http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/7023706.stm
Last Updated: Tuesday, 2 October 2007, 11:32 GMT 12:32 UK
Cubans treat man who killed Che
Guevara arrived in Bolivia in 1966
Cuban doctors working in Bolivia have saved the sight of the man who
executed revolutionary leader Che Guevara in 1967, Cuban official media report.
Mario Teran, a Bolivian army sergeant, shot dead Che Guevara after he was
captured in Bolivia's eastern lowlands.
Cuban media reported news of the surgery ahead of the 40th anniversary of
Che's death on 9 October.
Mr Teran had cataracts removed under a Cuban programme to offer free eye
treatment across Latin America.
The operation on Mr Teran took place last year and was first revealed
when his son wrote to a Bolivian newspaper to thank the Cuban doctors for
restoring his father's sight.
But Cuban media took up the story at the weekend as the island prepares
for commemorations to mark Che Guevara's death 40 years ago.
"Four decades after Mario Teran attempted to destroy a dream and an idea,
Che returns to win yet another battle," the Communist Party's official
newspaper Granma proclaimed.
"Now an old man, he [Teran] can once again appreciate the colours of the
sky and the forest, enjoy the smiles of his grandchildren and watch football
games."
Wounded
Che Guevara, who played a key role in the Cuban revolution of 1959,
travelled to Bolivia in 1966 to start a social revolution.
But in October 1967, the Bolivian army, with assistance from the CIA,
captured Guevara and his remaining fighters.
Che Guevara, wounded in the fighting, was taken to a schoolhouse in the
village of La Higuera on 8 October where the soldiers debated what to do with
him.
Mario Teran is reported to have drawn the short straw and been ordered to
execute the captured guerrilla.
Che Guevara was killed on 9 October and his body taken to a hospital in
nearby Vallegrande, where his corpse was paraded before the world's media.
In 1997 his remains were discovered, exhumed and returned to Cuba, where
he was reburied.
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