Rafael Leonidas Trujillo Molina

Osgood Hardy

The Pacific Historical Review, Vol. 15, No. 4. (Dec., 1946), pp. 409-416.

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Rafael Leonidas Trujillo Molina* OSGOOD HARDY

AMONGTHE POSTWAR problems which face the United States one of the most ticklish is the determination of this country's attitude toward Latin American dictators. During the war "a friend in need" was "a friend indeed." No attempt was made to distinguish between countries whose chief executivesthad achieved preeminence through orderly democratic procedure and those whose leaders were merely caudillos who had reached the top by way of u n golpe de cuartel; all that was necessary was that they be on the side of the United Nations. Now that the Nazi threat no longer exists, the situation has changed, and, as one writer puts it, Latin Americans are anxiously waiting to see whether "the [United States] State Department plans to play an active role in booming for democracy and democratic groups throughout Latin-America."'

However, according to the record, says Daniel Cosio Villegas, a leading Mexican economist and author, "The United States likes dictators." He is stirred deeply by the fawning of some North American intellectuals on Dicta- tor Trujillo of the Dominican Republic. Furthermore, he bitterly regrets that no less a figure than President Nicholas Murray Butler of Columbia Univer- sity, at the awarding of the Moors-Cabot prize in journalism in 1944,"extended himself in a grand eulogy of the progress achieved by the 'Democracy' of Santo Domingo." Sr. Cosio Villegas further states, "Yankee patronage of dictators in general lies behind most of the unfavorable reaction of the peoples south of the Rio Grande.""

As one studies the record it does seem that the Mexican writer has some basis for his attitude. Certainly the United States cannot take any credit for the recent overthrow of dictators in Guatemala and El Salvador. Two years ago a Bolivian dictator was given a clean bill of health by the United States and his country was permitted to join the United Nations. President Vargas of Brazil was ever accounted a friend of the United States, and even dictator- ridden Argentina was recommended by the United States for membership in the conference at San Francisco. I t is true, of course, that the attitude of the United States toward these countries was determined by war exigencies, and wartime procedures are not norms for future policies. Now that the war is over and the situation has returned to the status quo ante bel lum it seems ap-propriate to discuss the problem of the United ~ t s t e s postwar attitude towagd

f A paper read before the Pacific Coast Branch of the American Historical Association and the History Guild of southern California at California Institute of Technology, December, 1945. [EDITOR]

1Ernie Hill, Chicago Daily News Foreign Service, as reported in the Los Angeles Times, December g, 1945, Pt. 1, 10.

2 Wilton, Connecticut, Worldover Press, November 28, 1945, p. 6.

41° PACIFIC HISTORICAL REVIEW

the dictatorships. It is a big problem, and since it can barely be touched upon within the limits of this paper attention will be directed entirely to one coun- try, the Dominican Republic. That country is selected because, despite its relative unimportance from the standpoint of size and population, it is now one of the "hot spots" of the Caribbean. In CarPcas the new provisional presi- dent, R6mulo Betancourt, has announced that Venezuela will not recognize Trujillo and his "assassins of liberty."Wuring the last three years the Domini- can refuge colony in Cuba has become more and more vocal in its anti-Trujillo agitation-in fact, in 1944 the generalisimo felt obliged to lodge a protest with the Cuban government because of its failure to stop the exiles' vehement criti- cism of Trujillo's~administrationof their fatherland. His protest was inef- fectual, and, to make matters worse, late in 1945 at Washington, Cuban Senator Eduardo Chibis openly declared that the Dominican Republic was an obstacle to democracy in the Americas. At the same time "in London a World Youth Conference expelled two Dominican representatives because they did not represent a democratic ~ount ry ."~ Finally, the Trujillo regime has led to at least one change in United States Foreign Service personnel.

I t seems to be agreed that His Excellency Generalisimo Doctor Rafael Leonidas Trujillo Molina, the Honorable First Magistrate of the Nation, Benefactor of the Fatherland and restorer of the Financial Independence of the Dominican Republic%as born at San Crist6bal in the province of Santo Domingo, October 24, 1891. His most fulsome biographer states:

His lineage is certainly illustrious. The Trujillos, of pure Spanish stock with a lust for conquest and adventure, extended their family branches throughout the Americas from the early days of the glorious colonization of the New World. They contributed their blood and stamina to the great epic of our race, and succeeded in developing over the centuries a staunch pedigree of which the Generalisimo's grand- father, chivalrous and unrelenting persecutor of Cuban rebels, is a most excellent exponent."

