biotin

Wall Street fury

over Fidel Castro

The Cuban Revolution is today facing intimidation,
economic threats and military plots from New York and
Washington. The overthrow of the Wall Street’s pet,
Batista, by the people of Cuba at the beginning of~this
year caused rejoicing throughout Latin America. But in
Washington and Wall Street it produced only fury and

hatred.

The American imperialists
did their utmost to prevent
Cuba executing justice on
those who had betrayed the na-
tion and tortured her best sons.

The ‘have tried to hold up
_ the agrarian revolution—which
will deal a crushing blow to
local feudalism, and equally
to the United Fruit’ Company

and other American’ estate-
Owners in this rich -sugar
company.

They have sought to split
the national front of the Cuban
people by beating on the anti-
Communist drum.

And they have plotted to
destroy the young republic by
military attacks from without
and within.

The recent resignation of
President Urrutia marked an
important stage in Cuba’s for-
ward march. He was a rallying
point for the Conservatives
who opposed some of Dr, Cas-
tro’s most: important policies.

Castro commented that Urru-
tia was singing in harmony
with the anti-Communist glee-
club of New York.

Castro’s showdown with
_Urrutia ‘expresses the’ deter-
mination of the people to push
ahead with land reform, to de-
fend their republic and to
guard national unity.

Castro himself has repudi-
ated lies about ‘Communist
danger,’”’ and has courageously
defended the democratic rights
of the Cuban People’s Socialist
Party (Cuban Communists).

The heart of the presearil
stage of the Cuban revolution | *

is the land reform.

The Land Reform Law,
adopted in May, will entirely
eliminate the big estate system.
Ordinary land-holders are limi-
ted to about 1,000 acres. Land
used for growing sugar cane
or rice, or for cattle breeding,
may not exceed 3,000 acres.

Land above these limits will
be expropriated and distribut-
ed to landless peasants. Com-
pensation is allowed in the
form of 20-year bonds to the
landowners, at a maximum an-
nual interest of four percent.

No enterprize which is not
owned and worked by Cubans
will be allowed to run any
sugar plantation. And no for-
eigner will be allowed to pos-
sess any rural properties.

The Agrarian Reform Law
poinis out that, at present,
nearly 75 percent of the’ fertile
land in Cuba is inj the hands) q
of U.S. enterprizes.

The reform will break up
4,423 big estates and distribute
about eight million acres of
land to more than two million
peasants.

As can be imagined, the law
was acclaimed not only in
Cuba but throughout Latin
America.

In the U.S., however, Time
magazine described it as the
biggest blow dealt by Latin
America to U.S. capital since
the expropriation of the Mexi-
can oil industry in 1938.

Kerala’s government

‘dismissed’

NEW DELHI — President
Nehru last week advised Presi-
dent Prasad to dismiss. the
elected Communist govern-
ment of Kerala State and re-
place it by presidential rule. A
proclamation was immediately
‘issued suspending the. con-
stitution.

Under Article 356 af the
Indian Constitution, the presi-
dent can, by proclamation,
take over the Spree of a
state, r
, The proclamation ae Ste
sequently be approved by both
Houses of Parliament and re-
mains in: force for six months.
- It Jean. be. extended for six
“moths at a time, up to a max-

“=< imumsperiod of three years.

*s3The?s€entral government’s

bas agleost «

Eis ade

by Nehru

intervention is the result of a
six-week all-out. campaign of
violence by a number of Op-
position groups in Kerala to
oust the Communist govern-
ment led by Chief Minister
Namboodiripad elected almost
two and a half years ago.

For the past six weeks the
combined forces of landlords,
businessmen, communal agita-
tors and Catholic bishops have
carried on provocation and
wrecking against the Kerala
government, the only Commu-
nist state government in India.

The 1957 elections gave the
Kerala- Communists and sup-
porters 65 seats, the Indian
Congress Party 43, the Right-
Wing Praja Socialists nine and
the Moslem League eight.

>

NATIVE TROOPS of the King’s African Rifles march in Blantyre, Nyasaland.

‘You killed 51 Africans’

evan tells government

LONDON — Colonial secretary Lennox-Boyd was charged in the House of Come
mons last week with having originated the allegations of a murder plot in Nyasaland,

thereby endangering the lives of Europeans and Africans.

(On the pretext of the

“massacre plot” 51 Africans were murdered). The accusation was made by James Cal-
laghan, opening for Labor in the debate on the Devlin Commission report on disturb-
ances in Nyasaland, and enlarged upon by Aneurin Bevan.

In a scathing attack on the
government’s hypocritical at-
titude to the findings of the
mission which it had itself ap-
pointed, Callaghan ridiculed
government attempts to pre-
sent African leaders as plotters
of murder and violence.

And, when winding up for
the Opposition, Aneurin Bevan
said:

.“I have been in the House
for many years. I am becoming
one of the oldest members of
it. This is the worst parliament
I have ever been -in -(govern-
ment laughter). Some parlia-
ments have been called long
parliaments some rump parlia-
ments. This will be known to
history as the squalid parlia-
ment (Labor cheers).

“They have made mistake
after mistake for which’ other
people have had to suffer.
There. are Africans now lying
in their graves who are there
as_a consequence of the con-
COE Skog?

In the noise which

followed Bevan’s words were
drowned bui he pointed to the
government benches.

He went on: ‘‘They did more
damage in 1956 to the reputa-
tion of this country than any
government has done in two or
three centuries.

“Tf they pursue their present
policies they will make ii al-
most impossible for us to re-
concile ourselves with the
African nation.”

Quoting from the Devlin Re-
port, Callaghan said that “‘a
deep and bitter gulf’ existed
between government and peo-
ple in Nyasaland.

Perhaps the most horrifying
section of the Devlin Report is
the proof it affords that in
Nyasaland the cold-blooded
deliberate murder of a ring-
leader should be regarded as
the normal method of dispers-
ing a recalcitrant crowd.

- According to the “drill,”
when the military took’over, a

loud-speaker was used to’ call
on the crowd to disperse:

“The crowd still remaining,
a sniper (cr two snipers) should
be ordered to load, to aim
kneeling, then fire {ie. three
separate orders) one round af
(to kill, not maim) a selected,
individual, the ringleader of
the crowd.

Suppose the crowd isn’t in-
timidated by this vicious mur-
der. “The crowd stili failing ~
to disperse, the forward section
(of. the troops) should be order-
ed to load and carry out the
same drill- as the sniper. or
snipers who have by then Wwith-
drawn.

“Should .a. controlled volley

‘by the leading section fail to

stop the crowd and it is ‘com-
pletely out of hand’ the light
machine-guns (Brens) should
be brought into action.” ~

In other words the crowd -is
to be dispersed _by orale
massacre.

August 7,-1959—PACIFIC TRIBUNE—Page 3