JUAN PERON – RISE TO POWER
Conditions in Argentina prior to Peron’s rise
The ‘Infamous Decade’ was a period of political and economic instability governed by the Concordancia governments. Presidents during this period came to office through coups d’état or fraud in elections. By the end of the decade it was clear that there was a need to overcome the country’s economic vulnerability, which it would do through import substitution and state-led industrialization. Military elites (the GOU) organized a coup d’etat, and the Infamous Decade ended with the removal of Ramon S. Castillo (last Concordancia leader) from power on June 4 1943.
Argentina under the Concordancia 1932-43
1. The ‘Infamous Decade’ (1932-43) was a period of political and economic instability in Argentina due to chaotic leadership by the Concordancia.
a. The Concordancia was a coalition of parties that ruled through repression. Presidents during this period came to office through coups d’état or fraud in elections, and there was little faith in leadership.
2. There was economic growth under the Concordancia due to import substitution industrialization: for example, the 1929 prices was regained in 1935, and a further 20%–30% increase was seen by 1940.
a. Economic growth served to a large extent the interests of the estanciero (landowning) elite and foreign business, who exported Argentinean beef and imported manufactured foreign goods.
b. Ultimately this was at the loss of the urban middle class since industry was poorly developed and unemployment was widespread.
3. Politically, the Concordancia did not satisfy the urban middle classes or trade unions.
a. Since the middle class was discontent, labour unions were becoming bigger and more powerful—for example, the General Confederation of Labor (CGT) had memberships of between 300 000 to 350 000.
4. Foreign investments made up 50 per cent of the total capital in Argentina in the 1930s, with Britain as Argentina’s most significant trading partner.
a. Economic growth was achieved by significant dependency on the British, a continued traditional export-import economic model.
b. By the end of the decade it was clear that there was a need to overcome the country’s economic vulnerability, which it would do through import substitution and state-led industrialization.
5. The early 1940s saw a rise of cultural and economic nationalism, which was heavily influenced by the work of intellectuals such as Raul S. Ortiz.
a. The cultural nationalism of the intellectuals denounced the intervention of Britain in Argentine affairs, and found an echo among the ordinary citizens of Argentina, particularly in Buenos Aires.
6. During WWII, the Concordancia was hesitant to side with the Allies because of an upsurge of nationalism.
a. Argentines competed in world markets with U.S. and Canadian products grain and beef. This hurt Argentine export levels and led to bad relations between the countries.
b. Nationalists argued for a policy of state-led industrialization to produce the goods that could no longer be exported and to lessen the economy’s reliance on exports.
7. The armed forces became strong supporters of economic nationalism by the 1940s. They therefore supported neutrality in WWII, as a result of a dispute with the USA over a pan-American alliance against the Axis powers
a. Argentina’s economic dependency on Allied nations conflicted with the concept of economic nationalism, since foreign dependency prevented the growth of the Argentine economy. Therefore the armed forces did not want to further encourage Allied influence in Argentine affairs.
b. Supporters of economic nationalism also wanted to secure Germany as a possible trading partner and neutrality in WWII was necessary to do this.
8. June 4 1943 – a military coup was organized by the GOU to run throw President Castillo out of office, who was moving the government towards extreme conservatism.
a. Peron was a founding member of the GOU which put him in a strategic position at the time of the coup.
9. The Infamous Decade ended with the removal of Ramon S. Castillo (last Concordancia leader) from power on June 4 1943.
a. The coup d’etat was an action against the corruption in government, however it also occurred because the armed forces (the GOU) were opposed to Castillo’s successor—they believed he would bring Argentina into WWII on the side of the Allies. This created favourable circumstances for Peron’s rise to power.
Strategy and methods
Peron as Secretary of Labour and Welfare, November 1943-October 1945
10. Peron took a position in the Labour Department following the coup in June. It was a responsibility no one else wanted.
a. Peron saw this as strategic position because he would be able to meet many new people—it helped broaden his base of power in Argentina.
11. The Labour Department was raised to the status of the Secretariat of Labour and Welfare by November 1943.
a. Peron centralized the Secretariat by unifying different welfare agencies and putting them under his own control. This effectively increased his own power.
12. His work as the Secretary of Labour and Welfare from November 1943 to October 1945 achieved far more for workers than any other organization in Argentina to date.
a. He passed the ‘Peasant Statute’.
i. For the first time, rural workers were unionized and their working/living conditions were subject to law rather than just the will of their employers.
b. He allowed the right to paid holidays for workers.
i. These policies increased public approval of Peron.
c. Peron’s ability to respond to the demands of unions meant that left-wing parties—which claimed to represent the interest of workers—lost their appeal.
