LAND OF REVOLT

Hokitika Guardian, 9 March 1931, Page 2

LAND OF REVOLT

LIFE IN SOUTH AMERICA. POLITICAL TURMOIL. FRENCHMEN’S EXPERIENCES. To experience one revolution in Latin South America would be to the average man an exciting experience, but Monsieur E. Stock fin, of Paris, who arrived from Panama by the Rangitjata, encountered lour during bis recent tour of South America. At Pernambuco 'last August M. Stoeklin encountered the beginning ot the big revolution i'n Braz.il, when there was a good deal of rioting in the streets, and the police bad to fire on tlio mobs, who wore pulling up the stones from the streets to smash the windows of the public buildings. There were only a few people killed on that occasion, but the revolution worked from the north and smith o" to Rio de Janeiro, and was a complete success. Then again at .Montevideo, in Uruguay, there was a big political revolution, during which visitors lmd to step warily to avoid danger from the conflicting fofees. Buenos Aires was seething with revolutionary trouble when M. Bjoek--1 iii arrived there. Anyone carrying firearms was liable to he arrested nfid shot without trial, and in the chief post office cameras carried by visitors were seized by the military, who were in charge of the city.

The passage of the Andes was made by the famous trans-Andine railway, and both in Chile and Peru there were political trouble, with resort to arms.

“Bolivia is the most backward ot all the South American Stales,” said M. Stoeklin. “This country is medieval —a hundred years behind the times. There they bad just bad their revolution, in which 500 lives were lost. Li Bolivia the population is largely of Indian stock, and these cherish a deep hatred of the cultured classes of T.apaz, who exploit the simple country people, and so bring about an intensity of fooling which finds an outlet in sanguinary encounters. It seemed to me that another one was imminent when T was there. Venezuela’s Dictator. “Venezuela is ruled by a dictator— Gomez—and though one bad to fill in all manner of forms and undergo a strict examination, it is a rather won. derful country. Thanks to its oil resources it is the only State without a national debt. You must avoid any mention of politics there if you wish to remain free.' Thousands of its people neglect to do so, with the result that there are many prisoners, who are employed in. making excellent roads all through the country. Off the coast of Venezuela is the Dutch island of Curacao, where ships of all nations call for supplies of Venezuelan oil. Even in Venezuela there was an unemployment problem due to the closing down of many of the oil wells.

“The poorest countries in the world are the republics of Santa Domingo and Haiti. Saitfit Domingo was totally destroyed by a great cyclone in September last, when 3000 people were killed.

“Havana was seething with revolt when T was there a couple of months ago,” said M. Stoeklin. “This had killed the tourist traffic for the time being. Hundreds of houses were to let and the splendid hotels were almost deserted. The corruption of the existing Government was said to be the cause of the trouble: The President bad recently built a palace for himself at a cost of 17.000,000 dollars, which annoyed the black population considerably, as they were finding it bal'd to earn enough to keep themselves in food and shelter.

“I flew over a great part of Nicaragua, which is practically governed by American military forces, who are said to be bolding that country safe in order to prevent any other nation gaining n canal concession, which would compete with Panama—on a sea-level route ,too. I was not allowed to use my camera there or while flying over Panama.”

After a visit of the South Island, M. Stoeklin is proceeding to Australia, the Dutch East Indies, Singapore, India, Egypt and so hack to Paris.