broke its ties with the PGT in early 1968 and joined with the 13th of November Movement (MR-13). The two groups have since split and the leader of MR-13, Yon Sosa, was killed by a Mexican border patrol. The PGT has a small terrorist force known as the Revolutionary Armed Forces (PGT/FAR). Cuba supported the 1968 split between the PGT and the FAR and favored the FAR's guerrilla efforts to overthrow the government. Recent defectors from the FAR indicate that the Cubans are advising the movement. Although the FAR and the PGT/FAR have experienced internal difficulties they still have the capacity to carry out terrorist acts. The FAR kidnapped the West German ambassador, Count von Spreti, in April 1970 and killed him when the government refused to comply with ransom demands. Guerrilla attempts to interfere with the March elections and the inauguration of President Carlos Arana in July, however, were not successful. The government proclaimed a state of siege in November 1970 in response to an increase in guerrilla activity. There has been a sharp increase in right-wing as well as left-wing terrorism in Guatemala and a number of prominent citizens have been kidnapped or killed because of their identification with various political views. 119 GUYANA 1:0 The People's Progressive Party (PPP), led by Marxist Cheddi Jagan and his Chicago-born wife Janet, is considered the major Communist party in Guyana. In June 1969 Jagan publicly aligned the PPP with the world Communist movement; his aim was to mold the PPP in the image of the Soviet party. Total membership of the PPP is just over 20,000 including the members of the Progressive Youth Organization and the Women's Progressive Organization. Of the total membership it is estimated that only 100 are hard-core Communist party members. Race is an important political factor in Guyana and East Indian support of Jagan's PPP is along racial rather than ideological lines. In 1953, the PPP under Jagan ruled the nation of British Guiana until the British government suspended the Constitution in fear that a Communist dictatorship was being established. In recent years the PPP has lost considerable support, and consequently political ground, to the black-dominated People's National Congress (PNC) under Premier Forbes Burnham. The PNC won a decisive although controversial victory in national elections in 1968. In local elections held in June 1970, the PPP won only 14 of 97 district seats. Factors in the PPP's decline may be increasing success of the PNC in attracting East Indians as members and a "radicalization" of Premier Burnham's policies, thus taking many of the issues away from Jagan. In February 1971, for example, Burnham declared Guyana a Cooperative Republic in an attempt to change socio-economic relationships through cooperative ventures. One of the aims of the program is to bring important natural resource industries such as Bauxite under Guyanese control. Thus far the government has nationalized the Aluminum Company of Canada's (Alcan) Demerara Bauxite Company. The $15 million trade agreement with the People's Republic of China, announced in December 1971, along with the news that diplomatic relations would soon be extended, was another blow to Jagan's image as principal advocate of radical causes. The Working People's Vanguard Party under former Prime Minister Brindley Benn is described as Marxist-Leninist. Benn's statements in support of the government's action against the Bauxite companies have been about the only indication that the party continues to exist." 123 HAITI The Communist party organization in Haiti has been dormant for the past several years. In December 1968 the Moscow-oriented PEP and the Havanaoriented PUDA merged to form the United Party of Haitian Communists 119 U.S. Department of State. Bureau of Intelligence and Research. World Strength of the Communist Party Organizations, 1971. 120 Perera, Victor. Guatemala: Where Violence Rules, Chicago Tribune, July 18, 1971. 121 U.S. Department of State. Bureau of Intelligence and Research. World Strength of Communist Party Organizations, 1971, p. 238. 12 Foreign Broadcast Information Service (FBIS). Daily Report-Latin America, July 1, 1970. p. P 1. 122 World Strength of Communist Party Organizations, 1971, p. 239. 