Cuba vows communist succession post-Castro

“What will Cuba be like when Fidel Castro is gone? Washington and Cuba have ”” no surprise ”” startlingly different versions of a post-Castro Cuba, and many dissidents on the island complain they will be caught in the middle.

In Washington’s scenario, presented this week by a presidential commission, a democratic Cuba will endorse multiparty elections and free markets and become a new ally to be rebuilt with American assistance after nearly five decades of communism.

But Castro, who apparently enjoys good health and turns 80 on Aug. 13, has been fortifying the ruling Communist Party to ensure the status quo long after his death. He plans to hand over power to his 75-year-old brother Raul, the first vice president of Cuba’s Council of State.”

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