Bureau for the Repression of Communist Activities

The Bureau for the Repression of Communist Activities (Spanish: Buró para Represión de las Actividades Comunistas, BRAC) was a secret police agency maintained by Cuban President Fulgencio Batista in the 1950s, which gained a reputation for brutality in its fight against the 26th of July Movement.^{[1][2][3][4][5]}

Bureau for the Repression of Communist Activities

Buró para Represión de las Actividades Comunistas
Logo of the BRAC featuring the Cuban coat of arms
Agency overview
Formed	May 1955 (1955-05)
Dissolved	c. 1958
Type	Secret police

The bureau was headed by former Nazi hunter Mariano Faget, who previously served as director of the counter-espionage unit Enemy Activities Investigation Service (Servicio de Investigación de las Actividades Enemigas)^[a] from 1940 to 1944.

On Dec. 7, 1955, BRAC agents fired upon an anti-Batista demonstration held by the Federation of University of Students in Havana. Several demonstrators, including Camilo Cienfuegos, were wounded when the police opened fire on the crowd.^[6]

The development of BRAC was aided and encouraged by the CIA starting in 1956.

Explanatory notes

1. Also called the Officina, Buró or Sección de Investigación de Actividades Enemigas.