Photo By: Maria Magdalena Arrellaga for The New York Times
The spread of dictatorships and communist regimes in the mid 20th century did not spare Paraguay, a small country in South America bordered by Argentina, Brazil, and Bolivia. The country’s history is long and complex, but to understand current political dynamics going back to the Stoessner era gives a good picture of its starting point. Lasting five months, Paraguay suffered what is known as the Second Paraguayan Civil war in 1947. It came as a result of then president Higinio Morinigo suspending the constitution and taking all power away from political parties. His actions sparked anger amongst Paraguayans, and as a result Morinigo was forced to open the country back up to political activity. As a result he formed the Febrerista Revolutionary Concentration and the Colorado Party, but conflict continued to arise when Morinigo started giving the Colorado Party more benefits. Joining the Liberal Party and the Paraguayan Communist Party, the Febreristas led a rebellion resulting in heavy clashes with the country’s military. The situation turned extremely violent, but by August with the help of the Colorado Party and the military, Morinigo was able to regain control. After the revolution, from September 10th 1949 to May 4th, 1854, Federico Chavez Careaga became Paraguay’s president. He continued adding fire to the flame after the Paraguayan civil war, and the country’s economy took a steep fall. He began persecuting his opponents and turned to the central Bank to ask for aid in recovering the economy after declaring a state of siege. The president of the Central Bank attempted to convince Chavez to cooperate with Juan Peron, the communist Argentinean dictator. Chavez was reluctant, and these divided perspectives in the government ended up being mirrored by the people as the country became divided between those who supported Chavez and those who supported Mendez. In addition, the government and the military began clashing given that Chavez decided to give the National Police military grade weapons.
All of these variables united and eventually the commanding general of the army, Alfredo Stroessner led a coup which would lead him to be one of the longest-running uninterrupted dictators in Latin America, only after Fidel Castro. Given the global situation and the ongoing Cold War, Stroessner’s anti-communist ideology was strongly supported by the United States. Between 1962 and 1975, the United States’ government invested $146 million USD in Paraguay’s military. It is believed that much of this money went to exploiting Paraguayan natural resources such as mines and forests. Using the money awarded to them by the United States, Paraguay cleared forests and exploded land, leaving native people in the region called Ache without their homes. It is believed that due to Paraguayan military activity and exploitation in the region, by the 1970s de Ache population decreased drastically, some say even below the hundreds. Following the patterns of a true dictator he started suppressing opposition, censoring information, pressuring the legal system to follow his orders, and imposed a state of siege. Arguably one of the most controversial aspects of his stay in power was not the change in constitution he forced in order to allow his six reelections, but his protections of exiled dictators like the Nicaraguan dictator Anastasio Somoza, and his protection of Nazi war criminals including the infamous doctor Josef Mengele. He was elected six consecutive times from 1967 to 1977 and by 1988 he won his eight term. The state of siege he implemented in Paraguay gave the government the ability to control, manipulate, and censor information, even if it meant arresting opponents without trials and banning any and all protests or acts of defiance. It is believed that around 20,000 people were tortured and 432 disappeared according to numbers by the Paraguayan Ruth and Justice Commission. The regime also saw an increase of illegal activity that maintained the economy moving. Alcohol, ducts, cars, and animals were amongst the goods smuggled in and out of Paraguay. The geographic advantages of the country given its borders to rich and influential countries like Brazil and Argentina led it to be a hotspot for illegal trade. Despite the atrocities committed during the regime, the Paraguayan economy seemed to thrive under Stroessner’s rule. With rapid industrialization an age of modernism began in Paraguay. He began various projects such as the Itaipu dam built with alongside Brazil. Many argue that the profits gained from the dam were stolen or divided amongst politicians, but Stroessner had consolidated his power to such a degree that fighting against possible corruption and oppression was virtually impossible.
Furthermore, Stroessner was one of the main architects of Operation Conor alongside Argentina, Chile, Bolivia, Uruguay, Brazil, Peru, and Ecuador. The system is extremely mysterious, and the people involved worked to great lengths in order to maintain its secrecy. As a result it has taken many years to truly understand the intricacies of the operation, but one thing is known for sure, the operation was one used to suppress, silence, and even kill thousands of people. The goal of this network was to use computerized systems to track a country’s political opponents which would aid said government to send their military to kill, kidnap, torture — or a mixture of all three— the political dissidents. Most of the people who perished under the Condor system disappeared, many were killed and thrown out to the sea. The process to understand Operation Condor began in an investigation based in Rome over 20 years ago. Evidence slowly arises, and investigators do the painstaking process of placing it together. Declassified government documents and court cases were all used in order to deliver the final verdict, assigned by a judge in Rome. A former Peruvian President, Uruguayan foreign minister, and Military intelligence chief from Chile were amongst the 21 people convicted for their role in Operation Condor. It is believed that tens of thousands of people perished under this system, and it goes to show the reign of terror that Latin American leaders during the Cold War imposed upon the continent. People were angered by the situation in Paraguay, angered by the silencing they were subjected to, angered by the chocking grip of the dictatorship. In 1989 General Andres Rodriguez led a coup similar to what led Stroessner to his position, took him down. Stroessner was exiled and forced to flee to Brazil until his death in 2006.
After Stroessner’s rise and fall, Paraguay saw a myriad of presidents, including another attempted coup by Army Chief General Lino Oviedo. However, his attempt was futile, and Paraguay continued its journey into the 21st century. Although the dictatorship is now a dark part of history, Stroessner’s legacy continues to reign over Paraguay. On August 16th, 2018 Mario Abdo Benitez was elected as president, showing how Stroessner’s ideologies continue to hold extreme influence over national politics. Abdo Benitez is the son of an aid to Stroessner and represents the Colorado Party which Stroessner also supported. The president before Abdo Benitez was also part of the Colorado Party. During his campaign, Benitez said he would focus on low tax policies while also incentivizing foreign investment. Notwithstanding an indisputably turbulent past, Paraguay’s economy was quickly changing for the better. During the beginning of 2019, the country was suffering a recession, but as the year progressed the agriculture industry and labor industry became stronger, seeing a 3% increase. In the beginning of 2019 the unemployment rate was 14.5% compared to 12.9% at the end of the year. Although 1.6 million people live below the poverty line, the country did see a decrease in numbers especially in urban areas. Unfortunately, this growth stopped with the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. It is expected that the economy will follow alongside the global recession seeing a rise in poverty and unemployment rates. An outbreak of dengue fever worsened the situation, and quickly protests sparked around the country calling for Abdo Benitez’s resignation. Although the Chamber of Deputies rejected his impeachment given their strong inclination towards the Colorado party, people went out to the streets to protest against medical supply shortages and the growing number of deaths due to the virus. It is estimated that more than 5,000 people have died due to COVID-19, but the government is still fighting, attempting to continue in power. On March 17th, Benitez called for the resignation of his Cabinet when the protests turned violent leaving at least 21 people injured. Like many Latin American countries, Paraguay has been subjected to an extremely volatile history. From dictatorships to communist coups, to poverty, and protests, the road to success has most definitely not been an easy one. Nevertheless, many are hopeful that the end of the eventual equitable distribution of vaccines and consequent relief from the pandemic will be a torch to guide these developing countries in the right direction.
Written By: Carolina Mejia Rodriguez
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