As for Castro's supporters, the strength and foundation of the 26 July movement (so named after Castro's first battle against the Batista forces in 1953) lies in the omnipresent barbudos, the rebel soldiers who roamed the streets while I was in Havana, still armed with the rifles, pistols and knives with which they won their freedom. The name "barbudo" (beard) is derived from the fact that most of these men wore long beards and or curly hair. The beards are currently being retained by most of Castro's followers as a symbol of their identity, at least until they return to the distant agrarian provinces from which they were recruited.
Army is Mixed Group
Both the personnel and armament of Castro's army are heterogeneous in the extreme. Most men carry Browning Automatic Rifles, M-l's, or Thompson sub-machine guns purchased through agents in the United States. There are many, however, who carry rifles of Dominican origin. These are weapons which Trujillo originally sold to Batista, but which were later captured in rebel raids upon government arsenals. I asked the bearded owner of one such rifle whether he had a bullet ready for original owner Trujillo, in the event of a Cuban "liberation" expedition to the Dominican Republic. He slowly replied, "No, I have not just one bullet, I have a whole magazine-full of them."
If the guns are of varied origins, so much the more so are troops. Venezuela, Mexico, Argentina, and the United States are the principal countries represented, but I am told that there is at least one soldier from every country in Latin America. I was surprised to find several Americans among the barbudos, since they risked losing their citizenship by fighting for a foreign country.
Some of their stories are almost as interesting as the history of the revolution itself. One young man in his early twenties wrote advertising copy in Chicago until several months ago, when, as he tells it, he "developed an intense dislike for Batista." He lost no time in joining Castro in the hills of the Sierra Maestra. When asked about his future plans, now that the struggle is over, the writer replied nonchalantly, "I think I may go to Israel. I don't like Nasser either."
Trials Raise U.S. Ire
World opinion in general and that of the United States in particular, was shocked during the past two weeks when the headlines glared with the ominous news of the execution of more and more of Batista's henchmen. The understandable reaction of many, if not most American editorial columns was one of disapproval and disappointment. Indeed, I went to Havana with such an attidue, but my mind was soon changed. On the basis of what I have personally seen and heard, I have no doubt but that the executions are deserved.
Those who have been tried and executed so far have not been the one or two shot assassins. They have been the most notorious and sadistic of Batista's henchmen, some of whose individual acts of cruelty number in the hundreds. They have been men like Jesus Sosa Blanco, recently condemned killer, who allegedly took the lives of 108 persons, and whose name has become synonymous with cruelty throughout Oriente province.
Most of those who have been tried and punished have been members of SIM (Servicio de Intlligencia Militar), probably the most powerful arm of Batista's huge police and espionage force, similar in their operation to Hitler's Gestapo. Often SIM officials would work in conjunction with informers who in return for their services would sometimes be paid a salary or in other cases be allowed to operate certain illegal activities within a particular geographical area.
More Atrocities Reported
The atrocities committed by the "war criminals" are only now coming to light. For the 16 months preceding the Castro victory, a strict censorship was imposed upon Cuban communication media. There was no such thing as a free press. Now as witnesses take the stand in the daily trials of their former tormentors, the long suppressed stories and pictures are appearing of sadistic tortures, mutilated bodes, with fingernails, eyes, or other organs missing.
Nor are these isolated instances. Stories of additional, and perhaps more egregious acts of cruelty are pouring into Havana every day. In the little town of Minas de Bueycito in Oriente Province, 450 persons were reported found in an abandoned mine shaft. Early estimates of the number of persons killed or tortured by Batista's men are now thought to be too conservative, and Castro predicts that the final figure will approach 20,000.
Some Prisoners Acquitted
In the recent "blood bath" hysteria which has existed in some quarters, some have lost sight of the fact that not of all the persons tried have been convicted. In Santiago de Cuba, 24 were released, and in Matanzas, 50-odd were set free. It is probably the understatement of the year to say that there has been much misunderstanding lately between the U.S. and Cuba. Our well publicized calls for intervention or punishment in various forms are antagonizing not only the Cubans but people of all Latin American countries. In a conversation with Gustavo Olguin, Mexican movie and television executive, I learned that the Mexican people are taking great interest in our conduct toward Cuba, and that there is now a growing wave of anti-Americanism in that country as a result of the pronouncements of the past few weeks. If the United States is to retain the respect of the Spanish-speaking countries south of the Rio Grande, it must quickly develop a realistic and sensible attitude toward Cuban internal affairs.