Luis María Argaña

Luis María Argaña

Luis María del Corazón de Jesús Dionisio Argaña Ferraro (born October 9, 1932 in Asunción, Paraguay, died March 23, 1999 in Asunción, Paraguay) was a prominent politician in Paraguay and influential member of the Colorado Party until his assassination in 1999.

Luis Argaña served in a number of important national positions during previous administrations before running an ultimately unsuccessful bid for president in the country's 1998 election, losing in a bitterly contested primary election against Paraguayan General Lino Oviedo. Due to the General's involvement in a failed coup attempt in 1996, Oviedo was imprisoned before the 1998 general election. Oviedo's running mate, Raúl Cubas, became the de facto candidate for the Colorado Party, but lacked the widespread support that Oviedo commanded. Luis Argaña was selected as Cubas' running mate, the pair subsequently being elected to office by a wide margin.

There was widespread belief that Cubas, a relatively weak political leader, was merely a puppet for the disgraced General Oviedo, and one of Cubas' first actions as president was to grant Oviedo a pardon from prison, defying the Paraguayan Supreme Court. Shortly thereafter, the legislative branch began an investigation that would ultimately lead to impeachment proceedings against President Cubas.

With Cubas' impeachement pending, Argaña was set to succeed him as president. However, assailants ambushed the vice president's vehicle just outside of his Asunción home on the morning of March 23, 1999, peppering the SUV with multiple rounds of gunfire before escaping. President Cubas ordered a lockdown of the country's borders. In the wake of the killing, the subsequent riots that took place in the capital area, and his impending impeachment, Cubas resigned the presidency on March_28, fleeing the country and seeking and ultimately being granted political asylum in neighboring Brazil.

Argaña's assassination is yet to be clarified, but popular theory holds that the ousted General Oviedo (who had been granted asylum in Argentina shortly after his release from prison) masterminded the crime. Although Cubas was generally viewed to be easily manipulated by Oviedo's influence, his impeachment would mean Argaña would ascend to power, whereas Argaña was one of Oviedo's staunchest political rivals. The belief that Argaña was assassinated to prevent an Oviedo opponent from running the country was strengthened when the Paraguayan Congress sought to extradite the general from Argentina, without success.

Criticism

Argaña was a judge during the most recent Paraguayan military dictatorship. His career attracted the attention of General Stroessner himself, who appointed him to head the Judicial system. He has been accused of turning a blind eye to cases of torture and political killings. In recent years, former dissident Dr. Joel Filártiga accused Argaña of blocking the exhibition in Paraguay of the made-for-tv movie One Man's War, starring Anthony Hopkins, Ruben Blades, Norma Aleandro and Fernanda Torres, which depict one of such trials.

As a candidate, Argaña has been criticised for bringing Stroessner's era officials back to political life, through his faction Colorado Reconciliation Movement.


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужна курсовая?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Luis María Argaña — 24.º vicepresidente de la República del Paraguay 15 de agosto de 1998 – 23 de marzo de 1999 Presidente …   Wikipedia Español

  • Luis María Argaña — fue Vicepresidente contitucional del Paraguay entre los años 1998 y 1999. Falleció en condiciones no resueltas el 26 de marzo de 1999. Formó parte del grupo político que participó en la dictadura militar de Alfredo Stroessner desde 1954 en el… …   Enciclopedia Universal

  • Dr. Luis María Argaña International Airport — Dr. Luis Maria Argaña International Airport Aeropuerto Dr. Luis Maria Argaña IATA: ESG – ICAO: SGME Summary Airport type Military/Public Serves …   Wikipedia

  • Luis Angel Gonzalez Macchi — Luis Ángel González Macchi Pour les articles homonymes, voir González et Macchi. Luis Ángel González Macchi, né le 13 décembre 1947, est un avocat et homme d État paraguayen, qui a exercé les fonctions de président de la République du Paraguay du …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Luis Ángel González Macchi — (* 13. Dezember 1947 in Asunción) ist ein paraguayischer Politiker und war Staatspräsident von Paraguay vom 28. März 1999 bis zum 15. August 2003. González wurde am 23. März 1999, also sechs Tage bevor er Staatspräsident wurde, durch die… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Luis Ángel González Macchi — Luis Ángel Gonzalez Macchi (nacido el 13 de diciembre 1947) es un político y abogado paraguayo. Uno de los presidentes más corruptos que tuvo el Paraguay en el Siglo XX. Desde 1993 a 1998 ocupó la banca de diputado nacional. Está afiliado a la… …   Enciclopedia Universal

  • Luis Ángel González Macchi — Pour les articles homonymes, voir González et Macchi. Luis Ángel González Macchi, né le 13 décembre 1947, est un avocat et homme d État paraguayen, qui a exercé les fonctions de président de la République du Paraguay du 29 mars 1999 au 15 août… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Luis Ángel González Macchi — En este artículo sobre biografías se detectó el siguiente problema: Carece de fuentes o referencias que aparezcan en una fuente acreditada. Por favor, edítal …   Wikipedia Español

  • Luis Ángel González Macchi — Infobox President | name= Luis Ángel González Macchi |order=50th President of Paraguay term start=March 29, 1999 term end=August 15, 2003 predecessor=Raúl Cubas successor=Nicanor Duarte birth date=Birth date and age|1947|12|13|mf=y birth place=… …   Wikipedia

  • Argana Ferraro, Luis Maria — ▪ 2000       Paraguayan vice president whose battle for power among the bitterly struggling factions of the ruling Colorado Party led to his assassination (b. Oct. 9, 1932, Asunción, Paraguay d. March 23, 1999, Asunción). * * * …   Universalium

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”