Trujillo, Raphael

Born on October 24, 1891 in a poor family ^[8] Jose “Pepito” Trujillo Valdes, son of a Spanish sergeant ^[9] , and Altagracia Julia Molina Chevalier, of mixed origin ^{[9] [10]} . Rafael was the third of eleven children ^[8] , including Luis Rafael’s adoptive brother Nene, who was brought up in Trujillo’s house ^[9] . In 1897, at the age of six, he went to the school of Juan Hilario Merino, a year later he was transferred to the school of Broughton, where he studied under Eugenio de Ostos . At the age of sixteen he got a job as a telegraph operator, where he worked for three years. After his dismissal, he took up cattle theft, check forgery and robbery of post offices, spent several months in prison. Released, organized a gang of robbers called "42" ^{[11] [12]} .

In 1916, the United States occupied the Dominican Republic , soon creating the National Guard, designed to monitor law enforcement. In 1918, Trujillo joined it and trained with members of the Marine Corps . ^[13] Having impressed the recruiters, for nine years he rose from lieutenant to general and commander in chief of the Dominican army. ^[12]

In February 1930, he overthrew ^{[14] [15]} President Vázquez by closing a deal with protest leader Rafael Urenia : Trujillo promised him assistance in coming to power in return for supporting his own candidacy in the next presidential election. Vazquez ordered Trujillo to suppress the riots, but he, observing "neutrality", did nothing, allowing the supporters of Urenia to seize the capital almost without a fight. March 3, he was proclaimed president , Trujillo - appointed head of the police and army. In the elections held on May 16 , with a result of 99% of the vote “for”, he was elected president ^[16] , Urenia - vice-president of the “Patriotic Civil Coalition”. Other candidates, under pressure from the army, refused to be nominated. According to the US ambassador to the Dominican Republic , Trujillo received a greater number of votes than the total number of voters ^[17] .

Three weeks after his election, a hurricane struck the capital , with more than three thousand victims. With the help of the American Red Cross, the city was rebuilt. On August 16, 1931 , a year after Trujillo was elected president, the Dominican party supporting him became the only legal party in the country, although the state was in fact one-party. Civil servants were obliged to “donate” 10 percent of the income to the party fund ^{[18] [19]} , adult citizens were forced to join the party. Its members were required to carry a membership card, in the absence of which citizens could be arrested for "vagrancy." In 1934 , having made himself into the generalissimo , with the help of mass fraud, he was re-elected to the presidency, being the only candidate. With his submission, the practice of “popular opinion” spread, in which large crowds shouted approval from the government ^[18] .

In 1936, the Congress voted overwhelmingly to rename the capital of the country to Ciudad Trujillo ( Spanish: Ciudad Trujillo - the city of Trujillo). The province of San Cristobal was renamed Trujillo, the highest peak of the Caribbean islands of Monte Tina - in the peak of Trujillo. Statues of the “Chef” were erected in droves throughout the country, public buildings and bridges were named in his honor, the front pages of newspapers glorified him, and “Long live Trujillo!” And “Year of the benefactor of the fatherland” were written on the license plates . In Ciudad Trujillo , an electric sign was illuminated at night with the inscription "God and Trujillo", the churches were ordered to hang out the slogan "God in heaven, Trujillo on earth", which over time was changed to "Trujillo on earth, God in heaven." Supporters of the president recommended him for the Nobel Peace Prize , but the Nobel Committee refused to consider the application for the competition.

