1

ARGENTINA: 1516 - present

1516, 1526, 1536, 1537, 1541, 1542, 1544, 1545, 1551, 1564, 1573, 1580, 1588, 1594, 1596 1617, 1618, 1622, 1680, 1695 1711, 1726, 1776, 1726, 1767, 1770, 1771, 1776, 1778, 1780, 1789, 1791, 1793, 1796, 1799 1800, 1801, 1802, 1806, 1810, 1811, 1812, 1813, 1814, 1815, 1816, 1817, 1818, 1819, 1820, 1821, 1822, 1823, 1824, 1825, 1826, 1827, 1828, 1829, 1830, 1831, 1832, 1835, 1835-1852, 1838, 1839, 1841, 1844, 1845, 1847-1848, 1848, 1850s-, 1852, 1853, 1859, 1860, 1861, 1862, 1864, 1868, 1869, 1871, 1874, 1875, 1878, 1879, 1880, 1882, 1886, 1890, 1891, 1892, 1893, 1894, 1895, 1896, 1897, 1898, 1899 1900, 1901, 1902, 1903, 1904, 1905, 1906, 1907, 1908, 1909 1910, 1911, 1912, 1913, 1914, 1915, 1916, 1916-1930, 1917, 1918, 1918-1921, 1919 1920, 1921, 1922-1928, 1922, 1923, 1924, 1925, 1926, 1927, 1928, 1929 1930-1940, 1930, 1931, 1932, 1933, 1934, 1935, 1936, 1937, 1938, 1939-45, 1939, 1940, 1941, 1942, 1943, 1944, 1945, 1946, 1947, 1948, 1949 1950, 1951, 1952, 1953, 1954, 1955, 1956, 1957, 1958, 1959 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1967, 1968, 1969 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979 1980, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989 1990, 19911994, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1998-1999, 1999 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005

1516
February
Juan Daz de Sols discovered the Ro de la Plata (River of Silver) which, with all lands drained by it, he claimed for Spain. He named it the Mar Dulce (Sweetwater, or Freshwater, Sea), but it was commonly called the Ro Sols at the time. Sols was killed by Indians on the Uruguayan side of the Plata. (RHF)

1526
Sebastian Cabot, Italian explore sailing for Spain, was, like Sols, trying to find a route to the Pacific Ocean. He built a fort, Sancti Spirit, on the Paran River, a major tributary of the Plata, a little distance above the present city of Rosario, Argentina it was the first settlement in present-day Argentina. He then proceeded

2 upriver into present-day Paraguay, but after a few years of exploration returned to Spain with little to show for his work. His early dispatch to Spain of a quantity of crude silver ornaments collected form the Indians gave rise to the name River of Silver, quite unjustified by later developments and resources. (RHF)

1536
February
Pedro de Mendoza, leading a force of 1,200 men and 100 horses, founded Buenos Aires, on the Plata River, for the first time. Local Indians were at a much lower cultural level than those in Peru and Mexico, had only scanty food supplies, and showed persistent hostility to the Spanish. Famine and disease plagued the Spanish settlers. Mendoza, seriously ill with syphilis, sailed for Spain in late April 1537 but died on shipboard. His lieutenant, Juan de Ayolas, was left in command of the colony. Ayolas at the time was exploring the Paran River in what is now Paraguay. Left in command as Ayolas explored inland was Domingo Martnez de Irala. Ayolas and his party were killed in the interior of Paraguay by Indians. (RHF)

1537
Irala founded the city of Asuncin on the Paraguay River more than 900 miles north of Buenos Aires; it was the first permanent settlement in the Plata basin. Indians in the area were more agriculturally advanced and more tractable than those farther south. (RHF)

1541
The settlement at Buenos Aires was abandoned because of Indian hostility and lack of adequate food. Asuncin then became the center of Spanish expansion in the Plata basin. (RHF)

1542
Irala was succeeded by Alvar Nez Cabeza de Vaca as governor but opposition by colonists forced withdrawal by Cabeza de Vaca the following year and Irala returned to the post, holding it until his death in 1556. (RHF)

1544
Cabeza de Vaca attempted unsuccessfully to refound Buenos Aires. (RHF)

1545
Potos was founded in 1545 and during its first 50 years was the most fabulous source of silver the world had ever known. Because of isolation, living discomfort, and a series of disasters, such as the flood of 1626, the mines proved unable to compete with those of Peru and Mexico. (CE, Potos, 6th Ed., 2001)

1551
Colonists from Peru crossed the Andes and founded Santiago del Estero in what is now northwestern Argentina; it is the oldest permanent settlement in present-day Argentina. (RHF)

1564
Tucumn was founded in the interior in a continuation of the expansion from Peru in the northwest. (RHF)

1573
The southeastward spread led to the settlement of Crdoba in the interior. In the same year Juan de Garay led a group of creoles (American born Spanish) from Asuncin to the south; they conquered and expelled the Indians from the lower Paran region and founded the city of Santa Fe. Santa Fe was regarded as a way station toward resettlement of Buenos Aires. The two routes of immigration now merged, although access from the northwest remained the official source of entry into what is now Argentina. (RHF)

1580
Garay led an expedition of a few more than 60 Spaniards and some 200 Indian families south from Santa Fe and succeeded in reestablishing Buenos Aires. Of the 63 Spanish inhabitants 53 were native-born mestizos (persons of mixed Spanish and Indian parentage). By this time the clash of the two outlooks was implanted; the more conservative, conventional, and Spanishoriented in the cities settled form the northwest and one that was more individualistic and potentially rebellious in the area of the pampas of which Buenos Aires became the center. Buenos Aires grew only slowly and had virtually to live on smuggling of goods into and out of Argentina. (RHF)

1586
Juan Ramrez de Velasco, governor of Buenos Aires, was sent to establish law and order in what is now northwestern Argentina. (RHF)

1588
Corrientes was founded. (RHF)

1594
The king of Spain decreed that no ship should go in or out of the Plata River. (RHF)

1596
San Luis in the northwest was founded. (RHF)

1600s
During the 17th cent. the city ceased to be endangered by indigenous peoples, but French, Portuguese, and Danish raids were frequent. (CE, Buenos Aires, Sixth Edition, 2001 2005)

1617
What is now Paraguay became a separate division and hence less of a drain on the limited resources of Buenos Aires. (RHF) In 1617 the province of Buenos Aires, or Ro de la Plata, was separated from the administration of Asuncin and was given its own governor. (CE, Buenos Aires, Sixth Edition, 2001 2005)

1618
The Spanish crown gave permission for two small ships to sail from Cdiz directly for Buenos Aires, but efforts were made to keep goods from being taken into the interior of Argentina. (RHF)

1620
A bishopric was established in Buenos Aires. (CE, Buenos Aires, Sixth Edition, 2001 2005)

1622
A customs border was established at Crdoba (moved to the northwest about three-fourths of a century later) to cross which goods from Buenos Aires were charged a duty of 50 percent ad valorem; the result was to encourage smuggling and retard growth of Buenos Aires. (RHF)

1626
Potos was founded in 1545 and during its first 50 years was the most fabulous source of silver the world had ever known. Because of isolation, living discomfort, and a series of disasters, such as the flood of 1626, the mines proved unable to compete with those of Peru and Mexico. (CE, Potos, 6th Ed., 2001)

1680
Colonia del Sacramento was founded by the Portuguese. (CE, Colonia del Sacramento, Sixth Edition, 2001 2005)

1695
The Academy of Monserrat in Crdoba came under sponsorship of the Jesuit Order. It was the first important secondary school in Argentina. (RHF)

1711
Father Louis Feuille of France undertook one of the first systematic studies of the natural history of Argentina. (RHF)

1726
Montevideo, present capital of Uruguay, was founded by Bruno Mauricio de Zabala, governor of Buenos Aires. (RHF)

1767
Charles III expelled and expropriated the Jesuits. (CE, Charles III, Sixth Edition, 2001 2005)

1770
Buenos Aires population totaled 22,007, including 4,163 Negro and mulatto slaves. It was then the fourth largest city in Spanish South America. (RHF)

1771
Buenos Aires was described by Alonso Carron de la Vandera (pseudonym: Concolorcorvo) as a very primitive town. The characterization was included in his Lazarillo de Ciegos Caminantes (Guide for Blind Travelers). (RHF)

1776
Spain established its fourth viceroyalty, that of La Plata, with its capital at Buenos Aires. At the time the city had about 25,000 inhabitants and was greatly exceeded in population by the northern provinces. The new viceroyalty included the present republics of Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay, and Bolivia (though boundaries were vague). Its establishment, with direct transatlantic access to Spain, gave a great boost to Buenos Aires, which, by 1800 had a population of 40,000. Economic contacts with Britain and cultural reliance on France increased. (RHF) Reforms in the Bourbon dynasty and a need to defend against Portuguese encroachment from Brazil led to the formation of the Viceroyalty of La Plata - including Argentina, Bolivia, Paraguay, and Uruguay. Argentina had been part of Spain's Viceroyalty of Peru. The thirteen British colonies in North America declared their independence (July 4). Adam Smith published The Wealth of Nations. James Watt creates the steam engine (Drucker???).

1777 1778
Trade restrictions were relaxed and BsAs grew from a small town to a city of 50,000 by 1800. (Source: ?) Juan Jos de Vrtiz y Salcedo sucedi a Pedro de Cevallos como segundo virrey. Su labor progresista en el orden material y cultural se revela con los siguientes ejemplos: fundacin del Colegio de San Carlos, de la Casa de Comedias (primer teatro con que cont Buenos Aires), del Hospital de Expsitos, del Protomedicato y de numerosos fuertes precursores de ciudades posteriormente importantes. Estableci el alumbrado de las calles, puso en vigor el

7 reglamento referente al libre comercio, etc. El 7 de marzo de 1784 entreg el mando al marqus de Loreto. (BHG, Vrtiz y Salcedo, Juan Jos de)

1780
Dean Gregorio Funes paid public tribute to Descartes, Galileo, Newton, and other intellectuals. It was a daring action in view of the ultraconservative tone of the government at the time and was the first time in Argentina that anyone had spoken so freely. (RHF)

1789
July 14
The French Revolution gets under way with the storming of the Bastille in Paris.

1791
A professorship of jurisprudence was established at the University of Crdoba. (RHF)

1793
Porteos (residents of the Port of Buenos Aires) presented their first petition to the Spanish crown for establishment of unrestricted trade; it was rejected. (RHF)

1796
Treaty of San Ildefonso: an alliance of France with Spain against Great Britain in the French Revolutionary Wars. (CE, San Ildefonso, Treaty of)

1799
On the initiative of Manuel Belgrano, schools of navigation and design were established. (RHF)

August 6

In application of the index expurgatorius the vice-roy threatened severe punishments for people reading prohibited books or papers. (RHF)

*1800s

To what extent did Argentina industrialize during the 19th century? How did its development differ from that of other nations and regions? Were the railroads in the US built with American capital?

1800
Population of Buenos Aires: 50,000. (Source: ?)

1801
The teaching of anatomy and surgery began in Buenos Aires. (RHF)

April 1

The first periodical Telgrafo Maercantil, Rural, Poltico, Econmico, e Historografo del Ro de la Plata, began publication. Inasmuch as this was prior to the invention of the telegraph, the Telgrafo referred to use of a semaphore for transmitting news. (RHF)

1802
The Semanario de Agricultura (Agricultural Weekly) began publication; it was suspended, however, in 1807. (RHF)

1806
June 27
A British naval force under Sir Home Popham appeared before Buenos Aires and landed a contingent of 1,600 men commanded by Colonel W.C. Beresford. The troops occupied the city without resistance. Viceroy Sobremonte fled the following day, with what treasure he could gather, to Crdoba in the interior. Porteos soon began to organize resistance under the leadership of Santiago Liniers, a French officer who had had long service in the Spanish army. Many peninsulares (Spanish-born residents) aided the effort. (RHF)

Span. Santiago de Liniers y de Bremond (snt g th l n rs th br m nd) (KEY) , 1753 1810, French officer in Spanish service, viceroy of Ro de la Plata. After a military and naval career in Europe, he was transferred to the Ro de la Plata (1788) as a Spanish naval officer. In 1806 he recaptured Buenos Aires from British forces under William Carr Beresford. The viceroy had fled, and Liniers was named commander in chief and lieutenant to the viceroy. When a second British invasion occurred the following year, Liniers called a junta of war, including Manuel Belgrano, which deposed the viceroy

9 (Feb. 10, 1807). Despite the rout of the creole army outside Buenos Aires, the hastily organized defenses of the city proved effective (July 5, 1807); the British general, John Whitelocke, surrendered. In May, 1808, the appointment of Liniers as viceroy became known; he served until Aug., 1809, though there were attempts by his political enemies to oust him. After retirement, he became involved in a counterrevolutionary plot and was executed. *Argentines sometimes wonder, often with a sense of regret, what their country would be like if the British had won in 1806 and formally colonized Argentina. But would British rule have in fact mattered? To what extent would Anglo-Saxon influence have affected Argentine reality? To what extent has it influenced India (for the better), to take one example?

