Arnaldo Ochoa
|
|
Arnaldo Ochoa Sanchez (1930- July 12, 1989) was a prominent Cuban general, executed by Fidel Castro's regime.
Ochoa was born in Havana, to a family of farmers. Ever since its creation, he was part of Fidel Castro's July 26 Movement, and by March 1953 he had joined Castro's guerilla army in the Sierra Maestra, fighting against dictator Fulgencio Batista. Ochoa played a major role in the fall of Santa Clara, becoming a close friend of Raśl Castro.
He also fought in the Bay of Pigs.
In the 1960s, Ochoa spearheaded a failed attempt to start a communist insurgency in Venezuela.
In 1965 he became a member of the Communist Party of Cuba. Ochoa was a member of the Party's Central Committee for more than 20 years. He attended the War College in Matanzas, Cuba, and was later sent to the Frunze Academy in the Soviet Union.
Between 1967 and 1969, he trained rebels in the Congo.
In 1975, Ochoa was sent to fight in a critical campaign against the FNLA in Luanda, Angola. His actions in this campaign won him the respect of both Soviet and Cuban commanders.
In 1977 he was named commander of Cuban Expeditionary Forces in Ethiopia under the command of Soviet General Petrov. His successes against the Somalian army greatly impressed the Soviet commanders in the field.
By 1980, Ochoa was widely considered a great internationalist, and was awarded the title "Hero of the Revolution" by Fidel Castro.
Nine years later, on June 12, the Ministry of the Revolutionary Armed Forces announced the arrest and investigation of Division General Arnaldo Ochoa Sanchez for serious acts of corruption, dishonest use of economic resources, and drug trafficking.
Ochoa was put before the Military Honour Court, where was widely proved his guiltiness for all the charges.
It has been widely suggested that Ochoa's arrest and trial occurred due to the worsening relationship between Castro and Mikhail Gorbachev at the time. Ochoa was a largely non-ideological man, who said he saw sense in many of Gorbachev's reforms. In a time when communism across the world was in danger of collapse, Castro sought complete conformity to his brand of communism, and Ochoa's deviation was proving dangerous to him. Though this is merely speculation, it is highly possible.
On July 12, 1989, Arnaldo Ochoa was executed by firing squad. A terse statement in the Granma newspaper the next day announced his execution to the Cuban public.
External link
- Cuban Armed Forces Review page on Ochoa (http://www.cubapolidata.com/cafr/cafr_ochoa_affair.html)