MISCELLANEOUS POLITICAL ACTIVITY

Created: 1/15/1954

OCR scan of the original document, errors are possible

PSSUCCESS-RYBAT

'I"

y, Guatemala Local File No.:

of Pages: of E

Report Made by: mBT.fl M-

Distribution:

Bycopyto: r0 Distribution

I les

Source Cryptonym:

Source, Operational Data, and Comments:

CIA HISTORICAL"REVIEW PROGRAM

RELEASE AS

Source: Stephen R. LUGTON from SHSlUHas from the following:

Parasoffee import and export executive with good government contacts. "rivate pilot who obtained information

.from the chief of civil aviation and alsoechanic ln the Aero Club de Guatemala.

Editor of El Espectador.

Businessman who haa good political contacts.

Engineer in the Ministry of Communications

and PublicSamend 2.

"10 usinessman with political contacts from tho owner of Radio Ciro's who overheard tho conversationestaurant.

Guatemalan businessman with good political

contacts.

Cawwdncation

P3SUCCESS-RYBAT

Seciirirv loforBauon

Miscellaneous Political Activity

Place Acquired: Guatemala City Evaluation: As indicated

Report No: 3

Date of Information:3 -

5Date Acquired: ^

Date of Report:t|.

Individua:'. vrith excellent contacts In political, economic and government circles.

1. Available information indicates that Lie. Eugenic SILVAin by President AR6ENZ and offered the post ofForeign Relations. SILVA did not

2. It has boon reported that all the public employees in thede Cafe have requested an Immediate raise ln salary. is not natisfactorily resolved, they threaten to declare

reports indicate that the government of Guatemala has negotiated for the purchase ofircraft from. The name of the norson negotiating the transaction was not given.

It has been reported that all private and officialfields, especially those on the south coast, are According to the report, air patrols makecoast to coast along the border every day at e area around the port of San Joae is being

Indicates that campeainos are making an on almost all the privately owned fincas in the

Escuintla. The leaders of the movement andare carrying modern weapons, includingguns. It is believed that this movement isa Communist stronghold of Escuintla in caseanti-communist

to is being sab structions fi making serio> requiring th

reports, SI Espectador, Guatemalan daily newspaper, tagsd byinotypists who receive their in-om the communist po-'ty. The sabotage consistsrrors Ln advertisements run in the newspaper, thus paper to repeat the ad. The object of the sabotage Gasification

T1AV

'jam.

Securjj* Inf. rmation

appears to be to force the editor and publisher to follow

It has been learnedew "obrero criatiano" party is being formed secretly. The directors of this party are said to be Eduardo ARRIOLA Llsorr;ia, Antonio MORAN, Oscar LUNA, Horacio de CORDOVA and Domitila MERIDA, all of whom have been members of other committees In the past. The party Is presently drawing up statutes and regulations andall which will be issued shortly. The success of the party is believed to be doubtful since most of the directors are fairly well known and the new partyhange of name ratherhange in

Available inrormation indicates that there is talk within the Ministry of Communications and Public Works that Col. Carlos ALOAHA Sandoval, present head of that Ministry, will be named Ambassador to. and his present position will be assumed by Oscar CASTAP. In addition, Guillermo TORIELLO, currently Guatemalan Ambassador toill return to Guatemala to become Kinister of Foreign Relations, the change being made so that TORIELLO can represent Guatemala at the conference of the Organization of American States to be held ln Caracas ink.

)

octor with good government contacts,recently that in governmenthange lnexpected within the nextays. According to ALDANA,.Enrique DIAZ, Chief of the Armed porces, will becomeJoseSANCHEZ, Minister of Defense, will become Chief

of the Armed Porces, and President Jacobo ARBENZ will assumeof .Sinister of

t haa boon reported that several leaders of .the Confederacion Canroesina (probably the Confederacion Nacional de Campesinos de Guatemala) have stated that they expected the "reactionaries' nter Guatemala from Salvador and Honduras following the Caracas conference but that when they arrived they would be in for a

surprise because their Confederaciesilitia and troops trepared for anything in thoae areas. They also stated that if ', the troops stationed in Guatemala ^ity left the citynd went out to T'bel theheyain loads oftb theShT'reac61on5rIeT and the enemies of tho government once and "or )

vailable inrormation indicates that Carlos FTJSKT3S, who reportedly was in contact withite de Cstudiantes Universltarivjs Anti-comunistas {CEUA) in Guatemala at one time, haa stated that he is preparing propaganda items to be used in connectioneeting of labor "unions scheduled to take place in Guatemala "ity. He is

age 3

said to have stated that ho planao Honduras to see what funds he can obtain from "thoae people." )

Lie. Eugenio SILVA Pefla held the poet of Kinister of Foreign Relations undor President Juan Jose AREVALO.

Pield Comment: Similar information from another source gives the reason for the change as thereoccupation with international public opinion toward Guatemala and the belief thathange would improve the Guatemalan position in the eyes of the world.

Source comment1 These men were drunk at the time and may have been boasting.

Source comment: "Those people" probably refers to the exiled group In Honduras. FUENTESan of doubtful loyalty and not to ba trusted.

Original document.

---

---