Brown, Jonathan C.

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Che Guevara's Last Interview - Not Even Pasthttps://notevenpast.org/che-guevaras-last-interview/[6/22/2020 10:01:54 AM]"The past is never dead. It's not even past." William FaulknerNOT EVEN PAST     THE PUBLIC HISTORIANMore from The Public HistorianBOOKSMore BooksDIGITAL HISTORYChe Guevara’s Last Interviewby Jonathan C. BrownOctober 9th marks the fiftieth anniversary of the death of Ernesto ‘Che’ Guevara.  Among the documentalgems housed in the Lyndon Baines Johnson Presidential Library is Guevara’s last interview.  It occurredon the very morning of his execution.  A Cuban-American agent of the Central Intelligence Agency, FélixRodríguez, conducted the interview.  Rodríguez composed a memorandum of his talk with therevolutionary and sent it from Bolivia to CIA headquarters at Langley, which forwarded it to the WhiteHouse.The CIA agent even convinced Guevara to pose for his last live photograph.For years, the Central Intelligence Agency had been tracking the activities of the Argentinean-bornrevolutionary who served as Fidel Castro’s guerrilla lieutenant, economic czar, and international agentprovocateur.  In the spring of 1964, CIA lost the scent.  They speculated that Che Guevara was dead. The White House did not learn that he might still be alive until April 1967, when Bolivia’s president, RenéBarrientos, wrote directly to President Johnson requesting urgent military assistance.  Barrientos wasfacing a guerrilla uprising by both Cubans and Bolivians led by the legendary El Che.Why Bolivia?  Guevara had grown weary of his leadership role in socializing Cuba’s economy and havingto explain why production had declined drastically.  At the same time, his diplomatic role involvedjustifying Cuba’s deviation from the doctrines of its chief benefactors in Moscow.  Fidel and Che aidedrevolutionary insurgencies abroad at a time that Soviet leaders carried on policies of “peacefulcoexistence” with the West. Like 13TweetMaking History: Houston’s “Spirit of theConfederacy”May 06, 2020America for Americans: A History ofXenophobia in the United States byErika Lee (2019)April 20, 2020Más de 72: Digital Archive ReviewBOOKS FILMS & MEDIA THE PUBLIC HISTORIAN BLOG TEXAS ABOUTSTUDENTSOUR/STORIES15 MINUTE HISTORYChe Guevara's Last Interview - Not Even Pasthttps://notevenpast.org/che-guevaras-last-interview/[6/22/2020 10:01:54 AM]More from Digital HistoryFILMS & MEDIAMore from Films & MediaTEXASGuerrillero Heroico, 1960 (via Wikimedia Commons)Ideologically, Guevara had more in common with Chairman Mao Zedong than Leonid Brezhnev.  Yet onhis final trip to Beijing, Mao refused to meet with Che.  Other Chinese officials accused him of“revisionism” for accepting aid from the Soviets.  Guevara decided to retire from politics and economicsand devote himself to what he knew best – guerrilla warfare.Che Guevara had always fancied himself as Latin America’s chief guerrilla strategist.  He suggested thatthe lessons of the Cuban Revolution could be replayed elsewhere in Latin America.  Guerrilla movementswere still active in Central American and in Colombia and Venezuela.  His idea was to spread thin theforces of imperialism, to “create two, three Vietnams,” as Guevara wrote in his famous message to theTricontinental Conference.  Che, then 38 years old, wanted to ignite the revolution in Southern SouthAmerica while he still had the stamina he had under Fidel’s orders nine years earlier.In the eastern foothills of Bolivia, Che assembled a fighting force of about fifty men, divided between thirtyBolivians and the rest Cubans and other foreigners.  Remarkably, neither the CIA nor Latin Americancustoms officials had picked up any indication of the movement of men and arms into the heart of SouthAmerica.  Guevara had planned that Paraguayans, Peruvians, and Brazilians would join his group andgain sufficient skills to begin guerrilla uprisings in their own countries.  Eventually, Che wanted to return tohis native Argentina with a band of his own paisanos.  It was not to be.The White House responded to President Barrientos by dispatching two Cuban-American CIA agents andseventeen Green Berets from the Panama Canal Zone.  The Green Berets were to train a battalion ofBolivian guerrilla-hunting rangers.  The intelligence agents offered to supervise Bolivian units in the field. Agent Félix Rodríguez was assigned to the Bolivian Army at the rank of a captain.March 16, 2020Ayka (Dir: Sergei Dvortsevoy, 2018)October 02, 2019A (Queer) Rebel Wife In TexasChe Guevara's Last Interview - Not Even Pasthttps://notevenpast.org/che-guevaras-last-interview/[6/22/2020 10:01:54 AM]More from TexasChe in Bolivia, 1967 (via Wikimedia Commons)Months of isolation and firefights with Bolivian forces had reduced Che’s group from fifty to some twentymen by the end of September 1967.  