GUATEMALAN COFFEE PROJECT.

Created: 3/12/1953

OCR scan of the original document, errors are possible

Guatemalan Goffeo project.

current

In order to support the/political objective of harrassing the power of tho Dro-coraunist ovtrn-^nt ofroject la planned to injure the internal economy of tho country.

uatemala's exports totaled0 dollars. Of thaa total, coffoe. f tho overall total exports were to.

l exports iiiiH/ to. totaledmillions, and imports

aillion

fromere onlyillions, the dollar credits oversgc/ roject that .could damage Guatemala's export trade couldbjective of curtailing dollar crooits that might conceivably become available to tht orbit through unilateral trade should such occur extensively.

It is proposed, therefore, tolan that would eitherpermanently, curtail Ouat-acala'a export market for cotffee, and therebyincome and foreign

Several alternative methods are under consider.i'.ijn, and final determination of the most feasible has not yet been decided.

aas would be to induce the American jiH^tii-f. coffee :rocuremmt cartel

to cease all imports temporarily of Ouatenalanforcingrice down

and simut&neously denying income to Guatemala. This proposalumber

possibly .

of undetermined difficulties. t vould/causo the price of competing coffees to rise

R: operational considerations

The followlns aro operational possibilities submitted for consideration and further exploration. The objective of the FIBER program is toeans ofaging the economy of Guatemala and/or theGovernment to bring about tha collapse of the pro-Communist Government in that country. Since cofiee representsf all Guatemalanf thin amount goind tond ex orts ore the principal source of national income and National'product, the best approach toroblem is toay in which to prevent the ^rketing of part or ali of the Coffee Crop.

Denial of fuel for transporting colfee to docksido. rail ond motor

Denial of ship, in- facilities, such as thru coop .ration of shopirv;

companies, or tj:ru sconomic threRts againstenpanias.

of dock and port fncil.tiea.

U. Sabf rail facilitieserto Barlos.

Sabatoge of crop by wetting down while in storage at docksido warehouse.

Sabatoge of urop at sea by inducing moisture in snips holds.

SlbRtoga of coffee trees by inducing Jieaileia rust (disease) which kills

trees over period of tvu or three /ears.

6. PW projoot (black) to ostensibly discover plans oi Coawunists to introduce

other than Juateinala hsLiilois rust in cronu of cyuntries/eunpatins in id.Id coffee market with

b.ec'ives (a) to aid the economyo pro-Communist governnent

of Guatemala, and (b) tohe econosy of surrounding countries to

makersugceptiblo to Oonriunism. (Could also bo used as cover

for itembove, to cast suspicion that "rust" was introduced in

Guatemala as retaliation byther Central American States.)

9. Sabotage by inducing "clack bug" (see oagcraft) in coffee during

docksido storage or on shipboard.

Possible op .rational ap; roaches

1- Denial of gosoline, coal, or other rail or transportoiton fuel to prevent movement of coffee to porta. Cut off suooly for two or three months, (depends on stockpiles ot fuel)

f warehoused coffee by having controled stevedore or longsh reman wet down dari corner of warehouse with hose.

Propaganda plant (black) of invasion plans oi Canal iono ostensibly from teOKlnforn to Juatenalan Com. unists, outling how onsri.tion is to be carried outuatemala in event of war.

i. Propaganda plant (black) of instructions to all Central American

republics with guidaices for infecting their respective cofiee plantations with disease (HaMILElA) in order to bolster the market for Guatemalan coffee (not to be infected) and thereby strengthening the position of tho pro-Cow.unist Government there, as well as Bringing chaos in .the other countries, thereby paving the way for Corv-unlsm.

Buearocratic delays in theas extra customs delays, dept. of Agricultural. inspaction3 for dosease,to cause sufficient trouble for importersey may shift to other "milds".

If coffee is being shipped to China, that portion of exports could be stopped by Treasury action to. dollar balances ofunder the "Trading with the tnei^would also apal; to transshipiwnts.

Boycott hare. ports by longshoremen'swould refuse to touch Cow.unist Coffee, (could probably bo easil; arranged, since Union Ufficlals, especia li. would probably welcome opportunity to out themselves in "patriotic"n view of current invoatig tions.

Sabatoge of Railroad in Guatemala. Railroad is only mams of transsortation to win port of Puerto Barrias, although Highway

is under construction to enable Truck shipping, istinated completion by. Rail line passesong stretch of relatively unpopulated country.

?. Possible labor action through Coffee Koasters union hore inrefusal to hrndleist Cofieo",

rumors of pending currency devaluation in Guat to panic growers Into retaining export receipts. banks rather than returning to Juatonalj. .

Original document.

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