Casals & Associates, Inc., headed by Beatriz Casals, is the sluice trough through which USAID money flows to undermine the Evo Morales government in Bolivia. And funny thing…it all goes back to the ceaseless U.S. efforts to destroy the Cuban revolution. Néstor García Iturbe explains.
Translation from the Spanish: Machetera
Among the various mechanisms created by the United States government with the objective of trying to topple the government of Bolivia, an important role belongs to the actions developed by USAID in which a wide range of businesses and organizations are used to cloak the “killer claw” that gives money to take away life.
The strategy that is being employed in Bolivia seeks to divide the existing revolutionary forces within the country while strengthening the right-wing. A policy of “regression” which was successful in the Reagan era and as we indicated in an article titled “Yankee Diplomatic Offensive in Latin America,” published in Entorno in July of 2007 is being applied as follows:
“Regression” will be applied individually. Its application will begin after the successful provocation of a situation where “ungovernability” has been demonstrated in the country and “democracy” is in such a crisis, that in order to implement peace, order and security, a humanitarian intervention by the United States armed forces is necessary to ensure the establishment of a “democratically legitimate” regime.
The strategy to be followed was outlined in a report to the Armed Services Committee of the [U.S.] House of Representatives on July 11, 2007, at a hearing to assess global security. The report was presented by Thomas Fingar, Deputy Director of National Intelligence for Analysis at the Directorate of National Intelligence (DNI), accompanied by John Kringer, the CIA’s Intelligence Director, and Robert Cardillo, Deputy Undersecretary of Defense for Intelligence (DIA).
To perform its work in Bolivia, USAID decided to try to change its facade, as it had in Venezuela, through Development Alternatives, Inc. (DAI). DAI was considered to be already “burnt out” and a new, fresh image, that might instill confidence and couldn’t be linked to the subversive activities performed by DAI was necessary.
In the case of Bolivia, it was decided that it would be preferable to use Casals & Associates, Inc. (C&A). This business had been used by various U.S. government agencies, but because it had a Latin name (Casals) it was considered to be more accepted in Bolivia, and some might even consider it a Bolivian enterprise. All this would be beneficial for development activity, which when joined by the $25 million dollars assigned to it, would assure a successful operation.
In summary, Casals & Associates, Inc., has distributed $18.8 million dollars to more than 450 organizations, in its more than three years of operations in Bolivia. The beneficiaries of the USAID largesse have worked to fight the initiatives of the Constituent Assembly, foment separatism in Santa Cruz and Cochabamba, influence indigenous communities and undermine their support for the government of Evo Morales. Some projects have been dedicated to the dissemination of information that might create a negative image among the population of Evo, the country’s situation, and the revolutionary path he has taken.
It’s interesting to understand why USAID chose Casals & Associates, Inc. for this work. This firm has around 40 clients, of whom at least 17 are distinctly dependent on the U.S. government. Among these dependents The Office of Cuba Broadcasting (Radio Martí), the Voice of America and Worldnet Television (TV Martí).
Casals & Associates also works with USAID not only in Bolivia, but with the Bureau for Latin America and the Caribbean (Cuba), the Office of Democracy and Governance, as well as the Office of Transition Initiatives (Transition to what? This is the new name for “regression.”) It works for the International Trade Administration within the Department of Commerce (blockade against Cuba).
Other clients include the Department of Defense, especially the Army and the Marines. The recently created Department of Homeland Security has also contracted its services, in particular for the Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration (Cuban exiles).
In case anyone reading the word Cuba or Cuban repeatedly in this article should think that I’m being paranoid about Casal & Associates, Inc., keep in mind that the president of this business is Beatriz C. Casals, something which caught my attention, and upon searching for a few details about her I found that she is…CUBAN.
I found furthermore that Beatriz is the President of the Association for the Study of the Cuban Economy, located at the University of Texas (Bush?) where she has presented various research studies, one of them in conjunction with Sergio Díaz Brisquets who was born in…CUBA and also has worked with Casals & Associates, Inc.
Without going into an analysis of the possible links between Beatriz and Sergio and the Cuban-American mafia in Miami, the terrorist organizations which act against Cuba, or their contacts in Washington with the congressional members Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, Lincoln and Mario Díaz Balart, we should remember that Casals & Associates Inc. is involved in a good part of the U.S. government efforts to destroy the Cuban revolution.
Here I return to the article I cited earlier, published in Entorno. I believe that the ending can be applied here (without any paranoia whatever).
The principal objective of this plan is the elimination of the ALBA (Bolivarian Alternative for Latin America and the Caribbean) coalition. Every government that falls would be considered a blow against Cuba, its international relations, its possibilities for economic development and the well-being of its people. This is the chimerical Yankee reasoning behind the formula to be applied to try to crush the Cuban people and their revolution.”
Néstor García Iturbe holds a doctorate in Historical Sciences. He is a member of the Advisory Council and the Scientific Council of the Higher Institute of International Relations in Havana.
Machetera is a member of Tlaxcala, the network of translators for linguistic diversity.
