Isabel had none of Evita’s appeal, and her administration plunged Argentina more deeply into chaos. The first year of Isabel Perón’s regime was marked by political instability, runaway inflation, and a renewal of guerrilla violence. In September 1975, Perón vacated her office for 34 days, ostensibly because of ill health. During her absence, the military strengthened its position. In March 1976, she was arrested in a bloodless coup, and a military junta consisting of the commanders of the army, navy, and air force took over. The leading member of the junta was Army Commander Lt. Gen. Jorge Rafael Videla, who became president.
The junta dissolved Congress, suspended political and trade union activity, and mounted a concerted campaign against leftist guerrillas. For seven years, the military attempted to “purify” Argentina by imprisoning, torturing and executing leftists, Peronists, trade unionists and members of other political parties deemed divisive. Military officers also kidnapped the babies of the “disappeared” and gave them to officers or released them to adoption agencies. Meanwhile, they attempted a complete liberalization of the economy, including the privatization of banking and industry. However, the military was never able to solve the problem of inflation, which remained in triple digits for most of this period.
In March 1981, Gen. Roberto Viola succeeded Videla as president, and in December, Lt. Gen. Leopoldo Galtieri took over. Troubled by economic woes and lacking any political support from the general populace, the military turned to foreign affairs in an attempt to gain support. In April 1982, Argentina invaded the Falkland Islands, claiming sovereignty over them, but in the ensuing war with the United Kingdom, Argentina’s armed forces were routed, surrendering in June. The defeat led to Galtieri’s resignation, and a new junta was formed in July under Maj. Gen. Reynaldo Benito Antonio Bignone. Liberalization measures during the remainder of 1982 led to strikes and anti-government demonstrations, including a one-day general strike in December in which 90% of the work force reportedly took part. In addition to demands for a return to civilian rule, more and more Argentines demanded to know the fate of at least 10,000 and perhaps as many as 30,000 persons who had “disappeared” during what came to be known as the “dirty war” of 1976–83. Today, official government figures for the “disappeared” stand at 10,000, but human rights groups believe it is much higher.
In elections for a civilian president held in October 1983, the upset winner was a human rights activist from the UCRP, Dr. Raúl Alfonsín. After taking office in December, Alfonsín called for a new inquiry into the “disappearances” and ordered the prosecution of former junta members. In December 1985, five were convicted, including Lt. Gen. Videla. The legacy of the “dirty war” preoccupied the Alfonsín government. The president saw the need to close the 50-year cycle of military intervention and political instability by building a stable democracy. However, the political reality of Argentina could not be changed by wishes. The human rights trials of leading military officers irked the military, and in April 1987, an abortive military uprising spread to a number of bases. Although Alfonsín refused to yield to the rebels, he soon afterward retreated from his position, getting approval from Congress for a law that would limit the trials to a few superior officers, thereby accepting the defense of “taking orders” for the lower-ranking officers.
The Alfonsín administration also acted to halt rampant inflation with the “Austral Plan” of mid-1985, which froze wages and prices and created a new unit of currency, the austral, to replace the beleaguered peso. The initial success of the plan was weakened by a resurgence of inflation and labor intransigence over wage demands. With the failure of the Alfonsín administration to stabilize the economy or bring military leaders to justice, Argentines sought change from an old source: the Peronists. In May 1989, Carlos Saul Menem, running under the Justicialist banner, was elected with 47% of the popular vote. Menem was to have taken office in December, but the Alfonsín government was in such dire straits that the president resigned in July and Menem was immediately installed. This was Argentina’s first transfer of power between democratically elected leaders in more than 60 years.
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