Ramiro Valdés Menéndez, Architect of Cuba’s Surveillance State, Dies at 94

Considered the country’s most powerful leader after the Castro brothers, he was the first director of the Interior Ministry, keeping a close eye on dissent.Ramiro Valdés Menéndez in 2003. A veteran of the earliest days of the Cuban revolution, he was alternately in and out of favor during his long career, but he bounced back each time, stronger than ever.