, like de Valera did for Hitler in 1945.
“To this day, according to Amnesty International, thousands in Cuba are disappeared, tortured, killed, and imprisoned without charge.”
There is no mention of disappearances or killings on Amnesty’s site regarding Cuba.
They do mention arbitrary arrests, and detention of dissidents.
The Ladies In White who have received funding from a government which has terrorised the Cuban people for more than 100 years often protest every Sunday in Cuba. They often employ tactics similar to Black Lives Matter by sitting on the road blocking traffic. They did this when Obama visited to generate news coverage.
I wonder if there was a group in the US overtly plotting the overthrow of the US government with money coming from Iran or North Korea would the US be so accommodating. I think they’d end up being tortured in a camp like Guantanamo.
@Billy Mooney: You are mostly talking out of your hole on this one. Have you ever been to Cuba ? Sounds like you have not
Higgins should have the courage of his convictions and attend Castros funeral.
@Paul Mc: Maybe while he’s there he could do some unofficial touring. You know, the bits of Havana that Official Cuba doesn’t want you to see. If you don’t see socialism in action, it’s just wishful flowery stuff from the NUIG Poetry Society.
@Paul Mc: Whatever the policy is I would have thought that if our President Higgins attends a state funeral for Castro then he representing the Irish state.
Well Chris if our President can make these statements, I presume he’s speaking for the Irish people so as he is a bit of a globe trotter sure what’s the harm in attending a funeral on the other side of the ocean.
Higgins should the courage of his convictions and start executing or imprisoning gays and political opponents.
He would need the approval of the Government to do so.
Might even recruit some doctors while he’s there.
Human rights abuses?? Very few, if any, country in the world will stand up to serious scrutiny on human rights issues. Guantanamo, in a corner of Cuba comes to mind.
@Dave Doyle: Corrib gas pipeline comes to mind.
There was no election for 50 years.
He arrested and executed people without a fair trial.
The average wage is €15/month.
70% of the black population in Cuba is unemployed.
Just because he’s a leftist dictator does that make him better than Mussolini or hitler. A dictator is a dictator.
President Higgins had no right to make such a statement.
@Theunpopularpopulist:
Look to Allende’s Chile to see how the U.S treats a democracy which dares to move towards socialism. They toppled a democratically elected social democrat and installed the dictator Pinochet who proceeded to drown the country in blood. Spare us the sanctimony about “democracy” please.
So your point is that we should ignore the imprisonment without trial, terrible living conditions, torture and execution of dissidents, because the USA is worse?
Cube is not a democracy its a socialist government. There aren’t any elections is that type of system. Education is free, healthcare is free and housing is provided to everyone by the gov. There are no homeless people or evictions of people in debt.
I think a lot of people tend to forget the US involvement in all of this. They have illegally put sanctions on the Cuban people for over 60years. (Illegally) tried to Kill Castro over a 100 times.
The CIA illegally invaded Cuba (bay of pigs invasion) in the 60′s. When the president JFK found out he arrested those involved and apologised to the Cuban government.
There are more people per capita in jail in the US than in Cuba!
@Kevin McDonnell:
My point is that if the “democratic” West was held to the same standards as Cuba then we would rank behind them in many many areas.
Would you be here commenting if President Higgins has signed a book of condolences for a U.S. president like Nixon, Reagan, Bush etc who are responsible for the deaths of millions of people through their imperial conquests?
Shooting thousands of people without trial is morally equivalent to piping gas in Mayo?
And they say socialists aren’t in touch with realty…
@Dave Doyle
So Two Wrongs in your World make a right!
@Billy Mooney: Wow Billy you are really peddling the whataboutery this morning.There hasn’t elections for 50 years and he did arrest and execute people without a fair trial, are really comfortable supporting this regime. Whataboutery is no excuse for that and just shows how hard you are trying to gloss over the unpleasant side of Castros regime
Billy, Reagan killed millions of people? What imperial conquests did he take part in? Or are you thinking about when Russia invaded Afghanistan in 1980.
@Theunpopularpopulist: Someone was listening to Kevin Myers on Newstalk this morning. Your parroting skills are at boss level.