125 (PUCH). In the spring of 1969, the government led by Francois (Papa Doc) Duvalier retaliated against a Communist program of small-scale terrorism by waging a bloody anti-Communist campaign. The Haitian government said that action was taken against Communist guerrillas trained in Russia and Cuba.1 An anti-Communist law was promulgated setting the death penalty for those convicted of Communist activity. The government's anti-Communist actions decimated the PUCH, leaving only isolated fragments of the organization.126 The new regime under Papa Doc's son Jean Claude Duvalier which came to power upon the death of Haiti's long-time dictator has assumed an anti-Communist character. A special anti-Communist fighting force of 567 men called the "Leopards" has been formed. The "Leopards" have received training in guerrilla warfare suitable for Haiti's mountainous terrain. According to Minister of Interior and National Defense Luckner Cambronne, the anti-guerrilla group will "secure the protection of the Duvalierist revolution against any threat of communism." "127 Commander of the Army General Claude Raymond said the "Leopards" were formed because the government perceived a Communist threat. He said that there were Communist groups within the country and he mentioned the Pestre group in Cuba, supported by Castro. A leading Haitian exile reported that Herve Boyer, an old-line Communist but former finance minister and advisor to Papa Doc, supported the ascension of Jean Claude with the idea that the young president could be manipulated by a leftist group. (Boyer's wife is a member of the French Communist Party.) The exile source said that Boyer was trying to encourage the return of Haitian students studying abroad, especially those in France and the Communist countries. The source also reported that Boyer would like to see the return of the more than 50,000 exiles living in Cuba's Oriente Province, only 50 miles from Haiti. Internally, the source said, the Communists have strong following among the students of Port-au-Prince.128 The Communist Party of Honduras (PCH) is split between the Ramos wing which is closer to Soviet leadership and the Erazo wing which advocates a more hard-line opposition. Both wings have only limited influence among the workers. Influence among students may increase since the PCH/Erazo provided most of the candidates for the leftist University Reform Front (FRU) which won the Federation of Honduran University Students (FEUH) elections in July 1970. The Party, which has been proscribed since 1957, has an estimated membership of 300. MEXICO Communist and Marxist parties are legal in Mexico but are small and weak because of the success of the official Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) in encompassing a wide spectrum of political philosophies, including those of the left. The Mexican Communist Party (PCM) has as estimated 5000 members but fails to meet the election law requirement for national registration. The PCM does not play a significant political role itself but it does use a number of front organizations to extend its influence. Since the Czechoslovakian invasion, the PCM has followed a line relatively independent of Moscow and there are indications that relations between the Soviets and the PCM continue to be strained. The Popular Socialist Party (PPS), which polled 188,000 votes in the July 1970 elections (1.4 percent of the total vote), is described as a pro-Communist party which tends toward the Soviet line. Some of its leaders are allegedly Communist but the rank and file, for the most part, is non-Communist. The PPS claims 75,000 members, the minimum required for national registration as a political party. It has carefully refrained from advocating violence and has supported the PRI presidential candidate since 1958. The party supported the Soviet line on the invasion of Czechoslovakia.130 124 U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Intelligence and Research. World Strength of the Communist Party Organizations, 1971, p. 216. 125 The Times (London), January 16, 1970. 128 World Strength of the Communist Party Organizations, p. 216. 127 Washington Post, May 26, 1971. 128 Joseph, Raymond. Haiti: Now the Struggle Begins. Wall Street Journal, April 23, 1971. 129 U.S. Department of State. Bureau of Intelligence and Research. World Strength of the Communist Party Organizations, 1971. 130 U.S. Department of State. Bureau of Intelligence and Research. World Strength of the Communist Party Organizations, 1971. 