Fidel is gone at long last

The news late Monday that Fidel Castro has resigned was bittersweet. Castro has been the source of great suffering and repression during his reign in Cuba, mostly directed at people who dared to criticize him. But his departure offers little hope that real improvements lie ahead.

The world is waiting for the day when Cubans pick their leaders through free and fair elections. It is waiting for the day when political prisoners are released and Cubans are allowed to leave and re-enter the island as they please. The Cuban National Assembly is scheduled to meet Sunday to pick a new Council of State and a president. But that assembly is not elected to represent the people, and the new leader is unlikely to represent much of a change.

It's difficult to know how much of the tension between Cuba and the United States has been due to Castro's strong and defiant personality and how much was simply due to his repressive policies. Critics have noted that the United States treats China, another repressive government, differently than Cuba, allowing a great deal of free trade and diplomatic relations.

Cuba's proximity to the United States has much to do with that, as did its previous ties to the now defunct Soviet Union. Some say the United States forced Cuba into Soviet arms early on by severing diplomatic ties. It was clear from the start, however, that Castro wasn't interested in freedom and liberty.

Perhaps, with this strong personality gone, the United States can begin to urge gradual change on the island. But the people of Cuba, who struggled through the corrupt government of President Fulgencio Batista before Castro, deserve real freedom now.

Ten U.S. presidents, including the current one, have struggled to deal with Castro. The Cuban embargo may be the most consistent, bipartisan piece of U.S. foreign policy over the last 50 years, changing only slightly from one administration to the next. At various times, the CIA tried to assassinate Castro and trained exiles for an ill-fated invasion of the island. President John F. Kennedy stared down the Soviets after they placed nuclear missiles in Cuba, bringing the world close to total war.

Now, Fidel has stepped aside. He was determined to outlast the presidents he saw as his enemies, but it is doubtful the Socialist regime he established will outlast a free and prosperous United States.