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The
Untold Story of the Cuban Five (Part XII)
By Ricardo Alarcón, president of the
National Assembly of People's Power
Attracting foreign
tourism was at that time – mid and late nineties –
one of the few possibilities to earn much needed
hard currency. Knowing that, Washington reinforced
its sanctions and threats against foreign companies
investing in Cuba or having any transaction with the
island. Coincidentally the so-called Cuban American
National Foundation (CANF) and other anti-Cuba
terrorist groups openly declared such visitors
“enemies” and justified violent attacks against them.
As tourists were arriving to the island in larger
numbers a series of bombs exploded and others were
found at our hotels and beach resorts in 1997 and
1998.
From April to September 1997 such attacks had the
city of Havana as its main target. As a result, four
people were wounded on July 12 when bombs exploded
at the Nacional and Capri Hotels. On September 4
explosions occurred almost simultaneously in the
Copacabana, Chateau and Triton Hotels and at a
Havana restaurant. In the Copacabana, Fabio di Celmo,
a 32-year-old Italian tourist was killed.
On August 11, 1997 in the middle of that terrorist
campaign CANF made public a statement describing it
as “incidents of internal rebellion which have been
taking place in Cuba over the last few weeks” and
stating that “the Cuban American National Foundation
supports these without hesitation or reservations.”
These acts were not “internal” much less a “rebellion”.
Some Central-American mercenaries arrested in Havana
had admitted that they were acting under
instructions of Luis Posada Carriles, a fugitive
criminal who had escaped from trial for
masterminding in 1976 the first midair destruction
of a civil airplane ever. Posada now enjoys total
impunity in Miami. On July 12, 1998 in a front-page
interview with the New York Times, Posada Carriles
admitted full responsibility for the new terrorist
attacks, recognized that he was financed by CANF and
cynically referred to Fabio di Celmo as a person “at
the wrong place at the wrong time” whose death
didn’t disturb him. Posada said he was able to
“sleep like a baby”. He repeated similar words in
front of a TV camera on a programme broadcasted
through the United States.
Between March and April 1998, Cuba was approached
several times by the State Department and their
representatives in Havana to share with us some
sensitive information they had gotten, the gravest
of all related to possible attacks on civilian
airplanes flying to the island. We spent hours
jointly examining intelligence that the Americans
considered so credible that the Federal Aviation
Administration (FAA) issued a special warning to air
companies.
In view of those positive exchanges Fidel took a
very important initiative. Gabriel García Márquez, a
well recognized friend of Cuba and of the leader of
its Revolution, was travelling soon to attend a
conference at Princeton and expected to meet
President Clinton, a reader and admirer, like many
millions, of the Nobel Laureate in Literature.
On April 18, Fidel personally drafted a message to
Clinton and gave it to the Colombian writer who
arrived to the US Capital on May 1st. García Márquez
waited for several days “in my impersonal room at
the Washington hotel where I spent up to 10 hours a
day writing. However, even if I refused to admit it,
the true reason for my confinement was the custody
of the message lying in the safety box … I devoted
myself to its custody while I continued to write, to
eat my meals and to receive my visits in the hotel
room.”
Unable to receive Gabo personally, President Clinton
arranged for some of his closest associates to meet
him at the White House on May 6. According to Gabo’s
report Fidel’s message was taken very seriously.
One after the other, they read it with keen interest.
Richard Clarke, a senior official at National
Security Council, said “that they would take
immediate steps for a joint US-Cuba plan on
terrorism.” James Dobbins, also a senior at NSC,
“concluded that they would communicate with their
embassy (sic) in Cuba to implement the project.”
Mack McLarty “expressed his appreciation for the
great importance of the message, worthy of the full
attention of his Government, of which they would
urgently take care.”
In closing the White House meeting McLarty said,
“Your mission was in fact of utmost importance, and
you have discharged it very well.”
Both Fidel’s message and García Márquez's entire and
fascinating description of his mission were
published, unedited, by Fidel Castro in a special
public address on May 20, 2005 (“A
Different Behaviour”;
www.antiterroristas.cu)
Having concluded such a delicate task, Gabo was
happy, almost completely happy:
"My only frustration on the way back to the hotel
was not having discovered and enjoyed till then the
miracle of the cherries in blossom during that
superb spring season.
I barely had time to pack my bags and catch the
flight at five that afternoon. The plane that had
brought me from Mexico fourteen days earlier had had
to return to base with a broken turbine and we
waited for four hours at the airport till there was
another available flight. The one I took back to
Mexico, after the meeting at the White House, was
delayed in Washington for an hour and a half while
they repaired the radar with the passengers on board.
Before landing in Mexico, five hours later, the
plane had to hover over the city for almost two
hours due to an out of service runway. Ever since I
began flying fifty two years ago, I never had gone
through anything like this. But then, it couldn’t be
any other way, for a peaceful adventure that will
forever hold a privileged place in my memories."
Taken from
Counterpunch |
