What is Alfredo Stroessner?

Alfredo Stroessner
Alfredo Stroessner
Preceded by
Succeeded by
Nationality
Political party	Colorado Party
Spouse	Eligia Mora[1]

Alfredo Stroessner Matiauda, whose name is also spelled Strössner or Strößner, (November 3 1912, Encarnación - August 16 2006, Brasília) served as President of Paraguay from 1954 to 1989.

Early life

Stroessner's parents were Hugo Strößner, who emigrated from Hof, Bavaria, Germany and worked as an accountant for a brewery, and Heriberta Matiauda, who grew up in a wealthy Paraguayan family. He joined the Paraguayan army in 1929, becoming a lieutenant in 1931. He fought in the Chaco War against Bolivia in 1932 and then rose steadily in rank over the next few years until he became a brigadier and the youngest general officer in South America in 1948.

Presidency

Stroessner objected to President Federico Chávez' plans to arm the national police and threw him out of office in a coup d'état on May 4, 1954. After a brief interim presidency by Tomás Romero Pereira, Stroessner was the only candidate in a special election on July 11 to complete Chávez' term. He was reelected eight times--in 1958, 1963, 1968, 1973, 1978, 1983, and 1988. In many of these elections, he had no opponent or faced "sacrificial lamb" candidates. He served for 35 years, with only Fidel Castro having a longer tenure among 20th century Latin American leaders.

Soon after taking office, Stroessner declared a state of siege and suspended constitutional freedoms. It was renewed every 90 days for the rest of his term, and was only lifted during elections. A devoted anti-Communist, he justified this action as a necessary tool to protect the country.

Stroessner, an energetic leader, began his day at 4 a.m. by giving orders from his bed and going to work in the government palace no later than 6 a.m. Although he took a three-hour break at mid-day, Stroessner reportedly worked until 1 a.m. He never took holidays off work while President.

Stroessner's strong anti-communism made him a friend to United States interests for most of his rule. During Stroessner's rule, no Communist nations had embassies in Paraguay, with the sole exception of Yugoslavia.^[2] He was respected for his success in repaying loans granted to the Paraguayan government by the World Bank and other institutions.

Stroessner made many state visits, including to Emperor Hirohito of Japan, President Johnson of the United States, President Charles de Gaulle of France and several visits to West Germany, although over the years his relations with West Germany soured. Since he had always been known as pro-German, this worsening of relations, combined with his feeling that the U.S. had abandoned him, were regarded as personal blows to Stroessner.



His regime is also blamed for torture, kidnappings and corruption, of which the "terror archives", discovered in 1992 in Lambaré suburb of Asunción, gave proof; he did not dispute charges of corruption at some levels in his government. Corruption even extended to the highest echelons of the government, including Stroessner himself; estimates of the Stroessner family fortune run as high as $300 million.^[3] He did become more tolerant of opposition as the years passed, but there was no change in the regime's basic character.

Furthermore, Stroessner's Paraguay became a haven for Nazi war criminals, non communist peaceful opposition was crushed and the indigenous population was persecuted including forcibly assimilating the Ache population, a policy which ended in bloodshed, sexual slavery and servitude.

Despite this, strong Paraguayan-U.S. relations continued until the Carter Administration. The Reagan Administration boycotted the country as well.^[4]

Some maintain that the Catholic Church is the only reason Stroessner did not have absolute control over the country.^[5] After the destruction of Asunción University in 1972 by police, the Archbishop of Paraguay excommunicated the minister of the interior and the chief of police, and proscribed the celebration of Holy Mass in a sign of protest against the Stroessner regime. When Pope John Paul II visited Paraguay in 1988, his visit energised Paraguayan dissidents, and bolstered what was already a robust anti-Stroessner movement within the country.^[6]

Economics

Stroessner was, however, known for several positive economic policies, including the building of the second-largest hydroelectric power plant in the world in Itaipu, with which he exported electricity to other countries, developing Paraguay's economy. Although Paraguay received only 2% of the energy and 15% of the contracts, it was a major factor allowing the country to have the highest rate of growth in Latin America for most of the 1970s.^[7]

Furthermore the construction of the Itaipu Dam, as well as the subsequently built Yacyretá Dam on the Paraguay-Argentina Border, displaced thousands of Paraguayans, pushing them from their home, often without any restitution. The Itaipu Dam displaced at least 80,000 Paraguayans, and the Yacyretá will have displaced at least that many by December of 2008.

Stroessner was also known for many infrastructure projects that improved the country's highway system. Another programme that Stroessner supported was the granting of twenty hectares of arable lands for a nominal price to any soldier who completed military service, provided that the soldier would use the land for farming purposes. Over 10,000 soldiers took up this offer.

Downfall

On February 3, 1989, only a few months after being elected to his ninth full term, Stroessner was ousted by a coup d'état led by General Andrés Rodríguez, who had been his friend and comrade-in-arms for many years. He fled to Brazil, where he lived in exile for the next seventeen and a half years.

The eastern city Puerto Flor de Lis, which had been renamed Puerto Presidente Stroessner in his honour, in 1989 was again renamed Ciudad del Este.

Paraguayans remain divided on Stroessner and his controversial legacy. Many feel a strong sense of distaste toward him, perceiving him as a widely corrupt, authoritarian dictator. Those who defend his legacy cite the political stability and economic progress that prevailed under his rule.

Stroessner died of a lung complication on August 16 2006, in Brasília, at the age of 93. The immediate cause of death was a stroke. He had been suffering from pneumonia after undergoing an earlier hernia operation.^[8] The Paraguayan government preemptively dismissed any suggestions for honoring the late president within Paraguay.^[9]

Footnotes

External links

• Obituary at BBC News
• Paraguay's archive of terror
• The Presidential Papers of Dwight D. Eisenhower Official letter to President Stroessner (1959)
• Paraguay seeks Stroessner return
• Obituary in The Guardian
• Alfredo Stroessner, 93, Old-Style Military Dictator of Paraguay
• Obituary in The Economist
• New York Times: Stroessner, Paraguay’s Enduring Dictator, Dies

Sources

• Paraguay Under Stroessner, by Paul H. Lewis
• Stroessner Era: Authoritarian Rule in Paraguay by Carlos R. Miranda

Preceded by Tomás Romero Pereira	President of Paraguay 1954–1989	Succeeded by Andrés Rodríguez

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