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Paraguay Page |
Welcome to ElectionInfo.com's pages on Paraguay
Official Name: Republic of Paraguay
Capital: Asunción
Area: 406,750 square kilometres ( 157,047 square miles )
Major cities (Population)
Asunción 630,000 (1990)
Ciudad del Este 133,893 (1991)
Encarnación 58,261 (1992)
Concepción 35,276 (1992)
Population: 4,960,000 (1995 estimate)
Population growth rate: 2.8 per cent (1990-1995 average)
Type of government: Republic
Independence: 14 May 1811 (from Spain)
Constitution: 20 June 1992
Voting Rights: Universal at age 18; compulsory between ages 18 and 60, but generally unenforced
Government
A president, directly elected for a non-renewable five-year term, heads the executive branch of the government. Congress has two chambers, the 45-member Chamber of Senators and the 80-member Chamber of Deputies. There is an independent judiciary. The voting age is 18; all adults up to the age of 60 are required by law to vote, although this is not generally enforced. The country is divided into 17 départamentos (provinces).
Recent History
In 1954 General Alfredo Stroessner, commander of the army, took control of Paraguay and established a dictatorship. During his 35 years in power, Stroessner provided Paraguay with stability, and economic growth was fostered through, among other things, huge hydroelectricity projects. However, his regime was characterized by oppression, corruption, and human-rights violations. His friends in the Colorado party, wealthy landowners, and army officers all prospered, whereas the rural peasants who made up the majority of the population suffered. In 1989 Stroessner was ousted in a coup and went into exile in Brazil.
General Andrés Rodríguez, who led the coup, was elected that same year as the country’s president. He restored civil rights, legalized political parties, and promised not to serve past 1993. Rodríguez was the first leader to implement many democratic reforms successfully. He authorized elections that established a constitutional convention, and a new constitution was ratified in June 1992. Faithful to his word, Rodríguez stepped down in 1993, when the presidential election was won by Juan Carlos Wasmosy with 39.9 per cent of the vote.
A military coup was narrowly averted in April 1996 after President Wasmosy fired General Lino Oviedo from his post as army commander for insubordination. Oviedo fled to an army barracks in Asunción and demanded Wasmosy’s resignation. Since it was feared that Oviedo was plotting a coup, Wasmosy compromised and offered him the position of defence minister if he stepped down from his army position. Thousands of people took to the streets to protest Wasmosy’s compromise with Oviedo and neighbouring countries offered the president their military support, but Wasmosy reversed his decision. Oviedo, who played a key role in bringing down Stroessner’s dictatorship, vowed to run for president in 1998 elections.
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