"See notes-.
place acquired ;
CIA HISTORICAL REVIEW PROGRAM RELEASE IN FULL
Late Aov
ov 53
of5, JU.^
ho. of encls.
supp. to report no.
US citizen vho has been engaged in business in Guatemala for overeara
Be makes periodic reports to his associates in the UB, and tbe followinglgeet of neve notes containedeport dated
General foreign ncluded fa
te' Union,an extensive har-elao arguednited front. '
interventor of the Light Cctnpany Poisotto, and others vboee die-In tneir condemnation of foreign
1. "The Guatemalan governaent putig shovhousand.acres of the expropriated lands at Tlquieate veretohousand recipients. In an effort to assure aac-ig ana possible, tbe) information ^hief of the national Agrarian Departmentut invitetlone to all pnomiment people, including newspaper.directors, invlt-lng them to acccmpany the offtoial party to Ticrpiaate 'to attend the delivexr. of nacaltivated lands of the cceaaaia agrlcola do Guatemala; in -conf qraity jjSf%-vith Decree yoo (Agrarian Hcfgrsk&vv) -' DM guests were invited ta leave'OOtU .. teaeUa City, Saturday, II.J one day eheadlatrlbutloa. On SundayletrllV. t the direction of the Ccmmmlat leader .Carloe-l acted ae sortaster of eeremonles. 'BeSjold .the aai la the most important expropriation that thejationai. agi jpar>led out so far ln spite of>vttjeufact that the company'..partment of State in Washington to make claims tbat have no right tolsoaj ve are delivering according toJev^landa of thisima nave been rejected and vui*be reiectod By the people and tbe gorern--nent of Guateaala.1 Previously Pellscer'isaid that lands belonging tooaalan Ambaeaador in VaBhlngton, Guillermo Tordello, had been expropriated.'from his farmnd thataballerifrs' have been claimed fromajoa flgca belonging* to President Arbenz, vhlch, he said, vould betod ahortly/rltain'tbe provisions of the lav. Others speaking included *'f.-Col Alfonaofttart fne z, Chief of tbe National Agrarian, Department lnof Fnudent Arbenz. Ee called upon the people of Guateamla to 'remain united to dbfend oureelvee against the Borth American blackmail vblcb threat-ena our oountry.*
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2. "JulloWoto,
LAST PAGE FO^ SU3JECT AREAl_ only
/'
Juan Cuellai Lorrnzrr^* watjal Workers Confeder-tion said: "With theoi ve*. cda df lb* United Fruit Coopao. entacle of the imperialist octOLith, and thereemorandum that we will reject cn*rEC*fealiy elthough it will present us as
3. "Ko details ar* presentlyNovavailable on the manner in which the
distribution wasT, but Fr- -isa Libre of l6 Novays it was'the* more thai:nd agricultural workers of Esqulntla son* will indirectly bcoefi'.'
k. "Thisdy the pro-uOverraaent Kueatro Dlario as beiog th*i")Mof-H out ?o Nuestro Dlario coiumen*ed: 'the delivery ofrue triumph of the Octoberir. liso over'.on- baokvardness of Guatemala and to improve the standard otg oi' Six {peat masats of people who lack land. On the other hand, itat in the correct application of the Agrarian Reform, the bitanystematic campaign that tried to put all kinde of ob?.ia<-if9 in it* way. pecific example, the Compania Agri'ccla de Guatemalall means* to prevent it, even to the extreme of interesting high officialse Slate Department who through this agencyiplomatic complaint in support of the fabulous foreign company.'
"Huestro Dlario previously said the Compania Agricola de Guatemala will receive an indemnityn cor.Dect'.oc with the expropriation. The Rational Agrarioa Department claimed to havereat many congratulatory mes-aages from all the 'democratic otgenlnations of Huestro Dlarlo predicted that the peasants will cultivate on the plantations cotton, corn, beans, rice ond eesaoend there are aome Interested in introducing tcenof tp meet the national demand.