August 12

Porteos succeeded in expelling the British from Buenos Aires. When the inept and cowardly viceroy returned from Crdoba porteos insisted that he be removed from office. Liniers soon became acting viceroy. (RHF)

1807
June
A larger British force again attempted conquest of Buenos Aires but failed and had to withdraw. Porteo pride and confidence were bolstered. (RHF)

1809
September
Mariano Moreno, a creole lawyer, published anonymously a wellreasoned pamphlet arguing for a trial period of free trade. In November the viceroy granted limited free trade to the port. (RHF)

*His equivalent in the US, Thomas Paine. Was he conscious of this?

1810 1852
The decades divided into three major phases. First, in 1810-1811 came territorial dismemberment, the loss of Upper Peru, Paraguay, and in a less direct way the Plates east bank. Second, between 1812 and 1816, widening fissures developed between Buenos Aires and its northern and western hinterland, from Santa Fe to Tucuman and Cuyo. Frictions between a Unitarist, or centralist, faction in Buenos Aires and a Federalist, or provincial, faction beyond led eventually to spasmodic civil war alongside the struggle with Spain; the outcome was the rise of regional warlordism or caudillismo.

10 The third phase, from 1816 to 1820, brought a temporary truce in the civil wars, which furthered the cause of emancipation from Spain, but in 1819-1820 reintensified civil war returned. The wars climax brought the conquest of Buenos Aires and the of the Unitarists by Federalist caudillos, and the extinction of central government.

1810
~ A Spanish edition of Rousseaus Social Contract was published in Buenos Aires. (RHF) La Revolucin de Mayo. The Buenos Aires cabildo (official governing council) met to decide on a policy toward Spain, most of which had been occupied by invading French troops. Counsels were divided but the growing and unruly crowd in the plaza outside ultimately forced a decision to form a junta (unofficial governing committee) to rule ostensibly in the name of the imprisoned King Ferdinand. Moreno became one of its secretaries and its guiding genius. The date, May 25, came to be recognized as that of Argentine independence. Moreno established a weekly propaganda periodical, La Gaceta de Buenos Aires; it was the first uncensored newspaper in Argentina. (RHF) On May 25, 1810 (May 25 is the Argentine national holiday), revolutionists, acting nominally in favor of the Bourbons dethroned by Napoleon (see Spain), deposed the viceroy, and the government was controlled by a junta. The result was war against the royalists. (CE?)

May 25

November

Juan Jos Castelli defeats the Spaniards north of Jujuy at Suipacha, then receives a warm welcome in Upper Peru, before being destroyed by Goyeneches army several months later. (David Rock, Argentina, p. 82)

1811
Buenos Aires, where sentiment was liberal and predominantly revolutionary, wanted to dominate all territory that had belonged to the viceroyalty of La Plata. An army sent into Paraguay [in 1810, commanded by Manuel Belgrano (David Rock, Argentina, p. 83)] to force compliance was smashed [early in 1811] by an aroused Paraguayan population [led by Jos Gspar de Francia] and that area continued its traditional isolation [under de dictarship of de Francia]. Buenos Aires forces were also unsuccessful in winning support from Bolivian Indians and from settlements in Uruguay. (RHF)

11

September

An army from Brazil relieved Francisco Javier de Elo former governor of Montevideo and now the accredited viceroy who was under attack from Artigas. (David Rock, Argentina, pp. 83 84)

In September 1811, following the defeat at Huaqu, Saavedra and his cumbersome committee style rule were replaced by an executive triumvirate. (David Rock, Argentina, p. 85)

1812
March
Jos de San Martn, Argentine born but educated in Spain, returned to Buenos Aires alter 20 years service in the Spanish army, determined to devote himself to the goal of SpanishAmerican freedom. He was almost immediately named to head a regiment of mounted grenadiers and at once began organizing and training his troops. He was a firm believer in discipline and drill. (RHF) *Is it true San Martins mother was indigenous? ? The patriots under Manuel Belgrano won a victory [over the royalists] at Tucumn. (CE?) Under British pressure in Rio de Janeiro intended to avert a war in the River Plate that would disrupt commerce the Portuguese withdrew, and the siege of Montevideo recommenced.

July

1813 1814
San Martn and his soldiers were sent as reinforcements to aid Manuel Belgrano in the northern province of Tucumn. After reorganizing the forces there and stabilizing the area, he requested a transfer to Mendoza in western Argentina, close to the Andes Mountains, with the undisclosed intention of later crossing the Andes with his army and overthrowing Spanish power in Chile. (RHF)

September

The Congress of Vienna began (and ended in June 1915).

12

1815
? Two eminent porteos, Belgrano and Bernardino Rivadavia, were sent to Europe to try to find a member of some royal family who might be persuaded to head a constitutional monarchy in Argentina, a form of government favored by many creoles. No European prince or princess would accept such a possibility under the limitations imposed by the Argentine provinces, and, on his return, Belgrano as a last resort proposed placing a descendant of the old Inca dynasty in Peru on a not yet established Argentine throne. San Martn favored the plan as a way of establishing central authority and promoting unity but it did not win general acceptance. (RHF) The Congress of Vienna ended.

June

1816-20 1816

Guerras de la independencia: criollos vs espaoles (Source:?)

A congress of provincial representatives met at Tucumn early in the year. The situation, both internally and abroad, was perilous; both northern South America and Chile had been restored to Spanish control and Ferdinand VII had been re-established on the Spanish throne as an absolute monarch. The congress represented divided counsels but the strongest leaders in the country favored independence from Spain. (RHF)

July 9

Moved by the flaming oratory of Belgrano, the congress formally declared Argentine independence and assumed as a title for the new state the United Provinces of South America. Monarchical sentiment in the congress had to give way to the popular insistence on a republic. (RHF) On July 9, 1816, a congress in Tucumn proclaimed the independence of the United Provinces of the Ro de La Plata. Other patriot generals were Mariano Moreno, Juan Martn de Pueyrredn, and Jos de San Martn. (Source: CE, Argentina?) A struggle ensued between those who wanted to unify the country and those who didn't want to be dominated by Buenos Aires. Independence was followed by virtually permanent civil war, with many coups d'etat by regional, social, or political factions. (CE?)

13

After independence the question of political relations among the United Provinces was settled by a federalist solution in which the provinces dissolved into a number of practically independent republics. (Source: ?)

August

San Martn furthered his plans for the trans-Andean invasion of Chile. He was made commander of the Army of the Andes and assembled additional troops and equipment. Even with the buildup the army included fewer than 6,000 men. (RHF)

1817
January 18
The invasion of Chile began. Although it was mid-summer, the crossing of the Andes through a pass more than 12,000 feet high, dragging carts, cables, and cannon along a narrow and treacherous road, was en epochal feat. (RHF) The Andes having been successfully crossed, the Argentine force took Spanish troops completely by surprise and soundly defeated them in the battle of Chacabuco. Two days later the invading force entered the Chilean capital of Santiago. The brilliant victory turned the tide of war in southern South America. San Martn, though offered the governorship of Chile, declined it, saying that he was fighting battles not to conquer governments but to liberate peoples. Porteo leaders soon afterward attempted unsuccessfully to get diplomatic and maritime aid in the United Status for an ArgentineChilean attack on the center of Spanish power in Peru at the viceregal capital of Lima. (RHF) Manuel Dorrego attacked the government of Juan Martn de Pueyrredn and was banished. Returning to Buenos Aires in 1820, he was provisional governor of the province (JulySept., 1820). (CE, Dorrego, Manuel, 6th Ed., 2001 2005)

February 12

??

1818
April 5
San Martns forces, in another decisive defeat of Spanish troops at Maip, virtually broke the back of Spanish authority in Chile. (RHF)

14

1819
June
Juan Martn Pueyrredn, governor at Buenos Aires, resigned his position at the end of his term, feeling that conditions there bordered on anarchy. Almost at once the city was threatened by the rude and undisciplined gauchos (more or less, cowboys) of the pampa. This pointed up the growing gulf between Buenos Aires and the provinces. Authorities at Buenos Aires ordered San Martn to return with his army for its protection but he refused and resigned his commission, holding that his higher responsibility was toward the freeing of Chile and Peru from the Spanish. (RHF) The Age of Rivadavia (David Rock)

1820 1829 1820

San Martns army, assisted by Chilean forces under the patriot leader Bernardo OHiggins were transported by sea to begin the campaign against Peru. Armies led by Simn Bolvar from Venezuela and Colombia moved down from northern South America. After a two-day conference in Guayaquil, Ecuador in July, 1822 between the two great generals, the details of which have never come to light, San Martn withdrew and left the final liberation of Peru to Bolvar and his lieutenants. San Martn went south, first to Peru, then to Chile, then to Argentina, and finally, in 1824, to voluntary exile in England, Belgium, and France. He died in 1850 at Boulogne, France, and in 1889 his remains were taken back to Buenos Aires and buried in the capitals cathedral. (RHF) By 1820, the terrible year, it was later called, political lines between the porteos and the residents of the hinterland were becoming more tightly drawn. Their respective groupings-rudimentary parties--were the Unitarians (the more sophisticated inhabitants of Buenos Aires, who wanted a centralized government for Argentina, naturally under domination of the capital city and its province) and the Federalists (the poorly organized populations of the interior, led by provincial caudillos, strong and magnetic leaders--military chieftains and political bosses--who were mutually distrustful of one another but united in their opposition to Buenos Aires). (RHF)

February

Gaucho forces from Santa Fe and Entre Ros provinces defeated porteo troops in the battle of Cpeda, confirming the actual autonomy of the provinces and blocking dominance by Buenos Aires for the time being. Subsequent conditions in Buenos Aires

15 reached virtual anarchy marked by a rapid turnover in governors. (RHF)

September

General Martn Rodrguez was chosen governor and managed to hold office for four years. (RHF)

1821
Rivadavia returned from Europe and became Rodrguezs principal cabinet minister. He served ably and energetically as a minister from 1821 to 1824 and as president in 1826-27; in the latter post, challenges from the regional caudillos effectively limited his authority to Buenos Aires province. He was responsible for many constructive measures including, in 1821, the founding of the University of Buenos Aires. (RHF) The University of Buenos Aires (UBA) was founded. (RHF)

1822
Rivadavia abolished many Catholic Church privileges and more closely regulated various Church organization; serious friction with the Church followed. In the same year the United States extended diplomatic recognition to Argentina. (RHF) *Did the Church side with the royalists in the revolution?

1824
A new land law for Buenos Aires province, extended to all provinces in 1826, was ultimately responsible for cementing on Argentina a pattern of large landholdings that long retarded the economic democratization of the country. In that year, too, Great Britain recognized Argentine independence. (RHF) *INEQUALITY A constituent assembly created the office of president, first held by Bernardino Rivadavia who resigned due to the failure to ratify a workable constitution. (CE, Argentina?)

1825
The Republic of Bolivia emerged, its territories once part of the Viceroyalty of La Plata. (David Rock, Argentina, p. 83)

16

Se cre por ley la presidencia de la Repblica con carcter interino y hasta que se sancionara la Constitucin.

1826
February 7
Rivadavia, que haba regresado al pas, asume la presidencia. Bajo su mandato, el Congreso aprob la Constitucin de ese ao, que estableca el sistema unitario de gobierno, y que fue rechazada por las provincias. La presidencia de Rivadavia sancion las leyes de enfiteusis, de creacin del Banco Nacional, nacionalizacin de la Aduanas provinciales, etc. Se declar tambin la guerra con el Brasil que, a pesar de los triunfos militares, concluy en 1827, con la firma de un tratado de paz totalmente desventajoso para las Provincias Unidas. Ese episodio aument el descontento contra Rivadavia, que renunci el 27 de junio de 1827. A new, centralist constitution aroused general opposition in the provinces. (RHF) *Was this the first constitution for Argentina?