@Bob Woodward: You understand of course that the U.S police are executing black people on a weekly basis? Are you really comfortable supporting this regime?
Yenrit – great response
You can’t dispute the facts so you attack the person.
Facts are facts doesn’t matter where I heard/learned them.
Maybe you should learn some
Cuba was and still is a socialist hell hole. funded by the Soviet Union up until the late 80s. Hundreds of thousands killed and millions exiled. Fidel Castro was a brutal dictator who oversaw this. The lies and hypocrisy of socialist politicians in the west about what Cuba is really like, is sickening. President Higgins represents the country, not himself, and as such should have made a neutral statement, and moved on.
@Billy Mooney: Difference is im not defending the USA, I am happy to condemn the inequality , injustices of the USA and actually despair where the united states of trump is going.Nowhere in any of your comments today have you made any condemnation of the dark side of Castro .You have responded to my comment with more whataboutry , im sure your not in favor of denying democracy or execution without trial, pity your ideology so entrenched you can brush the ugly nasty side of the regime under the carpet because he promoted socialist values .
@Theunpopularpopulist: Do you think that if Castro had held elections they would have fair and free? Or wold America have poured millions into making sure they restored a Batista like dictatorship returning Cuba to it’s role a the playground of American gangsters?
@Warthog: Right in what context?
Mooney are you really using the treatment of black people in the U.S. as a justification?
@Theunpopularpopulist: more bull
@Dave Doyle: Them ISIS are crucifying Christians, they don’t get half enough abuse in Guantanamo.
@Diarmuid Brennan: So if the government provides for all society’s needs, why are there people in Jail at all?
@ Val Martin you think the Cuban government is bad!! Imagine the horrors going on in Guantanamo by the Americanos. 1.Imprisonment without being charged with a crime. 2.imprisoned and being held without trial. 3.imprisoned with no evidence or wrongdoing. 4.mental a physical torture. 5.prisoners who try to go on hunger strike are forcefully tube fed through their rectum (one prisoner has needed surgery to fix the damage done by guards). 6.one prisoner when to sleep and woke up the day after only to discover that the guards/doctors had removed his eye without his consent.
the americanos on a daily basis use drones to wipe out terrorists, the only evidence that those guys are terrorists is the phone number they have in their hand. They don’t know who they are killing. And civilians who are killed close by are collateral damage. Drone operators are sitting in a room in the US or Germany. All those people are neither charged with a crime or given a fair trial. This is called murder, the same thing you are accusing castro of!
Which country is more a threat to world peace! Cuba or the americano who have more than 400 military bases dotted all over the world.
Given the fact that we lowered the flag when the Saudi king died, I’d say this is a very minor storm in a tea cup. The Saudi regime is one of the most heinous on the planet
@Anne Marie Devlin:
No storm in a teacup for the thousands he murdered and their families! But that’s ok isn’t it Anne as they were all right wing nuts and bigots???
Ah yes, who can forget former president McAleese apologising on behalf of the Irish people (to a segregated audience) over Danish cartoons.
@Anne Marie Devlin:
I see your point, looking at it from a pragmatic point of view, we rely on Saudi oil and money in the west, probably best not to annoy them etc. People don’t rely on Cuba for any great extent so our comments can be more objective. Objectively speaking he exiled thousands, killed at least hundreds and enriched himself while restricting freedoms for the people. Probably not the worst but shouldn’t have received positive comments.
Considering there was an economic embargo for 60 years he didn’t do too bad! Imagine how prosperous Cube would be if there were no sanctions.
US sanctions tend to lead to people becoming poor starving and hardship. Cuba bucked the trend in this regard. I wonder did the US ever pay damages to Cuba for the illegal bay of pigs invasion!
How do we still regard the US and leaders in freedom when they tried to kill Castro over a 100 times. Completely illegal.
@Warthog: more unadulterated bull
@Diarmuid Brennan: Sanctions are part of capitalism, you can’t say they will do better without sanctions as there would be other ways to stop them from developing and being prosperous. Read about Cuba before Revolution when they were “free” and “American-driven” country.