From his grandmother, Dofia Luisa Ercini Chevalier, whose aricestors came -to Santo Domingo in the entourage of General Le Clerc, he acquired the first rudiments of education, and then he attended the local village school. Through his uncle he entered the telegraph service, first as assistant in his home town

Time, November ig, 1945, p. 42. I n its interesting account of the "Gaudiest Dictator" Time makes one error: the beer industry (Ceweceria National) does not yet belong to Trujillo but to New York capital. I t has been a successful business, and it is quite probable that soon it mill, therefore, fall into the hands of the generalisimo. I t is claimed that the chemical content of Dominican water is much like that of Munich.

Ibid. I t is reported that this issue of Time never reached subscribers in Ciudad Trujillo. In the spring of 1945 both Time and the Saturday Evening Post were banned by the dictator's censors be- cause they contained uncomplimentary remarks about the president.

5 Whenever the generalisimo is mentioned in the local newspapers-naturally that is many times each day-all his titles are given.

%Abelardo R. Nanita, Trujillo (4th ed.; Santiago, 1945), pp. 9, lo.

RAFAEL LEONIDAS TRUJILLO MOLINO 4l I and later in the main office at the capital. Here "he toiled and learned the hard way, and built up the framework of his personality by heating and hammering his own ores with his own tools."' As a result, he was given an appointment to the national military school at Jaina and "passing through a brilliant period as a student graduated in 1919 a second lieutenant.""

By 1924 he had become a major, and when the American occupation ended he was promoted to a colonelcy and given charge of the Dominican national police.

Here was the realization of an opportunity to accomplish what the clear-headed young thinker had decided was the supreme immediate necessity of his country- the establishment of a really adequate armed body of men. ...With an insuperable spirit; with an energy that knew no fatigue; with an efficiency and a spirit of per- sonal sacrifice that was rare, he conducted a work of coordination and organization with splendid results."

Meanwhile, thanks to the depression, economic conditions in the Dominican Republic went from bad to worse. Accordingly, when in 1929 a revolt forced the resignation of President Horacio Vkquez, Trujillo whose "heart bled for his country" and who "knew in his heart that he could save the nation accepted . .. the candidacy for the presidency when it was offered him. . . and entered the field of Statesmanship."" "On August 16, 1930, the new president took the oath of office and a new era began for the Dominican Republic.""

Whatever one may think of the generalisimo, it must be admitted that the situation facing him was truly overwhelming. The government treasury was exhausted, the government itself was riddled with excessive costs of operation, graft, red tape, confusion, and inefficiency. The economic state of the nation was deplorable; highways, except for those built by the United States marines, were in a wretched state; and it seemed that it would be impossible to continue complying with the obligations of the foreign debt and at the same time care for the necessities of the country. To cap the climax, on September 3, 1930, a hurricane struck the capital, causing a loss of about two thousand lives and great material damage. Undeterred, the president secured extraordinary pow- ers from the legislature and undertook a campaign of reconstruction that within four years repaired much of the damage.

During this period Trujillo discovered that he "liked power" and also "that the nation needed a strong man."" Accordingly, he intrenched himself as an iron-handed dictator. I t is not surprising that despite the excellence of many of his projects "there remained," says his biographer, "obdurate malcontents

Ibid. I t is interesting to note that this book is dedicated, "To the sweet and silent tenderness of our hero's Mother, Dofia Julia Molina Vda. Trujillo, a peaceful stream of quiet virtue."

OLawrence de Besault, President Trujillo: His Work and the Dominican Republic (3rd ed.: Santiago, 1941). p. 63.

a Ibid., p. 63. lo Ibid., p. 29. l1 Ibid., p. 76. 12 Ibid., p. 43.

4l2 PACIFIC HISTORICAL REVIEW

who desired to ruin the new administration, who plotted in the shadows, and headed by [a] few disturbers, attempted to resurrict the past. President Tru- jillo answered this active hostility with conciliatory gestures and only when persuasion and generosity were insufficient to save the situation did he employ the force of the army to crush incipient revolts.""

