Military Dictatorships in Latin America

Brazil, Chile and ArgentinaWhy and how did these dictatorships come to power?What were the consequences of these dictatorships?

Socio-economic problems in Latin America• Adult illiteracy• Low GDP per Capita• Land ownership• High urban rents• Unemployment and underemployment• Lack of economic development• Lack of economic diversity• The role of the Catholic Church• Income inequality• Racial divides

Different Types of Government in Latin America: self-serving despots• Rafael Trujilo • Fulgencio Batista

Different Types of Government in Latin America: elected left-wingers• Salvador Allende • Jacobo Arbenz

Different Types of Government in Latin America: populists• Getulio Vargas • Juan Peron

Evaluation of the effectiveness of despots, left-wingers and populists• Despots were unquestionably loyal to the USA but catered to a tiny elite

and increasingly ‘eccentric’; this rendered them ineffective and were ultimately abandoned by the US• Left-wingers were vehemently opposed by conservative social and

economic elites (supported by the US); their election often polarized local populations and eventually became the victims of military coup d’etats• Populists, although they managing to unify different strands of society

for long periods, were often targeted by extremists on both sides and of spectrum and were riddled with corruption. Ultimately, they could not maintain their support base.

Why did so many Latin American countries resort to military dictatorships in the 1960’s and ’70’s?

• Fear of radical reform• Increasing instability• Desire to remain pro-US

Brazil in 1964

• Had been ruled by Joao Goulart since 1961• He was an elected left-winger who replaced

moderate conservative Janio Quandros• Social and economic elites feared Goulart would

initiate radical land reform (he had already reached out to communist states like Cuba, China and the USSR)• Brazilian society was already very polarized in a way

that was very common in Latin America at this time• Peasant leagues (ligas), trade unionists and students

were particularly vocal in demanding reform

Chile in 1973• Salvador Allende was elected by a slim majority in 1970• Immediately, he was opposed by economic and social

elites who feared radical land and economic reform• The CIA covertly organized truck driver strikes which

caused huge food shortages and inflation, paralyzing the country• Copper companies and multinationals cut back on

production adding further stress on the economy• Students and intellectuals pressed for reforms while

some peasants and workers took control of land and factories without government authorization, enacting reforms from below

Argentina in 1976• Juan Peron returned from exile in 1973 and led

the Peronistas into power but refused to unite the different factions within the movement• In fact he began to side with far-right/fascist

side of the Peronist movement, whose disintegration foreshadowed national instability• Upon his death in 1974, his wife Isabel took

power but was essentially a puppet for the right wing of the party• Prior to her removal by the military in 1976, her

government was characterized by guerrilla warfare between far-right paramilitary death squads and marxist rebels

How did the military seize power in Brazil, Argentina and Chile?• All removed civilian rulers by coup d’etat• The military rulers who replaced them were different from military

officers of the past- they studied the social and economic conditions of their countries• Many officers from across the region attended the same military

training facilities (Inter-American Military System) run by OAS, including the School of the Americas• Brazil’s move to absolute dictatorship was gradual, while Chile’s and

Argentina’s were immediate

What were the effects of these dictatorships?• Abandonment of Import-Substitution Industrialization (ISI) policies

and embracement of Milton Friedman’s supply side economics (Minimal government regulation, low taxes, less government spending)• Suppression of civil liberties and democracy• Government-sponsored terrorism to remove dissent- kidnappings,

murders, detainment and torture

Government repression

• Brazil: 200 killed, 10,000 forced into exile and 50,000 detained and tortured• Chile: 3,200 killed, 80,000 detained and 30,000 tortured• Argentina: 30,000 ‘disappeared’ as part of the ‘Dirty War’

Economic Legacy

• There were economic recoveries in Brazil and Chile but these recoveries were unequal• The results in Argentina were more mixed: the sudden exposure of

foreign competition to Argentine industry (for so long protected by government subsidies and protectionism by ISI) reduced growth• All three governments reduced wages, social spending, taxation and

government regulation, making their countries more attractive to foreign investment• The results of their economic policies has been increased economic

inequality, exacerbating age-old socio-economic issues common to the region

How did these countries return to civilian rule?• Argentina: Human rights abuses exposed by the Madres de Plaza de

Mayo. Together with stagflation by the end of the 1970’s, this grassroots protest movement encouraged further resistance. The invasion of the Malvinas in 1982 was an attempt to garner nationalist support but a quick defeat to the UK created further financial problems and led to the collapse of military rule by 1983• Brazil: Military rulers recognized economic failures and promised

‘distensão’- a gradual return to civilian by 1985• Chile: The end of the Cold War saw a withdrawal of US support and

pressure for free elections, which Pinochet lost, in 1989