Trujillo Molina, Rafael Leonidas

Trujillo Molina, Rafael Leonidas (1891-1961), dictator of the Dominican Republic from 1930 to 1961. Trujillo was born in San Cristóbal. He was a cadet in the Dominican army (1918-1921), when the Dominican Republic was under United States military occupation. By 1927 Trujillo had become a brigadier general and commander-in-chief of the Republic's army. In 1930 he seized power in the military coup against President Horacia Vasquez.

The following year Trujillo organized the Partido Dominicano (Dominican party), which controlled Dominican politics for the next three decades. During that time Trujillo was absolute dictator as generalissimo of the army; he was also president from 1930 to 1938 and from 1942 to 1952 and foreign minister from 1953 to 1961. Although the Trujillo regime brought economic stability to the country, authoritarian measures were used to accomplish material progress and political opposition was brutally suppressed.

Trujillo encouraged diplomatic and economic ties with the United States, but his policies often alienated the other Latin American nations. In 1937, fearing infiltration from Haiti, he sent Dominican troops across the border where they massacred between 10,000 and 15,000 Haitians. In 1960 his regime was censured by the Organization of American States, and economic sanctions were instituted. Following the loss of the army's support, Trujillo was assassinated by a group of military leaders on May 30, 1961.