According to other writers, this last sentence is a masterpiece of understate- ment." In 1934, through a farcical election, his Partido Dominicano remained in power, and for four years more the generalisimo continued as president. During this period large numbers of adversaries were put to death. Prisons were crowded, while the fortunate fled the country. I t is popularly claimed that throughout this period one of Trujillo's favorite outdoor sports was to take members of the opposition party on week-end yachting trips from which they never returned. By 1938 the president had the situation well in hand, and from 1938 to 1942 he permitted two of his puppets to be president. In 1942 he took the oath of office again without opposition. After a rule of fifteen years he is now fomenting a campaign aiming to show that he is indispensable and should be reelected in 1947."

If one can forget Trujillo's ferocity toward his political enemies and the massacre in 1937 of some ten thousand Haitians" one cannot help but admire the efficiency of his rule. He put in force a land distribution program which relieved much suffering during the general economic depression. There is no doubt but that he brought about great advances in irrigation and sanitation, he improved roads and schools, he constructed beautiful public buildings? -and he made a beautiful city of the capital, formerly called Santo Domingo but in 1936 renamed by a subservient congress, "Ciudad Trujillo."" He has

l8Ibid., p. 82. l4Mary Wilhelmine Williams, The People and Politics of Latin America (New York, 1945). pp.

375-379, gives an excellent brief account of the Trujillo regime. l5 It is interesting to note that shortly after Franklin Delano Roosevelt was reelected in 1944 the

government newspaper in Ciudad Trujillo printed a cartoon showing Mr. Roosevelt accepting the presidency for the fourth time and captioned, "If Roosevelt can, why not Trujillo?"

leTime (op. cit.) says, "Rumor has it that Dofia Isabel Mayer, one of the President's many lady friends, had complained that Haitian peasants, sneaking across the border, were stealing her cattle. The Trujillo soldiery were ordered out. They squashed babies' heads against rocks, ripped pregnant women with bayonets, slaughtered thousands of Haitians. Hogs gorged on the rotting corpses."

Especially was this true in his birthplace, San Cristdbal, now nicknamed "the Bethlehem" of the Republic. Incidentally, the one piece of moderately good road which the Republic possesses leads from the capital to San Crist6bal. Here the dictator has his famous dairy farm. Unable to find a market for all its milk, he waters the remainder (so it is said), and every morning from the Palacio Dominicano several hundred of the poverty stricken are given a cupful each. They begin arriving long before dajlight and even in tropical downpours patiently await the dictator's largesse.

IsIn the Jaragua the capital has what is claimed to be the finest hotel in the Caribbean. Com- pletely modern, it is a veritable haven for tourists. It was built with Export-Import Bank money, and when it was completed (so it is rumored) the architect managed to find enough surplus material to enable the construction of a fine apartment building for himself. Two blocks distant from the Jaragua, the Edificio Gonshlez is popularly called the Jaraguita (Little Jaragua). With housing con- ditions as tight in Ciudad Trujillo as elsewhere, the apartment building has been a godsend to its gringo occupants. Fortunately, Mr. Gonshlez definitely prefers to rent to Americans and Britishers.

RAFAEL LEONIDAS TRUJILLO MOLINO 4l 3 handled the Republic's finances in a way to deserve his title of Restaurador de la Independencia de la Repziblica. The national debt is almost liquidated, and the few millions of bonds now outstanding are quoted at par. And finally, for fifteen years Trujillo has given his country peace-and monuments so stating he has scattered all over the Republic.

As regards his attitude toward the Axis powers Trujillo's record is beyond reproach. At the Panama and Havana conferences he pledged coiiperation with the other American republics in hemisphere defense. On December 8, 1941, he declared war against Japan, and followed up on December lo with declarations of war against Germany and Italy.

During 1942 decrees were issued declaring a state of national emergency and con- ferring on the head of the Government full powers to protect the national economy. Decree laws were issued extending wartime control over motor-vehicle transport and the Dominican merchant marine. Provision was made for the regulation of utility goods, foodstuffs in particular, in order to frustrate hoarding and monopolistic practices. A National Committee on Foods was given charge of exports and imports as well as supervision over all necessities. .. . The wartime economic cooperation of Santo Domingo with its neighbors was shown when Dominican food producers agreed to supply neighboring islands, especially Puerto Rico, with food shipments normally sent from the United States. Maintenance by the Republic of a fleet of inter-island transport vessels supplement[ed] this distribution and largely con- tribute[d] to its success.'"