1827
June 27
Rivadavia resigned, plagued by discontent augmented by the treaty with Brazil. Vicente Lpez y Planes was designated interim president. Rivadavia transferred power to Vicente Lpez y Planes Rivadavia, faced with general revolt, resigned the presidency. He was succeeded by Governor Manuel Dorrego of Buenos Aires province, who lasted only about a year; civil war and near anarchy followed for some months. (RHF) After Juan Facundo Quiroga forced Rivadavias resignation and the dissolution of the national government, Dorrego a leading advocate of Federalism became governor of Buenos Aires. (CE, Dorrego, Manuel, 6th Ed., 2001 2005) *INSTABILITY / INTERRUPTION

July July

August

17

1828
??
As governor of Buenos Aires, Manuel Dorrego accepted on behalf of the nation the treaty of peace with Brazil. (CE, Dorrego, Manuel, 6th Ed., 2001 2005) Manuel Dorregos constitutional government was overthrown by Juan Lavalle, and Dorrego was summarily executed. This action led to a reprisal by Juan Manuel de Rosas, who claimed to be Dorregos avenger. (CE, Dorrego, Manuel, 6th Ed., 2001 2005) *INSTABILITY / INTERRUPTION *Was Dorregos government really constitutional (as the Columbia Encyclopedia biography claims)? After all he was installed after Rivadavias ouster by Quiroga. (hwn lvy ) (KEY) , 17971841, Argentine general, governor of Buenos Aires province (182829). He served (181624) in the War of Independence and (182628) in the war with Brazil. Returning to Buenos Aires, he led his troops in revolt (Dec. 1, 1828) against the governor, Manuel Dorrego, who fled. Lavalle was proclaimed governor. He pursued Dorrego, defeated him, and ordered his summary execution (Dec. 13, 1828). The Argentine provinces protested; a national convention pronounced the execution high treason. Forces commanded by Estanislao Lpez, governor of Santa Fe, and Juan Manuel de Rosas defeated Lavalle (Apr., 1829), who took refuge in Montevideo. Aided by Argentine exiles there and, for a time, by French officials, Lavalle organized an army in 1839 and, invading Argentina, campaigned against Rosas. The campaign was generally unsuccessful; Lavalle was decisively defeated by Manuel Oribe, an ally of Rosas, in 1841. He was killed in Jujuy when attempting to reach Bolivia.

December

1829
Juan Manuel de Rosas became governor of Buenos Aires province. He came from a prominent family but was essentially a self-educated gaucho. He was nominally a Federalist, favoring provincial autonomy; but when he later extended his authority over all Argentina his strong-willed rule would not tolerate insubordination from any of the local caudillos. His first task was to consolidate power in Buenos Aires province, which he did ruthlessly, especially against the Unitarians. (RHF)

18 Juan Manuel de Rosas became governor of BA and presided over the construction of a federal agreement between the provinces in 1831. (CE, Argentina?) Together with Estanislao Lpez, [Rosas] defeated Juan Lavalle, and became governor (1829) of Buenos Aires with dictatorial powers. Aided by Lpez and Juan Facundo Quiroga, he waged a sanguinary campaign against the unitarians, destroying their movement, at least temporarily. (Source: CE, Rosas, Juan Manuel de, 6th Ed., 2001-2005)

1831
Rosas signed the Federal Pact with Estanislao Lpez, caudillo in some of the provinces fronting the Uruguay River, by which the two leaders pledged to destroy the Unitarians and take steps toward organization of a Federal regime in Argentina. (RHF) Schillers William Tell and Mary Stuart were presented in Buenos Aires. (RHF)

1832
Because the council in Buenos Aires was unwilling to extend Rosass dictatorial powers, he refused re-election, late in the year, to a second term as governor. For the next two and a half years three weak governors bumbled in efforts to control the province while Rosas led a campaign against the Indians and succeeded in pushing the frontier south and west, thus opening large new areas for agricultural settlement. (RHF)

1835
April
After repeated engineered appeals Rosas returned to power with a grant of complete authority for as long as he thought necessary. His title was that of governor but he exercised full control over the whole of Argentina for the next 17 years. This was accomplished by a highly efficient spy system, by the merciless jailing, exiling, or execution of opponents, by a forced and fantastic homage to himself, and by similar means. On the other hand, he succeeded in holding Argentina together and preventing further split-offs such as had wrested Uruguay, Paraguay, and Bolivia from the former viceroyalty. (RHF) *INTOLERANCE / REPRESSION / TERROR / DICTATORSHIP / CAUDILLISMO

19

1838
The French government, affronted by brusque treatment by Rosas of a French consular agent and also wishing to protect French commerce in the disturbed Plata area, sent a naval force which occupied a key customs house, with serious consequences for Argentine government finances. Resulting disturbances in Buenos Aires and some of the interior provinces were harshly crushed. The French withdrew their forces in 1840 and agreed to arbitrate their claims. Rosas continued to interfere militarily in Uruguay. (RHF)

1839
Aided by Argentine exiles [in Montevideo, where he had taken refuge in 1929] and, for a time, by French officials, Juan Lavalle organized an army in 1839 and, invading Argentina, campaigned against Rosas. The campaign was generally unsuccessful; Lavalle was decisively defeated by Manuel Oribe, an ally of Rosas, in 1841. He was killed in Jujuy when attempting to reach Bolivia. (CE, Lavalle, Juan, 6th Ed., 2001-2005) *WAR / INSTABILITY / VIOLENCE / CAUDILLISMO

1841
Juan Lavalle was killed in Jujuy by Manuel Oribe, an ally of Rosas, while attempting to reach Bolivia. (CE, Lavalle, Juan, 6th Ed., 2001-2005)

1843 1851 1844

Montevideo, the Troy of the River Plate, was under siege by Juan Manuel de Rosas, the Caligula of the River Plate.

Richard Newton, an Englishman, introduced barbed wire fencing into Argentina, thus permitting the later development of wheat raising and breeding of better beef cattle. (RHF)

1845
Britain and France joined in a naval blockade of the Plata River to protect their nationals and their commercial interests in the area. By a diplomatic note the United States protested the action in 1846

20 as a violation of the Monroe Doctrine but, then engaged in the Mexican War, could do nothing further about it. The blockade was lifted in 1847-48. (RHF)

1847-1848
The British and French naval blockade of the Plata River was lifted. (RHF) *Did events in France in 1848 have anything to do with the lifting of the blockade?

1848
Revolutions in Europe. (Source: Personal knowledge)

1850s 1850 1900 1852

February 3

Heavy immigration, particularly from Spain and Italy. The other provinces formed the Argentine Federation, based on a federal constitution of 1853, but BA refused to join. (Source: ?) Argentina begins to incorporate itself into the world economy.

Rosas was defeated in a battle which finally ended his long Argentine dominance. A combined army from three of the littoral provinces plus troops from Uruguay and Brazil commanded by the caudillo governor of Entre Ros, Justo Jos Urquiza, easily overcame the half-hearted forces of the dictator, whose support had been eroding for several years. Rosas resigned and immediately left for exile in England, where he lived in poverty until 1877. (RHF) *INSTABILITY / INTERRUPTION

February 20 May

Urquizas forces entered Buenos Aires and quieted the anarchy prevailing there. (RHF) Urquiza convened the provincial governors and gained their consent to the Pact of San Nicols, naming Urquiza as provisional president, calling for a constitutional convention, and denouncing internal trade barriers. Urquiza decreed free navigation on the Argentine rivers and nationalization of customs revenues. Buenos

21 Aires, unwilling to accept loss of its monopoly of customs receipts, refused to accept the San Nicols agreements and ousted the Urquiza-imposed governor. The province of Buenos Aires seceded and the Argentine capital was moved to Paran, where it remained for eight years. This represented a renewal of the old UnitarianFederalist rivalry. (RHF)

September 11 November

Revolution against Urquiza. (DBHG, Alsin, Adolfo) The constitutional assembly met at Santa Fe. A foundation for its draft constitution was a short book by Juan Bautista Alberdi, an Argentine exiled in Chile, proposing bases for the political organization of Argentina. (RHF)

1853
May 1
The Santa Fe convention adopted the Argentine constitution. It was based on Alberdis proposals and closely followed the United States constitution in structure of government. Urquiza became constitutional president. (RHF) In 1853 the city and province of Buenos Aires refused to participate in a constituent congress and seceded from Argentina. National political unity was finally achieved when Bartolom Mitre became Argentinas president in 1862 and made Buenos Aires his capital. Bitterness between Buenos Aires and the province continued, however, until 1880, when the city was detached from the province and federalized. A new city, La Plata, was built as the provincial capital. (CE, Buenos Aires, 6th Ed., 2001)

1854
July 10
The Buenos Aires Stock Exchange is founded. (Source: http://www.bcba.sba.com.ar/) Buenos Aires and the Federation went to war with each other. (CE, Argentina?)

1859-61 1859

Friction between Buenos Aires and the rest of the country culminated in a short civil war in which porteo troops under Bartolom Mitre were defeated by Urquiza. The latters army then threatened Buenos Aires and that city was forced to accept

22 union with the rest of the country, with the sop of promised constitutional concessions to Buenos Aires. (RHF) *BsAs vs INTERIOR / VIOLENCE / INSTABILITY

1860
Mitre became governor of Buenos Aires province and Urquiza gave up the presidency of the federation to Santiago Derqu. (RHF)

1861 1865 1861

September

American Civil War

A final indecisive battle (Pavn) in the sporadic civil war convinced Urquiza that he must give up the struggle with Buenos Aires. Late in the year Mitre assumed the provisional presidency, after Derqus resignation, and moved the capital back to Buenos Aires. (RHF)

1862
May
A congress approved Mitres course of action, declared him welldeserving from the Fatherland, and elected him constitutional president. He was an accomplished soldier, orator, politician, and writer. Proposals for federalizing Buenos Aires as the national capital (similarly to Washington, DC) were defeated by porteo opposition. (RHF)

1862
[Buenos Aires and the Federation] reached an agreement on the inclusion of BsAs in the Argentine Republic. (Source: ?) *Formalmente, la constitucin argentina tiene un rgimen democrtico y federal (Mario Cantarini: Esto realmente no es un pas federal. Por qu?)

1864
The constructive early part of Mitres administration was sidetracked by Argentine involvement, late in 1864, in the Paraguayan War, allied with Brazil and Uruguay against the small but fiercely militaristic land-locked nation to the north. The five-year war took a considerable toll of Argentine resources and

23 Mitres popularity but virtually destroyed Paraguay as a nation. (RHF)

1865-70 1868

Argentina joined Brazil and Uruguay in The War of the Triple Alliance against Paraguay. (Source: ?)

Domingo Faustino Sarmiento, minister to the United States and a long-time rival of Mitre, was elected president. He was a distinguished writer, a devotee of education, an admirer of the United States, but highly egotistic and snobbish. (RHF)

1869
Argentinas first census showed a population of about 1,800,000, with almost 500,000 in Buenos Aires province and 178,000 in the capital city. Sarmientos stimulation of immigration was matched by his encouragement of education; school enrollment and facilities almost doubled during his administration. (RHF) Jos Carlos Paz established La Prensa in Buenos Aires. It became one of the worlds great newspapers. (RHF) Population: two million. (Source: ?)

1871
Buenos Aires suffered a severe epidemic of yellow fever; more than 13,000 died within five months. (RHF) As a consequence of this epidemic, the rich abandoned the southern districts of Buenos Aires, such as San Telmo, and moved north. The divide remains to this day. (Personal knowledge)

1874
With support from Sarmiento, his minister of education, Nicols Avellaneda, was elected president over Mitre and inaugurated in October. Mitre, claiming fraud, led a revolt, which was not suppressed for three months. (RHF)

24

1875
September 3
The first official [polo] match in Argentina took place The game had been taken there by English and Irish engineers and ranchers. (www.polo.co.uk)

1878
A boundary dispute with Chile over lands in southern Patagonia and Tierra del Fuego was brought to a head when Avellaneda sent a small naval force south to oust the Chileans. The latter country, then engaged in the War of the Pacific with Peru and Bolivia, did not contest the Argentine claim and withdrew its forces. (RHF)

1878 79 1879 84 1879

May 24

The conquest of the indigenous people by General Roca had made colonization of the region in the south and southwest possible. The War of the Pacific between Chile and the allied nations, Peru and Bolivia.