At that moment, the first units of the ranger battalion trained by theUS Special Forces arrived on the front lines.  In its first battle with the guerrillas on October 8, a companyof rangers captured the leader.  “Don’t shoot,” he yelled.  “I’m El Che and I’m worth more to you alive thandead.”Guevara’s surrender allowed several of his men to retreat, though the rangers caught up and killed manyof them.  On the morning of the next day, Agent Félix Rodríguez flew to the small hamlet in easternBolivia where the wounded Che was held prisoner. The CIA agent pleaded with the commanders topermit him to take Guevara to the Panama Canal Zone for interrogation, but they informed him thatPresident Barrientos had already announced that Che had died in battle the day before.Rodríguez went to talk to Che Guevara.  “Nobody interrogates me!” said Che, although he did consent tohave a conversation with the CIA officer.  Rodríguez untied the captive and invited him outside into thebright sunlight for a photo.  The agent and the prisoner returned inside for a chat.Che refused to denounce Fidel. He told Rodríguez that Castro was not a communist until after he came topower.  Moreover, Guevara wanted Fidel to know that the revolution in Latin America would ultimatelysucceed.  Che advised his wife back home in Cuba to marry again.  He knew he was going to die,reported Rodríguez, but “Che never lost his composure.”Within a few minutes, a Bolivian sergeant came to shoot the world famous revolutionary.  “Let me standup,” El Che said to him.  “Know that you are killing a man! Now shoot, dammit!”172. Memorandum From Director of Central Intelligence HelmsWashington, October 13, 1967.MEMORANDUM FORThe Secretary of StateThe Secretary of DefenseMr. Walt W. RostowMarch 11, 2020Che Guevara's Last Interview - Not Even Pasthttps://notevenpast.org/che-guevaras-last-interview/[6/22/2020 10:01:54 AM]Assistant Secretary of State for Inter-American AffairsSUBJECTStatements by Ernesto “Che” Guevara Prior to His Execution in Bolivia1. Further details have now been obtained from [less than 1 line of source text not declassified] whowas on the scene in the small village of Higueras where Ernesto “Che” Guevara was taken after hiscapture on 8 October 1967 by the Bolivian Army’s 2nd Ranger Battalion.2. [less than 1 line of source text not declassified] attempted to interrogate Guevara on 9 October 1967as soon as he got access to him at around 7 a.m. At that time “Che” Guevara was sitting on the floorin the corner of a small, dark schoolroom in Higueras [sic]. He had his hands over his face. Hiswrists and feet were tied. In front of him on the floor lay the corpses of two Cuban guerrillas.Guevara had a flesh wound in his leg, which was bandaged.3. Guevara refused to be interrogated but permitted himself to be drawn into a conversation with [lessthan 1 line of source text not declassified] during which he made the following comments:4. Cuban economic situation: Hunger in Cuba is the result of pressure by United States imperialism.Now Cuba has become self-sufficient in meat production and has almost reached the point where itwill begin to export meat. Cuba is the only economically self-sufficient country in the Socialist world.5. Camilo Cienfuegos: For many years the story has circulated that Fidel Castro Ruz had Cienfuegos,one of his foremost deputies, killed because his personal popularity presented a danger to Castro.Actually the death of Cienfuegos was an accident. Cienfuegos has been in Oriente Province whenhe received a call to attend a general staff meeting in Havana. He left by plane and the theory wasthat the plane became lost in low-ceiling flying conditions, consumed all of its fuel, and crashed inthe ocean, and no trace of him was ever found. Castro had loved Cienfuegos more than any of hislieutenants.6. Fidel Castro Ruz: Castro had not been a Communist prior to the success of the Cuban Revolution.Castro’s own statements on the subject are correct.7. The Congo: American imperialism had not been the reason for his failure there but, rather, theBelgian mercenaries. He denied ever having several thousand troops in the Congo, as sometimesreported, but admitted having had “quite a few”.8. Treatment of Guerrilla Prisoners in Cuba: During the course of the Cuban Revolution and itsaftermath, there had been only about 1,500 individuals killed, exclusive of armed encounters suchas the Bay of Pigs. The