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1. MEN DO NOT SHAPE DESTINY;
DESTINY PRODUCES THE MAN FOR THE HOUR.
LOD report on: Leadership of Fidel Castro
Submitted by
Group-1
Gitanshu Soni
Vedium Vasanth Kumar
Ravi Kiran
Mukundhan Subramani
JVD Prasad

2. 1. INTRODUCTION
Cuban dictator Fidel Castro was born near Biran on August 13, 1926. In 1959, he used
guerilla warfare to successfully overthrow Cuban leader Batista, and was sworn in as prime
minister of Cuba. As prime minister, Castro's government established covert military and
economic relations with the Soviet Union, leading to the Cuban Missile Crisis. He served as
prime minister until 1976, when he became president of Cuba and remained till 2008.
Politically a Marxist-Leninist, under his administration the Republic of Cuba became a one-
party socialist state; industry and businesses were nationalized, and socialist reforms
implemented in all areas of society.
2. EARLY LIFE
In his college days he participated in many armed rebellions against right-wing governments
in the Dominican Republic and Colombia. He served a year's imprisonment in 1953, after
leading a failed armed attack on the Moncada Barracks against Cuban dictator-president
Fulgencio Batista. This incident fostered an ongoing opposition to the government and made
Castro famous throughout Cuba.
Castro was released in 1955 under an amnesty deal with the Batista government. He went to
Mexico, where he met Ernesto "Che" Guevara and devised a new strategy to overthrow the
Batista regime based on guerrilla warfare. Guevara believed that the plight of Latin America's
poor could be rectified only through violent revolution. He joined Castro's group and became
an important confidante, shaping Castro's political beliefs.
On December 2, 1956, Castro returned to Cuba with a boatload of 81 insurgents near the
eastern city of Manzanillo, where Batista's forces killed or captured most of the attackers.
Castro, his brother Raul and Guevara were able to escape into the Sierra Maestra mountain
range. Over the course of the next two years, again Castro's forces waged a guerrilla war
against the Batista government, organizing resistance groups in cities and small towns across
Cuba. He ran a parallel government, carry out some agrarian reform, and control provinces
with agricultural and manufacturing production.
Beginning in 1958, Castro and his forces mounted a series of successful military campaigns
throughout Cuba to hold key areas of the country. Along with the loss of popular support and
massive desertions in the military, Batista's government collapsed due to Castro's efforts. In

3. January of 1959, Batista fled to the Dominican Republic. At the age of 32, Castro
successfully concluded a classic guerrilla campaign to take control of Cuba.
In February 1959, the then Prime Minister Jose Miro Cardona suddenly resigned, and Castro
was sworn in as prime minister. The charismatic young Castro nationalized banks and
industries, collectivized agriculture, seized more than $1 billion in U.S. assets, jailed his
rivals and critics, embraced communism, made new friends in Moscow, and captured the
world's attention. In 1960, alarmed by the emergence of a Communist state and potential
Soviet satellite 90 miles from Florida, the United States imposed a trade embargo. In 1961, it
cut formal diplomatic relations and the failed Bay of Pigs invasion further burnished Castro's
credentials as a strongman and implacable U.S. foe.
Since then, the U.S. government has worked to undermine Castro's regime by squeezing
Cuba's economy. For four and a half decades, many U.S. lawmakers have argued that
Castro's refusal to respect fundamental civil liberties compels Washington to destabilize his
government on moral grounds. In the process, Castro has created a remarkably durable cult of
personality.
3. CASTRO AS LEADER: LEARNINGS
3.1. WHAT TO DO
Charismatic Leader
Fidel Castro was a charismatic leader. He possessed a larger than life personality. He was
regarded by large segments of the population as the heaven-sent saviour of the nation.
One striking aspect of the Cuban Revolution is the thoroughness and frequency with which
the voice and visage of Fidel Castro have blanketed the island.
SOCIALIST: For his people
Castro created "The New Man's Theory” which means work to benefit everyone in the
society.
He wanted to restore Cuba's wealth, get back the land Cuba lost, and strengthen the nation's
identity. For this he did the following.