The Indian problem in southern Argentina was finally settled by a decisive victory by troops under Gen. Julio A. Roca, minister of war, over tribes in the southern areas which had conducted raids into agricultural lands and thus retarded settlement. This enormously enhanced Rocas prestige and popularity and was the major factor in his election as president in 1880. (RHF) *INTOLERANCE / REPRESSION / VIOLENCE

1880
September 20
The long-standing capital question was officially settled by a law federalizing the city of Buenos Aires and providing for establishment of a new capital for the province. Buenos Aires city, as the national capital, was put under direct control of the federal government. Buenos Aires province briefly but unsuccessfully resisted loss of control over the metropolis. (RHF)

*BsAs vs INTERIOR

25

1880
La generacin del 80 Sarmiento tenia el discurso de la educacin Orden y progreso Comienza el gran periodo de riqueza

1882
The coastal city of La Plata was established on the pampa 50 miles southeast of Buenos Aires to serve as a new provincial capital. (RHF) *LA PLATA

1886
Miguel Jurez Celman, brother-in-law of Roca, was elected president. His administration was extravagant and corrupt; the public debt tripled within four years. Concentration of land holding in the hands of big estancieros (large estate owners) increased. Jurez Celman was forced out of office by popular and congressional opposition in 1890 and succeeded by his vicepresident, Carlos Pellegrini. (RHF)

1890
April 13
Middle-class entry into politics was formalized by the organization of the Civic Union of Youth under the leadership of a Basque lawyer, Leandro Alem. The organization had the support of the aged General Mitre. It soon broadened its name to the Radical Civic Union (UCR) and became commonly known as the Radical party. (RHF)

1892
October
A new administration, headed by President Luis Senz Pea, took office. General unrest led to the presidents resignation in midterm and he was succeeded by Vice-President Jos E. Uriburu. (RHF)

1896
July 1
Leandro Alem, leader of the Radical party, committed suicide. His position as party leader was assumed by his nephew, Hiplito Irigoyen (sometimes spelled Yrigoyen), a partly mystical and erratic but honest and charismatic leader who had politically

26 undermined his uncle. Irigoyen became a dominant, egotistical, and uncompromising leader of the party, almost its dictator. (RHF)

1898-1904 1898
October 12

Second administration of Roca.

General Roca began a second and heavy-handed term in the presidency. It was marked by frequent interventions in provincial affairs, by great expansion of railway mileage, commerce, and public works, and by settlement of a long-standing boundary dispute with Chile. (RHF)

*FEDERAL INTERVENTIONISM

1899 1900 1901 1902

Lus Mara Drago, Rocas able foreign minister, in instructions to the Argentine Minister to the United States, enunciated what came to be called the Drago Doctrine, that no public debt should be collected from sovereign American nations by armed force or through occupation of New World territory by foreign powers. The dispute arose from the strong measures being taken by European governments to collect defaulted debts from Venezuela. (RHF) Britains King Edward VII had to mediate between Argentina and Chile to stop them coming to blows. (1993-6-12, Economist, Chile and Argentina) A serious boundary dispute was settled with Chile, and perpetual peace between the two nations was symbolized by the Christ of the Andes. (Source: CE, Argentina?)

1903

27

1904
Manuel Quintana, essentially imposed by Roca, was elected president. He died in 1906 and was succeeded by Vice-President Jos Figueroa Alcorta.

1905 1906
The University of La Plata was founded. (Source: ?)

1907
On the urging of Deputy Alfredo L. Palacios, leader of the Argentine Socialist party, congress adopted one of the first Latin American laws regulating the labor of women and children. (RHF)

1908 1909 1910

Argentina celebrated the centennial of its independence with great international acclaim for the progress it had achieved. (RHF) Roque Senz Pea, French-educated member of a wealthy family and son of a former president, was elected president by the Conservative party. That party and the oligarchy it represented expected that he would continue the practice of favoring the interests of the wealthy but he expressed himself in favor of honest elections, effective suffrage, and a broadened popular participation in government. (RHF) *What drove Roque Senz Pea to act against the interests of his class? Jos Ingenieros published Evolucin Sociolgica Argentina. It was a pioneer sociological analysis of Argentine life and greatly stimulated study of such aspects of the countrys development. (RHF)

1911

28

1912
Passage of the Senz Pea law, after hot debate, achieved the goals which the president had espoused and which the oligarchy had previously dismissed as mere campaign talk. The law provided for secret and compulsory voting. Its first test, in the city of Buenos Aires, led to a spectacular Radical party victory and was followed by other Radical triumphs, to the disgust and anger of the thwarted Conservatives. (RHF) *INEQUALITY / OLIGARCHY / DEMOCRACY

1913 1914
August
Senz Pea died and was succeeded by Vice-President Victorino de la Plaza. He was immediately faced by serious economic repercussions following the outbreak of World War I. The government announced a policy of strict neutrality in the war. (RHF) World War I began. Population: 8 million. (Source: ???) Citibank opened its Buenos Aires office, the first in a rapidly built Latin American branch network. (Source: Roberts, Richard. 2002. Wall Street: The Markets, Mechanisms and Players. London: The Economist. P. 243)

1915 1916-1930
Desarrollo industrial empieza con la guerra mundial-industrializacin por la sustitucin de importes porque no llegan los bienes de Europa. Haba un proteccionismo natural. Con la industrializacin crece la clase obrera. (Source: ?)

1916
April
Though skeptical of how honestly the electoral law would be enforced, the Radical party entered a reluctant Irigoyen as its

29 presidential candidate. In a bitterly contested race, Irigoyen won, thus giving the Radical party its first president in its decade and a half of activity and the oligarchy its first defeat in more than 60 years. His conduct in office was capricious and unpredictable. He was personally honest but many officeholders under him were not. He insisted on a highly personal control of the government. Despite serious German provocation by submarine attacks on Argentine ships, Irigoyen adamantly refused to go to war. He was generally sympathetic to the lower classes but ruthless in his handling of labor during strikes in January, 1919. (RHF?) Radicales llegan al poder representando los inmigrantes y la clase media. (Source: )

1917 1918-21
High export prices bring enormous windfall gains to estancieros, but at the cost of heavy inflation and sever popular unrest. (Source: ?)

1918
A movement for reform in higher education began at the University of Crdoba, soon spread to the University of Buenos Aires, and then to that of La Plata. Later it was imitated in Uruguay, Peru, and several other Latin American countries. It involved student participation in university administration, appointment of professors by competitive examinations, academic freedom, and other changes. (RHF) *Is Crdoba not often the source of change in Argentina? Take, for example, the Cordobazo? If yes, why? The University of Littoral and the University of Tucumn were founded. (RHF) The Argentine University Federation was established as a product of the great university ferment of 1918. (RHF) *What is the Argentine University Federation?

30

1919
Irigoyen took Argentina into the League of Nations but soon took it out again in effect when the League declined to admit Austria and Germany. (RHF) *Why did Yrigoyen care?

January 9

Semana Tragica. In early January 1919 working-class discontent suddenly further intensified, and the subsequent events, known as La Semana Trgica, are remembered as one of the great benchmarks in the history of Argentine labor. Metallurgical workers in Buenos Aires had called a strike the month before. During the war the metallurgical industry had suffered perhaps more than any other because of its dependency o imported raw materials. High shipping rates and acute shortages due to arms manufacture caused the cost of raw materials to reach astronomical levels, and as costs climbed, wages fell. By the end of the war the metallurgical workers situation was desperate, their strike a battle for survival. Violence immediately ensued, and the city police force intervened. When the strikers killed a policeman, the force organized a retaliatory ambush. Two days later five bystanders were killed in an affray between the two sides. At this Buenos Aires erupted. On 9 January 1919 workers struck en masse, and more outbreaks of violence followed. As the Army intervened to quell the movement, the Radical government fell captive to a conservative-led reaction bent on exacting revenge for the disorders. In the strikes aftermath civilian vigilante gangs appeared in the streets. Their manhunt for agitators claimed scores of victims, among them numerous Russian Jews who were falsely accused of masterminding a Communist conspiracy. When the violence finally subsided, the vigilante groups organized themselves into the Argentine Patriotic League (Liga Patritica Argentina). With backing from the Army and Navy, the League remained active during the next two or three years, constantly vigilant against Bolshevik conspiracies, repeatedly threatening the government with force whenever it made renewed moves to conciliate organized labor, and conducting education campaigns among the immigrant communities to inculcate the values of patriotism. The outcome of Yrigoyens dablling with the unions was thus the crystallization of the new Right with authoritarian and protofascist tendencies. Behind it stood the Army, both of them ready to attack the government and thereby to bring to a swift conclusion the experiment with representative government. After 1919 Yrigoyen was compelled to give the new right virtually free rein; for example, strikes of shepherds and rural workers in

31 Patagonia in 19211922 were met by army intervention and a series of massacres. (David Rock, Argentina, pp. 201-202)

1920
Alejandro Korn published La Libertad Creadora, a veritable sourcebook for a new generation of writers. (RHF)

1921 1922 1928 1922

In an election strongly influenced by Irigoyen the presidency went to the Radical party candidate Marcelo T. de Alvear, Frencheducated and member of a wealthy family. His administration was less personalistic than that of Irigoyen. The latter continued intermeddling in politics with the result that the Radical party split into a personalista wing headed by Irigoyen and an anti-personalist faction led by Alvear. (RHF) *Why was someone like MT Alvear a Radical? *Its interesting that Alvear had gone abroad for his education. At this point, is the American upper class also studying abroad, or are US universities already world class? JP Morgan, if I remember correctly, studied in Germany in the 19th century. Marcelo Torquato de Alvear

1923 1924
The Martn Fierro group was formed in Buenos Aires by Jorge Luis Borges to follow the genre of that famous gaucho epic poem. (RHF)

1925 1926 1927

32

1928-30 1928

Hiplito Irigoyen, round two.

Irigoyen was again elected president as the Radical candidate. By this time he was even more erratic and in his advanced age bordered on senility. Routine operation of the national government became increasingly paralyzed. (RHF)

1929
March
Despite fraud and manipulation the Radicals were defeated in special elections in Buenos Aires and barely won in two provincial elections. The financial situation became increasingly critical. Unorganized opposition to Irigoyen mounted. (RHF) Ricardo Guiraldes published his famous novel, Don Segundo Sombra. (RHF)

October (?)

Black Tuesday in the United States. Beginning of the Great Depression???

19301940

The Infamous Decade El fraude patritico el fraude por el bien de la nacin

Prior to WWII Argentina was acutely Eurocentric, with an eye to British finance and French culture; this has changed since. (Source: ?)

1930
~ The budget deficit amounted to 300,000 pesos. National disintegration progressed rapidly, accelerated by the world-wide depression. (RHF) Irigoyen, old and sick, delegated his authority to Vice President Enrique Martinez, who promptly proclaimed a state of siege (martial law). Orders to prevent or limit revolutionary activity were not obeyed. (RHF)

September 5

33

September 6

[Coup 1] Irigoyen and Martnez resigned their offices under pressure from a group of angry right-wing elements led by General Jose F. Uriburu. Irigoyen was confined on a warship and soon imprisoned on an island in the Plata River where he remained almost until his death three years later. Alvear went into exile in Uruguay. (RHF)

*INSTABILITY / COUP / This represented the first interruption of constitutional rule after [?] years. It was a nasty precedent.

September 8

General Uriburu took the oath of office as provisional president. His accession marked the return to power of the landed oligarchy, now in alliance with the military. The new regime contemplated supplanting the 1853 constitution with a new one but abandoned the plan. Nor did it abrogate the Senz Pea voting law although it ceased enforcing it, with the result that elections were manipulated and fraudulent for years following. The new regime intervened freely in the universities and in provincial politics. (RHF)

1931
April 5 November 8
Radicals won elections in Buenos Aires province but the national government subsequently annulled them. (RHF) General Agustn P. Justo, representing the Conservative-military alliance, was elected president. (RHF)

1932
February 20
President Justo took office. His first act was to lift the state of siege that had been in effect for a year and a half. His six-year rule was a semi-dictatorship, with electoral frauds and intervention common and political opposition strictly controlled, but without murders, exilings, or torture. In some respects, Justo was overshadowed by his able and ambitious foreign minister, Carlos Saavedra Lamas. (RHF)

1933
May
Julio A. Roca, son of a former president, negotiated a rigid bilateral trade treaty (the Roca-Runciman Agreement) with Great

