Paraguay

Paraguay A landlocked South American country whose political system has always been more or less authoritarian. It took decades to recover from the disastrous war against Uruguay, Brazil, and Argentina (1865–70), in which it lost 90 per cent of its male population. In the ‘constitutional phase’ (1890–1936) political parties emerged, mainly the conservative Colorados and the Liberals (Azules). However, they were unable to form stable governments, and the governing elites maintained their power by rigging elections.

The country was plunged into renewed economic turmoil by the victorious Chaco War with Bolivia (1932–5), which exhausted Paraguay's fragile economy. Subsequently, the military extended its political control, though stability was only achieved with the 1954 coup of General Stroessner, whose regime lasted until 1989. He strengthened his grip on power through combining party and military leadership, so that he himself became leader of the Colorado Party. In 1967 he introduced a new constitution, but the changes were apparent rather than real. He provided a significant and much-needed boost to the economy when he agreed to the construction of the Itaipú hydroelectric project (1973–82), one of the largest civil engineering projects of the century, in conjunction with Brazil. From 1976 to 1981 the economy grew at an annual average of 10 per cent, one of the highest growth rates in the world. However, this also caused inflation, while the end of the Itaipú project led to economic stagnation. As a result, Paraguayan society became more dissatisfied, with the first unauthorized opposition rallies being held in 1984. Stroessner's efforts at tightening his rule were hindered by internal divisions within his Colorado Party from 1987, between more reform-orientated traditionalists and hardline supporters.

On 3 February 1989 Stroessner was finally removed by the army's second-in-command, Andrés Rodríguez. Rodríguez was subsequently elected President (May 1989) and swiftly established freedom of the press and of party association. In 1993 the Colorado Party's candidate, Juan Carlos Wasmosy Monti (b. 1938), won the Presidential elections. Although declining somewhat, throughout the 1990s the Colorado Party's hold over the political system and its influence over the armed forces was still strong enough to prevent the stabilization of the political system. The 1998 presidential elections were overshadowed by the threatened candidacy of former General Linos César Oviedo Silva. The popular general was sentenced to imprisonment on account of corruption, and this allowed the official candidate, Raúl Cubas Grau, to win the elections. Cubas's pardon of Oviedo was declared void by the constitutional court, whereupon Cubas was impeached by parliament in 1999. In that year, the political system suffered a further setback through the murder of the Vice-President, Luís María Argaña. The new President, Luis Angel Gonzáles Macchi, tried to stabilize the government, but his attempts were eroded by Paraguay's virtual economic collapse. It was unable to meet its debt repayments, and was plagued by escalating rural poverty and growing inflation. At the same time, all attempts at economic reform faced great popular opposition, as the withdrawal of the state threatened to make services even more expensive. In 2000 the opposition's candidate, Cesar Franco Gómez, broke the Colorado Party's hold on power when he won the direct elections to the Vice-Presidency. The ensuing rivalry between Franco and González increased the instability of the government, as did the criminal prosecution of many members of the political and social elite, notably Oviedo (now charged also with involvement in drugs cartels) and former president Cubas (charged with corruption).