Brazil hunts Communists

Press, Volume CXII, Issue 33094, 8 December 1972, Page 13

Brazil hunts Communists

(N Z.P.A.-Reuter—Copyright) RIO DE JANIERO, December 7. Security police agents have raided Brazilian homes in a hunt for leading members of the banned Communist Party who are accused of passing military and economic information to Communist embassies.

The raids came after Tuesday’s announcement that eight members of the party were under arrest accused of handing over information.

Social and Political Police sources said today that the raids would continue in an effort “to unmask the clandestine activity of the Communist Party.” They added that more arrests were expected. In one of today’s raids agents combed an alleged Communist hideout at Jacarepagua, a Rio suburb. The occupants of the house had fled but large amounts of subversive literature were reported to have been found.

Police said that five of those arrested were journalists, one was an engineer, another a university professor, and one a student. Three had admitted having handed over information to the Soviet Embassy and other Eastern European embassies. The Soviet Embassy in Brasilia said today: “We know nothing about this.” The Brazilian Communist Party was outlawed in 1948. Informed sources said its active members have dwin-

died from an estimated 25,000 three years ago to about 10,000. Some observers here are puzzled over Brazil’s reason for choosing this time for an anti-CommUnist drive.

Last night’s announcement of the arrests came only four days after the end of a four-day visit by a Soviet mission which sought to increase trade between the two countries. But there has been speculation in Brazil that the arrests were a reaction to a possible entente between the United States and Cuba, and were aimed at showing that a Communist threat still existed in Latin America.