34 Britain by which Argentina received substantial British concessions regarding beef purchases. (RHF)

1934 1935
May 31
En marzo de 1935 el Congreso Nacional sancion finalmente la ley de creacin del Banco Central, la ley de bancos y otras normas que completaban la revolucionaria renovacin financiera. Los objetivos de la nueva institucin eran: concentrar reservas para moderar las consecuencias de las fluctuaciones de las exportaciones y de las inversiones de capitales extranjeros sobre la moneda, el crdito y las actividades comerciales; regular la cantidad de crdito y los medios de pago, adaptndolos al volumen real de los negocios; promover la liquidez y el buen funcionamiento del crdito bancario y controlar a los bancos; actuar como agente financiero y aconsejar al gobierno en la emisin de emprstitos y en las operaciones de crdito. (Gerchunoff and Llach, El ciclo - , p. 137. Exact date of creation of central bank from Central Bank website.) The centerpiece of Pinedos reforms was the Central Bank, created in 1934 [WRONG!]. The previous banking system made it impossible to control the money supply and manage the economy at large by such methods as buying or selling securities, rediscounting, or changing bank reserve requirements. When the gold standard was in force, as between 1927 and 1929, the domestic money supply was determined by gold holdings, a mechanism that produced a rigid, inelastic monetary system, one which invariably tended to enhance rather than attenuate business cycles. In the early 1930s the traditional alternative of inconvertibility was deemed unsatisfactory because depreciation heavily penalized foreign investors wishing to repatriate their earnings; Pinedo believed that economic recovery ultimately depended on renewed foreign investment. The Central Bank was thus intended primarily as an alternative to the gold standard, one that would uphold the peso at fixed parity and enhance the countrys attractiveness to new foreign investors, while avoiding the pains of automatic deflation as gold reserves fell. The bank was also empowered to regulate money supply. By 1935, under Ral Prebisch, its youthful and resourceful director-general, the bank, however, had developed quasi-Keynesian functions through its capacity to control credit and stimulate demand. The Central Bank was empowered to serve

35 as the financial agent of the government, thereby precluding the recurrence of situations in which the government and the private banks both competed for funds form the Banco de la Nacion. (David Rock, Argentina, p. 223)

1936
Saavedra Lamas presided over the special Inter-American Conference held at Buenos Aires at the instance of the US President Franklin D Roosevelt. Saavedra was subsequently awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his role in bringing the Chaco War between Bolivia and Paraguay to an end. (RHF)

1937
In a highly corrupt election Roberto M. Ortiz, a wealthy lawyer, was named president. Once in office in 1938, he announced that the law for secret voting would be enforced. The oligarchy concluded that he, like Senz Pea who had instituted the law in 1912, had betrayed his class. (RHF)

1938 1939
Ortiz began displaying open sympathy for Britain and her allies in World War II, to the irritation of a considerable pro-Axis group among Argentine army officers and their Conservative supporters. (RHF) The University of Cuyo was founded. (RHF)

1939-45
(WWII) Industry continues growing. (Source: )

1940
???? Failure of the Piedo Plan. Ortiz, ill with diabetes and almost blind, had to surrender the presidency to Vice President Ramn S. Castillo, an arch conservative, isolationist, and nationalistic law-school dean who had been elected with Ortiz to balance the ticket. A year later

36 Ortiz resigned the presidency and very soon thereafter died. Castillo, once in the acting presidency, went back to the old practices of corruption, repression, and electoral interference. He also began to display marked sympathy for the Axis cause in the war.

1941
December
Entry of the United States into World War II brought into sharp focus divisions in attitudes in Argentina. The government under Castillos lead almost openly favored the Axis and allowed free rein to German propaganda while much popular sentiment sympathized with Britain and France. (RHF)

1942
January In the third Foreign Ministers Conference at Rio de Janeiro only Argentina and Chile were holdouts against an otherwise unanimous decision to break diplomatic relations with the Axis powers. Public criticism of Argentinas pro-Axis course increased greatly. (RHF) After a war with Peru in 1941 which Ecuador lost, the two sides signed the Rio Protocol of 1942, guaranteed by the United States, Brazil, Argentina and Chile, under which Ecuador gave up about half of its territory to Peru. (1995-2-4, Economist, Peru and Ecuador; another football war)

1943
In the forthcoming elections Castillo apparently planned to impose a wealthy and unpopular estanciero, Robustiano Patrn Costas, as president. (RHF)

June 4

[Coup 2] The army took matters into its own hands. The small, politically minded and highly nationalistic colonels clique (also including a few generals) staged a coup detat in which troops marched on the presidential office and forced Castillo to resign for reasons of health. He was succeeded by a military junta in which Colonel Juan Domingo Peron, an admirer of the Axis dictators, soon emerged as the strong man. The general public, feeling initially that anything was better than Castillo, gave the coup enthusiastic support but quickly came to regret that reaction since Argentina was promptly faced with much more stringent

37 repression. The colonels clique, officially the GOU (Group of United Officers), at first showed some confusion as to policies, although three months before the coup it had secretly distributed a memorandum with strongly fascistic overtones expressing frank admiration for Nazi Germany. (RHF)

July September

General Pedro Pablo Ramrez, temporarily president, dissolved congress and thereafter ruled by decree. (RHF) The scheduled presidential election was canceled. Jail or exile faced increasing numbers of opponents. Anti-Semitic agitation increased. (RHF) A manifesto signed by about 150 business, professional, and intellectual leaders called for freedom of the press, effective democracy, solidarity with other American republics, and fulfillment of international pledges but it was met with increased repression by the government. (RHF) Victoria Ocampo founded the review Sur, a periodical that provided an open forum for world thought. She was harassed and imprisoned for a time by the Peron regime because of her unwillingness to conform to its pressures. (RHF)

October

1944
January
In the face of irrefutable evidence presented by the United States and Great Britain that German agents were carrying on espionage in Argentina protected by diplomatic immunity, the Argentine government was pressured into severing diplomatic relations with Axis powers. Ramrez was forced to resign; he gave way to General Edelmiro Farrell, with Peron continuing as the real though untitled head of government. (RHF) Peron based his bid for power increasingly on support from the proletariat, which he wooed persistently with consummate skill. Taking the headship of the Labor Department, he cultivated organized labor and saw to it that they got many concessions. (RHF) Peron was additionally named minister of war. (RHF) Peron was appointed vice president in addition to his other posts. (RHF)

May July

38

1945
Peron continued his climb to power. A highly effective ally was an illegitimate and initially obscure radio and movie actress, Eva Duarte (Evita) who had formed a deep dislike of the upper classes and after the military coup in 1943 quickly ingratiated herself with members of the officers clique, especially with Peron. She became his mistress and his staunch supporter in rallying the lower classes to his following. She was especially effective in propagandizing organized labor. (RHF)

March? October?

Argentina declared war on the Axis and subsequently expropriated 38 German firms. (Source???) Peron finally married Eva Duarte, allegedly under some pressure from fellow army officers who wanted to see their relationship regularized. (RHF, p. 127) An inept counter-coup ousted Peron from power and sent him to detention on a Plata River island; Farrell, however, was not removed from the presidency nor did the officers behind the coup consolidate their hold on government. Slightly over a week later Peron was permitted to return to Buenos Aires for medical treatment. Evita, who in the meantime had been whipping up proPeron sentiment among the descamisados (shirtless ones, as the proletariat was referred to by Peron), stage-managed a huge rally at which Peron spoke, was embraced by President Farrell, and promptly, though unofficially, restored to full political power. The counter-coup had ignominiously collapsed. (RHF) La famosa manifestacion espontanea en la Plaza de Mayo La clase obrera sale a la calle la primera demostracin de las masas en Argentina. 23:00 Peron spoke from the Casa Rosada to the crowd in the Plaza de Mayo. Speech.

October

October 17

*POPULAR PROTEST

December

Peron became the government candidate in the presidential elections set for the following February. An opposition coalition was headed by a colorless Radical party leader. The campaign was highly manipulated in favor of Peron. (RHF)

39

1946
February 24
Peron was overwhelmingly elected president. In contrast to the preceding campaign the election itself was scrupulously impartial. Peron, now married to Evita, was given a great psychological and political boost by this popular mandate to rule Argentina. Evita Peron came to wield enormous power. (RHF) Braden replaced with George Messersmith. [Why? Because of Bradens stance in the elections?] In March, in a measure instigated by Miranda and supported by Peron, Farrell nationalized the Central Bank and the deposits of private banks. This action eliminated the Central Banks formal autonomy, which it had enjoyed since its creation twelve years earlier, and its system of administration by a board of nominees from private banks. The measure also extended the rediscount nexus between the Central and private banks, and established uniform reserve requirements for issuing loans. Nationalization of the Central Bank thus enhanced the centralization of economic management. (David Rock, Argentina, p. 273). *CENTRAL BANK

May March

June 4

Peron succeeds Farell on the third anniversary of the 1943 coup. Peron was inaugurated on the third anniversary of the GOU coup. He promptly began preparation of an ambitious Five-Year Plan for building the New Argentina, chiefly by a crash program of industrialization. Although later modified, this ultimately had very serious consequences for Argentine agricultural productivity. The Army was treated with great favoritism and given many concessions. Peron started a national theater movement. It was intended to stress the nationalism that the regime wished to emphasize. (RHF) Juan Domingo Peron won the presidential election and constructed a populist political alliance that included workers, industrialists, and the armed forces. The Peron-inspired populist ideology of justicialismo included extension of franchise to women and redistribution of income to workers and the poor. The activities of Peron's charismatic wife, Eva, bolstered justicialismo

40 through her effort to distribute goods to the poor through the Social Aid Foundation. Peron appears to enjoy a more favorable international situation than any of his predecessors since at least the 1920s. Also marked a notable attenuation of the wartime feud with the US as a result of the increasing communist threat. Peron: Una politica redistributiva Lo apoyaron los sindicatos (Especialmente CGT), la iglesia y el ejercito Creo un estado benefactor y mas burocratico Evita: el voto para mujeres Estabilidad nacional: salarios o sueldos altos para obreros Perdio el apoyo de la iglesia y de la parte catolica del ejercito por introducir el divorcio y por sacar la obligacin de tener una educacin religiosa y el apoyo de la parte

1947
Evita made a triumphal official visit to Spain, Italy, and France and was received with high honors by the Spanish dictator Franco, the Pope, and the French president. In Argentina she won revenge on the women of the oligarchy, who had been contemptuously snubbing her, by heading a newly organized Eva Peron Foundation which was given control of all charitable activities, previously exercised by the matrons of the oligarchy. (RHF) Woman suffrage adopted. (Skidmore & Smith, pg 64)

1948
In a complicated purchase deal Argentina acquired title to the British-owned railways for 150,000,000. The government also managed to retire the outstanding foreign debt of about twelve and a half billion pesos. (RHF)

41

1949
March 16
The regime approved a new constitution. It maintained most of the governmental structure established in the 1853 constitution but wrote in a great deal of the new synthetic peronista philosophy and, most important of all from the standpoint of the regime, provided that a president could be immediately re-elected. (RHF) The Peronista party was officially founded as a political vehicle for Peron; it was the first time an Argentine party had formally been named for an individual. The following day the Peronista Feminist party was established and headed by Evita; this was the first Argentine womens party. (RHF)

July 25

1950
Late in the year the government cautiously began sounding out sentiment toward the possible later nomination of Eva Peron as a vice-presidential running-mate with Peron in the forthcoming presidential elections. (RHF)

1951
April August
The government expropriated the great independent newspaper La Prensa. (RHF) A huge stage-managed mass meeting of descamisados in downtown Buenos Aires demanded that Evita accept the vicepresidential nomination alongside Peron. She coyly accepted but a few days later withdrew, ostensibly because she was under the constitution age for the office but actually because pressure form high army officers forced her withdrawal. The colorless incumbent vice-president, Juan H. Quijano, was then substituted for her. (RHF) Peron was re-elected with about 60 percent of the vote, a higher fraction than in 1946. Peronistas were in full control of both houses of congress and all provinces. The election was soon followed by the flowering of justicialismo (roughly, social justice), the rationale synthetically developed as a foundation for the regime. (RHF)

November

42

1952
July
Evita Peron died of cancer. Only partially due to her death, the strength of the regime began to dissipate. The governments economic problems increased; a critical press entirely disappeared; the universities further deteriorated; the Catholic Church became increasingly alienated; agricultural production declined. (RHF)

1953 1954 1955

Population: 19 million. (Source: ?)

