Enthusiastic crowd greets Fidel in Argentina

["Fred Feldman" <ffeldman@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

              Fidel Castro Mobbed By Fans In Argentina


http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=3&art_id=qw1053972540
484B262


May 26 2003
Independent On Line
40484B262www.iol.co.za/


Buenos Aires - Members of left-wing organizations in Argentina foiled
strict security surrounding Cuban leader Fidel Castro on Monday in
Buenos
Aires, and in the crush, several people ended up on the ground and a
journalist was punched in the face.

Castro, who attended the inauguration of the new Argentine president,
Nestor Kirchner, on Monday went to pay homage to Cuban independence
hero
Jose Marti at a square that carries his name in the wooded Rosedale de
Palermo area of Buenos Aires.

The veteran Cuban leader has come under fire recently for a harsh
clampdown on dissent in socialist Cuba, and for the summary execution
of
suspected boat hijackers. But he was mobbed by sympathizers, curious
onlookers and the press during his outing on Monday.

Castro's bodyguards became nervous as he agreed to answer questions
from
the crowd and dozens of admirers chanted slogans against Washington.

"Behind the hijacking of that passenger boat lies an enemy plan that
intends to spark a contest between the United States and Cuba," Castro
said.

"They were common criminals," Castro said. "No one can hesitate when
the
lives of 11 million Cubans are at stake."

As police and Castro's bodyguards tried to clear a path, they pushed
and
shoved the crowd, which in turn pushed several people to the ground.

A well-known broadcast journalist tried to place a microphone close to
Castro from behind, and was socked in the face by a bodyguard. The
blow
bruised the man's face and smashed his spectacles. Castro made it to
his
automobile which took him back the luxury hotel where he is staying at
in
Buenos Aires.

Earlier, Castro placed a floral wreath at the monument to Jose de San
Martin, an Argentine historical figure, in another Buenos Aires
location.

There, Castro said he was convinced Argentina - "this great country -
together with all the other Latin American brothers, will move
forward,
will be successful, and, together, we shall overcome".

After the executions, which sparked outrage by governments and
international human rights groups, Argentina abstained from a vote
chastising Cuba at a United Nations human rights body in Geneva.

Then-president Eduardo Dialed, smarting after a year of trying to win
renewed credit lines from international credit agencies, said that
while
he decried the executions in Cuba: "I will not judge an embargoed
country".

He was referring to the economic embargo impose on Cuba by the United
States in the early 1960s.

When Nestor Kirchner became president-elect, Castro was invited to the
inauguration.

The warm rapport marked a difference between Castro's icy relations
with
former president Carlos Minim, who ruled Argentina from 1989-1999.
Relations were also strained under ex president Fernando de la Rue,
who
stepped down in December, 2001 after two years in office. - Sap-DPA

=====
Carlos Rivera, Jr.      "Carlit"