Operation Kugown
Encyclopedia
Operation Kugown relied on the media to inform the Guatemalan people on the extent to which communism had infiltrated Guatemala
. This was largely derived from the documents seized by the PBHistory
team. The analyzed documents were then translated into Spanish and distributed throughout Guatemala
. Furthermore, the minister of propaganda in Guatemala held a press conference to discuss the findings of the Committee, which were actually the findings of the PBHistory team. Operation Kugown had three primary objectives. The first objective was to use the documents seized by the PBhistory in order to inform the Guatemalan people on the extent to which communism
had infiltrated their country. The second objective was to publicize this to Latin America
and the rest of the world. The last object was to solidify the position of the National Committee of Defense Against Communism
(Comite de Defensa Nacional contra el Communismo) within the Guatemalan government. It was believed that with status the Committee could continue to track the movements of communists and communist activists and prevent further communist intervention within the region. Numerous press kits were realized to the local and international press. Understandably, the local press coverage was extensive. However, the International press failed to pick up many of the stories and the events in Guatemala were largely ignored. As indicated in the CIA summary of the operation, the “results of the third objective were considered eminently satisfactory. In all releases it was stressed that the committee not only was chasing communists, but was also looking for the documentation that reward valiant anti-communists. It was also emphasized that the Committee was working on the record of Red penetration for the benefit of future threats in the Americas, etc.”
Operation Kugown was related to Operation PBHistory, which sifted through 500,000 documents and was able to salvage over 50,000 documents for the purpose of exploiting and illustrating communist activities within Guatemala. The documents were copied and microfilmed. The PBHistory group analyzed the documents and then handed the originals over to the Comite in order to index and file them. By 21 November 1954, the Castillo administration and the National Committee had compiled a list of 72,000 persons determined to be "communists."
Ronald M. Schneider, an extra-Agency researcher who later examined the PBHISTORY documents, found no traces of USSR control, support or guidance.
Guatemala
Guatemala is a country in Central America bordered by Mexico to the north and west, the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, Belize to the northeast, the Caribbean to the east, and Honduras and El Salvador to the southeast...
. This was largely derived from the documents seized by the PBHistory
PBHistory
Operation PBHistory was a covert Central Intelligence Agency operation in Guatemala, which occurred after the fall of the Jacobo Arbenz Guzmán government in June 1954. By 4 July, the CIA sent a two-man communist expert team to investigate the possibility of utilizing the documents left behind by...
team. The analyzed documents were then translated into Spanish and distributed throughout Guatemala
Guatemala
Guatemala is a country in Central America bordered by Mexico to the north and west, the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, Belize to the northeast, the Caribbean to the east, and Honduras and El Salvador to the southeast...
. Furthermore, the minister of propaganda in Guatemala held a press conference to discuss the findings of the Committee, which were actually the findings of the PBHistory team. Operation Kugown had three primary objectives. The first objective was to use the documents seized by the PBhistory in order to inform the Guatemalan people on the extent to which communism
Communism
Communism is a social, political and economic ideology that aims at the establishment of a classless, moneyless, revolutionary and stateless socialist society structured upon common ownership of the means of production...
had infiltrated their country. The second objective was to publicize this to Latin America
Latin America
Latin America is a region of the Americas where Romance languages – particularly Spanish and Portuguese, and variably French – are primarily spoken. Latin America has an area of approximately 21,069,500 km² , almost 3.9% of the Earth's surface or 14.1% of its land surface area...
and the rest of the world. The last object was to solidify the position of the National Committee of Defense Against Communism
National Committee of Defense Against Communism
The National Committee of Defense Against Communism, established on 19 July 1954, was a committee formed by Carlos Castillo at the request of the United States Central Intelligence Agency...
(Comite de Defensa Nacional contra el Communismo) within the Guatemalan government. It was believed that with status the Committee could continue to track the movements of communists and communist activists and prevent further communist intervention within the region. Numerous press kits were realized to the local and international press. Understandably, the local press coverage was extensive. However, the International press failed to pick up many of the stories and the events in Guatemala were largely ignored. As indicated in the CIA summary of the operation, the “results of the third objective were considered eminently satisfactory. In all releases it was stressed that the committee not only was chasing communists, but was also looking for the documentation that reward valiant anti-communists. It was also emphasized that the Committee was working on the record of Red penetration for the benefit of future threats in the Americas, etc.”
Operation Kugown was related to Operation PBHistory, which sifted through 500,000 documents and was able to salvage over 50,000 documents for the purpose of exploiting and illustrating communist activities within Guatemala. The documents were copied and microfilmed. The PBHistory group analyzed the documents and then handed the originals over to the Comite in order to index and file them. By 21 November 1954, the Castillo administration and the National Committee had compiled a list of 72,000 persons determined to be "communists."
Ronald M. Schneider, an extra-Agency researcher who later examined the PBHISTORY documents, found no traces of USSR control, support or guidance.
See also
- 1954 Guatemalan coup d'état / Operation PBSUCCESS
- Operation KufireOperation KufireOperation Kufire was a program that sought to identify and track all communist party members who had flocked to Guatemala during the Arbenz regime. “Via Kufire, the CIA was intent on charting their movements and monitoring or frustrating their machinations”1...
- Operation PBFORTUNEOperation PBFORTUNEOperation PBFORTUNE was the name of a contingency plan drafted by the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency in 1951 that outlined a method of ousting Guatemalan President Jacobo Arbenz if he was deemed a Communist threat in the hemisphere...