June

A demonstration of about 100,000 Catholics in the plaza fronting the presidential palace protested actions the government had recently taken which antagonized the Church. This was soon followed by an attempted naval revolt in which planes actually dropped a few bombs on Buenos Aires but then had to fly to refuge in Uruguay. In retaliation peronista gangs attacked and looted some of Buenos Airess finest churches. Peron expelled two high Church officials and the Vatican responded by excommunicating Peron and a number of his high associates. (RHF) Additional plots came to light and more rioting occurred. (RHF) 5x1 speech. (Source: ?) COUP 3] La Revolucion Libertadora Armed revolt broke out in several barracks in the interior provinces. General Eduardo Lonardi was named chief of the liberating movement. (RHF)

August August 31? September 16

September 19

Peron resigned as president and took refuge on a Paraguayan gunboat in the Plata River. He went into exile, first in Paraguay,

43 then successively in Panama, Venezuela, the Dominican Republic, and Spain. (RHF)

September 23 November 13

Londardi took over the provisional presidency. (RHF) [COUP 4] A further army coup ousted Lonardi and made General Pedro E. Aramburu provisional president. The apparent reason was internal army politics, especially the feeling that Lonardi had been too conciliatory toward conservative elements. Late in 1955 the government revealed that from 1946 to 1955 told and foreign exchange reserves had dropped from $1,682 million to $450 million, due largely to purchase of the British-owned railways and American utilities, retirement of old foreign debt, and grafting. (RHF)

1956
The 1853 constitution was restored by presidential decree. The government announced that elections would be held in 1957 and this immediately led to a revival of party activity. Argentina negotiated favorable trade treaties with a number of European governments. (RHF)

1957
July
The poorly knit Radical party, the countrys largest except for the Peronistas, split into two groups, the Intransigent Radical party and the Popular Radical party. Elections were held for a constitutional assembly to consider modification of the basic law. Almost a quarter of those voting cast blank ballots, supposedly on orders form the exiled Peron because Peronista parties of all kinds were barred from the ballot. The constitutional assembly could not agree on any actions and adjourned in futility. (RHF) Following Prebischs reforms, Argentina receives the credentials for admission to the IMF. (Source: ???)

???

1958

44

February

The postponed presidential election was held and Arturo Frondizi (1908-), candidate of the Intransigent Radicals, easily won, allegedly with support from the followers of Peron whose support Frondizi had cultivated. (RHF)

1959
Frondizi did not (and probably could not) carry out all the populist pledges he had made in his campaign, with the result that organized labor, still under the Peronist spell, turned increasingly restive. The army remained skeptical of Frondizis ability to steer a moderate government course. (RHF) CUBAN REVOLUTION

January
*Devaluation

De facto devalution. (Source:?)

June

Within a year Frondizi was forced by the military to fire his economic team and replace them with a dogmatic free-enterprise group headed by Alvaro Alsogaray, a rigid advocate of IMF-style monetarism. (Thomas Skidmore and Peter H Smith, p 91) Alvaro Carlos Alsogaray, who in June 1959 became Minister of Labor and the Economy, was an explicit admirer of Ludwig Erhard. Alsogaray believed that German-style liberalization with a single exchange rate and a control of the money supply exercised only through changes in banks reserve requirements would produce the Argentine Wirtschaftswunder. In the particular circumstances of Argentina, such reforms would attract foreign capital. (Harold James, I.M.C.S.B.W, pg 130) The Frondizi-Peron alliance collapsed. (Source:?)

June

June

1960s

Brain drain begins. (Source:???)

45

1960
March
Yet the fate of Frondizis presidency rested on the strength of his political support. Labor and the nationalist left never forgave his orthodox stabilization policy, with its cut in real wages and its embrace of foreign capital. In the congressional elections of March 1960 Frondizis Radicals got got fewer votes than the Balbin faction; Peronists cast blank ballots on instruction from their exiled leader. Frondizi was already failing to woo the Peronists to his side, a failure that aroused the military. (Source: ?) The Intransigent Radical party revised its platform and dropped references to agrarian reform, government ownership of industry, and a state-planned economy. (RHF)

December

1961
The government faced crisis after crisis. Military pressure on the Frondizi regime increased, especially after the government showed signs of making a concession to Peronista sentiment by allowing Peronista parties to participate in the forthcoming congressional elections. (RHF)

1962
ECONOMY: -The economy showed a small decline (Skidmore and Smith, p. 93)

March 18

The elections, with Peronista parties permitted, showed a surprising maintenance of Peronist sentiment. Blank ballots dropped off almost to zero. Peronist candidates polled almost 3,000,000 votes, slightly under a third of the total. The alliance of Peronista parties had the largest vote of any party; it won 9 of the 14 provincial governorships to be filled and carried a majority of the national chamber of deputies (corresponding to the U.S. House of Representatives). The results were politically fatal for Frondizi. (RHF)

46

March 29

[COUP 5] The armed services submerged their previous differences and engineered a coup forcing Frondizi from office and annulling the recent election results. After a short period of confusion Jose Maria Guido, president of the senate, became provisional president of Argentina and held office for somewhat over a troubled year at the sufferance of the army. Congress was recessed, parties were dissolved, and provincial governments were replaced. A court held that the invalidating of the elections was unconstitutional but the military-dominated regime ignored the ruling. (RHF) Internal army friction between two rival groups resulted in a brief outbreak of street fighting. The winning faction promised early elections and the withdrawal of the military from politics. President Guido soon afterward scheduled the forthcoming elections for the following June. Much wrangling followed as the conditions under which the elections would be held. (RHF)

September 21

1963
ECONOMY, 1963: -The economy showed a small decline (Skidmore and Smith, p. 93)

June July 7

Internal dissensions forced postponements of the elections until July. (RHF) Dr Arturo Illia, Popular Radical party candidate, was the leader in the popular voting, with about 27 percent of the vote. Peronista candidates were banned and as a consequence the percentage of blank ballots rose to almost a fifth of the total. As Illia fell short of the constitutionally required majority of the electoral vote it was doubtful for a short time what the electoral college would do in making a choice. (RHF) This time the Balbin Radicals won the largest total, with 27 percent of the ballots. The new president was Arturo Illia, a colorless provincial physician who was to lead the second Radical attempt at governing post-Peronist Argentina. (Skidmore and Smith, pg. 93)

July 31

The electoral college confirmed Illia by a comfortable margin. Illias administration was a moderate one, quite lacking in

47 flamboyance. The army and organized labor remained enmeshed in politics. (RHF) Illias style was decidedly low-key. This seemed suitable, since he had gained only slightly over a quarter of the popular vote. Unlike Frondizi, Illia had made no overtures to the Peronists. Nonetheless, the hard-line military were ever vigilant to find any signs of softness toward Peronism or the left. Illia was very fortunate in the economic situation he found. The government began very cautiously. It soon became evident, however that the policymakers were set on expansion, granting generous wage increases and imposing price controls. These measures helped to swing Argentina into the go phase of the stop and go economic pattern (alternately stimulating and contracting the economy) it had exhibited since the war. The GNP showed small declines in 1962 and 1963, but spurted to gains of 10.4 percent in 1964 and 9.1 percent in 1965. On the agricultural front the Illia government suffered through a downturn in the beef cycle, when the depleted herds were withheld for breeding. The resulting shortage irritated urban consumers always voracious beefeaters and reduced the production available for export. Cattlemen were angry because the government did not let prices rise to the levels indicated by market demand. Illia, like virtually every other president since 1945, found the rural sector virtually impossible to harness for the national interest. (Skidmore and Smith, pg. 93)

1964
ECONOMY, 1964:

Illias policies were primarily ones of drift. The economic situation dangerously worsened. The government undertook successive devaluations of the peso. (RHF) *Devaluations

October

The government announced a five year plan for Argentina but it was unambitious and vague and was never seriously implemented. (RHF)

48

December

Peron attempted a spectacular return to Argentina but Brazilian army officers in Rio de Janeiro required him to return to Spain and the Spanish government insisted that he pledge himself not to undertake any more political activity from Spanish territory. (RHF)

1965
March
Peronist political activity was permitted in congressional elections. Groups supporting Peron ran candidates under another party label and won 52 seats in the chamber of deputies, thus constituting the second largest political bloc. Peronist leaders immediately began arguing that this was a mandate for the return of Peron himself. (RHF) The Peronist unions were opposed to Illia from the moment he entered office, in part because the Peronists were barred from the 1963 elections. Despite Illias initially large wage settlements, the Peronist-dominated CGT drew up a battle plan (plan de lucha) which included strikes and workplace takeovers. In the congressional elections of March 1965 the now legalized Peronist party won 30.3 percent of the vote, as against 28.9 percent for the Illia Radicals. (Skidmore and Smith, pg 93)

October

Peron sent his third wife Isabelita, to Buenos Aires to try to weld a solid front among various Peronist factions. She immediately became a focus of speculation and political intrigue. (RHF) Peron, in his Spanish exile, was encouraged by the vote and sent his third wife, Isabel, to Argentina to negotiate directly with the feuding Peronist groups. The hard-line military grew more worried over the apparent Peronist comeback. Illia had taken the same political gamble as Frondizi, with similar results. The Economic scene had also taken a disquieting turn. Inflation had erupted anew and the government deficit was out of control. In June 1966 the military intervened again. Illia was unceremoniously ejected from the Casa Rosada. Once again the officers had removed a Radical government unable either to court or to repress the Peronist masses. (Skidmore and Smith, pg 93)

1966-73

A military bureaucratic-authoritarian regime led by a series of Argentine officers was established.

49

1966
April
A statement by top military leaders disclaimed any intention of mounting another coup but expressed concern over the deteriorating economy and the passive attitudes of the Illia government. (RHF) [COUP 6] An army coup ousted Illia, removed all governors, dissolved congress, the provincial legislatures, and all political parties, and dismissed the supreme court. (RHF) Peron, in his Spanish exile, was encouraged by the vote and sent his third wife, Isabel, to Argentina to negotiate directly with the feuding Peronist groups. The hard-line military grew more worried over the apparent Peronist comeback. Illia had taken the same political gamble as Frondizi, with similar results. The Economic scene had also taken a disquieting turn. Inflation had erupted anew and the government deficit was out of control. In June 1966 the military intervened again. Illia was unceremoniously ejected from the Casa Rosada. Once again the officers had removed a Radical government unable either to court or to repress the Peronist masses. (Skidmore and Smith, pg 93)

June 28

June 29

General Juan Carlos Ongana, a former army commander, became provisional president. The real reason behind the thoroughgoing military coup was the threat that in free elections Peronista forces might again win control of several provinces, a possibility that the army was adamantly against. Ongana began ruling dynamically but almost immediately struck sparks from university students and organized labor. (RHF) High officials of the Catholic hierarchy became increasingly critical of the Ongana regime. (RHF)

August

1967
ECONOMY, 1967: Krieger Vasenas two year wage and price freeze went into effect.

The Ongania government attempted yet another economic stabilization program. None of the preceding governments had

50 succeeded in getting at the root of Argentinas problem: the lack of sustained growth, based on a productive rural sector able to satisfy both export and domestic demand. (Skidmore and Smith)

March

Railway workers undertook a brief strike but Ongana took strong steps against them, thus further antagonizing a Peronist faction in the labor force. Ongana decreed a stringent new law removing university students and graduates form any share in determination of university policies. (RHF) A new secretariat of tourism and broadcasting tightened controls over press, radio, and TV criticism. (RHF) SIX DAY WAR. Israel struck against Egypt and Syria; Jordan subsequently attacked Israel. In six days, Israel occupied the Gaza Strip and the Sinai peninsula of Egypt, the Golan Heights of Syria, and the West Bank and Arab sector of E Jerusalem (both under Jordanian rule), thereby giving the conflict the name of the SixDay War. Israel unified the Arab and Israeli sectors of Jerusalem, and Arab guerrillas stepped up their incursions, operating largely from Jordan. After Eshkols death in 1969, Golda Meir became prime minister. There followed an inconclusive period when there was neither peace nor war in the area. (CE, Israel, 6th Ed., 2001 2005)

April

June June 5 11

1968
Student unrest spread virtually to the point of explosion. (RHF)

1969
May 29 31
Cordobazo. Student and worker activism came together. The local CGT undertook a general strike, and groups of students and workers with a massive participation of auto workers among the latter took control of the city center, where common citizens soon joined themThe army finally intervenedSlowly, on May 31st, order was reestablished. Between twenty and thirty persons had been killed, some five hundred were wounded, and other three hundred were arrested. War tribunals condemned the principal union leaders such as Agustin Tosco to prison sentences, thereby assigning them responsibility for the uprising.

51

As a mass protest, only the 1919 Semana Tragica or the events of October 17, 1945 can be compared to the Cordobazo, with the difference that in the 1945 protest the police supported and protected the workers. But like the October 17th events, the Cordobazo was a seminal episode in the wave of social protests that followed. Therefore, its symbolic significance was enormous, although it was given different interpretations by those in power and by the union leadership, or from the perpective of those who, in one way or another, identified with the popular mobilization and drew lessons from the events. Whatever the interpretation, one thing was clear: The enemy of those people who massively went out into the streets to protest was the dictatorship, behind which lurked the manifold presence of capital. (Romero, A History of
Argentina in the Twentieth Century, pp. 180-182)

May

Opposition to government policies was so serious, especially in Rosario and Cordoba, that the government declared a nation-wide state of siege. (RHF) Montoneros: ejercito de la izquierda.

