Cuban activists and political conservatives say using the face of a “mass murderer” is not on.
During an annual Consumer Electronics Show, Mercedes-Benz chairman Dieter Zetsche said some colleagues “still think that car-sharing borders on communism.”
He added, “But if that’s the case, viva la revolucion.”
CarTogether is a new carpooling initiative among strangers. But it’s hardly a communist concept, as it sells cars alongside apps with which to find nearby people to share a ride with.
During the Mercedes boss’s pitch, the famous Alberto Korda photo of Guevara, a military theorist, was proximately displayed. On his beret was the logo of the luxury car brand.
Anti-Castro activists have now launched petitions against Mercedes.
Cuban-American Ernesto Ariel Suarez launched a Facebook page that says: “Tell Mercedes-Benz that it is NOT OK to use the image of a mass murderer.”
The Heritage Foundation, a conservative political group based out of Washington, wrote a post entitled “Mercedes-Benz Uses Communist Madmen Che Guevara to Sell Luxury Cars.”
Mercedes-Benz parent company Daimler AG has apologised for causing offense, saying in a statement, “Daimler was not condoning the life or actions of this historical figure or the political philosophy he espoused.”
Suarez responded, “The victory, if there is one, is not mine, but belongs to the descendants of (Guevara’s) victims (and) the survivors, to common sense and to civility,’ he said.
Image: Daimler AG