Robert D. Crassweller, Peron and the Enigmas of Argentina (1987). “…the entire national movement came to be seen as the personal and sole achievement of Peron… He was using them [the labour leaders], not the reverse.”
Since Peron was personally associated with the passage of law in the interest of labour, workers feared the loss of
their benefits and became unconditional supporters of Peron.
Since Peron was personally associated with the passage of law in the interest of labour, workers feared the loss of
their benefits and became unconditional supporters of Peron.
13. Peron reached out to labour unions while the military regime under Ramirez was alienating them (e.g. Three-decree laws in December 1943)
a. Peron and his associates established a basis of dialogue between himself and union leaders while Ramirez was losing their support.
14. Peron led fundraising campaigns in response to the 1944 San Juan earthquake which claimed the lives of over 10 000 Argentineans.
a. The success of his efforts resulted in massive public approval. This was also how he met Eva Duarte.
15. The most important central labour organizations were the General Confederation of Labour 1 (CGT1) and General Confederation of Labour 2 (CGT2).
a. Peron dissolved CGT2 and restructured CGT1 as one single union that responded directly to him.
16. Peron had connections within the labour unions
a. Lt. Colonet Domingo Mercante was the son of a retired member of La Fraternidad (railroad union) for example; he made significant efforts in establishing contacts in trade.
b. Peron worked with strike leader Cipriano Reyes and helped him establish a union with collective bargaining at a packinghouse strike in Berisso.
Peron as Minister of War and Vice-President, 1944
17. Peron became Vice-President and Minister of War in 1944, once Farrell became president. In his position he launched a massive expansion of the armed forces.
a. The army tripled in size by 1945 and military spending doubled from 1943 to 1945.
i. These policies gave Peron the support of the army.
18. At this point Peron held three significant positions: Vice-President, Secretary of Labour and Welfare, and Minister of War.
a. Peron served as a liaison between the largely socialist labour unions and the military regime, because of this he had a strong popularity with the general public
Dr. Lawrence Britt, Fascism Anyone? (2003). “A disproportionate share of national resources was allocated to the military, even when domestic needs were acute.”
Peronist Ideology
19. One of the three main Peronist principles was ‘social justice’. He said “we aim at eliminating class struggle, replacing it by a fair agreement between workers and employers…”
a. These policies increase public approval of Peron, because problems of the lower class were being addressed by the government for the first time.
20. Political sovereignty
21. Economic independence: autarky, nationalization of foreign companies in Argentina and protectionist policies.
Events of October 1945
22. As a response to pressures from opposition, Peron resigned from all his positions on October 8 1945.
a. His opposition was not appeased. They realized this was a strategy to get his followers to oppose to measure.
23. In his October 10 farewell speech, he said “I put myself at the service of the people… but if necessary, some day I might request war.”
a. This prompted civilian demonstrations in October and on the 17th, 150 000 workers gathered at Buenos Aires to demand his release from prison.
24. The events of October 17 1945 demonstrated Peron’s god-like status among the workers and the fact that they had accepted him as their leader.
a. Peron’s followers were known as the descamisados or ‘the shirtless’, because they marched into Buenos Aires in their work clothes in protest of the city’s dress code.
b. They marched in chanting “We want Peron!”
c. When Peron was finally brought to the Plaza de Mayo, he was greeted by an ovation that lasted 15 minutes.
25. From his October 18 speech, “may Colonel Peron become the link to make the brotherhood of people, the army and the police unbreakable…”
a. The events of October 17 sealed the relationship of Peron and the workers—at first they supported him to maintain their legal and economic rights, but now they looked to him as their leader.
Mariano Ben Plotkin, A Cultural History of Peron’s Argentina (2003). “He [Peron] began to characterise his base of support as ‘the people’, while referring to the opposition as the ‘oligarchy’.”
Elections of February 1946
26. Although Peron had no party structure of his own, he had the support of the Labour Party, Peronist trade unions and the UCR radical party.
a. He had a wise base of support among organizations that represented the workers and lower class.
27. Peron’s opposition, the Democratic Union (UD) supporters included: conservatives, socialists, communists, industrialists and landowning classes.
a. It was a very heterogeneous organization, which made it difficult for the party to agree on specific matters—it lacked cohesion.
28. Two months before the elections, the government granted a Christmas bonus to all workers along with social benefits.
a. This weakened the appeal of the socialists and communists, which became associated with the denial of workers’ rights because they were part of the UD.
b. It made workers fear that if Peron lost the elections, they would lose these benefits.
29. Peron won the elections of February 1946 with 55% of the votes.
“Peronism is humanism in action”—Peron, speech in August 1948
“The values of the people… reside in the rulers who lead the people. The mass goes wherever its rulers take it; otherwise, it overflows and God forbid!” —Perón in Conducción Política, 1952.
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