Axis Agents In America

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume 76, 27 October 1941, Page 8

Axis Agents In America

active: IN MEXICO ill.* war and in tlit* - I niggle between Hie \..lv.- Nazi-. Spanish Falangists. Jnpain Fifili Columnists. < 'mnmunist agitat .1 . Mime sections „f the Roman 1 a I Inil i<■ ' 'ImI i 11, rmli' ii I SpsinMi refugees, adherents of lhe Spanish and Austrian momirchieal movement*. I iiii.n! Stales political and commercial i ill ere.-I>. Free French supporters, and ilie British comniumiy. Swing To The Right fronted with this international pressure Pas been ill ..Hire .fill v si nee December 1. The President, General Manuel Avila Mania. In*, is a middle of-th<*-n>ad leader who in normal times could render a grea't service to the country by his policy of moderating the* extremes of the Cardenas Administration. His reform is comprehensive in that it. faces . very as|H*et of the* national life, lie has already modified the Agrarian Law to give the |>ensant.s individual, instead <>f communal, ownership of land, lie has taken the National Railway* from the workers and returned them to State control. Supreme Court judges are now appointed for life instead of for This programme veers sharply to the Right in every phase. That it would, if exercised with moderation, ho a sound policy for the country is apparent to all the observers of the errors in the Cardenas regime; lint tin* Right is as intolerant as the Left was during the past six years. The resultant conflict, which would be dangerous in normal times, menaces the security of tite nation. The totnlita'iau States, seizing their opportunity in the midst, of the domestic confusion, have launched an offensive to win over Mexico. The conceu;ration of their forces is unpreeedented. Some 200 Nazi agents have entered Mexico in the last year. The Spanish Falangists are also busy. Axis Activities There are indications that since the I beginning of tin* year the totalitarian Governments have initiated a new drive in Latin America. While their most promising bridgehead is to he j found in the neighbourhood of the River I’lnte, Mexico and Cuba could have a more direct nuisance value to the United States and are receiving their fair share of attention. The front organization for this offensive is today Falange Espanola, directed and supported by the Gestapo. Falange pushes its crusade with the slogan” "One Race, One Language, One Culture, One Religion,” which i.s a powerful appeal to the Spanish-speak-ing nations of the American continTlie danger in the aggressive Falangists lies in their direction of two nliiiiated Mexican groups. The first of these is the upper-class Acciou XaI ( ional which claims 200,000 members and includes the type of Mexicans who supported General Franco in the Spanish Revolution. The second is the backward peasant group known as the Sinarqulstas, recruited from the Indian fanatics who fought in the religious uprising known as the Cristero rebellion in the late ’2os. Falange, Accion National, and Sinnrquistas share the same crusade against Auglo-Saxonism, Jews, Protestants, and continental defence. A director of the Falange recently arrived from Spain with orders to work under the orders of the German Legation and Gestapo. Spanish members protested that their allegiance was to Franco, not to Hitler. This led to a "purge.” Defence Policy Don Ezequiel Padilla, the Foreign Minister, has declared that Mexico will abide by the Havana declarations, i.e., Mexico stands for continental defence and would consider uu attack upon any American nation as an attack upon herself. He has praised the recent

j declarations of President Roosevelt and j Mr. Cordell Hull and the Ideals of de- | moeraey. j He lias, however, repeatedly denied j that Mexico will grant naval bases or J lease any part of her territory to a ‘ foreign nation for defence purposes. The defence policy to date is one of independence. Mexico will construct her own defences with her own technicians and her own money. She will co-operate with other American nations in planning their joint safety. Service experts of both countries are conferring at Washington for the purpose of co- • ordinating defences in pursuance of the • Havana declaration. These declarations lead to the conclusion that if America enters the war Mexico will follow her leadership. It is this possibility which has intensified the Fifth Column drive in receut months. The drive now centres in the ; resumption of Mexican diplomatic rela- • turns with Spain. The threat behind tho Falangist movement is generally believed to be much greater than from the Nazis working alone. 'The Mexican Church is closely linked with that of Spain. Some members of the clergy openly abet the Falangist drive agiriust the democracies. They use their influence to agitate against the United Slates. The British Cause The Communist Party and the Confederation of Mexican Labour have followed devious paths during the past iwo years. Both were for democracy till the signing of tbe Moscow-Berlin pact. Then both became “Anti-im-perialist” and campaigned against Britsrin and the United States while secretly aiding the Nazis in subversive agitaWith the German invasion of Russia both became violently anti-German and, for the first time in years, pro-British. Tolcdano, tbe Labour leader, demanded the renewal of Mexican relations with Britain and enthusiastically quoted Mr. Churchill. Now, however, Communists and Labourites have launched a crusade against "Yankee Imperialists” and are contesting the southward expansion of the United states influence and trade. Uncle Sam

tills the part of scapegoat. This policy conflicts with that of the Camacho Government. The blacklists recently announced by tin* United Stales arc having a devastating effect upon German, Italian and Falangist business houses here. Sim*e they can no longer obtain supplies, even through the Pacific backdoor of Manzanillo, and arc shut, off from British And United States sources, many are In a desperate condition and pleading lor removal from the lists. The trade [inet by which the United States coutcacts to buy all surplus Mexican war materials lurs also cheeked heavy shipments of strategic metals to Japan.