4. • Implemented almost impossible reforms to nationalize factories and
plantations.
• Wanted to makes his armies stronger for Cuba's defense; created an alliance
with the USSR during 1960.
• Intended to build a socialist state with a state owned, government planning
economy.
• Stopped private profit business so that all of Cuba had equal
job opportunities & boost economy.
• According to constitution, all Cubans were entitled to receive free medical,
hospital, & dental care.
• All citizens had same rights regardless of who they were.
• Provided payment for elders and pregnant women workers.
• Right to free education to highest university level.
Attracting & Winning support of People:
He was a well read person and an incredible lawyer. He used his knowledge of Law to his
advantage to convince people to his side and win arguments.
Even if people didn’t agree with his ideology, the peasant, who largely made up his support,
were swayed by the idea of improving their lives and of gaining land for themselves.
However, as Castro based nationalist and populist issues known, the middle class started to
side with Castro as well.
One of his well known speeches was made as a self-defense in court after the Moncada attack
where he said, “But I do not fear prison, as I do not fear the fury of the miserable tyrant who
took the lives of 70 of my comrades. Condemn me. It does not matter. History will absolve
me.”
Because the leader is seen as acting in concert with larger historical forces not always visible
to more ordinary men, he alone retains the right to determine "correct" behaviour in the
service of the Revolution.
Fighting odds with tact:
Castro was known for rejecting all criticism with a ferocious temper and his narcissistic
behaviour and unyielding desire for power is most likely what led to his declaration of Cuba
as a socialist state, eliminating voting rights, and the banning of outside information that

5. could question his authority. This could possibly have been the beginning of his complete
corruption of power.
He over threw Batista by depriving him of allies and forced him to flee, resign, or killed. He
eventually fled.
He tackled US with help of Soviet Union. Denounced American imperialism & established
diplomatic ties (for economic and military aid) with Soviet Union. US made continuous
attempts to bring him down. He survived nine U.S. presidents, the collapse of his Soviet
benefactor, and four decades of American attempts to undermine his government.
He used executions and imprisonments, and forced emigration against Anti Castro Rule
supporters, pro-democracy activists and independent journalists. It is known that he provided
the option to dissenters to leave Cuba via a port open for them. His elimination included
censorship of media.
He countered Varela Project with tact. To negate the effect of bill passed to strip him of his
leadership he made 99 percent of Cuban population sign a bill saying they want Castro’s
leadership. Castro jailed many of the group's members. Since then, Castro has moved to again
tighten central planning of the Cuban economy and to limit Cubans' access to U.S. dollars
and the Internet.
3.2. WHAT NOT TO DO
Importance of Necessary Skills:
Though a popular socialist and communist, Castro was a failed economist. We know that
leadership style should depend on the situation too. He was very effective during the struggle
against the Batista Government but one can just question his leadership once he came to
power. Should he have vacated his seat to another person who had the skills to steer the
Cuban economy at critical times, is a question to ask. He tried to promote his ideologies in
the fore front. He believed socialism is the cure to all human problems, economic as well.
This policy hindered lot of economic development that could have taken place in the country.
Thus, a leadership style should be according to the situation.

6. Obsession with Power:
Fidel was obsessed with power from a young age, wanting to be in the political and military
arena, only because he could then lead, for the sake of leading. He believed that fighting the
battle was more important to him than the battle itself.
A classic example of his obsession with power can be seen when he collapsed on stage in a
speech in 2001 and during operation, he allowed doctors to anesthetize him only from waist
down. He had never relinquished his authority. This reveals his stubborn determination to
hold off the inevitable hand-over of power. He came back and persuaded Cuban people (and
potential rivals at home and abroad) that he remained fully in command. He feared that if
Cuba were ruled by someone else—even for a few hours—his revolution might be
challenged.
This had worked against him. A leader needs to leave gracefully. He was no longer
competitive and he should have vacated office for someone else who was better equipped to
fight challenges of Cuban economy.
References
http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/98822/Fidel-Castro
http://www.autentico.org/oa09358.php
http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/COLDcastroF.htm
http://www.reuters.com/article/2008/02/20/us-cuba-castro-chronology-idUSN1922589220080220
http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/recycled/2008/02/adios_comandante.html