58-594-72-pt. 3- -8 Since 1968, when the government accused the PCM of being a key influence in the October student riots, Mexican authorities have been cracking down on the Party and other extremist groups. In March 1971, the government announced the arrest of 19 revolutionaries belonging to a group called the Revolutionary Action Movement (MAR) on charges of conspiracy, inciting to rebellion, robbery, homicide, and illegal possession of weapons. Half of the group confessed to participating in guerrilla training in North Korea in 1968 and 1969. The purpose of their training, according to Mexican authorities, was to organize a guerrilla uprising in Mexico that would overthrow the government and establish a Marxist regime. The Mexican government charged that the guerrillas received grants in 1963 for study at Patrice Lumumba University in Moscow as part of the Mexican-Soviet cultural exchange program. The students then came in contact with the North Korean embassy in Moscow which gave them financial aid. In October 1968, the North Korean embassy allegedly arranged for one of the students to visit Pyongyang and subsequently, $10,000 was made available by North Korea to train other Mexicans at a camp 25 miles from Pyongyang. The MAR revolutionaries were arrested at hideouts and "guerrilla academies" in Mexico City, Acapulco, and other cities. They are accused of robbing a bank courier of $84,000 in Mexico City in December 1970, and of killing a guard in a bank robbery in February 1971. After Mexican President Echeverria openly publicized the activity of the MAR guerrillas, the Foreign Minister announced that five members of the Soviet embassy were considered persona non grata and were being ordered to leave Mexico." 131 133 PERU 134 The Communist party apparatus in Peru is comprised of a pro-Soviet organization (PCP/S) and a smaller pro-Chinese party (PCP/C) which is split into two factions. PCP/S membership is estimated to be 2,000 and PCP/C membership is about 1,200.12 In varying degrees, the pro-Soviet party has supported the leftist reform-oriented military government of President Juan Velasco Alvarado which came to power in October 1968. In early 1971, the government gave official recognition to the Communist-led General Confederation of Peruvian Workers (CGTP). The pro-Chinese party, however, long suffering from internal divisions, does not support the government. This party controls the leadership of the official student organization, the Federation of Peruvian Students (FEP), but the military's university reform of February 1969 neutralized student politics.' In the first years of the military government the PCP/S saw the military rulers as allies in the struggle against the feudal, oligarchical system that controlled the nation. The military's reform program was directed against these elements. However, the Communists in late 1970 and early 1971 began to find fault with the government's pace and direction and became especially angry over the government's refusal to take over the mining companies which are mostly foreign-owned.125 This resentment developed into a threat to the government as the CGTP instigated a series of violent strikes during 1971 in steel plants, sugar cooperatives, and the textile industry. The government countered by breaking the strikes, occupying the union headquarters, and jailing labor leaders. Folkhero Trotskyite Hugo Blanco was exiled as were several other prominent Communist leaders.13 136 In the international sphere the Peruvian government maintains relations with the Soviet Union, has recently established diplomatic relations with the People's Republic of China, and has been one of the chief advocates of reintegrating Cuba into the Inter-American system. NICARAGUA 197 The Nicaraguan Socialist Party (PSN), outlawed since 1945, is small (about 60 members) and ineffective. Its influence is limited to a few areas of organized labor and some university groups. 131 Washington Post, March 20, 1971. 182 U.S. Department of State. Bureau of Intelligence and Research. World Strength of the Communist Party Organizations, 1971, p. 241. 133 Grayson, George W. Peru Under the Generals. Current History, v. 62, February 1972, p. 95. 131 World Strength of the Communist Party Organizations, p. 242. 135 New York Times, July 12, 1971. 136 Grayson, Op. cit., p. 96. 137 U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Intelligence and Research. World Strength of the Communist Party Organizations, 1971. The Nicaraguan Socialist Workers Party (POSN), which is also outlawed, was resurrected in 1968 due to factionalism within the PSN. The POSN, which has an estimated membership of 40, has adopted a softer ideological line. Neither party advocates armed insurrection. The Sandinista National Liberation Front (FSLN) is a Castroite guerrilla organization composed of young leftists who advocate the overthrow of the Somoza regime in order to achieve social reform. In 1970, the government carried on a relatively successful campaign against the FSLN and captured some of its members. It is believed that the FSLN still retains limited capabilities through the activities of its 50 to 60 members. Carlos Fonseca Amador, a FSLN leader, was released in October 1970 from a Costa Rican jail as partial ransom for a hijacked Costa Rican