@Maurice Bourke: Wow Maurice so we turn a blind eye to torture and murder because the ones who are doing it are rich and have oil. Sums up the elite in Ireland, show me the money.
@derek I was just pointing the pragmatic view. Don’t endorse it. I guess it comes down to which (if any) principles people are willing to compromise (overlook) on in a certain situation.
@Maurice Bourke: Well if you agree with the “pragmatic” view you are endorsing it. What I am saying is the rulers of Saudi Arabia have a lot more blood on their hands than Castro. And yes your right about principles the likes of our govt overlook them everyday.
@derek. I don’t agree with it. I was pointing it out. Nothing more.
@Maurice Bourke: Fair enough Maurice I apologize if you were offended.
@derek no need for apology. Just sorting out the misunderstanding.
Amazing to watch the same bedwetting leftists who call Trump a fascist dictator etc now line up to lionise Fidel Castro, an actual murderous dictator.
@Keith Mitchell: for a small and poor country to stand up to the US in those days it took more than being mr nice guy. Check what the US was sending out to train police into torturing political dissidents around Latin America http://nsarchive.gwu.edu/NSAEBB/NSAEBB324/
Stephen. He didn’t just stand up to the US, he stood on his own people – with great force.
@The IMF are here: maybe I am just lucky for speaking fluent Spanish and knowing the other side of the story. there is a different perception in each side. I grew up under US sponsored dictatorships in Latin America, there weren’t many angels around, you either submitted to the US ‘philosophy’, turned a blind eye to what was going on, or you stood up and were labelled a terrorist.
So the Americans forced him to put gay people in labour camps? They’re so sneaky, those Americans
@Lorem Ipsum: 1. homophobia existed before the revolution 2.It is true, Castro acknowledged his responsibility. 3. Homosexuality was decriminalised in 1979, 14 years before Ireland did. Are we pointing at Castro with dirty finders?
No, my finders are perfectly clean. He put gay people in labour camps and I didn’t
@Stephen McManus: North Korea is standing up to the US, why don’t you move to it?
@Val Martin: is that a question or a suggestion? I might mock one slightly less than the other.
It was just a geopolitical statement. What was he supposed to say? ‘Yay, that bollix is dead, let’s party?’
Jimmy couldn’t agree more. He’s dead as they say in the Green Mile , ” he’s square with the board “. Sorry for your troubles let’s move on ta fuk. Higgins would pay tribute if the Devil died that’s his thing let him off.
Sure. But what do you think he would have said if he’d been around when Pinochet died? I guarantee he wouldn’t have been signing a book of condolences.
Sure isn’t Michael D. a Socialist President on 5 Grand a week…
@Ben Moylan: Ben Moylan, green with envy. Bet you’re sorry you didn’t stand and get elected instead of Michael D. Hahahaha
Perhaps people should read up on the atrocities carried out by the US puppet Batista regime he overthrew and the amount of times the US attempted assassinations and coup plots against him
By that logic, every excess of the church, every Magdalene laundry, child rape and cover up were excused because the Black & Tans, famine, penal laws and Cromwell were even worse
We are a neutral country, while offering condolences is appreciate. Calling Fidel “giant among global leaders” is a bit much.
The should have been more neutral in tone used. If he were a private citizen or TD it would have been fine with me. But I believe that hold our president should have been more mindful of his position as a representative of the Irish state.
We are not a neutral country
@Lorem Ipsum:
ARTICLE 29
2: Ireland affirms its adherence to the principle of the pacific settlement of international disputes by international arbitration or judicial determination
While it doesn’t specifically say we are neutral, it does make it pretty clear the nation preference for non aggression
That’s not neutrality.
We have never signed The Hague Convention on the rights and duties of neutral states, and we’ve acted in ways that would breach it if we did
Fidel was a product of American codology ie Batista.Hypocrisy,the yanks are bigger dictators than Castro ever was.
@Jimmy Burn: Says you from the comfort of some Irish Townland
@Val Martin: Nope,says history.
Shame on the president.
Castro was a Dictator who hated gays, kept his people in poverty, disarmed the population and imprisoned anyone who spoke out against the regime. Yet on death, he had a net worth close to a billion dollars.
