Historical Dictionary of Terrorism Third Edition

CINCHONEROS POPULAR LIBERATION MOVEMENT • 109claimed responsibility for the bombing of the home of an official ofNarita airport in which the garage and a car were damaged. Neitherincident caused any injuries or fatalities. On 2 October 2001 a pipebomb damaged the car of a Chiba prefecture government officialwhose work was connected with Narita airport. While no responsibilitywas claimed, Chukaka-Ha was suspected of being the perpetrator.Since 2001 the group is not known to have carried out any otherattacks. In recent years, the following of the group appears to havedeclined but the current numbers of supporters and active membersare not known.CIA HEADQUARTERS ATTACK. See CENTRAL INTELLI-GENCE AGENCY HEADQUARTERS ATTACK.CINCHONEROS POPULAR LIBERATION MOVEMENT. TheMovimiento Popular de Liberación (MPL) was a revolutionarygroup under Cuban and Nicaraguan state sponsorship seeking tooverthrow the Honduran government and to oppose the interestsof the United States in the region. Its own ideology represented aneclectic blend of Marxist-Leninist and populist notions. The MPLwas the armed wing of the People’s Revolutionary Union, a splintergroup of the Honduran Communist Party that appeared in 1980.Their informal name, Cinchoneros, is derived from the nickname ofSerapio “Cinchonero” Romero, a Honduran peasant leader supposedlyexecuted in the late 1800s.The group’s activities included bombings and kidnappings.While it largely financed itself through bank robberies and kidnappingfor ransom, the MPL was suspected of receiving training, arms,logistical support, and funds from Cuba. Salvadoran FarabundoMartí National Liberation Front (FMLN) guerrillas reportedlytrained Cinchonero forces within Honduras and participated withthem in kidnapping operations. The Sandinista government allowedCinchonero guerrillas sanctuary in Nicaraguan territory and hadused them as auxiliary forces in fighting the contras.On 24 March 1980 five Cinchoneros hijacked a HonduranAirlines 737 to Managua, Nicaragua, to force the release of 15Salvadoran leftists imprisoned in Honduras. The hijacked planewas flown to Panama before the captive passengers and crew werefinally released. On 17 September 1982 they took 105 hostages atan economic conference at the Chamber of Commerce in San Pedro