COMMUNISM IN ASUNCION MITA

Created: 5/3/1954

OCR scan of the original document, errors are possible

Supplement tot Besponsive to.

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contain, Information affecting the national defease ofStates, within the meaning of Title IB,. Code, as vended. Its transalesloa or revelation of Itsto or receipt by an unauthorised person is prohibited.by law. of. tele report Is prohibited.

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This UBEVALCATED IBTDRKATIOB' is supplied for the poeelble interest of yourdoes not warrant dd.seeinaUon by-

Source or Clarifying Statement!

for alleged action agalnet

US oltlsen.j^

Source was expelled froa Ouateaalaf^ the Government,

1. Therrived In the sleepy town of Asuncion Mlta in southeasternand one-half years ago, the nightmare of Communist persecution seemedalios

mt*l,h.

L Wal Oentrel Aaerlcen Tillage oomplete'vlth sun-bakedthe people same to gossip at the communal well. -

f the world thesef. ossible tbat the odias Influencecould reach into this republic of ooffee and colorful Indians onlyby air froa the Panama Canal0 miles froa Few Orleans.

4. Tat during the next two years, with ay ownaw it happen hare on the

Amaricen continent. ere handful of power-eed men la Asuncion Hitslever Communist plan and take our townand the countrya*s7 from Its citiceas.

aWhed^ltbfty hands tied. Hy mouth Vas sealetftty^ interTere in polities. But when as an indignant indlTidual?

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6. Just esad been behind Europe's Ironas arrested, interrogated, sad Insulted. And oaay after the arrest ef two American reporters, was putlane bound for lew fork and foroibly expelledountry

Jl had becoae one of the first victims of Communist persecution on the American continent.

report is for the use within the USA of OIA aad the IntelligenceStete, Army, Eavy, Air and TBI. It is not to be treasaltted overseasconcurrence of the originating office through the Assistant Director efof Collection and Dissemination,

CpWfiDENTiAl

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1 came to Kita ound itad picturad ithot, colorful, and poverty-ridden. Three-quarters of0 Spaniaa-Iudian ladlnoo dministered to in the area were landlaea and illiterate. The/heir meager atrip* of rented aeil vith crudemch aa theirthead done. They had little uaa for politic*. Oovarnaenta can* and vent without stirring Jfeeie honeat, aiopla

Asuncion XIW itsalf vuboa*ted

a police station, town hall, post offioe, and somehopa. Ve had noor radio station and only one

a month -T

In ouriaitod Cathollca vho had new oaf bra oar. Theyarn-hearted people^

vara relatively quiet ay firat eight month! inur lboal potitloalva* typical of the nationool*. Th* government bloo, which most people oonaidaadd pro-Coaarani*t, controlled th* town; Th* major, David Medina,? ember of the PAH, th* Party of Revolutionary Action, the majority party of Preaident Jnoobo Arbona,

There*andful of outright Communist* In Mita. They hMof the important poaitlon*Chief of Police and leaderahlp of the Peasant* Union, the Oaap**ino Federationbut thayill too weak totheir true,

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inur town waa shaken froa ita What happened inook place aiamltaneou*ly throughout Ouateaala. Th* lational Oongres* 1peaaod th* Agrarian Befora Lav and beforeaa vltneaalng th* alaoat ccatplete Coaanmltmtlon of Asuncion Mita. The lav had *uppo*adly beeno ansver therying need for land. aw it wedithleaa politioel tool thatlQddless Bed f,^ ,

A seal-ill iterate "Ooaaunist, Isabel Tlvar. vaa brought la aaurly-faoed, cocky nan vhoov to us* His flv* nan committee, required by lav, vere member* *of- <

Tivar vorked aviftly. Ha expropriated uncultivated land from the flnquares and payed them in aarthleaaear bonds. Armed vith land the peaSaATs have dreamt of for oenturies. ha and hi* cohortsnto the inUrlor.^ere'they'-*'

vere warmly greeted by the Impoverished tenant farmers.

I impee lap

get free land, Vivar told then, all they had to do vaa join theand eupport hia choice in the elections. He vould tell then whiohcandidates really wanted land

I had done nothing political, oat Tivar waa Infuriated. Re greeted meeilenoe when ve net at en offiolel fonctloa. aa later tohad ueno sent to th- gaalejisi Jalft asking for ay arrest. as doubly vulnerable.

nriosly approached one of the campee^ios who had accepted ffer. now nothing of poliiiesC Jbut if ^getting land is

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couldn't explain hov the ruthless Rod minority were ue ins; land refora toQuatemala out fron under hin. But what he couldn't under et aad vasto noet of the literatev

Presidents Jaooho Arbens denies that hie government il controlled hy theinsists the Oonnrunlets are only part of the bloo that Buteard and saw refuted

In nany vayi Ouatemala vas Indistinguishableoviet satellite. 'Ocoaelokedopy of the government newspaper, Buestro Dearly, Both lt and the official government radio echo the Kremlin line, including gloving accounts of the progress la Sso tern Europe and Red China.