June

The economics minister, Adalberto Krieger Vasena, is ousted after much pressure, including from members of the military, upset over the governments tough austerity measures, specifically the wage freeze. (Skidmore and Smith, pg. 94) The era of the petrodollars

1970s 1970
May 29

Former provisional President Pedro Aramburu was kidnapped late in the month. It subsequently had to be reluctantly assumed that his abductors had executed him. (RHF) [COUP 7?] High officials of the armed forces deposed President Ongana, presumably for having too greatly monopolized executive authority to the exclusion of the high military command. (RHF) The military junta installed a relatively obscure brigadier general, Roberto M Levingston, as provisional president. The junta announced that the president and the armed forces chieftains would

June 8

June 13

52 be co-legislators. Levingston, it was obvious, would be a figurehead. (RHF)

1971
March 26
[COUP 8?] President Levingston was ousted by the army junta, headed by Lieutenant General Alejandro Lanusse, who took his place as provisional president. The Lanusse administration continued a firm control but began trying to erase some of the friction engendered by Ongana. (RHF) American President Richard Nixon takes the US off the gold standard, thus ending the fixed exchange rate system prevailing in the world since Bretton Woods. (Source: personal knowledge)

1971?

1972
Lanusse scheduled elections for March, 1973. Peron began publicizing a planned return to Argentina. (Source: ?)

November 17

Peron finally accomplished his long-announced return to the country he had ruled. He was met by large and noisy groups of followers on many occasions but it was evident that his one-time magic had largely evaporated. The government did not try to limit most of his activity in Argentina but it stuck by its ruling that since his return date was not early enough to allow him the six-months residence in the country required of presidential candidates he was not eligible to be nominated for that office. Peron left for Paraguay, Peru, and Europe on December 13. (RHF) In the face of the ban on Perons candidacy, the various groups committed to him, forming the Justicialista bloc, nominated Hector Campora, a long time Peron spokesman, as their presidential candidate. (RHF)

December 13

1973
As political forces lined up for the elections in March it appeared that five major groups would emerge, of which only the first two were given much chance of success by careful observers: (1) the Popular Radical party with Ricardo Balbin, its presidential candidate in 1952 and 1958, again nominated for top place; (2) the Peronista Justicialista Front, a conglomerate alliance with Hector

53 Campora as presidential candidate; (3) the Alliance of the Center Left, composed of several awkwardly related groups including the Intransigent Radical party; (4) the Popular Federalist Alliance, also an amalgamation of small groups; and (5) the traditional conservatives, running under the label of the Republican Federal Alliance. Several small independent parties, Socialists, Communists, and others, were also expected to nominate candidates. (RHF)

February 7

The government barred Peron from returning until after the March elections. It was evident even by that time, however that the exiled ex-president would be a key figure in Argentine politics in 1973. (RHF) President Lanusse arrived in Spain for a four-day official visit. (RHF) Presidential elections took place. The Peronist coalition took a strong lead; its candidate, Dr. Hector Campora, received slightly more than 49 percent of the popular vote and the second candidate, Ricardo Balbin, nominee of the Popular Radical party, only 21.2 percent. Despite the fact that the electoral law specified that for a clear-cut victory a candidate must have a popular majority, the governing junta announced that it would recognize Campora as president-elect. Peronistas were jubilant over the large vote they obtained. (RHF) President-elect Campora flew to Rome for consultations with Peron. A deal was reported in the making although nothing concrete could be learned about it. (RHF) Left-wing guerrillas assassinated Rear Admiral Hermes Quijada. The government declared a state of emergency. Political tension greatly increased. (RHF) Campora was inaugurated as president and pledged complete loyalty to Peron and his principles. (RHF) The increasingly tense and turbulent situation in the country led the government to take control of nineteen universities and install military officers as administrators in many of them. During this period many kidnappings of prominent and wealthy industrialists and others occurred and demands for huge ransoms escalated. Labor strikes became prevalent. (RHF)

February 24 March 11

March 25

April 30

May 25 May 30

54

June 15 June? June 20

Campora arrived in Spain for four days of conferences with Peron. (RHF) Six Day War Peron, accompanied by Campora, returned to Argentina. He was greeted by enormous demonstrations but with evidence of great dissensions among his supporters. In the turbulence of his return at least twenty persons were killed. Both the government and Peron appealed for calm. (RHF) President Campora resigned to clear the way for Perons return to the presidency from which he had been ousted in 1955. Campora was succeeded by Raul Lastiri, president of the chamber of deputies, as acting president of Argentina. Camporas resignation confirmed the earlier rumors of a deal between him and Peron. (RHF) The government set new presidential elections for September 23 and the inauguration of a new president for October 12. (RHF) The Justicialista party nominated Peron as its presidential candidate and his third wife, Isabel Martinez de Peron, a former cabaret dancer, as his vice-presidential running-mate. The Popular Radical party, the only other political organization given a chance of making a good showing, nominated Ricardo Balbin, a former presidential candidate, as its choice for the presidency. (RHF) COUP IN CHILE Peron was overwhelmingly re-elected to the presidency, with about 60 percent of the vote. Almost complete returns gave him 7,095,476 votes to 2,838,407 for Balbin. (RHF) On the Jewish holy day of Yom Kippur, Egypt and Syria attacked Israeli positions in the Sinai and the Golan Heights. Other Arab states sent contingents of soldiers to aid in the attack on Israel. Egypt succeeded in sending troops in force across the Suez Canal to the east bank before being halted by Israeli troops. Toward the end of the fighting, the Israelis managed to send their own troops across the Suez Canal to the west bank, encircling Egypts Third Army on the east bank and clearing a path to Cairo. They also drove the Syrians even further back toward Damascus. A cease-fire called for by the UN Security Council on Oct. 22 and 23 went into effect shortly thereafter. (CE, Israel, 6th Ed., 2001-2005)

July 13

July 20 August 4

September 11 September 23

October 6

55

October 12

Juan Domingo Peron and his wife Isabel were inaugurated as president and vice-president of Argentina. The inauguration marked the climax of a resurgence of Peronism that had characterized the past two years. It took place, however, in an atmosphere marked by tensions and disorders which included a considerable number of political assassinations. Whether the strongly antagonistic right-and left-wing factions of the loosely knit Peronista amalgamation could be reconciled by the old and unwell Peron remained to be seen. It was uncertain, too, what the role of Sra. Peron, the only woman ever to be elected to such high office in a Latin American country, would be. (RHF)

1974
July 1
Pern died and was succeed in the presidency by his third wife, Isabel. (Source: Personal knowledge)

1975 1976
March 24
[COUP 9?] Videlas speech. President Isabel Peron was ousted in the midst of economic and political upheaval. Determined to deal with what they saw as a leftist threat, the military again opted for a bureaucratic authoritarian solution. As part of this "solution", the armed forces launched what was later called the "dirty war" against leftists, during which up to 20,000 people disappeared and were never heard from again. (Source: ?)

April 2

El programa que enunci el 2 de abril estaba destinado no slo a hacer frente a las dificultades circunstanciales, como podra ser un programa antiinflacionario de coyuntura, sino realmente a cambiar la estructura econmica del pas, las bases sobre las cuales sta estaba sentada, que, a mi juicio, eran las que haban llevado a esa situacin en un proceso que podemos decir haba durado ya muchos aos. El plan econmico estaba basado en tres pilares fundamentales: uno era la reforma del Estado. El redimensionamiento y la

56 redefinicin de las funciones del Estado que, a la sombra de un estatismo muy fuerte desde haca ms de 30 aos haba crecido sobremanera y haba invadido todas las funciones propias y ajenas. Es decir, haba que reducir al Estado a uque cumpliera las funciones especficas: administrar la justicia, el orden y la seguridad, las relaciones exteriores y, concurrentemente con el sector privado, educacin y salud pblica. El primer principio era el subsidiariedad: el Estado no debe hacer lo que un sector como el privado hace mejor. En sntesis, esto no significaba debilitar al Estado, sino fortalecer al Estado y a la economa general del pas, porque asa poda cumplirse con las funciones propias sin dejar de orientar la evolucin econmica general de intervenir para garantizar la competencia del mercado y evitar los monopolios. As como establecer las grandes polticas del orden econmico y financiero que permitieron que el Estado evolucionara. (Source: ??)

1977 1978 1979

Argentina and Chile were on the verge of going to war over the Beagle Channel, and Pope John Paul II had to arbitrate. (1993-612, Economist, Chile and Argentina)

1980s
ECONOMY, 1980s: -In Argentina for instance, the proportion of the rural population classified as poor remained approximately constant between 1980 and 1986, while the urban poor rose from 10.3 percent to 17.4 percent. The most severely affected were those without regular employment. For those in paid jobs in some countries (notably Argentina and Brazil), real average wages continued to increase during the mid-1980s. (Harold James, IMCSBW, p. 390)

57

1980 1981
Terrible overvaluation. A can of Coke in the downtown Buenos Aires Sheraton cost $7. (Economist)

1982 1990: CAPITAL FLIGHT, (HJ, p. 391)

1982
The authoritarian government collapsed after the ill-starred Falkland/Malvinas Islands War against Britain led to the resignation of the junta and the holding of elections. Domingo Cavallo, as President of the Central Bank, rescues business by converting private foreign debt into public debt. [????????? Confirm! He claims that his successor, not he, did this!!!!]

August

Mexico defaults on its debt, triggering the Latin American debt crisis of the 1980s. (See: Chronology)

1983
Raul Alfonsin of the Radical Union party was elected president.

1984 1985
ECONOMY, 1985: -Plan Austral was introduced. -

58 A 1985 law forbids [the army] to intervene in internal affairs unless formally ordered to do so by the president. (1989-6-3,
Economist, If nobody else rules Argentina, the mob will)

Bolivia began its reform program with assistance from Harvards Jeff Sachs. (Source: memory. Confirm!) Julio Mara Sanguinetti of the centrist Colorado party became president of Uruguay, restoring civilian government but also granting amnesty (1986) to former leaders accused of human-rights violations. (Source: ?)

1986
At the same time, forward looking Latins elaborated a more uplifting vision. In 1986 Bela Belassa, Gerardo Bueno, PedroPablo Kuczynski, and Mario-Henrique Simonsen, all high-profile business or political figures as well as distinguished economists, published the movements most influential text, Toward Renewed Economic Growth in Latin America. (Stephen Schuker, The Latest Latin American Debt Crisis, p. ?)

1987
May
The Paris Club agreed to reschedule Argentinas debt, significantly reducing its debt-service ratio. (Source: 1991-9-28, Economist, Borrowing Costs)

1988
December 1
Carlos Salinas de Gortari took office in Mexico. (Source: www.rulers.org)

1989
GDP, real % change: Consumption Investment Government Spending Trade balance Exports Imports Budget balance

59 Inflation Debt Debt / GDP Debt / exports Poverty rate Unemployment Trends -high inflation / hyperinflation -dollarization of the economy -Brady Plan introduced????

Menem launched his campaign. Campaigning as a populist, Carlos Saul Menem promised wage hikes and social justice, while threatening not to pay the external debt.

January 16

Argentine youths from across the River Plate, singing their national anthem, tried to board a ship that sailed in from the Falkland islands at the Montevideo docks. When prevented, they daubed anti-British slogans on it. Their aim was to keep the Falklands isolated. (Source: 1989-1-21, Economist, The Falklands) Left wing rebels attack the La Tablada military base at dawn. Stroessner was overthrown in a coup and replaced by General Andres Rodriguez.

January 23 Feb ? (early) (early)

*Devaluation

February February

$1 = 17 australes (1989-4-29, Economist, Dont cry for me, Weimar) 20 % devaluation (1989-2-11, Economist, Business this week)

February March 30

(mid)

Annual interest rates neared 1,000% and the black-market value of the currency plummeted. (1989-2-18, Economist, Business this week) Eduardo Angeloz, the Radical party presidential candidate, called on the Economy Minister, Juan Sourrouille, to resign. (1989-4-8,
Economist, Down tools)

60

March 31

The economy minister, Juan Sourrouille; his deputy [?]; the governor of the central bank [?] and the secretary of the treasury [?] all resigned. (1989-4-8, Economist, Down tools) Argentina devalued the official exchange rate of the austral by 21% against the dollar after its economics minister, his deputy, the central-bank governor and the treasury secretary resigned. Argentina has not paid interest on its $ 60 billion of foreign debt for six months. (1989-4-8, Economist, Business this week) *Devaluation

April

April 3

Juan Carlos Pugliese, the former president of the lower house of congress, replaced Juan Sourrouille as economy minister. (1989-48, Economist, Down tools)

April mid April 25 26

$1 = 70 australes (1989-4-29, Economist, Dont cry for me, Weimar) US$1 = 96 100 australes. The official exchange rate for exporters was still 36 australes to the dollar, so nobody was selling exports officially unless he was mad. Hyperinflation well under way. (1989-4-29, Economist, Dont cry for
me, Weimar)

Paraguays longtime dictator, Alfredo Stroessner, is overthrown. Paraguay elects General Andres Rodriguez. The Economist reports that people with capital are shifting it abroad as fast as they can on the expectation that Carlos Menem would win. (1989-5-6, Economist, Grey prospect in Argentina) Bolivia and Panama voted. Default. BANKERS dread elections in Latin America. Governments anxious to bolster flagging popularity get tough with international creditors when elections loom. Venezuela and Argentina stopped paying their debts before their presidential elections this year. Brazil, due to elect a new president in November, is now well into a banker-bashing pre-election phase. Since June it has failed to make $ 300m in payments to foreign banks and governments. (Source: 1989-8-26, Economist, Brazilian debt; Woe, woe, and thrice woe)

May 1 May 6

May 7
? ?