plane. Although he is currently in Cuba, his return to Nicaragua could help to reactivate the movement. PANAMA The Communist Party, known as the People's Democratic Party (PDP), and the Castroite Movement of Revolutionary Unity (MUR), both illegal, are considered weak and disorganized organizations. Until recently the government, under military dictator General Omar Torrijos, carried out a repressive policy against the pro-Soviet PDP and the militant MUR resulting in the death, exile, and imprisonment of their top leaders. In 1969, the government closed and reorganized the University of Panama which was the traditional center of Communist agitation. As of December 1970, student political activity was still prohibited. In August 1970, however, the government authorized a general release of political prisoners and selected political exiles are being allowed to return to Panama.138 In an attempt to gain popular support, General Torrijos has been making sweeping changes and is wooing peasants, workers, and students. In April, a reorganized cabinet gave a more leftist slant to the government. A leftist, described as a Marxist by conservative business interests in Panama, was named to the important post of Minister of Government and Justice. A leftist was named rector of the University of Panama. The Communist Party is reported to be operating openly although all political parties and political activities are outlawed by the Torrijos government. VENEZUELA 140 139 Although the Communist Party of Venezuela (PCV) was legalized by the Caldera administration in 1969, it has experienced great difficulties because of a split in its leadership. On December 15, 1970, about one third of the membership of the Central Committee, the youth wing, and various regional directors resigned over a dispute regarding the pro-Soviet stance of the majority. The cause of the rift is traced to the publication of two books by long-time Communist Teodoro Petkoff in which he opposed the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia and criticized Stalinism in general. Petkoff also argued that the Soviet Union was not a suitable model for the Party to follow and that a uniquely Venezuelan solution should be found which would include independence from foreign control. Those resigning support Petkoff's nationalist approach. Additional support for this position came from a faction of the Leftist Revolutionary Movement (MIR) which advocates a cessation of armed activities although at one time the group supported guerrilla activities. BIBLIOGRAPHY Agor, Weston Harris. Is Chile Still Free?-A Test. Freedom at Issue. New York. July-August, 1971. Aguilar, Luis E. Political Traditions and Perspectives. Problems of Communism. USIA. May-June, 1971. Alexander, Robert J. Communism in Latin America. New Brunswick, N.J. Rutgers University Press, 1957. 138 U.S. Department of State. Bureau of Intelligence and Research. World Strength of the Communist Party Organizations, 1971. 139 Tanner, James C. Puzzle in Panama. Wall Street Journal, June 17. 1971. 140 U.S. Department of State. Bureau of Intelligence and Research. World Strength of the Communist Party Organizations, 1971. Argell, Alan. Chile: From Christian Democracy to Marxism. The World Today. November, 1970. Burks, David D. Cuba Today. Current History. February, 1971. Corvalan, Luis. Chile: The People Take Over. World Marxist Review. December, 1970. Foreign Area Studies. Area Handbook for Cuba. Washington. The American University, 1971. Gall, Norman. The Chileans Have Elected a Revolution. New York Times Magazine. November 1, 1970. Gil, Federico. The Political System of Chile. Boston. Houghton Mifflin Co., 1966. Goldenberg, Boris. The Rise and Fall of a Party: The Cuban CP (1925-1959). Problems of Communism. USIA. July-August, 1970. Gonzalez, Edward. Castro: The Limits of Charisma. Problems of Communism. USIA. July-August, 1970. Gott, Richard. Series on Cuba. Manchester Guardian Weekly. October 17, 24, 31, 1970. Goure, Leon and Jaime Suchlicki. The Allende Regime: Actions and Reactions. Organization of American States. Inter-American Commission on Human Rights. Poppino, Rollie. International Communism in Latin America. London. The Free Press of Glencoe, 1964. Rodman, Selden. Turning Point for Allende, April in Chile. The New Leader. April 5, 1971. Sanders, Thomas G. Allende's First Months. American Universities Field Staff Reports. April, 1971. Suarez, Andres. Cuba: Castroism and Communism. Cambridge. The M.I.T. Press, 1967. Thomas, Hugh. Cuba: The Pursuit of Freedom. New York. Harper and Row, 1971. U.S. Department of State. Bureau of Intelligence and Research. World Strength of the Communist Party Organizations, 1971. |