He could be elected again in 1938 , however, referring to the American tradition of limiting two presidential terms, he declared: “I voluntarily, against the wishes of my people, refuse to be re-elected to this high post” ^[20] . Despite this, in mid-1937 a widespread election campaign was launched, which ended because of an international outcry caused by the Haitian massacre , Trujillo declared "retirement" ^[21] . Instead, he ran and won in 1938 , remaining the only candidate on the ballot, the 71-year-old vice president of Peinado chosen as his successor, Manuel Troncoso was proposed as vice president. Trujillo retained power in his own hands, remaining commander in chief and party leader. Peinado, in particular, having ordered an increase in the size of the sign “God and Trujillo”, died on March 7, 1940 , and Troncoso took over. Since 1942, after Roosevelt was elected for a third presidential term in 1940, Trujillo was twice re-elected, increasing his tenure to five years, and in 1952 transferred it to his brother Hector under pressure from the Organization of American States . Despite the fact that Trujillo was formally no longer the head of state, in 1955 the 25th anniversary of his reign was widely celebrated, in honor of which gold and silver commemorative coins with his image were minted.

Striving for peaceful coexistence with the United States , during the Second World War he sided with the Allies , on December 11, 1941 declaring war on Germany , Italy and Japan , without, however, taking any part in hostilities. In 1945, the Dominican Republic became one of the founding states of the UN . He encouraged the development of economic and diplomatic relations with the United States , maintained friendly relations with Caudillo of Spain, Franco , the presidents of Argentina, Peron and Nicaragua Somosa , despite the fact that the policies of his regime often provoked disagreements with other countries of Latin America , especially Costa Rica and Venezuela . Towards the end of Trujillo’s reign, his relations with the United States worsened.

Hull Agreement - Trujillo

From the beginning of his own rule Trujillo intended to improve the economic situation of the country, including depriving the United States of the right to collect customs duties, which had been in force since 1907 and confirmed with the end of the American occupation in 1924 . The negotiations, which began in 1936 and lasted 4 years, ended on September 24, 1940 with the signing by the US Secretary of State Hull and Trujillo of an agreement under which the United States transferred control over the collection and establishment of customs duties to the Dominican Republic , which pledged to transfer the collected payments to a special bank account, guaranteeing payments on external debt ^[22] . Diplomatic success allowed Trujillo to launch a wide propaganda campaign, positioning him as a "savior of the nation" and "restorer of the financial independence of the Republic" ^[23] .

Haiti

From 1822 to 1844, the territory of the modern Dominican Republic was occupied by the Republic of Haiti , claiming to unite the island under its own authority. With the advent of Trujillo, the northwestern border territories underwent “Haitianization” ^[24] . The exact borders of the countries were not determined, and in 1933 and 1935 Trujillo and President Haiti Vincent held negotiations to resolve the border issue, in 1936 reaching an agreement. Incidents at the border continued even after it was signed, and Trujillo in October 1937 ordered the beginning of ethnic cleansing in the border areas . Trying to organize the overthrow of Vincent, Trujillo made contact with the Commander-in-Chief of the Haitian Armed Forces, General Calixte and Eli Lesco , then Haitian Ambassador to the Dominican Republic. In 1941, with the support of Trujillo, he became president of Haiti, but continued to pursue a policy independent of Trujillo. In 1944, he tried to organize the murder of Lesko, but failed, then published a discrediting correspondence with him ^[24] . In 1946, Lesko was overthrown as a result of a military coup.

The Parsley Massacre

In October 1937, by order of Trujillo, there was a massacre of people of Haitian descent (blacks) in the region along the course of the border river Rio Dahabon. Suspects of Haitian descent were forced to utter the word Shibboleth Spanish. perejil (parsley); French-speaking Haitians pronounce in it “l” instead of “p” in the second syllable (as Dominicans do). Those who spoke incorrectly, the soldiers chopped off the head of the machete. The number of victims is officially estimated at 20 thousand, according to other estimates 17-37 thousand. Subsequently, Trujillo was forced to negotiate with Haitian President S. Vincent through the mediation of US President Franklin D. Roosevelt and pay the Haitian government (but not the relatives of the victims) compensation of 525 thousand US dollars (of the 750 thousand that were awarded to him) - from calculation of about $ 30 per person killed. Due to the corruption prevailing in the Haitian authorities, the compensation actually paid to the relatives of the victims amounted to 2 cents per person.