Last Mayaw Arbens embrace Red Labor leader Oatlerreg 0 vorlcere vaved posters denounolng Uncle Esaruel "Hr. Moneybags."

The day Stalin dTed, Congress oos former Congressional president Peace Conference in Vienna an

Bven rumors that the Congressional Readers are secretly Rods was recently substantiated, Franoiaco JsrnandevT then head of the supposedly aon-Oottounlet majority PAR, told hisUeagu.ee ln Congress they, vera onlypertytp disappear into the great world eeaxmnist Party!

a monent of silent:trfoute. In faot, ruentes, attended the Coalnfem warfare eharge against' VS.-

All ths KrealUIs chargeside airing in Ouateoala. The Rede even used governnent trucks and projectors to show Chinese films of our boyi "confessing" to gern warfare in Xorea.

Atas shocked by tbe entire picture. The thoughtoviet satellite is growing so close to home Beeasd incredible. But anyay have had vere erased thla Boveaber during our elections for Mayor in Ascualon Kite.

Viva^laeS?"vas^the PAH canflflt> Aati-OommunistA, vas baoring"or*nan in e'i Tivar oould count on the government employees snd his Consuniets counted oa the literate people/""

As elw.aas, the great majority of the peopTe would not voteno interest, others beoause they lived in the inaccessible

Both eldse poteated campaign

took no part in the coxpalga, but the annoyed Reds checked oa me anyway.

jThey heard nothing inorlalnating.

V*. On the election days, lovemheritauey little town. Tivar was delivering his vote. Oovernment tracks had been sent into the' interior to pick up eampeelnoe anxious to vote for their "benefactor". But when the PDA tried to hire private trucks to piajj^fffleir supporters, fcey were stopped by police.

35. IwrytiiiB*an pleased vaa tha resulte oaaa In.bad iss* la> star Bymt**. Aad In nearby tfarffc trsaacai Kernesndleate. rotestant

BU-Caamiit aaa* won la JBtLaem. tfca dsoartasxt east, bat tha Manaat

depsrtaant aaat, hat the frightened stals tn- soUata andhai victor/ invalid.

36- That Ban* af enarsa ara maeh atrsngasr la scams areas. Whale thsy aaw fitov tfcair eaapmalmo* to tha PiS lathsy ran thair ownt*har) Party canaris1 atss ia other taasaa snd won, In'lacuintla, tha Bedaaat alsctmd mayor arm thm^Jk. he was in Moscow at the tin*.

37- ans sajramtaa far tbs first: had Just

I assi told the police had teen'looking forssmt to tnat police station. idn't

36. leJtaa pallce eaief aaastiaBSd as Car hoars, trying to pat words intefsrs mm finally told as lead esrders for ay deportation. Itlacal Bad* fesd charged as with, four ad enteredz. ad distributed anti-Cmemailst

has* proper docssMnts.ad ferried anti-Bad voter* to theJ padla ta mm- jam*.

39- Taaat tana* bla* with aagar.

t waslataatE sad sa tared Qtatosala legally. STort aad wasing in Smstesetla. City taa-aa ao?no*ai ta have been electioneering.

A*. At tha Zsataa eared xy ths Oovenor at Jatiopa

ut sot uxtU thai Bed polloe had insulted ae and driven aaap to police hsadamartesr* In Ouatemalaile*ml'j smlaastadanrlighree month extension of my vie a.

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I aath latar, oaaa arrested sgsln this tiae.

Jsnccssdad in convincingffairs tofrom my virtual imprisonment at xr sy aot .the Gaaaunlatsovernment .for my ,

*Z- r cnssatry ay plaaeC

-3- Slice ayare seam aakads can th* Antl-Comsuniat* do In Tna-.m'*T* It ts true that vita, taa exception of Ooatssala City (Which aaat all ef tha 5dapu^sa tohsy ars flouadsrlng andositive program to attract the peasant vote. But It is mot antxs-aly their famtt. Tfca paaennts are illiterate and oftento Ttaca, Bw PQA. baa also been savagely attacked and recently tha Sesx legislators asfced for suppmlsmi of tae entl-ConmnmiBt pres* and radio.

ttHl bop*, tbe people esT euatanala ars basically antl-Comaunl*t.

pesinoa ar* sort, nasi Ksrxists bat eisple peopleaw great aaas af Crra toeeople vho belong is tbe frsareatest weapon.C

oe can balm. Bat by land lng Karfnne orengeful ooffee

ttat waald impoverlahfllaa and strengthen the Bed*. V* can help

si teat los, by grvftag eeonosile aid to theapahllca. aadvuostag the Comnonlat for whatr* to ha aaataaalan petrol*.

*6. Tke slt&aUsn ft* urgent. So orgeat bat anlee* Guatemala'* moderate, liberal cSfrlxeas vasna asm ta ths dsagor sod act. we vill one day Boon see an Iron CortaliLa Oa American centtaaut.

OxTESIAUS OFLT

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