@The_Techno_Mage: Homosexuality was decriminalised in Cuba in 1979. In Ireland in 1993. How did you help here in Ireland?
@Stephen McManus: So why don’t you move to Cuba then?
@The_Techno_Mage: For the record I was nine in 1993 and I voted for the marriage equality year.
Stephen seems to think there’s an equivalence between a law that was ignored and imprisonment without trial
If you want to get technical Stephen, simply being gay wasn’t a crime in Ireland. Buggery was illegal, as it was considered “grossly indecent.” This should never have been the case but there’s no comparison with what Castro did
He put gay people in his forced labour camps just for existing. They weren’t even subject to due process. In the 1980s when he “allowed” (forced) tens of thousands of people to leave Cuba, gay men were vastly over-represented
There is no equivalence
@Lorem Ipsum: Great Comment Lorem Ipsum
@Stephen McManus:I voted got the same sex marriage, still hate Fiddle Castrato
@Val Martin: you appear to hate a lot of things if you don’t mind me saying.
No, he should resign from office. He is a disgrace. I’ve always though he was a bit of a caricature of Ireland to represent us abroad ( a leprechaun poet, no less). That was bad enough. Then he tells us Europe should take in millions of illegal conmen Muslim male migrants. Now he praises a brutal murderous dictator who forced thousands to flee Cuba, just because he had the odd trendy socialist policy (which resulted in third world poverty, by the way). Higgans out!
As our head of state president Higgins has every right to offer condolences to another former head of state and his family. Was Castro perfect no, but he was no boy scout but when someone tries to kill you multiple times you can harbour a bit of a grudge. Let’s also not forget Castro’s revolution overthrew another undemocratic leader batista who took power through a coup. I have no doubt he did sone bad things but he also did good things.
That will be a great relief to the families of those tortured and killed by by his brutal regime. That health, housing and education were Castro priorities could just as easily have been said about Stalin. Nothing excuses the killings, tortures and exiling of your own people.
Castro did a lot of good for his country. Just a pity he allowed the Americans to set up that concentration camp of theirs on his territory, but nobody is perfect.
Did it for the Saudis is that not an actual oppressive regime and source of evil. The more centre right n globalist of course hated castro. The world is already paying the price of demanding the western status quo stay via Trump brexit.
If Castro had his way the world would’ve paid a heavy price in 1963. He tried to convince Kruschev to launch a nuclear attack on the US
@Lorem Ipsum: Did he tell you that, Ipsum, or was that the plot of some B Movie you saw in the 60′s?
So you wanna retract that, Larry?
Castro’s setting up of that Human rights abuse center in guantanamo bay was a big mistake… I couldnt support him after that.
No. It was bad judgement, shows he’s not the intellect he thinks he is.
People are Hypocrites voting No in this poll… and then they go call themselves Irish. Ireland is based upon revisionists like Castro… you people need to look at yourselves… Tiocfaidh ár lá
or we may simply be irish who don’t agree with you, unlike communism, we have free speech and democracy. I dont need to call you names to respect your point of view. I just dont agree with it
@Brendan Quinn: People aren’t being hypocrites Brendan. They are just asking for more balance in the President’s statement. I realise that there may be a strain of thought “don’t speak ill of the dead” but that should not apply to public figures, especially dictators. Castro did some good there is no doubt. He also did great harm. Some of this needs to be placed into a historical context and the role of America is key here. Equally the role of America must be understood in the context of the cold war and the pervading belief at the time that the world was on the brink of nuclear annihilation. But little excuses subsequent US policy to Cuba except local politics and irritation that they had a “commie” state at their backdoor that had stood up to them. The Castro regime was a dictatorship and we cannot avoid this reality. The fact that he did good does not excuse his actions and the brutality of his regime. But many factors were involved and he alone was not to blame. Let history judge him fully. All we ask for now is an acknowledgement that there were two sides to his regime. One good. One bad.
