Full Name: Juan Jacobo Árbenz Guzmán
Profession: President of Guatemala
Biography: Jacobo Árbenz was a Guatemalan military officer and politician who served as the President of Guatemala from 1951 until his overthrow in a CIA-backed coup in 1954.
Upon being elected into power, Árbenz sought to modernize Guatemala's feudal economy with an ambitious agrarian reform program. His Decree 900 redistributed unused lands of large plantations to landless peasants, aiming to break the power of the traditional oligarchy and to create a middle-class farming sector.
His land reform policy, however, directly affected the interests of the United Fruit Company, an American corporation that owned vast tracts of land in Guatemala. The company lobbied the U.S. government for action, asserting that Árbenz was pro-communist. The CIA orchestrated a coup, codenamed Operation PBSUCCESS, which ousted Árbenz and installed a military regime in his place.
After the coup, Árbenz lived in exile in various countries, including Mexico, Switzerland, and Uruguay. He was hounded wherever he went, and his daughter Arabella Árbenz committed suicide in 1965. His overthrow led to decades of military rule in Guatemala, ultimately resulting in severe human rights abuses and civil war.
Born: September 14, 1913
Birthplace: Quetzaltenango, Guatemala
Generation: Greatest Generation
Chinese Zodiac: Ox
Star Sign: Virgo
Died: January 27, 1971 (aged 57)
Historical Events
- 1950-11-10 Jacobo Árbenz elected President of Guatemala
- 1954-06-27 CIA-sponsored rebels overthrow the democratically elected government of Guatemala and force President Jacobo Árbenz to resign
Famous Guatemalans
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