Office of the Historian

295. Memorandum of a Conversation, Embassy Chancery, San José, August 18, 1960, 9:30 a.m.1

US/MC/11
San José, August 18, 1960, 9:30 a.m.

PARTICIPANTS

  • United States
    • The Secretary
    • Mr. Rubottom
    • Mr. Mann
    • Ambassador Dreier
    • Ambassador Willauer
  • Brazil
    • Foreign Minister Lafer
    • Mr. Pio Correa, Head of Political Department of Foreign Ministry

SUBJECT

  • Meetings of Consultation

Minister Lafer said that today he would ascertain what the Delegations wanted: condemnation of the Dominican Republic or not; sanctions or not; and if sanctions which ones. He said that the Brazilian idea was that sanctions should not be applied if the Dominicans did the following: First, without necessarily accepting the accusation, deplore the attempt on the life of President Betancourt;2 second, [Page 788] agreed to observe the principles embodied in the Santiago Declaration;3 and third, agreed to welcome an OAS committee, such as the Peace Committee, which would be sent to the Dominican Republic to observe its democratization.

Minister Lafer said that Brazil had two objectives: First, maintenance of the unity of the OAS, which would be broken if the Dominican Republic, for example, left the Organization; and second, recognition of the fact that any punishment would be meaningless. He said that the important thing was to draft these ideas in such a way that they could be signed by all the Delegations, and that they could be proposed by nineteen of the Delegations.

The Secretary said that Minister Lafer had expressed ideas very similar to those held by the United States. He said that if an OAS ad hoc committee to observe whether the Dominican Republic were following the principles of the Santiago Declaration were refused by that country, then it would be pertinent to consider sanctions to be applied in order that a new government would follow those principles.

Minister Lafer said that the approval of the Dominican Republic and of Venezuela was needed, and that he thought that he could obtain the approval of the former. Then, if Venezuela were reasonable, they should also accept, since it would mean a victory for them. He said that if these ideas, backed by nineteen countries, were approved by Venezuela and the Dominican Republic, the conference would have produced good results. He said that by 1:00 O’clock he would know if the ideas were acceptable to his fellow Foreign Ministers.

The Secretary said that the speech of the Argentine Foreign Minister4 on the preceding day seemed to be along these same lines.

Ambassador Dreier said that any committee to be established would have a big and difficult task, since it would have to supervise not only the ballotting, but the electoral process. He said that this task was too much to add to the already heavy duties of the Peace Committee, and that it would be better to set up a special committee with clear powers issued to it by the Meeting.

The Secretary said that the elections would require freedom of speech and of assembly and other civil rights.

Minister Lafer said that the composition of the committee would have to meet with the approval of the Dominican Republic.

Ambassador Dreier said that unless the committee had strong powers, Venezuela and other countries might say that the Dominican Government had made a deal.

[Page 789]

The Secretary said that the United States felt that a strong condemnation of the Dominican Republic was also necessary.

Minister Lafer said that freedom of expression of thought was needed, in the press, radio, and television, but that this should not include freedom for propaganda contrary to representative democracy.

The Secretary showed Minister Lafer a copy of a possible United States proposal for the Seventh Meeting, pertaining to Item 3 of the Agenda,5 and having nothing to do with Cuba. Minister Lafer said that his first impression of the proposal was that it was very good.

Mr. Rubottom said that the committee that might be sent to the Dominican Republic should have the right to call on the Member States for assistance. The Secretary said that this would follow the lines of the United Nations resolution on the Congo.6

  1. Source: Department of State, Secretary’s Memoranda of Conversation: Lot 64 D 199. Confidential. Drafted by Donald F. Barnes, Division of Language Services. The source text bears the following notation: “Approved: S 8/23/60.”↩
  2. For text of a note from the Venezuelan Representative on the OAS Council, Marcos Falcón Briceño, to the Chairman of the Council, Vicente Sánchez Gavito, July 4, requesting a meeting of the Organ of Consultation, pursuant to Article 6 of the Inter-American Treaty of Reciprocal Assistance, to consider the attempt upon the life of President Betancourt, June 24, see Inter-American Efforts To Relieve International Tensions in the Western Hemisphere, 1959–1960, p. 213.↩
  3. Reference is to Resolution I adopted by the Fifth Meeting of Consultation of Foreign Ministers at Santiago, August 18, 1959; for text, see Fifth Meeting of Consultation of Ministers of Foreign Affairs, Santiago, Chile, August 12–18, 1959, Final Act, p. 4.↩
  4. Diógenes Tabaoda.↩
  5. Agenda Item 3 dealt with economic, social, and cultural factors which contribute to instability.↩
  6. Reference is to the U.N. Security Council Resolution of July 14, 1960; U.N. Document S/4387.↩