An Eulogy to a Great Revolutionary

They say, "the valiant never taste of death but once". I would agree. No leader embodies the meaning of this adage more than Fidel Castro does. After surviving multiple assassination attempts, he gave up the ghost at a ripe old age and on his own terms. Such is the befitting end to the captivating life of a true revolutionary. And his story will be told for generations to come. He will stand tall in the annals of history as a true revolutionary. 

I was filled with sadness when I learned of his death on November 25 2016 at the age of 90. Castro was a divisive and controversial figure through out his life. To those who did not like him, he was viewed as a ruthless dictator. But to those who loved him, he will be remembered as a freedom fighter - one who dedicated his life to the fight against, injustice, imperialism and colonial rule all over the world. A true revolutionary who stood up for his people and refused to be pushed around by the most powerful nations of the world. I am one of those who love him. As an African, who knows and understands the history of the role Castro played in liberating many African countries, I have nothing but love and admiration for him.

At his finest hour, Castro sent Cuban troops into Angola, Mozambique and Namibia to help fight what was then the increasingly hostile military adventurism of South Africa's apartheid regime towards its neighbors. The apartheid regime had a policy of de-stabilizing the newly independent African countries along the South African border, as these new sovereign nations provided weapons, training and asylum to black South African freedom fighters participating in the armed resistance against apartheid. Through its counter-insurgency activities along the South African frontier, the South African Defense Force (SADF) sponsored rebellions in Angola and Mozambique to try to de-stabilize these newly independent nations. This was a critical piece of the regime's strategy to suppress resistance to it's racist policies and preserve the apartheid system inside South Africa. You see the Afrikaner led apartheid regime was hell-bent on continuing its despicable white supremacist wet-dream well into the 21st century. 

When it's counter-insurgency operations failed to topple the Angolan government, the apartheid regime sent in the South African army to invade Angola (whose newly independent government was providing asylum to ANC freedom fighters) and tighten South Africa's occupation of Namibia. These events/wars started in 1975 as Angola/Mozambique moved towards independence from Portugal and lasted well into 1988. In the 14 years of the different theaters of the war, which collectively became known as the Angolan Bush War, Fidel Castro sent over 36,000 Cuban troops, doctors and personnel to aid the Africans (Angola, Mozambique, Namibia and black South African freedom fighters) in their fight against the apartheid government. 

During the decisive battles of the war in 1988 (known as the Battle of Cuito Cuanavale), it was the presence of Cuban troops on the ground, and their brilliant battlefield tactics, that helped defeat the apartheid regime. These events played a pivotal role in South Africa's withdrawal from Angola and its decision to end its occupation of Namibia, which ultimately led to Namibia's independence in March 1990. South Africa's defeat in Angola also led to the growing isolation of the apartheid regime, which put pressure on them to release Nelson Mandela from prison in February 1990. Mandela would go on to become the first democratically elected President of South Africa in 1994, an event which officially marked the end of apartheid.

So as far as I'm concerned, Fidel Castro is a BIG part of the African liberation story. He is the reason, or certainly a big part of the reason why the freedom fighters defeated the apartheid regime. So in my eyes, Fidel is an African Hero!! 

In addition to the central role he played in liberating many African nations, he also sent medical doctors, teachers and engineers to help with health care, education and construction projects. Growing up in Ghana, I saw with my own two eyes the millions of lives saved by the Cuban Medical Brigade. In the early 1990s as Ghana moved away from military rule towards multi-party democracy, medical doctors went on strike countless times to protest their working conditions and ask for higher wages. When the situation was hopeless, it was the Cuban Medical Brigade that stepped in and treated the sick. I was treated for malaria once, by one of these Cuban doctors. So Castro's impact on the under-privileged of the world, reached way beyond the battle fields of Southern Africa. 

You have led a life well lived El Comandante Fidel Castro. Rest now. Thank you for your service to the African people, to all oppressed people around the world and to all Humanity. Rest in Power.