@Brendan Quinn: Another eedgjitd swallowed a dictionary
If the US had lifted the sanctions 40 years ago Castro would quickly have been deposed
It was the sanctions gave him his power
Even the executions or opponents was justified by pointing to the US enemy
I always had good respect for Michael D, now I’m not so sure. I think he went a wee bit too far with his colourful description of Castro. I don’t think that he was a Giant among Global leaders. There certainly should NOT be a book of condolences in Dublin, no way, that is too much.
Trump slagging off Castro.!! What hypocrisy! Has he never heard of Guantanamo Bay in Cuba?
Larry D, Trump isn’t yet in office. Obama has been for almost 8 years but has, so far, failed to honour his first promise and close Guantanamo.
Shine your light on the one with actual power, not the one who is waiting to get it.
It’s very easy to give free education and health care if got only pay your workers 15 euros A MONTH
Signing the book of condolences for Hitler wasn’t appropriate either but presidents will be presidents I guess
WOW the socialists get really precious about Cuba. I find really strange that our usual socialist commentators who always run to take the high moral ground on every issue want to get their hands dirty in relation to Castro. Here is the most recent report from Anmesty international on Cuba
https://www.amnesty.org/en/countries/americas/cuba/report-cuba/
It unsettling that hardcore socialists are so entrenched in their ideology they can ignore the dark side of the Cuban story.
Message of condolence to Cubans in general – fine,
Countries head of state, falling over himself to fawn over a communist dictator, responsible for the deaths of thousands and misery of millions of his own people, all in the name of ideological progress, because you are a socialist and admire and espouse left wing policies and look at extreme leftwing politics and socialism / communism etc through rose tinted glasses – not in my name.
One man’s terrorist is another man’s freedom fighter. Wait til Dear Leader pops his clogs here. The glorifications and eulogising will be off the scale.
The question is do we really want our president to be seen standing shoulder to shoulder with Vladimir Putin and other communist leaders.
@Chris Kirk: “Vladimir Putin and other communist leaders.” You think Putin is a communist? Interesting.
@Chris Kirk: I don’t mind at all. At least Putin knows how to stand up to bullies. No talk of regime change from the US and its allies here. No talk of no fly zones here. Bullies always seem to know who not to bully.
@Larry Doherty: Putin knows how to stand up to bullies?! Putin is a bully Larry. And he uses military power to this end. Stop praising him because he is a “strong man”. Adolf Hitler and Stalin were strong men. Maybe we could do with fewer so-called “strong men”?
@John R: Some strong men are good natured. Others are not
since Dev Sympathised with German Ambassador Hempel on the death of Hitler,why not?
Do we forget that our govement was the only one to send condolences to Germany when the biggest murderer in history Hitler died.. What a bunch of hypocrite we are .
While I am no fan of Michael D Higgins (He is not really left wing anymore) the reactions to his comments on the death of Fidel Castro are both hysterical and hypocritical. The criticism of President Higgins from Colm O’Gorman of Amnesty have genuine validity, however the rantings of Stephen Donnelly, Ronan Mullen, Lucinda Creighton, and Noel Rock should not be taken seriously. Some of these individuals have no problem with Ireland doing business with brutal, murderous dictatorships in Asia and the Middle East. In fact these regimes make Castro look like a soft amateur. The old saying of “People in Glass Houses” comes to mind. I have no idea if Ronan Mullen is associated or not with Opus Dei, but it well known that founders of that organisation had strong links to the Franco regime in Spain. It would be interesting to hear Ronan’s views on that. Nobody should make excuses for dictatorships, regardless of the political ideology and as somebody once put it ” We should never let them walk on our face whether it’s with jackboots or carpet slippers. ”
The Old Road!
Adios Fidel. Cuba para siempre mi Amigo.
Don’t give a hoot
He can say what he likes
This is a non issue
There are so many real life issues like poverty, homelessness, corruption, political ineptitude you should be getting to grips with not piffle like this
@Peat Lander: And the 3rd highest electricity prices in the world to placate Eamon Ryan
Not on my behalf Mr . President
America is taking the highway to Hell and we in the West have to agree with everything they say and do, and believe every lie with our hearts.
Do people know history at all or just go by U.S. SPIN?
@Alois Irlmaier: Perhaps , but now we have Trump, it’ll be better
We?
