Rumors about Raúl Castro’s death usually coincide with moments of high national tension
14ymedio, Juan Izquierdo, Havana, 1 October 2024 — Raúl Castro’s appearances on Cuban Television, after the increasingly frequent flood of rumors about his death, have become a kind of State ritual. At the beginning of the year, it was an official media – the very faithful Cubainformación – that coined the term “resurrection” to designate these sudden incursions of the nonagenarian general in front of the cameras.
Last September, five generals of the Armed Forces died, and the rumors circulated like never before. Castro, however, did not appear until the end of the month, to receive the president of Vietnam and say goodbye to one of his closest collaborators. In the Granma room of the Ministry of the Armed Forces, together with the leaders of the regime, Raúl Castro paid a late “tribute” to Ramón Espinosa Martín, who died four days earlier.
The scene has been repeated many times in recent years. The family of the deceased soldier is placed in front of a double row of leaders: in the center, Miguel Díaz-Canel, Raúl Castro and Ramiro Valdés; next to them, Manuel Marrero, Esteban Lazo, the Minister of the Armed Forces – Álvaro López Miera – and the Minister of the Interior, Lázaro Álvarez Casas. Presiding over the hall are the ashes of the deceased, his medals and a wooden mural with the Granma yacht.
Without saying a word – the ceremony has been described over and over again by the official press – Castro approaches with a white rose, bends down with more and more difficulty, and places it on a small table in front of the remains. Then, the military and leaders of the room stand at the same time.
The general’s “short stay” guarantees the family that the deceased had Castro’s utmost confidence
The general’s “short stay” guarantees the family that the deceased had, as is the case of Espinosa Martín, Castro’s utmost confidence. They describe his presence at the funeral as a “meaningful gesture,” which the former leader of the Communist Party tops off by personally
