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A steady stream of Cubans paid homage to late communist icon Fidel Castro again Tuesday as Latin American and African presidents joined them for commemorations shunned by several world leaders.
Encouraged by the government, grieving islanders lined up for a second day at Havana's Revolution Square to view a memorial to the man who ruled the island for nearly half a century.
Hundreds of thousands, many in tears, had already streamed across the square late into the night on Monday to salute the picture of a young, black-bearded Castro in military fatigues during the revolution that brought him to power in 1959.
A steady stream of Cubans paid homage to late communist icon Fidel Castro again Tuesday as Latin American and African presidents joined them for commemorations shunned by several world leaders.
Encouraged by the government, grieving islanders lined up for a second day at Havana's Revolution Square to view a memorial to the man who ruled the island for nearly half a century.
People holding a Cuban national flag queue to enter Jose Marti's memorial to pay their last respects to Cuban revolutionary icon Fidel Castro at Revolution Square in Havana, on November 28, 2016
Hundreds of thousands, many in tears, had already streamed across the square late into the night on Monday to salute the picture of a young, black-bearded Castro in military fatigues during the revolution that brought him to power in 1959.
"Fidel isn't dead. He's a world symbol and his ideas spread not only in Latin America but all around the world," said Roberto Hernandez Rosabal, a 47-year-old anthropology professor.
Castro's leftist admirers in Latin America -- Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and Bolivian President Evo Morales -- joined them inside the monument to Cuban independence hero Jose Marti on Tuesday morning.
Hundreds of thousands, many in tears, had already streamed across the square late into the night on Monday to salute the picture of a young, black-bearded Castro in military fatigues during the revolution that brought him to power in 1959.
"Fidel isn't dead. He's a world symbol and his ideas spread not only in Latin America but all around the world," said Roberto Hernandez Rosabal, a 47-year-old anthropology professor.
Castro's leftist admirers in Latin America -- Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and Bolivian President Evo Morales -- joined them inside the monument to Cuban independence hero Jose Marti on Tuesday morning.
Cuban militia walk past a poster of late revolutionary leader Fidel Castro, who died on November 25, 2016
"All this sadness that has accompanied us since November 25 (when Castro died) has reminded us of the battles of recent history that revolution leader Fidel Castro and our comandante Hugo Chavez experienced," Maduro said.
"We have come to pay tribute to this great giant," said Maduro, Chavez's handpicked successor.
Chavez had a special bond with Castro and shipped oil to the island while Cuba returned the favor by sending a large number of doctors to Venezuela.
Castro -- who ruled from 1959 until an illness forced him to hand power to his brother Raul in 2006 -- died of undisclosed reasons on Friday at age 90.
Some 25 leaders from Latin America, the Caribbean and Africa were expected for the massive rally at the square on Tuesday night, part of a week-long commemoration.
Zimbabwe's longtime ruler, Robert Mugabe, praised his "dear brother" after landing in Havana.
"He was not just your leader. He was our leader and the leader of all revolutionaries," the 92-year-old Mugabe said. "We followed him, listened to him and tried to emulate him."
Other African leaders were flying in along with the presidents of Mexico, Central American nations and Colombia's Juan Manuel Santos, whose government negotiated a peace deal with the Marxist FARC rebels in Havana.
There will be at least one European leader at the ceremony, as Cuban authorities said leftist Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras was on the list.
(AFP)
