Fidel Castro amused by speculations about his death

Fidel Castro amused by speculations about his deathCaracas, Sep 11 : Former Cuban head of state Fidel Castro said he's "amused" that there are people speculating about his death, according to a voice recording aired on Venezuelan state television.

Castro also said that he stopped writing his "Reflections" two months ago because he doesn't like to "waste time" and is working on more "important" and "useful" things. He also said that he is "serene" and "happy".

Fidel spoke of these and other matters with Venezuelan TV talk-show host Mario Silva at a meeting that, according to the pundit, took place Sep 6 in Havana, and of which he has broadcast the audio and photos showing the Cuban leader sitting, dining and talking with him.

"I'm amused by these people and their speculations, as if for me dying would be bad news," Castro said.

Moments before, he joked in response to a comment by Silva about rumors that he might have suffered a stroke.

"You don't say! Nobody told me about it," he said after asking himself "You mean I've become that important?"

"They give me too much importance," he said.

His words were a response to rumors doing the rounds last week about the Cuban leader's health, sparked by the fact that he has written none of his "Reflections" articles for more than two months and has not been seen in public since April.(IANS/EFE)

"I wrote quite a lot and I'm thinking of writing again, but now I'm working on things that seem very important to me, on things that are interesting because they will benefit people, things that will be useful. I don't like to waste time," he said.

He said that even though he likes to write and analyse, he thinks that right now he should "work, think about ideas in depth that can be useful to many people" and to nations, but gave no further details.

During the conversation, Castro spoke of the world economic crisis, the problems of racial integration in the US, of the literacy campaign in Venezuela and some of his experiences during the Cuban Revolution.

"I'm serene and happy to have been able to talk with you," the Cuban told Silva.

The last public appearance of Castro, 85, was in April at a meeting of the Cuban Communist Party.

Rumours about the Cuban leader's health have customarily circulated every time he has kept silent for a time or no new photos of him have appeared.