CASTRO AGREES TO DISCUSS FATE OF 23 AMERICANS

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP75-00001R000100380095-2
• Release Decision: RIFPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 1
• Document Creation Date: December 15, 2016
• Document Release Date: November 14, 2003
• Sequence Number: 95
• Publication Date: December 25, 1962
• Content Type: NSPR

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Approved For Release 2003/12/02 : CIA-RDP75-00001 R9001 003
Aastro Agrees
To Discuss Fate
Of 23 Americans
MIAMI, Fla., Dec. 25 (AP).-
The survivors of the Bay of Pigs
invasion spent Christmas iii
freedom today with the promise
of another present to come.
The 1,113 men were flown
here in a 10-plane, two-day
Freighter Gets Ready for Prisoners'
Families. Page A-4
mission that ended in the wan-
ing hours of Christmas eve. A
main feature of Christmas Day
for the former captives was a;
holiday dinner of "lechon"
(roast suckling pig) with loved
ones they Hadn't keen since the
invasion failed 20 months ago.
Meanwhile, 1;000 relatives of
the prisoners prepared to board'
an American" ship in Havana'
harbor to come to the United
States as political refugees.
Castro's "Christmas Bonus"
Cuban!'rime Minister Fidel
Castro called that a,"Christmas
bonus."
And Mr. Castro promised also
"to discuss the early release of
the 23 American prisoners" still
in Cuban jails.
He made the pledge to James
B. Dofiovan, the New York law-
yer who,..negotiated the swap
of the Cuba invasion prisoners'
for $53 million worth of med-
ical supplies and baby food.
The two-day exchange was a
mixture of agonized waiting,
as the return sputtered fitfully
with long delays between
planes, of unashamed tears. of
husbands introduced to chil-
dren they had never seen, of
emotion-charged reunions with l
mothers, fathers and friends.
And more reunions are to
come.
Leave Tomorrow
Relatives of some of t
prisoners are expected to lea
Havana tomor4OW aboard tin'
African pilot, which carried to
Cuba Sunday the "down pay-
ment" on the ransom.
The African Pilot will make
the 12-hour run with the wom-
en and children to Port Ever-
glades, about 30 miles north of
Miami.
President Kennedy, whose
administration was involved in
the negotiations to return the
prisoners and the raising of
the ransom through coiitribu-
from American com-
s
't
Color Adopted By Cubans
Men and women all over Cuba
have adopted yellow as a mark
of opposition to the Castro regime
and make it a point to wear
llsomething yellow, regardless of
how inconspicuous, at all times,l
the Cuban Family Committee
said.
Among the greeters in the first:
group was Juan Figueras, 24, who;
lost both legs during the invasion.
The amputation took place in'
Cuba before his release. lie has
just completed a , rehabilitation
course in New York and has
been walking on his artificial legs
for about two weeks.
1 He found his brother Wilfred,
22, in the first group. Their greet-
ing was one of tears, kissing and
back slapping.
Luise Morse, Jr., who lost his
hand, found his father on the sec-
ond plane.
Donovan Due Back
The three with $500,000 ransoms
on their heads were' supposed to
come back on the last plane loads
with James B. Donovan, the New'
York attorney who completed the'
negotiations for the prisoner ex-
change.
The three $500,000 prisoners
were Jose Perez San Roman, the
military leader, Manuel Aretime,
the political leader, and Eneido
Aliva.
The ransoms ranged from $25,-
;000 to $200,000. Those valued at
$25,000 to $50,000 each by Castro
were kept at Principe Prison in
Havana. The men valued at $75,-
000 to $100.000 were kept at the
Isle of Pines.
A total of 1,197 prisoners was
captured by Castro forces during
the April invasion, of the original
group, 60 were returned as
wounded men; 6 were ransomed
by their families; one died in
prison, 9 were jailed and sen-
tenced for other crimes, and
on
i
ianies, bail d the completion s blood anticoagulants
,f the open roved For Release 2003/12/02 : CIA-RD a OAitRO8@1*N 0i-2
"'.l''hi.'- (:hristmas will be a
lift}, tr?i;ht r for all Americans he was obviously btioyed by the
ilec :=u o t.rese men Ve being successful fulfillment of his
united with their soy. d ones,"
Mr. Kennedy said at "the Win- long negotiations.
ter W'll.ite House in Palm He told of watching the first
Bead'- Ala. ' flight of captives take off Sun-
Last Planeload day:
Mrs $ennedy's statement was "Just watching the first
read.,?^t Homestead Air Force plane take off made it all
Base o the outskirts of Miami, worth it. 'ft was like the slave
as theast planeload of pris-
oners pounded down the ramp trade,-All they lacked were the
to freedom, shortly after 9:30 chains, it really choked me
last night. UP."
Aboard the craft was a trio Didn't See Americans
of men who led the-volunteer
brigade of some 2,00 in the Mr. Donovan said he person-
abortive invasion, any had not seen any of the
Thkey were. Jose Perez San American prisoners "but fiom
Romans the military com- Cuban prisoners I heard they
mandeI l~b Ancido Oliva, econd not' `being more harshly
in coifltnand, and Manuel Ar- are ?
time, a member of the Cuban treated than the others.
Revo7dtionary Councfl. The negotiator said he was
Mr. onovan also *s aboard. hopeful the' Ameribaf`is' release
He was the last man to leave' would be relatively early.
the plane. Solemnly he paced The 23 ' American prisoners
between rows of saluting Air are serving t,,' i?ms up to 30
Force a"nlisted men. years for alleged counter-
A fixed Donovan revolutionary crimes committed
at varioli times since Mr. Cas-
Mr. Donovan, who helped se=" tro took Over in Cuba.
cure the treedotii of U-2 Pilot. The attorney. siad he men-
Francis Gary Powers in ex- tinned to Mr. Castro Sunday
change for Russian S'l R11-1that the 'African Pilot was go-
dolph I. Abel, compared deal ing back light,"
ing with Lhe Soviets and the
Cubans J1.13 way; "I was tired ConS.efits. to Petition
when I ;!nt through with. both." .I asked him. if he would ob-
from Donovan was sunburned
from the long hours spent at ject to hearing a petition of
the Bar. Antonio de los Banos the prisoners' mothers to get on
air base near Havana, where he the freighter," he "Fidel-
supervised the prisoners' air- Consented and told me he. was
lift. ;giving me a bonus.'
"I have not had time for a The freighter will go to Flor~41
bath in l);ie week, ` he said. But Ida, discharge passengers, pick
material and
o
m
tip more rans
return to Havana, he said. Hd
'#ndtcated that if all the 1,000
vomen and children approved
Z o comg.. to the United States
cannot be accommodated on
the. first sailing, they will sail
on the second trip of the
'freighter. .
Mr. Donovan said 3,500 Cu-
bans had applied to make the
trip, and Cuban and United
t ?tates authorities had selected
the 1,000 to board the African
Pilot.
List of Materials
The final list of materials to
be sent to Cuba for the pris-
oners embraced:
Drugs and pharmaceuticals,
$23,263,000.
- Surgical, dental and veter-
inary instruments, $6,872,000.
Powdered milk, $9,365,000.
Baby foods, $14 million.
The broad list of drugs In-,
eluded aspirin, insulin, hor- i
sulfa drugs, anesthetic drugs o
all kinds, anti-malarials, a
anti-diarrhetics.