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7/1/1956 - Northern Opinions by William H. MacLeish

NOT FOR PUBLICATION INSTITUTI Ol CUKKBNT rOKLD Northern Opinions Los Andes Lima Per July I Mr Walter S Rogers Institute Current World Affairs Fifth Avenue New York New York Dear Mr Rogers In terms topography climate there little difference between coastal regions Per lying north south Lima From Tumbes Tacna desert broken score irrigated irrigable valleys The winter banks strong southerly winds reaches barren hills almost monotonously similar Notre Sur But areas markedly different other espects The South reion industry aricultural economy based small haciendas plots independent chacareros The North other cradle Per sinfant heavy industry econ6my still basically agrarian centers around rapidly mechanizing giant haciendas duction S sugar Imported Spaniards dulce brought fortune northern families sufficient p0wer control internal foreign affairs country decades During nineteenth early twentieth centuries aristocracy landowners sugar plantations often decided policies government Today rural aristocracy being replaced elite urban businessmen plantations excercise lesser still important influence national political economic social Early century sugar plantations prospered under system feudalistic primitive sierra haciendas In their efforts improve working quality their field hands hacendados brouh Negro Chinese workers ofthem contract basis outright slaves The folklore North tales ballads relating brutality proud ndowners equally brutal reprisals taken import workers Slavery abolished however later years government established unusually liberal labor Today cutter healthier higher wages worker living coastal At quarter overcast morning month I owner Nor famous sugar haciendas watching field workers lining The coastal worked valley duing night shroud overhead In lines workers hawked leaned their spades waited section bosses trucks The light street their faces showing confusion features color results centuries cross breeding between Number cotton WH Indian Spanish Negro Chinese As trucks pulled sticky darkness around hacienda Although sugar production modernized recent years large decreasing number laborers required fields canals precious water valley efficiently possible shops mills It natural therefore during development hacienda sizable village should around nucleus hacienda headquarters Unlike Indian tnant farmers labor force sierra haciendas plantation works salary bonuses recreation education medical careand usually enter picture except planting irrigation cutting concerned plantation worker essentially village dweller oreover comparison Indian sierra hacienda sugar estate 0brer0 urban sophisticate The qualities hacienda apparent after having cinema schools hospital swimming The streets paved molasses dregs sugar processing mills houses freshly painted street lights gleamed The hacienda containing three thousand people superior terms Cleanliness modern conveniences towns comparable lying outside boundaries plantation Despite modern Structure however hacienda still marks feudalistic worker cringed before owner punishment reward times brutal punishment extraordinarily generous 2eward godlike hacendado As I walked I observed speaking workers becme different person commanding general expected received respect position salute street women bobbed their heads field office managers treated immensely superior individual Seeing attitude I reminded Ybar brothers festival Kusipata supervising activities their children WHM We pased queue women lined warehouse They wives workerswaiting receive their daily ration beans hacienda clerks Again I thought Ybars handing aguardiente their Indian tenants Patern alism traditional paternalism still order plantation lonely estates mountains The sharp difference between paternalism haciendas highlands lowlands course latter change modern equipment agricultural techniques introduced former change resisted rigidity feudal organization Negroes brought Perd between under te2ms various regulat A great su2ge importation Chinese contract labor occured first century During following drove between fields covering thousands hectares Frequently stopped allow inspect newly planted field rutted network drainage system In between halts hcendado talked frankly about plantation about worked fields His views represent years times exasperating totally lacking idealism based prejudices practical facts experience Knowing I engaged writing reports about various regions Per polite direct cribing called unfortunate incorrect articles concerning northern plantations which written visiting U S journalists anagers owners other plantations brusque telling opinions ertain UoS correspondents manager lectured subject opinion untrue articles written badly informed reporters damaging artioles describing hacendados despots haciendas feudal manors workers slaves The particular article which responsible broadside appeared Fortune magazine centained number criticisms hacienda msnagement which raged owners plantation extent barred U reporters since While welcomes tourists scientists researchers hacienda convinced number U S uests arrive depart preconceived ideas about oppressad Indians being driven fields whips mustachioed overseers As around hacienda first pointed scheols hospital theatre market Americans expecting plantation workers living U S laberers They either ignorant nature peeple blinded ideals Now where Per field vegetables cheaply Where beans Where family movies U S cents receive inexpensive Oenefis other fields Where there better security Do I And I American guests basic workers approxlmately U S cents though I getting sweat They forget benefits I mentioned added would twenty higher basic government workers When I asked describe worked cuters weeders replied By large sierra above valley They Indians Bouth A speak Spanish western dress mixed bloods mestizos The Quechua language customs parts northern sierra These people really children hacendado They treated children Pehsps believe They thoughts beyond filling their bellies having enough money liquor Here concrete example In Aprista controlled government raised wages harvesting Our trsck layers loaders Wih their increased figured could before They think about working