Cuba

By 1947, Cuba became one of the centers of emigrant resistance to the Trujillo regime; One of the leaders of the opposition was future President Bosch . With the support of Cuban President Grau , an expeditionary force was created to invade the Dominican Republic and overthrow Trujillo, but international pressure, in particular from the United States , led to the closure of the operation ^[25] . In retaliation in 1955, Trujillo put weapons to supporters of former Cuban President Socarras , but soon they were in the hands of Castro troops, who entered into an alliance with Socarras. Since 1956 , seeing the success of the Movement on July 26 , Trujillo supported Batista with money, weapons and troops, but he, despite the assurances of Trujillo of an imminent victory, was defeated and fled to the Dominican Republic in January 1959 ^[26] .

Castro threatened Trujillo with the overthrow, and the share of defense spending in the budget of the Dominican Republic was increased, to protect Haiti , where, as expected, Castro could invade in the first place and remove President Duvalier , a foreign legion was formed. On June 14, 1959, a Cuban plane with 56 armed people landed near the Dominican city of Constance , six days later, more soldiers landed from two yachts on the north coast of the country, but the Dominican armed forces stopped the coup attempt. In August, Batista, after paying Trujillo several million dollars, left for Portugal. ^[26] As a revenge on the Cubans, Johnny Abbes supported one of Castro’s opposition groups, but the plan was foiled when the Cuban troops discovered a plane unloaded near Trinidad with the help of rebels. ^[27]

Assassination of Betancourt

By the end of the 1950s, opposition to the Trujillo regime in the country intensified at the expense of young people born during his reign and demanding democratization. Trujillo responded to the protests with even greater repression organized by the Military Intelligence Service , led by Johnny Abbes . The regime was criticized and ostracized by foreign countries, which only fueled the paranoia of Trujillo, who increasingly intervened in the affairs of neighboring countries, in particular Venezuela , whose president Betancourt was his long-time and open opponent, supporting the Dominicans who were dissatisfied with the rule of Trujillo. In retaliation, he tried several times to organize the overthrow of Betancourt with the help of Venezuelan opposition immigrants, which forced Venezuela to file a lawsuit with the Organization of American States . The furious Trujillo ordered the bomb to be planted in a car parked along the route of the presidential motorcade; the explosion on June 24, 1960 wounded, but did not kill, Betancourt.

The attempt on the President of Venezuela completely undermined the international attitude towards the Trujillo regime: the members of the OAS unanimously voted to break off diplomatic relations and impose economic sanctions against the Dominican Republic. The brutal murder on November 25, 1960 of the three sisters of Mirabal , opponents of the dictatorship, reinforced her negative attitude. Trujillo became a burden on the United States , whose relations with the Dominican Republic became extremely tense after the assassination of Betancourt.

Persecution of Dissenters

When he came to power, he brutally cracked down on anyone who was dissatisfied with his rule, including with the help of members of his own “42” gang led by Miguel Паngel Paulino, who moved in a red “Packard” called the “death machine” ^[28] ; compiled death lists from the names of people who, according to Trujillo, were his enemies or hurt him. For some time, opposition parties were even allowed to function openly: this was done mainly to facilitate the identification of opponents of the regime and their elimination ^[29] .

He paid special attention to the modernization of the armed forces: military personnel received large salaries, including allowances, were regularly paid in the rank, and new equipment and weapons were purchased. Through intimidation, the promotion of fidelity to the regime and the frequent change of officials, control was established over the officer corps, which prevented a potential threat from him. Having established a state monopoly on all major sectors of the economy, thanks to price manipulation and theft, Trujillo and his family became rich.

In the later years of Trujillo's rule, arrests and executions were carried out by the Military Intelligence Service under the leadership of Johnny Abbes . Some of her operations, in particular the abduction of Galindes and the killing of the Mirabal sisters , attracted the attention of the world community, which ultimately contributed to the cessation of US support for the regime.

