Evening star., 1949-11-06

e3iV SWOo4 A4S al 4CAg AOCoAdy VI
man, as chief executive Of the tiny
the strategic Panama Canal, will
governmental officials from ~ n
United States. Washington attach
es such significance to the occa-
sion that President Truman has
appointed a 16-man delegation.
including Assistant Secretary Of
State Edward G. Miller, jr., and
several members Of Congress to
represent this country.
There are q number Of reasons
for all this high-bracket official
attention. Politically, Costa Rica
has long been the most stable and
advanced Of all the countries in
Middle America. Next Tuesday the
people are re-establishing tradi-
tional, constitutional democracy
after. one Of the few revolutions
the nation has experienced In
more than half q century. What
Is more. 1t was . revolution
brought on largely because Com
munists had gained tremendous
influence In the government.
A nation of small farmers, more
people in Costa Rica own land
than in almost any other country
in the new world. people proud
Of their predominant Spanish
blood, able and happy to boast Of
the fact that more tax money went
for the support Of school teachers
than soldiers or policemen. For
five decades, Costa Rica officials
had, with few exceptions, scrupu-
lously respected the verdict Of the
ballot box, and no one questioned
the right Of the lowliest peasant
to criticize Congress and the
President.
Reds Spread Poison
But, proving that unguarded
democracy is no guarantee against
Communist penetration, q few
years ago disciples and agents Of
Moscow eased into this tranquil
picture. took advantage of the COM
plete freedom Of the press. speech
and assembly to SOW the seeds Of
dissension. They got into labor
unions. spread the poison Of un-
rest and hatred among farmers
and small-town people. bored into
political parties, and finally
wormed their way into the conf
dence of unsuspecting high OIL
cials. Meantime, they had set up
q small. well disciplined Commu-
mist Party, more as q front than
anything else, to detract attention
from their more clandestine &C.
tivities.
Political campaigns grew bitter
and violent. Although compara-
lively few in numbers, by 194S
the comrades were able to exercise
tremendous influence la the presi-
Dental elections. They did not
put Up q candidate Of their own.
AS has become their custom Of
late. they supported and agitated
in favor Of the pro-government
candidate. Rafael calderon Guar
dia. O. former President and q lib
eral, now turned reactionary.
In spite of all the agitation and
bitterness that accompanied the
campaign. In spite Of the powerful
support Of the government Of
President Tiadoro Picado, CAL
deron lost and Ulate won. At any
rate, the three-man electoral tri-
bunal. by a vote Of two to one,
certified Ulate as having q ma
3ority OF the votes.
Notwithstanding his majority
at the polls. the government-dom-
mated Congress refused to pro-
claim Ulate as the winner and
gave the victory to Calderon.
Whereupon Ulate's campaign
manager, a farmer by the name
Of Jose Figueres. lead q people 8
revolt and, after several months,
took the capital Of San Jose and
on May set up a government
junta. President Picado, CAL
deron Guardia and their hench-
men fed to neighboring Nicara-
qua. from whence they made sew
eral abortive attempts at counter
revolution.
During the final phase Of the
fighting the Communists. under
the leadership of the head of the
party. Manuel Mora, prompted
and guided by a rabid Communist
spinster school teacher known as
Senorita Carmen Lira, actually
dominated the besieged capital
city.
Agitators Exiled
According to newspaper corre-
spondents on the scene at the
time. the Red senorita, q pistol
strapped around her waist in the
manner of La Pasionaria Of the
Spanish revolution, strutted from
one government Office to another,
barking orders to all and sundry
and egging them on in the battle
Of resistance.
Finally. Figueres and his farm
ers, who by that time had been
Joined by numbers Of exiles from
Nicaragua, the Dominican Repub-
lie and not a few just plain SOL
diers Of fortune. pushed their
way in and took over. Instead Of
shooting, the fiery agitators, both
Mora and Senorita Lira were
loaded onto plane and sent into
exile. e
Meantime, the Figueres junta
has been having its own problems,
political, economic and even in
ternational. The various efforts
made by the exiled Picado-C Cali
deron group to come back In
volved IL In disputes with the