hours making money Tey It seems among Americans improve workers That course false Years previous owner bought bedsteads house At first wanted Then became prestige families would their sleeping quarters their beloaggings sleep ground under When tried modern toilet facilities using privies behind workers houses guard people inside outside walls privies There other which workers The requires plantation install school which teach first three grades pimary education Here schools include grades In cases against labor people According workers attended doctor located miles accident It would ambulance hours clinic badly wounded could bleed death Therefore installed clinic right immediate atention injured The hacendado criticism country labor criticism which widespread South North The drawn Lima They liberal cases paper vanced their counterparts United States blanket apply equally sections country That impossibility What holds would necessarily jungle sierra With centralistic government there little interest particular needs district Lima supposedly country To illustrate point referred which would forced travel miles doctor moved child labor regulations That stupid Let field eight family maintain His older children should doing light fields elsewhere wouldn inter schooling could night school school hours But their family According Peruvian child labor child paments permission permit nistry Labor permit required minors years It small amount paper required obtaining permit might scare parents eligible children Despite conviction workers childlike think would remain The process educating these people making sufficient However I sions progress along those lines harvest manage instance loader And igation manager ordinary field family As matter father laborers number other examples realize small minority workers They exceptions It cades perhaps centuries reach point where workers really interested improving themselves The plantation ewner think today labor organ izations would improving standard field hands Labor unions region thing minute They controlled dominate Therefore strike benefit those happen control union On several occasions workers strike plantations without knowino doing wanted working strike leaders wouldn When agitators however succeed The workers I whatever concessions gained strikers nearby plantations several obtain With respect emigration northern sierra coastal cities plantations In haciendas required large labor forces prepare fields plant process Jobs pIntiful workers sierra plantations stayed years their tierra became homesick In manner there permanent personal contact between mountains coast higher standard living however machines taking skilled laborers In future haciendas almost completely mechanized labor requirements dwindle personal contact between coast sierr broken Th people mountains isolated which slowly teaching improve themselves What could offset growing isolation sierra coast thougthat mountain haciendas modernized couldlay important improving their tenants ancor workers What meant modern ization certainly reform redistribution The evilof system sierra absentee landlord If force owner something intelligent manner basis progress sierra I already these workers iprove themselves If broke hacienda csmpesino chunk would except cases would farming little attention No there along modern lines soneone after until begin interest making money selling buying A intelligent hacienda manager owner answer The cinemas swimming pools housing developments schools hospitals northern haciendas primitiv adobe buildings remote sierra estates The comparative luxury plantations placed disposal field hands goods privileges which completely outside normal sierra Indian And plantstionworkers still lumped their relatives mountains under categories childlike It would though modern husing conveniences resulted little progress field toward accepted norms western responsibility initiative This point I illustrative basic error thinking hacendados other scale idealists inclined champion trodden Indian In groups there plantation worker hacienda tenant givenbenough modern Comforts facil sooner later ecome mature responsible The error opinion recipients these donations these built houses cinemas react predictable negative their gifts They themselves think their houses schools buildings simply placed their disposal Knowing workers additional compunction their traditional shells engage going around higher plane As illustration I think basic successful attempt bring backward rural majority Per called national I refer supervised credit program CREAS going small community Cuzco WH Under terms program every thing campesino receives modern kitchen seeds fertilizers implements earns quite literally They gifts organization which dependent basic items wages Upon shoiders espbnsibility woeking eaough If becomes interested program works develop sense responsibility desire improve himself family which first steps departure which characterized above childlike A national supervised agricultural credit program however would expensive first Advisory technicians would needed quantity implements seeds In addition program would successful where campesinos owned their either communally individualzy ayllus haciendas whose owners thought enough scheme their cooperation attention The program would value sugar coton estates WH north where majority workers neither small holders tenants In northern plantations method adopted cause worker source progress Some younger officials plantation I visited believe small labor unions first trolled hacienda management educational experiment would result awakening workers their rights perhaps important discussion their responsibilities In workers sense complete dependence hoienda owner manager employs deliberately slowly intelligently removed children become active participants activities country As individual exist As spokesmen ideas I heard quotes I picked alive kicking His prejudices practical honesty found plantations where modern tech_uiques backward retiring people And highly doubtful whether estates llorth broken distributed during lifetime represents general responsible coping possible unrest probable hesitant progress working women their rights responsibilities power Sincerely Villiam H J acLeish Received New York