JOSE ANDRADE – History 3072, History of Modern Latin America

Treaties on the surface, clandestine operations underneath.

In this US Army intelligence and security review, it is clear that the United states was participating in the activities that its critics claimed them to be partaking in – the political maneuvering to gain and maintain allies while ensuring that they could have a close eye on their perceived enemies. Alexander Dawson states that for major players of the time, “That their force was felt indirectly, in some ways channeled through U.S. politics.” That it, “alerts us to their capacity to move beyond the traditional spaces of political struggle.” To continue to work towards their containment policy, the United States would set the stage in such a way as to allow them to observe and disrupt the activities of places under the influence of the Soviet Bloc. There is very little doubt in my mind that postwar soviets were likely doing the same thing right back. As Dawson puts it, Latin American Countries “were among the central sites for the proxy battles of the cold war.”…”both the United States and the Soviet Union, both superpowers intensified the volatility of already polarized nations”.

These maneuvers to sway other nations as a sort of meta-politics are documented in the now declassified US Army intelligence and security report for the 1978 fiscal year. In it are short concise statements about the accomplishments of the intelligence units in that year, context for their operations, and plans for the future. This specific year’s issue is of importance because it shows how the overtly well-meaning gesture of a treaty for the Panama Canal was handled from the intelligence and covert operations perspective. This would be the Panama Canal treaty between US president Jimmy Carter and Panama’s leader General Omar Torrijos, to transfer control of the passage to Panama. Talks of behind the scenes activities during negotiations, aerial espionage, and clandestine operations all can be found within the document. The document states – “As in FY 1977, activities surrounding the process of approving the new Panama Canal Treaties dominated the operational scene during FY 1978”. The primary focus of US intelligence operations during these times was to have the upper hand in Latin American dealings.

To start, on page 126 of the document are accolades given to an intelligence unit for their “timely, accurate, and important information” claiming that whatever that information was, it allowed US negotiators to “bargain from an advantageous position”. In essence, this means that they are recognizing the intelligence unit for providing such compelling information, that negotiators were able to leverage it for their favor. The second portion touches on the “Mini-camera of the 470th MI Group”. The revelation here was that inconspicuous planes were to be used on inconspicuous flight paths while secretly reconnoitering. The statement claims that Venezuelan aircraft were staged in support of Nicaragua’s Sandinista rebels. These Sandinistas would later go on in the next year overthrow their dictatorship. The final and most interesting aspect of this intelligence analysis are the statements on development of “a new, deep-cover HUMINT (human intelligence) element which would operate under clandestine collection projects”…“pertaining to Soviet Bloc activities in Latin America”. The US had no plans of distancing itself from Latin America, instead seeking to further entangle itself in Latin American conflict.

https://nsarchive.gwu.edu/dc.html?doc=4895708-Office-of-the-Deputy-Chief-of-Staff-Operations

(pages 126 & 127)

The Troubled History of the Panama Canal

“Colombia was the deadliest place on Earth for environmental activists. It’s gotten worse.” – Teresa Tomassoni

Earlier in 2020, NBC news reported on an alarmingly high number of environmental activists killed in Colombia – more than 40 in roughly two months. In the article, three particular activists detail their experience advocating for the driving out of mining and logging operations in predominantly indigenous lands. While reading the Problems in Modern Latin American History entry on Chico Medez’s struggle and assassination in 1980’s Brazil, I saw parallels to that and this current news story. Both era’s activists faced constant threats to their lives, flimsy governmental support, and aggressive opposition by those ransacking their land for resource profit. The threat of violence is not lost on the modern activists, with Nidia Becerra, claiming to wear a bulletproof vest when in public, and having to change residences regularly. Another activist, Clemencia Carabali was fired upon and had a grenade thrown at her while meeting with other Afro-Colombian leaders, followed by threatening text messages saying “what happened on Saturday was only the beginning of the extermination of it all”. Jackeline Romero, who protested the Cerrejon coal mine, received death threats, rape threats, and threats to her family for demanding the mine’s closure and reparations for the damage done to her indigenous lands.

Similarly to Chico Medez’s Consejo National de Seringueiros, the activists in Colombia’s Land is Life organization also serve to combat the encroachment of big interests and the violence caused by organizations like the FARC, both equally hungry for the resource rich territories. In Mendez’s situation, he claimed that the police and judicial system were biased against them, and in the Colombia situation, the supposed governmental support offered is not held in high regard. In the article, the author states, “Activists and researchers who spoke to NBC News said they do not have faith in the government’s efforts to stop the violence”. Becerra specifically, filed a complaint on the death threats to which she says no progress has been made. This indicates either a poorly equipped governmental environment agency, or a disinterest in resolving the situation at all.

The activists in Colombia adhere to the same rhetoric as Mendez in the 80’s in that they follow nonviolent means to achieve national and international recognition. Where Medez said, “We feel our resistance can produce results through pressure by the press and lobbying organizations, at both a national and an international level.”, the Colombian activists reach out to multinational news agencies like NBC to have their situation heard. While the Brazilian communities were organizing women at the fronts of their empates to bring safety and security to their movements, the women of the modern Colombian movements stand at the forefront of international view, taking on the burden of death threats and violence.

https://www.nbcnews.com/science/environment/colombia-was-deadliest-place-earth-environmental-activists-it-s-gotten-n1139861

Wood, James A., and Anna Rose Alexander. Problems in Modern Latin American History: Sources and Interpretations. 5th ed. Rowman & Littlefield, 2019. ProQuest Ebook Central.

