Víctor Paz Estenssoro
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Víctor Paz Estenssoro | |
---|---|
Juan Lechín Oquendo (1960–1964) René Barrientos (1964) | |
Preceded by | Hernán Siles Zuazo |
Succeeded by | René Barrientos |
In office 15 April 1952 – 6 August 1956 | |
Vice President | Hernán Siles Zuazo |
Preceded by | Hernán Siles Zuazo (interim) |
Succeeded by | Hernán Siles Zuazo |
Minister of Finance and Statistics | |
In office 31 December 1944 – 21 July 1946 | |
President | Gualberto Villarroel |
Preceded by | Jorge Zarco Kramer |
Succeeded by | Luis Gonsálvez Indaburo |
In office 20 December 1943 – 5 April 1944 | |
President | Gualberto Villarroel |
Preceded by | Germán Chávez |
Succeeded by | Jorge Zarco Kramer |
Minister of Economy | |
In office 12 June 1941 – 17 June 1941 | |
President | Enrique Peñaranda |
Preceded by | Office established |
Succeeded by | Alberto Crespo Gutiérrez |
Personal details | |
Born | Ángel Víctor Paz Estenssoro 2 October 1907 Tarija, Bolivia |
Died | 7 June 2001 Tarija, Bolivia | (aged 93)
Political party | Revolutionary Nationalist Movement (1942–2001) |
Other political affiliations | Independent Socialist (1938–1942) |
Spouse(s) | Carmela Cerruto (died 1953) María Teresa Cortés (died 2020) |
Children |
|
Parent(s) | Domingo Paz Rojas Carlota Estenssoro |
Relatives | Jaime Paz Zamora (second nephew) |
Education | Higher University of San Andrés |
Awards | Order of the Condor of the Andes Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany Order of Isabella the Catholic |
Signature | |
Military service | |
Allegiance | Bolivia |
Branch/service | Bolivian Army |
Years of service | 1934–1935 |
Rank | Sergeant |
Battles/wars | Chaco War |
Ángel Víctor Paz Estenssoro (2 October 1907 – 7 June 2001) was a Bolivian politician who served as the 45th president of Bolivia for three nonconsecutive and four total terms from 1952 to 1956, 1960 to 1964 and 1985 to 1989. He ran for president eight times (1947, 1951, 1960, 1964, 1978, 1979, 1980 and 1985) and was victorious in 1951, 1960, 1964 and 1985. His 1951 victory was annulled by a military junta led by Hugo Ballivián, and his 1964 victory was interrupted by the 1964 Bolivian coup d'état.
Founding of the MNR and early political years (1941–1952)
In 1941 Víctor Paz Estenssoro co-founded (along with
The 1952 Revolution, First Paz Estenssoro government (1952–1956)
Among the many important structural reforms adopted by the popular Paz Estenssoro government was the extension of
Paz Estenssoro's temporary retirement and polarization of the MNR (1956–1960)
Paz was not allowed to run for another consecutive term, and
Second and third Paz Estenssoro governments, 1960–1964
The second Paz Estenssoro administration was plagued by violence, dissent, and continued hemorraghing of the original leadership. Of great importance during this period was the thorny issue of disarming the miners and workers' militias who had combatted in the 1952 Revolution and who had been for the most allowed to keep their weapons since. They had served as a useful counterbalance to the possibility of a conservative or military reassertion against the Revolution, but by 1960 were serving the interests of the party's radical left vice-president Lechín. Of Marxist political persuasion, the latter opposed the disarming of the militias and the reconstitution of the traditional military, urged the passing of more far-reaching reforms. Paz Estenssoro disagreed and, continuing the policies started by Siles, increasingly leaned on the "new" armed forces for support. This produced the inevitable final rift, and Lechín was expelled from the party prior to the 1964 elections.
Increasingly unable to control events, and considering himself the only man who could keep the
The 1964 coup d'etat and exile
On 4 November 1964, the
Support for Banzer and erosion of support (1971–1978)
When the "excesses" of the left-leaning Torres military government (1970–71) became unbearable to most civilian elites of centrist and conservative persuasion, Torres was overthrown in a bloody coup d'état led by then-Colonel Hugo Banzer with the MNR's full support. This too was a move that would cost Paz and his party dearly in the years to come, especially in future elections. Paz was apparently under the impression that Banzer would rule for a year or two before calling elections. Presumably, since the MNR was still by some distance the largest party in the country, this would allow Paz to return to the presidency. However, Banzer had other ideas. He broke with the MNR in 1974, exiled Paz, and proceeded to rule only with military support until 1978.
The turmoil of 1978–1985
While Paz had tarnished his image by associating himself with the reviled Hugo Banzer dictatorship, Hernán Siles was turning steadily to the left and gaining adherents at Paz's expense. When at long last elections were called in 1978, it was apparently Hernán Siles who won it (there were vast irregularities and the elections were annulled), with Paz getting only third place. It was a major decline from what the MNR had been used to obtaining in the 1950s and early 1960s. Elections were re-scheduled for 1979, and when they took place Hernán Siles won again but this time Paz got second place. The elections again proved inconclusive, however, in as much as none of the candidates polled the required 50% of the vote to win direct election, and thus the outcome was to be decided by Congress. Partisan intransigences prevailed and the latter could not agree on any of the candidates, eventually settling on naming as provisional President the head of the senate, Wálter Guevara, then in alliance with Paz's MNR. He was charged with calling elections again in 1980. Those elections reconfirmed Hernán Siles' victory and Paz's second place, but the military intervened rather than allow Hernán Siles (now associated with parties deemed to be from the "far left") to take office. General Luis García Meza grabbed the reins of power in the bloody coup d'état of 17 July 1980, and Paz once more flew to exile. In 1982, the beleaguered military finally left the Palacio Quemado and confirmed the results of the 1980 elections, making Hernán Siles president.
Paz's MNR opposed Hernán Siles on every front, as his administration plunged the country into a hyperinflationary spiral. In fact, this was Bolivia's most serious economic crisis in its history, one largely prompted by the collapse of international tin prices and the onset of the
Fourth and last Paz Estenssoro presidency (1985–1989)
The now-nearly octogenarian Paz began his fourth (and final) term as President in 1985. The economic situation was indeed dire, but Paz and his aides had a radical neo-liberal plan. Through
The readjustment policies—conducted to a large extent by Paz Estenssoro's vigorous Minister of Planning, Gonzalo Sánchez de Lozada, who was later to serve as President of Bolivia—came to be known as the New Economic Policy (NEP). The latter restructured the bulk of the hitherto-statist Bolivian economy and transformed it into a neo-liberal, privatization-oriented one. However, Bolivia remained the poorest country in South America and anti neo-liberal forces began to grow as a result of his liberal economic policies leading to the election of socialist Evo Morales in 2005.[5][neutrality is disputed]
Paz finished his term and finally retired from politics upon leaving office in 1989. He died by his home in Tarija on 7 June 2001.[citation needed]
References
- ISBN 184467097X, pp. 78–9.
- ISBN 1842777599, pp. 46–8.
- ISBN 023111804X
- ^ ISBN 9780312427993.
- ISBN 0521183723.
Sources
- Book Rags
- (in Spanish) Bolivian government profile of Paz Estenssoro
- Víctor Paz Estenssoro at the Barcelona Centre for International Affairs(CIDOB) (in Spanish)