Puerto Rican Independence Party

The Puerto Rican Independence Party (PIP) is a political party in Puerto Rico, which proposes that the country become a sovereign country. It was founded by Mr. Gilberto Concepción de Gracia on October 20, 1946, in the Tres Palmas cockpit in the municipality of Bayamón, to serve the civic and electoral struggle for the independence of the country, after the Popular Democratic Party abandoned the independence ideology. by gaining governmental power. The PIP believes in the civic and electoral struggle to achieve independence, has used the method of civil disobedience and proposes a socialist economic system.

Brief history of PIP

The PIP first participated in the general elections of 1948, obtaining around 10% of the vote. The Independence Party did not participate in the Constituent Assembly of 1952 because it understood that a true constitution was not being drafted but that the name of the same colonial regime was simply being changed. During the voting process strong abstentionism was registered as an instrument of protest organized by the PIP and other organizations.

In the general elections of 1952 the party obtained 20% of the votes and elected fifteen legislators, thus becoming the main opposition party. In the late 1950s the PIP lost much of its electoral support, becoming a minority party, with almost no chance of electoral victory, as its votes hover around 2 to 3 percent of the vote. total votes in the elections.

The PIP has gone through two moments of high growth, the first occurred during the 1972 elections when they launched the campaign "Arriba los de abajo". Said campaign had a high content of social justice, and even elements of the socialist ideas that gained momentum after the Cuban Revolution. After these elections, the party underwent a radical transformation, where the sectors of the petty bourgeoisie entered into a pitched struggle for the leadership against sectors of the upper bourgeoisie. A third sector, led by the figures of Carlos Gallizá and Luis Ángel Torres, who called themselves "los terceristas" Because they were not with one or the other group, they proposed the creation of a working-class independence party, of a Marxist-Leninist nature, and that the leadership of the party be democratically elected. The group led by Rubén Berríos, supported by the Party base, obtained the majority support of the general assembly. This group fought against the leadership being the one to appoint the president of the community and became known as "Rubén y los brutos" for being village people. Eventually the terceristas abandoned or were expelled from the party, who together with the university youth of the PIP, called Juventud Independentista Universitaria, began to develop independent work that culminated in the founding of the Popular Socialist Movement in 1974 (an organization that later joined the Partido Revolutionary Socialist to form the Socialist Movement of Workers). Around the same time, the PIP and other citizens of different ideologies, such as the pro-annexation US governor Pedro Rosselló, fought in civil disobedience that led to the removal of the US Navy from the island-municipality of Culebra. A sector of the tercerista leaders, especially those who abandoned the MSP project and then the Socialist Workers Movement, have aligned themselves more with the Popular Democratic Party and its positions. Another small group returned to the ranks of the PIP.

The Independence Party proposes a social democratic economic system. In the 1984 elections, the PIP suffered a vote drain, obtaining just over 60,000 votes. However, by 1988 the party recovered again, obtaining more than 95,000 votes. On the other hand, the PIP is a promoter of a unicameral Legislative Assembly, a proposal that in 2005 won the support of the majority of voters.

In the 2000 electoral process, the PIP obtained more than 100,000 votes for its gubernatorial candidate and registered vote growth in almost all elective positions. In the 2004 elections, the PIP was not registered as a political party after it did not reach 3% of the total votes or 5% of the votes for its gubernatorial candidate. Many argued that the loss of the PIP franchise was due to the flow of the non-affiliated independence vote that crossed ranks to support the candidacy of Aníbal Acevedo Vilá, as a vote against then-candidate and former governor, Pedro Rosselló. The party was dedicated to collecting signatures and the re-registration of the party.

In 2006 the Puerto Rican Independence Party organized the Latin American and Caribbean Congress for the Independence of Puerto Rico in Panama. This congress was joined by the main political parties from all over Latin America and the Caribbean that support the independence of Puerto Rico. Apart from the numerous politicians, important Latin American figures also joined in support of the independence of Puerto Rico, such as Gabriel García Márquez, Ernesto Sabato, Mario Benedetti, Eduardo Galeano, Ana Lydia Vega, Luis Rafael Sánchez, Mayra Montero, Pablo Milanés and Carlos Alberto. Libanio Christo, among others.

For the 2008 general elections, the Independentista Party presented Edwin Irizarry Mora, a doctor in economics for governor, and Lcda. Jessica Martínez Birriel as a candidate for resident commissioner. The PIP was not registered for the second consecutive four-year period after failing to reach 3% of the total votes, 5% of the votes for its gubernatorial candidate or 7% of the votes under the party banner. Until the 2008 elections, the PIP held two cumulative seats in the country's Legislative Assembly, however, in the general elections both seats were lost, the party losing all legislative representation.