@Dave O Keeffe: We as in… we do what Merkel wants and Merkel does what she is told to do from the White House. We as in those who let banks like Goldman Sachs employees infect governments, banks, EU systems and NGO’s?
Did someone mention that President Higgins over looked the human rights abuses in Cuba by offering condolences?
Were they on about Guantanimo Bay?
People who believe the American propaganda of a man, who in comparison to most leaders everywhere , under extreme restrictions managed to turn his country around. RIP Castro . It truly shows how bad our education system is currently and how bias the media is towards American bullshit
Castro definitely did some good and he was a larger than life character. That doesn’t change the fact he was a dictator but on the flip side, the fact that he was a dictator doesn’t undo the good things he did for his country. Like most leaders, he had his good qualities and his faults. One day maybe we can look at what he did objectively, the good and the bad, and learn from it.
No one has the right to speak on behalf of me unless I’ve asked them to do so… this half witted dribbling midget should only speak on behalf of himself if at all
Check who was in power before Castro …, Batista suspended the 1940 Constitution and revoked most political liberties, including the right to strike. He then aligned with the wealthiest landowners who owned the largest sugar plantations, and presided over a stagnating economy that widened the gap between rich and poor Cubans. Batista’s increasingly corrupt and repressive government then began to systematically profit from the exploitation of Cuba’s commercial interests, by negotiating lucrative relationships with the American Mafia, who controlled the drug, gambling, and prostitution businesses in Havana, and with large US-based multinationals who were awarded lucrative contracts. To quell the growing discontent amongst the populace—which was subsequently displayed through frequent student riots and demonstrations—Batista established tighter censorship of the media, while also utilizing his Bureau for the Repression of Communist Activities to carry out wide-scale violence, torture and public executions; ultimately killing anywhere from hundreds to 20,000 people. For several years until 1959, the Batista government received financial, military, and logistical support from the United States.. John F. Kennedy, in the midst of his campaign for the U.S. Presidency, decried Batista’s relationship with the U.S. government and criticized the Eisenhower administration for supporting him:
“Fulgencio Batista murdered 20,000 Cubans in seven years … and he turned Democratic Cuba into a complete police state—destroying every individual liberty. Yet our aid to his regime, and the ineptness of our policies, enabled Batista to invoke the name of the United States in support of his reign of terror. Administration spokesmen publicly praised Batista—hailed him as a staunch ally and a good friend—at a time when Batista was murdering thousands, destroying the last vestiges of freedom, and stealing hundreds of millions of dollars from the Cuban people, and we failed to press for free elections.
@Andy Cross: I don’t blame Castro for the revolution. I blame him for failing to guide his country to at least some form of democracy with democratic institutions. Did he think dictatorship could last for ever and him as well?
@Val Martin: ,It goes to show that old saying is true,”, power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely ” and if there was real democracy in Cuba ,the U.S. only likes certain types of democracy ,where the leader is a puppet for the U.S. government .,We in this country say we live in a democracy ,yet right wing parties support and prop each other in government ,Where big business and multi- national companies get ” special deals ” on paying little or no tax ,With political parties and politicians have a greedy hand out for donations and “gifts ” Cronies appointment to boards ,debts written of for tax-exiles and given lucrative contracts ,Having been down on their knees kissing arch- bishops ring and been guided by church ,now politicians are on their knees to right wing policies ,where homelessness and poverty are a policy of government worship of free markets ,
Just shows what a crowd of hypocrites we can be. On one hand condemn the democratic wishes of the American people, while at the same time lamenting the passing of a dictator how fought against democracy.
A great, if biased, interview on the BBC with someone who knows what she is talking about, making a refreshing change https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WApT5wYHSCg
I think that Mr Higgins wanted to see the one side and ignoring the other. Everything Fidel achieved was at the expenses of human lives, broken families, suffering, etc… I think that Mr Higgins never experienced and not even Fidel experienced the real life of an ordinary Cuban. A public victory without a private one. Genuine leadership is influence not imposition. He always lacked that.
Sounds legit…do you want the long card number and expiry?
What about?
The self righteous sanctimonious muppet embarrassed the country again.
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