- Raúl Chibás
Raúl Chibás Rivas (
April 25 ,1916 –August 25 ,2002 ) was aCuba n politician and military officer who initially supportedFidel Castro and theCuban Revolution but later defected to theUnited States . Born inSantiago de Cuba , Chibás spent his childhood inHavana and attended theUniversity of Havana . His older brother, Eduardo, founded and led the Orthodox Party (also known as the Cuban People's Party) in 1947. After Eduardo committed suicide in 1951, Raúl took over as party leader.Chibás vehemently opposed the rule of
Fulgencio Batista in the 1950s, and he supported the anti-Batista struggle ofFidel Castro . In July 1957, he signed theSierra Manifesto , which proclaimed unity of the disparate anti-Batista groups. He served various positions for Castro's government after the revolution, including railroad commissioner and trial judge. He was a Major of the Cuban Army in 1960 when he decided to defect to the United States via a motor boat toMiami . Chibás felt that Castro had betrayed the ideals of the revolution.Chibás became an active anti-Castro activist in the United States. In 1960, he joined a group of former Castro aides in issuing a joint 3500-word manifesto calling for the overthrow of the Cuban leader. He found employment teaching Spanish at a school in
New York City . After 20 years of living in America, Chibás moved toCaracas, Venezuela to join two of his children. In 1991, having spent 10 years in Venezuela, he moved to Miami, where he spent the rest of his life.References
*cite book |title=Fidel Castro's Political Strategy |last=Harnecker |first=Marta |year=1987 |publisher=Pathfinder Press |location=New York |isbn=0873486668
*Pace, Eric (September 20, 2002). " [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9A05E2DF1130F933A1575AC0A9649C8B63 Raúl Chibas, 86, Castro Ally Who Fled to Miami in Motorboat] ". "The New York Times". Retrieved on December 28, 2007.
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