Bush, Castro Share Spotlight in Absentia

One was a no-show. The other wasn’t invited. But a gathering here of world leaders working to strengthen ties between Latin America, the Caribbean and Europe has focused largely on two who have been absent: Fidel Castro and George Bush.

The presidents of Cuba and the United States have managed to grab the spotlight in absentia because of controversies related to their foreign policies. Castro snubbed the summit over a diplomatic feud with Mexico after having kept everyone guessing on his attendance up to the eleventh hour.

As the two-day conference opened Friday, it was Bush’s turn in the limelight. Leaders and other representatives from 58 nations strongly condemned the abuse of detainees at U.S.-run prisons in Iraq as part of the conference’s official declaration of principles.

Photos of Iraqi prisoners, some nude, being humiliated -- and the rage their disclosure has sparked in the Arab world -- have led to suggestions among delegates here that the U.S.-led mission in Iraq has been spiraling out of control, enhancing rather than reducing the threat of terrorist attacks around the globe.

“We express our abhorrence at recent evidence of the mistreatment of prisoners in Iraqi prisons,” read the statement, part of a 17-page summary of the delegates’ resolutions.

The document also stressed the need for nations to collaborate in dealing with global threats to achieve “collective security” -- a statement widely seen as a shot at the Bush administration’s willingness to go it alone to protect U.S. interests. The delegates called for a return of the United Nations as the central player in resolving conflicts.

“Multilateralism is an imperative of our time,” said French President Jacques Chirac, who has frequently butted heads with the Bush administration over its Iraq policy. “Security problems that raise the issue of the use of force are now global ones which must be addressed in a multilateral framework in order to be dealt with legitimately.”

The official summit document did not specifically mention the United States, which in itself caused friction among the delegates. Some Latin American nations -- especially Cuba, which was represented by outspoken Foreign Minister Felipe Perez Roque -- wanted to castigate the U.S. directly. European leaders held out for more generic language.

That stance led the Cuban government to issue a missive of its own, calling the Europeans “cowardly” and “sheep.” The Cubans went on to liken the actions of U.S. soldiers in Baghdad’s Abu Ghraib prison to atrocities committed by the Nazis.

“Since the dark days of Hitler, at the end of World War II, humanity has not observed images of such emotional impact,” the Cuban statement said.

Cuba’s broadside ensured that the communist island and its longtime leader would stay in the headlines in Mexico, where they had been for most of the week leading up to the summit.

Castro’s attendance was the subject of much speculation. He made front-page news here this week by blasting Mexican officials yet again for expelling the Cuban envoy from Mexico City.

Mexico booted that diplomat and removed its ambassador from Havana after a May 1 speech by Castro in which he criticized Mexico for supporting a United Nations measure condemning Cuba’s record on human rights. On the eve of the summit, the two nations agreed to restore ties.