W hat’s happening w ith Cuba? A lot of people w ere bew ildered w hen
David R ockefeller [grandson of John D. and former chairman of the
Chase Manhattan Bank] gave a party for Fidel Castro in New York in
October 1995.
Cuba itself isn’t of tremendous importance to the American
economy. If it didn’t exist, the effect w ouldn’t be noticeable. But the
idea that other competitors are making inroads in this traditionally
American market doesn’t appeal to David R ockefeller and his
friends. If investors elsew here are going to break the American
embargo, business here is going to call for it to end.
T he same thing happened w ith Vietnam. U S business w as
perfectly happy to punish Vietnam for failing to totally capitulate to
U S pow er. T hey w ould have kept their stranglehold on forever,
dreaming up one fraudulent reason after another, except that by the
mid-1980s Japan and other countries w ere starting to disregard the
U S embargo and move into the area, w hich has an educated
population and low labor costs.
You follow ed the Jennifer Harbury case in Guatemala.
I w rote the introduction to her book, Bridge of Courage. She’s a
very courageous w oman, and is still fighting. Sister Dianna Ortiz is
another. It takes a lot of guts to do w hat these w omen have done.
Does the Guatemala peace treaty of December 1996 signal the end
to this three-decade-old bloodbath?
I’m glad it’s being signed, because it’s a step forw ard. But it’s also
the very ugly outcome of one of the biggest state terror operations
of this century, w hich started in 1954 w hen the U S took part in
overthrow ing the only democratic government Guatemala ever had.
Let’s hope the treaties may put an end to the real horrors. State
terror has successfully intimidated people, devastated serious
opposition, and made a government of right-w ing business interests
not only seem acceptable to many people, but even desirable.