Cuban Government, of course, executed all guerrilla leaders who invadedits territory. . . . (He stopped then with a quizzical look on his face and smiled as he recognized hisown position on Bolivian soil.)9. Future of the Guerrilla Movement in Bolivia: With his capture, the guerrilla movement had sufferedan overwhelming setback in Bolivia, but he predicted a resurgence in the future. He insisted that hisideals would win in the end even though he was disappointed at the lack of response from theBolivian campesinos. The guerrilla movement had failed partially because of Bolivian Governmentpropaganda which claimed that the guerrillas represented a foreign invasion of Bolivian soil. In spiteof the lack of popular response from the Bolivian campesinos, he had not planned an exfiltrationroute from Bolivia in case of failure. He had definitely decided to either fall or win in this effort.10. According to [less than 1 line of source text not declassified] when Guevara, Simon Cuba, andAniceto Reynaga Gordillo were captured on 8 October, the Bolivian Armed Forces Headquartersordered that they be kept alive for a time. A telegraphic code was arranged between La Paz andHigueras with the numbers 500 representing Guevara, 600 meaning the phrase “keep alive” and700 representing “execute”. During the course of the discussion with Guevara, Simon Cuba andChe Guevara's Last Interview - Not Even Pasthttps://notevenpast.org/che-guevaras-last-interview/[6/22/2020 10:01:54 AM]Aniceto Reynaga were detained in the next room of the school house. At one stage, a burst of shotswas heard and [less than 1 line of source text not declassified] learned later that Simon Cuba hadbeen executed. A little later a single shot was heard and it was learned afterward that AnicetoReynaga had been killed. When the order came at 11:50 a.m. from La Paz to kill Guevara, theexecution was delayed as long as possible. However, when the local commander was advised thata helicopter would arrive to recover the bodies at approximately 1:30 p.m., Guevara was executedwith a burst of shots at 1:15 p.m. Guevara’s last words were, “Tell my wife to remarry and tell FidelCastro that the Revolution will again rise in the Americas.” To his executioner he said, “Remember,you are killing a man.”11. At no time during the period he was under [less than 1 line of source text not declassified]observation did Guevara lose his composure.Dick[Richard Helms, Director of the CIA]Source: Johnson Library, National Security File, Country File, Bolivia, Vol. IV, Memoranda, January1966-December 1968. Secret. Copies of this memorandum in CIA files indicate that it was drafted by Broeand [name not declassified] in the Western Hemisphere Division and approved by Karamessines. (CentralIntelligence Agency, DDO/IMS, Operational Group, Job 78-06423A, U.S. Government-President).For more on Che in Bolivia see Jonathan C. Brown, Cuba’s Revolutionary World (2017)Also by Jonathan C. Brown on Not Even Past:On the Future of Cuba-Texas RelationsHow Washington Helped Fidel Castro Rise to PowerCapitalism After Socialism in CubaOn the Phone with LBJ and Panamanian President Roberto F. ChiariYoav Di-Capua on the story behind an image of Che in GazaEdward Shore reviews Che: A Revolutionary Life by Lee AndersonFranz D. Hensel Riveros reviews Che’s Afterlife: The Legacy of an Image by Michael CaseyPosted October 9, 2017More 1900s, Blog, Cold War, Latin America and the Caribbean, Politics, United StatesChe Guevara's Last Interview - Not Even Pasthttps://notevenpast.org/che-guevaras-last-interview/[6/22/2020 10:01:54 AM]19th century 20th Century African American History american history Asia Asia & Middle East book review Brazil British Empire China Civil War Cold War Colonialism communism cultural history digital history Early Modern Europe Europe film gender history History of Science immigration India Islam Latin America Latin American History Mexico Not Even Past Public History race religion Russia slavery Texas Texas History Texas History Day Transnational Twentieth Century History United States US History USSR Womens History world history World War IINOT EVEN PAST is produced byThe Department of HistoryTHE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN We are supported by the College of Liberal ArtsAnd our READERSDONATECONTACTAll content © 2010-present NOT EVEN PAST and the authors,unless otherwise notedSign up to receive bi-weekly email updatesBOOKS FILMS & MEDIA THE PUBLIC HISTORIAN BLOG TEXAS

Che Guevara’s Last Interview

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Che Guevara’s Last Interview

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