Immediately after the elections, the Puerto Rican Independence Party began the efforts to begin the re-registration, having to go to court to start the process of collecting endorsements. Unlike in 2004, the 2008 process took four months compared to around three weeks in 2004 and did not have unanimous party participation when several local leaders and committees refused to participate in the process, calling for a ¨reorganization of the party¨ prior to an accelerated re-registration. On April 6, 2009, the president of the PIP, Rubén Berríos Martínez announced the culmination of the endorsement collection process.

FBI Surveillance

In 2003, The New York Times reported the following about the Federal Bureau of Investigation: It publicly admitted that it had ordered "grossly destructive" efforts against organizations, including the Puerto Rican Independence Party: "They include a 1961 directive from Mr. Hoover to seek information on 12 leaders of the independence movement, six of whom operate in New York," in relation to their weaknesses, morale, criminal record, spouses, children, family life, academic degree and other personal activities other than pro-independence activities. The instructions were given under the domestic surveillance program known as COINTELPRO, which was aimed at aggressively tracking and disrupting war, left-wing and other groups in the United States. In the case of the Puerto Rican independence groups, 1961, J. Edgar Hoover's note refers to "our efforts to disrupt their activities and counteract their effectiveness." Experts say the documents provide invaluable additions to the history of Puerto Rico. "I hope this will alter a little the analysis of why independence has not arrived," said Félix V. Matos Rodríguez, director of the center at Hunter. "In the 1940s, independence was the second largest political movement on the island, (after support for the commonwealth), and a real alternative. But he was penalized. The existence of the FBI documents came to light during a session of the US House of Representatives subcommittee hearing in 2000, when Rep. Jose E. Serrano of New York questioned Louis J. Freeh, then director of the FBI, on the subject. Freeh gave the first public acknowledgment of federal government surveillance in Puerto Rico and offered a mea culpa.

"Your question goes back to a period, particularly the 1960s, when the FBI operated a program that did tremendous destruction to many people, to the country, and certainly to the FBI," Freeh said, according to the transcripts of the hearing. Freeh said he would make the files available "and see if we can correct some of the egregious illegal actions, perhaps criminal prosecution, that have occurred in the past."

FBI surveillance of any person or organization that advocates Puerto Rican independence has been recognized by senior FBI officials. The FBI's surveillance of the pro-independence movement's past is detailed in 1.8 million documents, a fraction of which were declared freely accessible in 2000.

Next, FBI Director Louis Freeh made an unprecedented acknowledgment to the effect that the FBI had carried out heinous and illegal action from the 1930s and 1990s, quite possibly involving the FBI in widespread crimes and rape. of constitutional rights against Puerto Ricans. Something that shocked a Congressional Budget audience by admitting that his agency had violated the civil rights of many Puerto Ricans over the years and had engaged in "serious illegal actions, perhaps criminal prosecution."

Arguments of the party in favor of independence

In 2004, Rubén Berríos Martínez claimed that in recent years it has been proven that the people of Puerto Rico have reached their economic limit and as a result this economic stagnation is evident. At the time there were 30% unemployed as more than 50% of families depended on coupons to sustain themselves.

The PIP would try to build a new legislative system and at the same time draft the new constitution and then submit it to the next elections.

Party leaders

Puerto Rico Flag - created in 1895 by the Puerto Rican Independence Movement, ally of the Cuban Revolutionary Party.

• Gilberto Concepción de Gracia, founder of the PIP and president of the party between 1946 and 1968.
• Rubén Berrios Martínez, president of life. Elect Senator in 1972, 1984, 1992 and 1996. Candidate for governorate in 1976, 1980, 1988, 2000 and 2004.
• María de Lourdes Santiago, vice president and senator of Puerto Rico
• Fernando Martín García, executive president.
• Edwin Irizarry Mora, candidate for governor in the 2008 general election.
• Víctor García San Inocencio, a former representative in the House of Representatives of Puerto Rico, for three consecutive terms, being elected in the elections of 1996, 2000 and 2004. He also serves as Secretary of Legislative Affairs and Communications.
• David Noriega was a representative in the House of Representatives of Puerto Rico for three consecutive terms, elected in the 1984, 1988 and 1992 elections. Candidate to governor in the 1996 general elections, then relinquishing the party in the late 1990s. He died on 4 May 2013.
• Juan Dalmau Ramírez, candidate for governor for the 2012 and 2020 elections. General Secretary, former electoral commissioner.
• Roberto Iván Aponte, electoral commissioner.
• Manuel Rodríguez Orellana, secretary of affairs with North America.
• Luis Roberto Piñero, PIP leader in the capital city of San Juan, candidate for mayor of San Juan, president of Independentists Pro Unicameralidad.
• Welcome Vélez Rosas, PIP leader in the city of San German, attended the founding of the party and candidate for representative in the districts of San German, Sabana Grande and Lajas.