In this image is a harbor in Panama City, listed as taken some time between 1850 to 1900. This image speaks to the rapid and sudden boom in production and exports during the neocolonial period of Latin America. Shipping and rail systems, crucial to the economic development of the region, are pictured here both prominently in the fore and background, with various goods in between. On the center left is a building with a balcony banner labeled Royal Mail Steam Packet Company. On the train is either an unidentified agricultural product, or given the presence of wooden planks, likely a construction commodity.

The presence of a British shipping venture present in the image indicates that this harbor either was or was about to become incredibly important in the perspective of global trade and shipping. It is important to note that during this period, Latin America was making immense strides in logistical infrastructure. The railroads being built during this era facilitated rapid transport of trade goods both domestically and to ports headed internationally. As the transport network quickly expanded, goods could reach harbors such as this one with increasing ease, perpetuating the means of furthering the global economic foothold of Latin America.

Keep in mind that the Panama Canal was being financed and built during this time in history. From this, we can infer that the contents these specific trains and ships carried likely went towards the construction of the project. Ultimately, if Latin America’s mineral and agricultural markets had not developed the ability to move immense quantities of resources during their export booms, the infrastructure necessary for such a project would not exist, making the trade and transport crescendo that is the Panama Canal an impossibility.

One very interesting detail in this picture is that there appear to be electrical poles and lines running throughout the harbor, signaling the onset of modernity in Latin America. I wonder exactly how far ahead Latin America was in regards to modernization, in relation to the rest of the world during the prosperous times pictured above.

Full Portrait of Simon Bolivar

©John Carter Brown Library, Box 1894, Brown University, Providence, R.I. 02912

In this engraving of Simon Bolivar, one can make out important inferences on the cultural ideals and norms of Independence-era Latin America. Of particular note, is his style of dress, the background in the distance, the structure he stands in, and the text under the image. Before getting into analysis of the image or text in more specific detail, it is important to note Bolivar’s personal life has heavy influence, of course, on what he would or would not want depicted in a portrait such as this one. Simon Bolivar would have been considered creole (Spanish born in the Americas) and a member of one of the leading families in Caracas, Venezuela. He later went on to living in and around Spain during his adolescent years. Prior to leading his movement of independence, Bolivar was under the tutelage of Andres Bello, an Intellectual who likened the building of a nation to the upbringing of crops in agriculture.

Bolivar’s stance on independence is also important for the sake of analyzing the text under the engraving. His ‘us or them’ attitude towards Patriot support meant that he was, at the time, much more militarily driven as opposed to politically oriented. His sentiment towards Spain in the years leading up to and during the era of Latin American will be discussed in further detail below.

In the caption below is the phrase “Desde este dia la libertad sera indestructible en america, siendo los bellos trofeos de nuestras victorias, los derechos del pueblo, y la soberania de las leyes.” This translates approximately to “From this day forward, liberty will be indestructible in america, being that it is the beautiful trophy of our victories, the right of the people, and the most sovereign of laws.” One can establish from this quote then, that the source of the engraving must have been created after the start of Independence movement in Latin America. Additionally, we find from the text below the picture that this specific engraving is dated later into the era. Specifically in 1827 and was published in London.

To analyze the specific imagery in this print, one must first consider two things. Below the image, is written “Senor General Sir Robert Wilson ‘Retrato mio hecho en Lima con la mas grande exactitud y semejanza”. In english, “Senor General Sir Robert Wilson ‘Portrait I made in Lima with the greatest level of exactitude and semblance”. We can therefore assume that apart from any influence that Simon Bolivar may have had in this image, this can be taken as an accurate representation of the Latin American Patriot perspective.

Firstly and most obviously, is the military attire and regalia that Bolivar is wearing, pointing to his victory-driven demeanor as opposed to diplomatic or compromising behavior. Secondly is the inclusion of the peruvian background in contrast to the decorative curtain, fanciful railing, and tiled floor in the foreground. We know that Bolivar was born into high status, was likely inspired by European design and culture in his adolescence, but nonetheless has his roots Caracas, Venezuela. This could be an expression of his overall life up to this point. Alternatively, if Bolivar had in fact mandated that this depiction of nature be in his portrait, we know that he was tutored by Andres Bello. Bello was a scholar who metaphorically compared the flourishing and upkeep of nature to that of the growth and maintenance of a nation. It’s unclear then whether Bolivar himself would have asked for the inclusion of the natural Latin American landscape, to be contrasted by the posh structure in the foreground, or if the artist made that choice. Additionally we see what are likely subordinate soldiers in that landscape, conveying Bolivar’s ranking over them, and his status/influence within the independence movement overall.

Sources

Simón Bolívar. Libertador de Colombia y del Peru; y Fundador de Bolivia. https://jcb.lunaimaging.com/luna/servlet/detail/JCB~1~1~1680~2470003:Simón-Bolívar–Libertador-de-Colomb?sort=image_date%2Csubject_groups# ©John Carter Brown Library, Box 1894, Brown University, Providence, R.I. 02912

Wood, James A., and Anna Rose Alexander. Problems in Modern Latin American History: Sources and Interpretations. 5th ed. Rowman & Littlefield, 2019. ProQuest Ebook Central.