The Dominican government coijperated in a fine way with the coordinator of inter-American affairs, and during the ambassadorship of Avra Warren (1942-1 944) an enormous propaganda campaign was carried on aimed at im- plementing the Good Neighbor policy. In short, according to Mr. Warren, "The Dictator put on a fine show.""

Unfortunately all was not gold that glittered. Little by little reports began to come out that the above-mentioned decree laws too often worked for the benefit of the generalisimo and his friends. Some of the food shipped to Puerto Rico was needed at home, and the profits from its sale did not go to the pro- ducers. T o prevent this, the contracts made with the Board of Economic War- fare and the Forei<q Economic Administration provided that the prices that -

were being paid would be published; but they were not. Complaints were reg- istered by some of the American colony that the ambassador's friendship with the dictator was working to the detriment of both American and ~omin ican

ISWilliams, op, cit., pp. 376377. 20 Statement made to the writer who was in the Dominican Republic from October, 1944, to June,

1945. It is to be noted that the generalisimo never lost a chance to build himself up at the expense of the United States. In the spring of 1945 the American Department of Agriculture granted the Republic an interne scholarship with all expenses paid and furnished special opportunities for study to two other Dominican candidates. When the names of the appointees were made public the news- paper headlines read, "Through the generosity of the Generalisimo, three Dominican youths will study agriculture in the United States."

4 l 4 PACIFIC HISTORICAL REVIEW

interests." Furthermore, Trujillo's enterprises and taxes helped drive up liv- ing costs, while the generalisimo's personal monopolies-including salt, to- bacco, employe insurance, rice, and peanut oil, the last two prime necessities in the life of the common people-enabled him to enjoy an enormous income." The meager supplies of tires which came from the United States, it was stated, went to the "right people," and old-model cars with good rubber brought from $2,000 to $3,000.

In 1944, following Mr. Warren's transfer to Panama, Ellis Briggs was ap- pointed ambassador to the Dominican Republic. The latter was soon forced by his Maine conscience to adopt an attitude toward the dictator quite dif- ferent from that of his predecessor. Complaints of the FEA no longer fell on deaf ears, and soon Mr. Briggs became persona most n o n grata to the dictator. Some six month after Briggs's arrival at Ciudad Trujillo, the coordinator of inter-American affairs, Mr. Nelson Rockefeller, visited the island. The gen- eralisimo entertained him regally at a state dinner. Almost immediately after the coordinator's return to Washington, things began to happen. Rockefeller was made an assistant secretary of state, Warren was made director of the Office of American Republics Affairs, and Ambassador Briggs was exiled to China.

For a time, then, the dictator was "sitting pretty." But it was not for long. Following the San Francisco conference, Mr. Stettinius left the State Depart- ment and so did Mr. Rockefeller. Mr. Joseph McGurk was nominated ambas- sador to the Dominican Republic. The dictator soon found out that this gentleman had as much backbone as Mr. Briggs. Then came the appointment of Spruille Braden, archenemy of dictators, to Mr. Rockefeller's old post. Mr. Warren was exiled to New Zealand, and, to heap Ossa on Pelion, "able, forth- right"" Ellis Briggs was recalled to Washington and named director of the Office of American Republics Affairs1

What did this all mean? To the man in the street it indicated that skids for the generalisimo were being greased. At any rate the dictator lost none of the jitters which he had been suffering for some time. In the evening when he took his walk along Avenida Washington from his home to his joy and pride, the Palacio of the Partido Dominicano, he was accompanied by two officials, one on each side; three guards walked behind, and four armored cars patrolled

Complaints of the American colony must be taken with several grains of salt, however. Mr. Warren is a career diplomat who has to live on his salary; consequently he could not afford the lavish entertaining indulged in by his immediate predecessor. .4ccordingly, he felt i t wise to limit his social affairs largely to keeping on good terms with Dominicans. However, when he went to Panama in 1944 he centered his attentions on making friends with the Canal Zone authorities because, as he frankly said, he felt it was of more value to him to have their friendship than that of the Pana- manians. Gossip says that he did not make a hit with the latter.

