Castro to return 'in a few weeks'

Cuba's vice president said on Aug. 6 that Fidel Castro would return to work in a few weeks after intestinal surgery that forced him to hand over power temporarily to his younger brother. "Fidel's going to be around for another 80 years," Vice President Carlos Lage said. Castro turns 80 on Aug. 13. Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez said Castro was out of bed and talking following his surgery as messages wishing the Cuban leader a quick recovery poured in from Latin America's leading leftists and Elian Gonzalez. Lage, in Bolivia to attend the country's constitutional assembly, was asked by reporters when Castro would be back at work. "In a few weeks, he'll be recovered and he'll return to his duties," Lage said. "The operation that he underwent was successful and he is recovering favorably." Cuban officials have provided no details and released no pictures of Castro since his surgery was announced–fueling speculation around the world about his condition. His brother Raul Castro, the defense minister, also has not been seen in public since the announcement. US Senators are moving to implement a plan by the Bush Administration to provide $80 million to anti-Castro groups in an effort to speed up a transition. Cuba's temporary transfer of power came just three weeks after the administration's release of a 93-page plan for transforming Cuba into a democratic state with a free-market economy. Among other things, the paper, the product of a commission headed by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez, calls for the creation of an $80 million "Cuba Fund for a Democratic Future." Under the plan, Washington would provide $31 million to "pro-democracy groups" in Cuba and another $24 million on "efforts to break the Castro regime's information blockade." The latter would be in addition to some $30 million that Washington currently spends annually on television and radio broadcasts to the island. The report also includes a secret annex that has been the subject of considerable speculation regarding assistance to exile groups and possible covert action to influence internal political developments in Cuba.