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Los Comités de Defensa de la Revolución (Spanish: Committees for the Defence of the Revolution), or CDR, is a network of committees across Cuba designed to combat anti-Fidel Castro activity.
The CDR system was formed on September 28, 1960, following the overthrow of Fulgencio Batista during the Cuban Revolution the previous year, to bind Cubans neighbours together (the slogan of the CDR is "ˇEn cada barrio, Revolución!"; the Spanish means: "In every neighbourhood, Revolution!") in the collective task of "vigilance against counter-revolutionary activity." It claims membership of 8 million, though the government exerts substantial pressure on the Cuban populace to join their local CDR.
Members of the CDR are known as Cederistas.
Cederistas keep a detailed register of each neighbourhood's inhabitants, recording their spending habits, level of contact with foreigners, their work and education history, any suspicious behaviour and their attendance of pro-Castro meetings and rallies.
An employer who is considering hiring someone for a job in Cuba will check with the applicant's local CDR before hiring him.
Countries that have had governments modelled on Cuban socialism, such as Nicaragua under the Sandinistas (Comités de Defensa Sandinista) and Angola, have attempted to copy the CDR system, with little success.
The CDR shows exceptional organisational capacity, being able to organise thousands for political marches within hours and achieve 100% turnout at elections.
External link
- Official CDR site, in Spanish (http://www.lacalle.cubaweb.cu/)
- CDR site in the Communist Party page, in Spanish (http://www.pcc.cu/pccweb/organizaciones/cdr.php)