WASHINGTON -- President Kennedy urged Latin American nations Monday to join the United States in a new 10-year "Alliance for Progress" aimed at stamping out hemispheric poverty ignorance tyranny and despair lie said the program would enable every Latin American country to carry out a democratic "revolution of hope and progress" by meeting the needs of the people "for homes work and land health and schools."
Hints At Reds
Kennedy did not specifically label Communist efforts to infiltrate the American hemisphere lint warned against "the alien forces which once again seek to impose the despotisms of the old world on the new.
He declared the United States stands ready to provide resources to meet the partial cost of "a vast co-operative effort unparalleled In magnitude" if the 10-year project gets under way.
To initiate the "alliance for progress" Kennedy announced that he has asked congress to appropriate $500 million to begin a program of Latin American economic and social aid which was authorized under the Eisenhower administration.
He also said he will shortly request a ministerial meeting of the Inter-American Economic and Social council to begin "the massive planning effort which will be the heart of the proposed alliance.
At Unusual Program
The President spelled out his program at an unusual forum -- a White House reception for 250 Latin American diplomats and key members of congress. He sprinkled phrases in Spanish throughout his talk referring to the proposed alliance as "alianza para progreso"
The speech drew immediate praise from key senators concerned with foreign policy Senator J William Fulbright (D-Ark) chairman of the senate foreign relations committee said however that "this program can succeed only if it inspires the wholehearted participation of the countries of Latin America"
Senate Democratic Leader Mike Mansfield (Mont) said lie hoped congress would approve the long-range approach to Latin American development. He said "it is not only in our best interest but in the long run will prove cheaper and at the same time more productive and will give stability to the program which has been noted for instability over the past decade."
At the outset Kennedy quoted the Latin American liberator Simon Bolivar as seeing greatness for the Americas "by her freedom and glory."
Kennedy said: "Never -- in the 'long history of our hemisphere -- has this dream been nearer to fulfilment -- and never has it been In greater danger."
Kennedy deplored the fact that millions of men and women in the hemisphere "suffer the daily degradations of hunger and poverty."
"To fail to act -- to fail to devote our energies to economic progress and social justice -- would be a reproach to the spirit of our civilization and a monumental failure for our free society he said.
Overall Kennedy advocated a 10-point program for the America's which he said could "transform the 1960's into an historic decade of democratic progress." It included closer scientific economic defense and cultural cooperation between the United States and its neighbors.
He again reverted to a Spanish phrase in his attack on "tyrannies which we cast out a century and a half ago."
"Our motto is what it has always been" Kennedy said "Progress yes Tyranny no -- progresio si Tirania no!"
Representatives of Cuba and the 'Dominican Republic with whom this country currently has no diplomatic relations were not included in the affair. But the President in his prepared remarks had a message of "special friendship" for the people of these two countries
