Juan Almeida Bosque, Laborer Who Rose to Power at Castro’s Side, Dies at 82
HAVANA (AP) — Juan Almeida Bosque, a comrade-in-arms of Fidel Castro since the start of his guerrilla struggle more than a half-century ago, died here on Friday, the government reported Saturday. He was 82.
The cause was a heart attack, the government said.
Mr. Almeida was one of several Cuban vice presidents and had been among only three surviving rebel leaders who still bore the honorary title “Commander of the Revolution” — a title reserved for top leaders of rebel troops under Mr. Castro’s command in the 1950s.
A statement in government news reports on Saturday said Mr. Almeida would “live on forever in the hearts and minds of his compatriots.” Cuba declared Sunday a national day of mourning and ordered all flags flown at half-staff.
A bricklayer who began working at age 11, Mr. Almeida was the only black commander among the rebel leaders. He was one of the most important and decisive voices in the battle to overthrow the Cuban dictator Fulgencio Batista, as well as in the early years following the Jan. 1, 1959, triumph of the Cuban revolution.
Mr. Almeida was often seen at public events alongside the Cuban leader until Mr. Castro fell gravely ill in the summer of 2006 and finally resigned the presidency in February 2008. Mr. Almeida then became a mainstay beside Mr. Castro’s younger brother and successor, President Raul Castro.
With his white hair and mustache, Mr. Almeida was a highly visible member of Cuba’s ruling elite, sitting on the Communist Party’s Politburo and serving as a vice president on the Council of State, the country’s supreme governing body.
The government statement called him “a paradigm of revolutionary strength, solid convictions, bravery, patriotism and service to the people.” It said Mr. Almeida’s body would not lie in state, in accordance with his wishes, and funeral arrangements would be announced later.
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The cause was a heart attack, the government said.
Mr. Almeida was one of several Cuban vice presidents and had been among only three surviving rebel leaders who still bore the honorary title “Commander of the Revolution” — a title reserved for top leaders of rebel troops under Mr. Castro’s command in the 1950s.
A statement in government news reports on Saturday said Mr. Almeida would “live on forever in the hearts and minds of his compatriots.” Cuba declared Sunday a national day of mourning and ordered all flags flown at half-staff.
A bricklayer who began working at age 11, Mr. Almeida was the only black commander among the rebel leaders. He was one of the most important and decisive voices in the battle to overthrow the Cuban dictator Fulgencio Batista, as well as in the early years following the Jan. 1, 1959, triumph of the Cuban revolution.
Mr. Almeida was often seen at public events alongside the Cuban leader until Mr. Castro fell gravely ill in the summer of 2006 and finally resigned the presidency in February 2008. Mr. Almeida then became a mainstay beside Mr. Castro’s younger brother and successor, President Raul Castro.
With his white hair and mustache, Mr. Almeida was a highly visible member of Cuba’s ruling elite, sitting on the Communist Party’s Politburo and serving as a vice president on the Council of State, the country’s supreme governing body.
The government statement called him “a paradigm of revolutionary strength, solid convictions, bravery, patriotism and service to the people.” It said Mr. Almeida’s body would not lie in state, in accordance with his wishes, and funeral arrangements would be announced later.