6. Vuliofeoto, President of the local agrarian committee, will proceed withof the
7- h- Tourist Office in repreaentatlon of gaaxpsud MocDonaldfonf*he PRG/ Jaime "'o* tot to spoke on behalf of the RenovacionArnulfolfejia BardaVm *or the PAR; and Carlos Rene*X'aUe In the name of the Ccanauntqflead'r fortur.y; who was in Moscow, for th&fTGI.
El E'jpcctador noted the absence or ttw relative unimportant position given local officials and the control that Pellecer exercized over theuring the courae of the cei-enoni-rS Pellecer announced the foundationommittee to fight againat. foreign intervention and the defense of theaovereignty and peace vbicniaaaunlats have been organizingarge scale throughout Guatemala in an effort to get written support of the governoent against, th* USoir<;.
9. The COTG, lb* Getfe-al laborisclosed that the Guatemalanir. Washington,y the government totheiopoaiTlonth-ation of American States,place upon th* agendaext iconference atquestion of united aclion against Comccunism. The CGTO informed itathis proposal was 'nothing more than an Imperialist actd-rmociatlf lib'i*.leae nai lonal InTwreste, The governmenta* pcarr-iced ar invariable democrat ic policy and inwlrto*.i'o of Uie people,rusted out ambaBsador to votepmi;-y. Behe advai;ce of th* revclu-ionory movement inta-rfo.lh'. ii'-vvnl-tiociatic forces and the governmentAxl-ina hav.-v> win th* national independence tout*try and to hssure the popularthe. Noi tiibv* ledoubieO theirand theiru'e-eifinlyatc-mala and
*_vrf
The symbolic organization explanations about relati poringno ire of
Guatemala's relations vita tae UB are poor aa) oaks what haa Guatemala done that has .led to -the worsening of those relations vlth he US. It anavnr* tba questloa Itself, soj hathaao worses" tlona; lt bas United lta use of sovereign powers, to change Its form of gov. erument toeudal dictatorship In order toegime that benefitser cent of thend the question la alaale, but it Is not the Guatemalan people who nov are going to correct thenselTes nov that tbey hare found the good road.
11.
expropriation of the United Fruit Company lands In Tlqulsate, the of the caapalgc of the protection of national sovereignty end tbe and comments appearing in tbe pro-government preaa of Guatemala as with the DS all indicate that the Guatemalan goverxaaant la pre-and the people of Guatemalaejection of the US Aide
franciscclFernandez Fonceacontinuing his fight to be recognized asGeneral of the partido Accion Rcvolucionarla, but the courts have not yet ruled oa bis case. In the meantime, Unpacto ofoveports there are no funds ln the Party treasury to pay employees vho were let out lo tbethat followedouster. Foncea said that he vould continueember of tbe EAR regardless of vhat the court decided.
13> "In en effort to aaintaln the price of meats, tbe municipality. of Guatemala City took over the .laughtering and distribution of neat in the city after private butcher ahopa bad raised the price of aeat. Tbe decision of theto take over the neat distribution vas supported by. tbe Ministry of Iconomy. Private butchers said that they vould be unable to sell the meatound and had been demandingents. The butchers claimed that their suppliers bad raised the price because the price of cattle bad gone op. Tbe wholesalers admitted they violated the legal prices but only because their prices had increaaed. The wholesalers said that they were obliged to sell at an Illegal price because the cattle growers were demanding what theyust price. Officials of the Ministry of Economy argued that the price of/ moat should be lowered because there Is nov nore neat than'in previousattle raisers biased their 'high coots on the incapacity of Guatemala toitself Internally end had to Import meat which must pay taxes snd other expenses. Large shipments of cattle have been cooing In froa Honduras and El . alvador for the_past few years. 8 vas the largest year with aa average ofhousand bead of cattle. 8 calves vere easily sold; nov tbey 8 imported cattle cost In freightar ofhousand pounds for the run between Guatemala and Patulul. Revmat And vfaere tbe herds are driven long distances froa Honduras and Salvador they need scores of peons. 8 to feed one head of cattle cost fiveay; now this cost fluctuatesen-tnvos daily. Imported cattle constitutes approximatelyer cent ofconsuBptlon.
