Cárdenas, Cuba
Elian Gonzalez, the Cuban boy who sparked an international custody battle five years ago, said on CBS’ 60 Minutes this week that he now considers Fidel Castro “not only as a friend, but also as a father.” Elian, now 11, has become a poster child for Cuba’s communist system since returning from the U.S., occasionally appearing with Castro at rallies. Elian was rescued at sea in 1999 after his mother drowned trying to take him to Florida. His relatives in Miami fought for seven months to prevent him from being sent back to his father in Cuba. Elian said he still loves them, but what they did was “wrong.” A spokesman for the relatives said the boy had been “brainwashed” in Cuba.
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