CIA Archives: Cuba - The Land and the People (1950)
In 1940, Cuba had free and fair elections. Batista, endorsed by Communists, won the election. Communists attacked the anti-Batista opposition, saying that Ramón Grau and others were "fascists", "reactionaries", and "Trotskyists." The 1940 Constitution, which Julia E. Sweig describes as extraordinarily progressivist, was adopted by Batista administration. Batista was voted out of office in 1944 elections.
Batista was succeeded by Dr. Ramón Grau San Martín in 1944, a populist physician, who had briefly held the presidency in the 1933 revolutionary process. President Grau made a deal with labor union to continue Batista's pro-labour policies. Grau's administration coincided with the end of World War II, and he inherited an economic boom as sugar production and prices rose. He inaugurated a program of public works and school construction. Social security benefits were increased, and economic development and agricultural production were encouraged. But increased prosperity brought increased corruption. Nepotism and favoritism flourished, and urban violence, a legacy of the early 1930s, reappeared now with tragic proportions. The country was also steadily gaining a reputation as a base for organized crime, with the Havana Conference of 1946 seeing leading Mafia mobsters descend upon the city.
Grau was followed by Carlos Prío Socarrás, also elected democratically, but whose government was tainted by increasing corruption and violent incidents among political factions. Around the same time Fidel Castro had become a public figure at the University of Havana. Eduardo Chibás was the leader of the Partido Ortodoxo (Orthodox Party), a liberal democratic group, who was widely expected to win in 1952 on an anticorruption platform. Chibás committed suicide before he could run for the presidency, and the opposition was left without its major leader.
Taking advantage of the opportunity, Batista, who was running for president in the 1952 elections, but was only expected to get a small minority of votes, seized power in an almost bloodless coup three months before the election was to take place. President Prío did nothing to stop the coup, and was forced to leave the island. Due to the corruption of the past two administrations, the general public reaction to the coup was somewhat accepting at first. However, Batista soon encountered stiff opposition when he temporarily suspended the balloting and the constitution, and attempted to rule by decree. Elections were held in 1953 and Batista was elected. Opposition parties mounted a blistering campaign, and continued to do so, using the Cuban free press during all of Batista's tenure in office. Although Batista was intent on lining his pockets, Cuba did flourish economically during his regime.
Cuba's wages were among the world's highest. According to International Labor Organization, the average industrial salary in Cuba was the world's 8th highest in 1958. The average agricultural wages were higher than in Denmark, West Germany, Belgium, or France. Although a third of the population still lived in poverty, Cuba was one of the five most developed countries in Latin America. Only 44% of the population was rural.
Gross domestic product per capita was already about equal to Italy and significantly higher than that of countries such as Japan, although 1/6 of the US. According to the United Nations at the time, "one feature of the Cuban social structure is a large middle class." Eight-hour day had been established in 1933, long before other countries. Cuba had a months's paid holiday, nine days' sick leave with pay, six weeks' holiday before and after childbirth.
Cuba had Latin America's highest per capita consumption rates of meat, vegetables, cereals, automobiles, telephones and radios. Televisions per capita was the fifth highest in the world. Despite small size, it had the world's 8th highest number of radio stations (160). According to the United Nations, Cubans read 58 daily newspapers during the late 1950s, only behind three much more populous countries: Brazil, Argentina and Mexico. People migrated to Havana at fast pace. Havana was the world's fourth most expensive city. Havana had more cinemas than New York.
Cuba had one of the highest numbers of doctors per capita - more than in the United Kingdom. The mortality rate was the third lowest in the world. According to the World Health Organization, the island had the lowest infant mortality rate of Latin America and the 13th lowest in the world - better than in France, Belgium, West Germany, Israel, Japan, Austria, Italy, Spain, and Portugal. Cuba had the highest rates of education spending in Latin America. Cuba had the 4th highest literacy in the region at almost 80% according to the United Nations, higher than in Spain. Economy could not always keep up with demand. Cuba had already the highest telephone penetration in Latin America - but thousands were still waiting, which caused frustration.
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