"The treasury centalttee of Congreee reported favorably on new custoas duties for foreign whiskey and foreign beer and other imported liquors. Thepointed out that these foreign products axe. not consumedajority of inhabitante but, on the contrary, are consumed by persons of sufficientmeans. The rest of the population largely consumed liquor, and fermented drinks made in the country. It said the nev taxes would have two enle: 'first, protection of tbe national industry, and, secondly, reduction of the amount of foreign exchange for articles not of basic necessity.'
15- "PrcDsa Libre reports onovhat Jose* Manuel Fortuny, generallytheoaxraiJot of Guatemala, left thend it vas considered possiblehe day this report was published that be vaa then ln
* orcannua mjm.mrjdeparture. It aald that hoACaovor Mexico, where beovei or Vienna and eaye that It understood that tbeof eas to leave and return Incognito. Prensa Libreasnts: 'With Fortuny's departure lt can be aald that tbe high cceaaand ofel Coaanunlum presently le to be found ln the countries behind the Iron
eference to the trip of Victor Manuel Gutierrez and other Ccmnun-
lst tourists vh> leftepo attend the Vorfof Trade Congress ln Vienna. Efforts of Prenaa, Libre to confirm the neve ofeparture at theParty headquarters evoked only the comment that 'Comrade Fortuny bas not been hi-:for several days.' As of that date only Car loa Manuel Pellecer of the Cocawunlat first team vas In Guateaala. On Id Bovhe Ccaaaunlst v Tribune Popular confirmed Fortuny's absence and said he vas ln Moscov.
Libre, under the headline 'If the State la Bot Careful It Will Dig Its
Ownoeaaented on proposals of the governaent to reform the Leber Code governing the relations between workers and private employers. Prenaa Libre says that there la danger that tbe State will be too liberal vith the public workers.
continues that Guateaala vill renev diplomatic relations with va-
rious governments to vhlch the revolutionary regimes bad opposed because of their so-called fascist compositions. These nations include Peru, theRepublic and Venezuela! and apparently relations with Venezuela may be the first to be patched up ao that Guateaala will not be embarrassed bya delegation to the forthcoming Organization of American States meeting there in
ofotuggest* that Guatemala might even seek diplomatic ties
with Spain because Guatemala's quarantine means nothing If the majority of the countries nev have relations with Franco.
*
Public Health workera' 'Onion complained to tho Ministry of Publicthe salaries wT the voxkere ofapitalof Jutiapa and Chlquimula '
have not been paid. The Onion turned ovar to tbe Ministry petitions ofWkers that the suggested cute instituted In July be canceled.
"Tbe fionduran Embassy onottatement rebuking tbeovernment Buestro Djarlo for oaluanloa the Embassy claimed that nevapaper awade against the government of President Juan Manuel Calves and deniedthat the government of Honduras bad inflicted torturee on anyone andintervening in the internal affairs of Guatemala. The Embassy denied
that tvo of the Hondurans accusedommunist plot in Honduras and vho later took asylum in the Guatemalan Embassy had been tortured.
22. remendous argument has been underway in the Guatemala City press betveen opposition newspapers and rnro-government Buestro Dlarlo in connection vith the efforts of the latter publication to brand the opposition publishers iaperiallets end supporters of thefor their refusal to go along with the government propaganda. Prensa Libre aad Imparclal both ease to the defense of Clemente Marroqnin Rojas, Director of Impacto, and eoudeaanod tbe suggestions of Paulino "valle n. Director of Maestro Dlarlo that the editors of the opposition press would be liable under Articlef the Guatemalan Constitution tos of their citizenship if thoy aided another countryoreign citizen against Guatemala ln any diplomatic claim or before an international tribunal.
"The Director of Buestro Dlarlo, according to Lnperclal, claims thatand other independent oewepapero support theof theasamammil.lvVAVrt tn Imparclal
colls thla anttack against freedom ofs ln Guatemala City and ceasoxea thet of Maestro Dlarlo for attempting to provokethe free expression of thought.
regain Bojoa, writing ln hla lapseto ofold, far we do not iero In Russia as the guidingof the peace end on repeated occasions we have algnlfied the ond of those governors who have oppoaed the linefroa Washington,' Previously he said the duty of all Marxists la to ac cues those vho do npt think like Stalin, Marx and Victor Manual
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