Independence in culture

Lola Rodríguez de Tió

In the world of culture, the Puerto Rican independence movement is an issue to which several writers, artists and intellectuals have shown their support. They stand out among them:

• Lola Rodríguez de Tió (1843-1924), the greatest Puerto Rican poet, much of his work addresses the theme of "freedom of the homeland".

Party flag

Party flag

The insignia of the Puerto Rican Independence Party consists of a flag with a white cross resting on a green background. It was the delegates of the town of Vega Alta who presented this design during the PIP Foundation Assembly on October 20, 1946.

The independence flag means:

"a rectangular field symbolizing the island of Puerto Rico, of green colour, symbolizing the hope of the people in the ideal of freedom; a white cross resting on the green background, symbolizing the sacrifice and democratic commitment of the Puerto Rican Independence Party."

Election results

Gubernatorial Elections

Election year	Candidate	Votes	%	+/-	Outcome
1948	Francisco Susoni	65.351	10.20 %	10.20%	3.♪ place
1952	Fernando Milan	126.228	19,00 %	8.80%	2.o place
1956	Francisco Susoni	86.636	12.40 %	6.6%	3.♪ place
1960	Julio García Díaz	24.211	3.10 %	9.30%	4.o place
1964	Gilberto Concepción de Gracia	23.340	2.80 %	0.30%	4.o place
1968	Antonio González	32.166	3.50 %	0.70%	4.o place
1972	Noel Colón Martínez	69.654	5.40 %	1,90%	3.♪ place
1976	Rubén Berrios Martínez	83.037	5.70 %	0.30%	3.♪ place
1980	Rubén Berrios Martínez	87.272	5.40 %	0.30%	3.♪ place
1984	Fernando Martín	61.312	3.60 %	1.8%	4.o place
1988	Rubén Berrios Martínez	99.206	5.50 %	1.9%	3.♪ place
1992	Fernando Martín	79.219	4.20 %	1.30%	3.♪ place
1996	David Noriega Rodríguez	75.305	3.80 %	0.40%	3.♪ place
2000	Rubén Berrios Martínez	104.705	5.20 %	1.40%	3.♪ place
2004	Rubén Berrios Martínez	54.421	2.75 %	2.45%	3.♪ place
2008	Edwin Irizarry Mora	39.590	2.06 %	0.69%	4.o place
2012	Juan Dalmau Ramírez	47.331	2.5%	0.46%	3.♪ place
2016	María de Lourdes Santiago	33.729	2.13 %	0.39%	5th place
2020	Juan Dalmau Ramírez	169.516	13.72 %	11.59%	4.o place

Resident Commissioner Elections

Election year	Candidate	Votes	%	+/-	Outcome
1980	Marta Font de Calero	83.908	5.30 %		3.♪ place
1984	Francisco Catalá Oliveras	64.001	3.80 %	1.5%	3.♪ place
1988	Luis Pío Sánchez Longo	79.557	4.50 %	0.7 per cent	3.♪ place
1992	Víctor García San Inocencio	63.472	3.40 %	1.10%	3.♪ place
1996	Manuel Rodríguez Orellana	68.828	3.50 %	0.10%	3.♪ place
2000	Manuel Rodríguez Orellana	95.067	4.80 %	1.30%	3.♪ place
2004	Edwin Irizarry Mora	56.589	2.89 %	1.91 per cent	3.♪ place
2008	Jessica Martínez Birriel	37.865	1.99 %	0.90%	4.o place
2012	Juan Manuel Mercado	38.941	2.08 %	0.09%	3.♪ place
2016	Hugo Rodríguez Díaz	39.704	2.70 %	0.62%	3.♪ place
2020	Luis Roberto Piñero	78.503	6.30 %	3.60%	5th place

Legislative elections

House of Representatives Election year Scalls +/- 1992 1/51 1996 1/51 2000 1/51 2004 1/51 2008 0/51 1 2012 0/51 2016 1/51 1 2020 1/51

Senate Election year Scalls +/- 1992 1/27 1996 1/27 2000 1/27 2004 1/27 2008 0/27 1 2012 1/27 1 2016 1/27 2020 1/27