22Peanut raisers were forced to accept such low prices that many of them quit producing. As a result, during the first part of 1945 prices went up several hundred per cent and there was a real scarcity. Time (op. cit.) says the dictator's annual income is estimated at $6,ooo,ooo.

Time, op, cit. Joseph McGurk is now (1946)ambassador to Uruguay.

RAFAEL LEONIDAS TRUJILLO MOLINO 4l.5

the procession. As further proof, certain events of last spring which do not seem to have become known to the American public may well be told. For some unexplained reason the dictator decided that there ought to be a rival party which might function as "His Majesty's Loyal Opposition." Accordingly, he called in some of his henchmen and told them to start one. Their consterna- tion can be readily realized-if they refused they very likely would be put in the "doghouse" (Dominican parlance for losing favor with the generalisimo), but if they accepted the order and showed any signs of success they would be in an even worse position.

While they were hesitating, one of the university students decided to see what he could do by way of organizing an opposition party. I t so happened that just at that time in Ciudad Trujillo a Youth Conference was taking place, invitations to which the president had extended some months before to rep- resentatives of the various Caribbean republics. Lest some sort of contretemps should occur, the president's brother, swarthy Hector (El Negro) Trujillo," secretary for war and navy, ordered the arrest of the foolhardy student, who was then taken to the Haitian border for a "vacation." After the conference was over he was brought back to the capital and, by way of emphasis, was given a few days in the penitentiary. As soon as he was released he and his father sought asylum in the Venezuelan Legation, alleging that their lives were in danger. A few days later a statement was published in the local papers telling them that they had nothing to fear and that they could return to their homes "assured of Dominican justice"! Their fate is not yet known to the writer, but it is likely that this event played a part in Venezuela's recent attitude toward the dictator.

What effect this incident, and most likely others which have been hushed up. may have had on relations between the United States and the Dominican Republic remains to be seen. But it is clear that the State Department, willy- nilly, will be forced in the postwar period to give some attention to the prob- lem of its relations with Trujillo and others of his kind in the American hemisphere. There is no doubt but that the democratically inclined nations will want to have this country exert some pressure which will lead to the abolishment of the dictatorships. There are, however, three obstacles to such a program.

First, there is no assurance that the great mass of the people in a country such as Santo Domingo really want a change. Trujillo, at least apparently, has been successful in making much of the populace feel that he is their friend and that with him in power they have nothing to fear. It is impossible, of course, to know definitely what is the feeling of the common people, although one can note grumblings on the part of the West Indian, English-speaking

*Despite the Trujillos' claim to "pure Spanish" blood they are all decidedly negroid in appear- ance and are more mulatto than mestizo.

416 PACIFIC HISTORICAL REVIEW

Negroes. On the other hand, the following is given for what it is worth. When the new Palacio of the Partido Dominican0 was dedicated in the spring of 1945, the dictator provided meals for eight thousand people. As one dirty, tattered peon went by the writer's patio in the Jaraguita, he looked up, showed what he had on his plate and smilingly remarked, "Un regalo del generalisimo" (a present from the generalisimo).

Second, there is no assurance that it will be possible to find successors who will do a better job than the incumbent dictators: The writer on nFmerous occasions asked prominent American business and professional men whether they knew of anyone who could take Trujillo's place with any benefit to the Republic, and never were they able to make any definite suggestion. Results in other countries achieving changes in administrations seem to be more or less similar.

Third, there is no assurance that if the United States takes action against dic- tators it will be possible to escape the old charge of Yanqui imperialismo. The chances are that any effective intervention will actually redound to the dis- credit of the United States.

What, then, is the solution of the problem? Some years ago the writer was told by the traveling representative of an international service club: "There are just two things the ati in Americans respect, force and justice." Since his own experience has confirmed this, the writer suggests that all the United States can do is to keep its armed forces at the highest possible strength, to treat all the Latin American countries, democracies or dictatorships, alike, with abso- lute justice, and then to let them work out their own problems in their own ways.

OSGOODHARDY Occidental College