Immigration Policy

The Trujillo regime was known for its open door policies, accepting Jewish refugees , Spaniards fleeing the civil war , and Japanese immigrants arriving in the country after World War II ^[30] , while supporting, however, a policy of “anti-Haitianism” - racial discrimination against black people both countries of the island . In an effort to “whitewash” the population, the country's authorities completely denied the existence of Afrodominicans . In 1938, at the Evian Conference, the Dominican Republic was the only one present to accept up to 100 thousand Jews on generous terms ^[31] ; in 1940, after signing the agreement, Trujillo allocated more than 100 km² of land for the placement of immigrants . The first of them arrived in May 1940 ; about 800 settled in Sosua , most of them later moved to the United States ^[31] .

Refugees from Europe , who replenished the country's budget with tax deductions and increased the percentage of whites among the predominantly mixed population, enjoyed the favor of the authorities, while the Dominican army expelled illegal Haitian immigrants, which resulted in their mass destruction in 1937.

Environmental Policy

During Trujillo’s reign, the size of the conservation area near the Yake del Sur was significantly increased, in 1934 the first national park was created, slash-and-burn agriculture and cutting of pine plantations without permission were prohibited, and a forest affairs agency was created. In the 1950s, for reasons of hydropower use of the rivers, deforestation along their banks was prohibited. With the death of Trujillo in 1961, burning and massive deforestation continued, and in 1967, President Balaguer used army units against the loggers who violated ^[19] .

May 30, 1961 Trujillo was shot dead in his own Chevrolet Bel Air , ambushed on a highway near Ciudad Trujillo ^[32] , falling victim to a conspiracy of Generals Juan Thomas Díaz and Antonio Imbert Barrera , businessman Antonio de la Masa and adjutant Trujillo Amado Garcíarero ^33] , which, in spite of this, failed to seize power due to the inaction of one of the conspirators, General Jose “Pupo” Roman, who was later executed ^[34] . The closest associates of Trujillo and his family organized a hunt for conspirators by the Military Intelligence Service : hundreds of suspects were arrested, many were tortured. On November 18, six more conspirators were the last to be executed ^[35] .

The role of the CIA in organizing the killing is a matter of debate. Imbert Barrera stated that the conspirators acted independently, but the weapons they used - three M1 carbines - were provided by the CIA ^[2] . In a report by the US Deputy Attorney General, CIA officials argued that the agency did not play an active role in organizing the killing, and the CIA’s relationship with conspiratorial groups was “weak” ^[36] . Another CIA internal document reported that an investigation by the CIA Inspector General's office of the assassination revealed “fairly extensive management connections with the conspirators” ^[37] . Subsequently, after the American side declassified a number of previously closed materials in 1975, these CIA ties with the conspirators were the subject of a special investigation by the Church Commission ^[38] .

Trujillo was buried with honors in San Cristobal . Tombstone speech was made by President Balager . The Trujillo family failed to maintain power: an attempted military coup in November and the threat of an American invasion finally put an end to the “Trujillo era” ^[39] . The son of the late Ramphis , who was preparing to succeed his father, fled to France with a coffin with his body aboard his own Angelite yacht. On August 14, 1964, the remains were reburied in the Paris cemetery of Pere Lachaise .

In 1962, Andrzej Vidzynski’s detective novel “Last Night in Ciudad Trujillo” was published in Poland, which describes the events related to the abduction in the USA by Trujillo intelligence of a political emigrant from the Dominican Republic, Professor de Galindes. Trujillo’s reign is also reflected in the books The Goat Holiday by Mario Vargas Llosa and The Short and Amazing Life of Oscar Wao by Hunot Diaz .

The assassination of Trujillo is mentioned in Frederic Forsythe 's novel Jackal Day .

В игре Тропико 5 во время загрузки может появиться упоминание, что "Рафаэль Трухильо, президент Доминиканской республики сделал своего сына полковником в 3 года и генералом в 10 лет".

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