61

May 14 May 27

Carlos Menem was elected president. Until May 27th the largest banknote had a face value of 1,000 australs; then the central bank issued the first 5,000-austral notes. Shopkeepers already doubt their worth, and ask for dollars. The government decreed on May 30th that one United States dollar is equivalent to 175 australs. On the street corners of the financial district called la City the furtive money-changers offer 240 australs for a dollar, until the police chase them off. The ferries across the River Plate to Montevideo (where banking secrecy reigns, and a dollar costs 280 australs) are packed with people packing heavy wallets. (1989-6-3, Economist, If nobody else rules Argentina, the mob will) Shooting and looting and a state of siege have emptied the broad streets of what was one of the world's great cities. The high command of the armed forces, for its part, scrupulously insists that it must not intervene in politics as it did during the dangerous 1970s, not even to help the police keep order.
(1989-6-3, Economist, If nobody else rules Argentina, the mob will)

May / June

July 8

In the midst of a severe economic crisis during which inflation reached 3,000 percent and foreign debt $58 billion (Source: ???), Alfonsin stepped down five months ahead of schedule, transferring power to president-elect Carlos Saul Menem. Menem encouraged free enterprise and good relations with the US. Government controls on foreign investment and trade were relaxed, and the government sold off many state enterprises. Menem announced surgery without anesthesia to cut all the entrenched and intolerable inefficiencies in the government administration. He wanted: decentralization war on corruption more investment payment of the foreign debt as a matter of honour recovery of the Malvinas (Falklands) within the framework of the law. This unPeronist language augurs well. So does the record of Mr Menems new finance minister, Mr Miguel Roig, who has spent a working life in a big trading company. The austerity started with a devaluation of the currencys official price from 300 to 650 australs per dollar, a small cut in tariffs, sharp rises in public-sector prices and cuts in private-sector ones.

62 Some mercies blunted the edge of the surgeons knife, and opened the way to traditional fiddling. Prices for public servicesfor gas, to start withwill rise by less for poor people than for the better-off. Employers, including the state, have been ordered to pay a one-off bonus of 8,000 australs ($12 at the new official exchange rate) to all employees, and presumably the central hank will print the money. Shopkeepers were slow to accept orders to sell their stock at a loss. The banks have been told to cut interest rates below the rate of inflation (almost 120% last month), so prudent Argentines will go on keeping their spare cash abroad. (Source: 1989-7-15, Economist, Knife man) *DEVALUATION

July 14

The Finance Minister, Miguel Roig, dies within a week of taking office and is replaced by another Bunge-Born man, Nestor Rapanelli. (Source: 1989-7-22, Economist, The fading of caudillismo) After his election, while he had the confidence of the nations powerful interests, Menem devoted himself to taking control of the government, altering and even subverting some of its institutions. Two initial omnibus laws [which?], intended to deal with the economic crisis, gave him broad powers, which he used at his discretion; increasing the number of Supreme Court justices guaranteed him a sure majority in the nations highest court. Great Britain and Argentina started talks though not over the Falklands. (1989-8-12, Economist, World Politics and current affairs) Menem announced plans for the partial privatisation of the lossmaking state railways. (1989-9-9, Economist, Pinch me, I must be
dreaming)

August September 1

October? October

Congressional elections??? Menem pardoned military officers accused of crimes against human rights before they had been tried. (1990-10-27, Economist,
Rules, what rules)

A stand-by accord was signed with the International Monetary Fund ( in shreds by January). (1991-1-6, Economist, Dither dither)

November ?

Menem threatened to close railway lines if striking train drivers did not go back to work. (1989-12-16, Economist, Cut again)

63

November 9 November 26

The beleaguered East German regime lifted travel restrictions, and days later dismantling of the wall began. (CE, Berlin Wall) SHABBY and scruffy, yet somehow simpatico, little Uruguay has just set an electoral example to Argentina and Brazil, the giants next door. Confronted with a dozen presidential candidates in a mind-boggling multiple-choice system of simultaneous party primaries and general elections, Uruguayans plumped for someone who looks eminently sensible. Mr Luis Alberto Lacalle, an urbane lawyer and farmer, takes power on March 1st. He wants to revive Uruguay's economy, and seems to know how to go about it. (198912-2, Economist, Uruguay; Betting on Blanco)

December

Officials admit that inflation rose to about 50% in December alone. Everybody else says the rate was twice as high. Supermarket loudspeakers abruptly announce 30% price rises on everything. Petrol, cigarettes and foodstuffs suddenly run short. Cynical chemists raise the prices of liver medicine 1,000% just after the Christmas binge. The dollar value of Argentina's currency, the austral, nosedived for most of last month, as Mr Menem's advisers argued about what to do. (1991-1-6, Economist, Dither dither)

December 10

President Carlos Menem unveiled a "correction" to the drastic economic reform he inaugurated when he took office in July. The spectacular part of the correction was devaluation of the official exchange rate of the austral. The rate "fixed" in July was 650 australs to the dollar. The new rate is 1,000. But henceforth there will be two recognised exchange rates, one set by the government, the other by the market. The "free" rate has already slumped to more than 1,300 australs per dollar, indicating that nobody with serious money believes the official rate can hold. Mr Nestor Rapanellis second economic package had devalued the austral by 35%. (1989-12-16, Economist, Cut again)

*DEVALUATION

December 15 December 18

Economy Minister Nestor Rapanelli resigned. (1991-1-6, Economist,

Dither dither)

Rapanelli was replaced with Antonio Erman Gonzalez, the disastrous treasury secretary from the days when Menem was

64 governor of the province of La Rioja and one of Menems cronies.

(1991-1-6, Economist, Dither dither)

December December? December (end)

New Congressmen elected in Menems wake schedule to take their seats. [Did they?] (Source: 1989-7-15, Economist, Knife man) Elections in Chile? And the austral, 650 to the dollar at the start of December, ended the year at almost 2,000. (1991-1-6, Economist, Dither dither)

*EXCHANGE RATE

December 30

Menem suddenly flew the 1,100 kilometres from his home in La Rioja to the capital, to speak on television that evening. Five minutes after he should have started, the speech was cancelled. Two and a half hours later Mr Gonzalez briefly advised people to keep calm, but announced no new measures. (1991-1-6, Economist,
Dither dither)

At the end of 1989 Argentina's international bond issues represented less than 10% of its total foreign debt of about $ 60 billion. (1990-2-17, Economist, The Acceptable Face of Junk)

1990
GDP, real % change: Consumption Investment Government Spending Trade balance Exports Imports Inflation Debt Debt / GDP Debt / exports Poverty rate Unemployment -Population: 32 million -Argentina was able to tap capital markets for the first time since 1982, successfully floating $21 million in bonds. (Source: EIU???)

65

January 1 (morning) Menem told reporters there would be "nothing new" that day. That
same night Mr Gonzalez unveiled his new scheme, emphasising that banks and foreign exchanges would open next day. Within half an hour, the central bank ordered financial markets to stay closed.
Mr Gonzalez's new-year resolution as to dry up the pool of australs whose surplus, he seems to think, had fuelled the dash into dollars. He promised tight controls on the issue of new australs, and banned plaza fijo, the short-term interest-bearing certificates that Argentines buy for protection against inflation. Everybody rushed to buy them. So their price rose again, which was just what the scheme was supposed to stop. Mr Gonzalez had hoped to dry up the money supply by compelling people to put their money into longer-term government bonds, said -- but nobody believes it -- to be denominated in dollars. (In La Rioja too he issued state bonds that nobody believed in.) Waste, corruption and gross overmanning in the public sector are the beginning and end of Argentina's financial disaster. About that the economy minister says nothing. He merely closes the official financial markets, and pleads once again for foreign loans. The stand-by accord signed with the International Monetary Fund last October is already in shreds. So is Mr Menem's tentative reputation as a reformer. (1991-1-6, Economist, Dither dither)

January?

A December inflation rate of 50% persuaded Argentina's president, Carlos Menem, to try to convert about $3 billion of short-term austral deposits into medium term bonds to prevent another run on the currency. He also promised to stop printing so much money. (1990-1-6, Economist, Business This Week) Argentina's embattled currency, the austral, hit 5,600 australs to the dollar on February 27th, compared with 1,870 at the beginning of the month and 27 a year ago. (1990-3-3, Economist, Business this Week) One dollar cost 1,700 australs at the end of January, 5,500 australs this week. Dollars were once a hedge against inflation. Now they are so scarce that dollar prices rise as relentlessly as those in australs. Foreigners get the blame. Small bombs have gone off on the premises of Citibank and of Bunge & Born, the grain traders whose people vainly tried to run Mr Menem's economic policy last year. Sales of food have declined by more than half: barter or hunger is the name of the game. Economic activity went down by 8% in 1989, and may decline by 13% in the first quarter of 1990. The Peronist unions, scared of mass sackings, have given up trying to defend wages. Disgruntled army officers mutter obscurely of the national honour. Mr Menem's government has lost at least 150 ministers and senior

February 27

66 officials since he took over. He has asked Mr Eduardo Angeloz, the Radical who ran against him in last year's election, to join the government and apply the policies Mr Menem then abused. Mr Angeloz insisted that he would join a government only if it were given a free hand by a "national pact" involving business, the unions, the church, the army, and all the rest of those who hate the market economics he believes in. A lot of rich Argentines, now taking summer holidays by the quiet beaches of Uruguay, will stay put until things get better at home. (1990-3-3, Economist, Down and
out in Buenos Aires)

March March (early)

Inflation = 96 % (1990-6-23, Economist, Marital blitz) Enrique Folcini, governor of the Central Bank, offered to resign after the government would not let him bail out two ailing banks. Folcini had been in the job since January 23rd. (1990-3-10, Economist,
Business This Week)

March

Luis Lacalle was elected President of Uruguay, having promised to jump-start the economy and stem the flood of exiles. (1990-818, Economist, Going Private) Inflation = 12 % (1990-6-23, Economist, Marital blitz) Menem sent Congress a bill that would compel public-sector unions to send their claims to arbitration. If that fails, strikes would be lawful, but only after ten days' notice, and provided that the unions kept essential services going. The labour ministry would have power to intervene in negotiations before they become disputes. The really radical change would make strikes painful for workers, as well as for employers and their customers. At present workers are guaranteed their jobs back after a strike, and almost always get paid for lost time. The teachers who struck to prevent the schools reopening at the start of the latest academic year have got their money in full, so have the workers at the monopoly telephone company, who cut off the capital from the country hours after bids were opened for the company's privatisation. Mr Menem's bill would push employers to sack strikers, and to pay no back wages. (1990-5-12, Economist, Peron and on and on) *UNIONS

April April (late)

April

By a quick voice vote in Congress, Menem acquired the power to increase the number of Supreme Court judges from five to nine.

67 The new justices are thought to agree with the man who appointed them. (1990-10-27, Economist, Rules, what rules) *SUPREME COURT

May June 10 June 27

Inflation = 14 % (1990-6-23, Economist, Marital blitz) Alberto Fujimori beat Mario Vargas Llosa to become Perus next president. (Source: ?) President Bush helped with multilateral trade liberalization when he launched his "Enterprise for the Americans Initiative". He indicated that his government would forgive some of the debts it is owed by Latin Americans, and promised to foster new investment as they liberalised their trade and their economies. Even if they do not grasp the entire message, the Argentines see the merits of a trading zone from Alaska to Cape Horn too big for Brazil to dominate. (1990-7-14, Economist, Free trade moves south) *FOREIGN RELATIONS / ARGENTINA & USA / FREE TRADE / GEORGE BUSH SENIOR

September 25

By dispatching one destroyer and one corvette to the Gulf, Argentina became the first Latin American country to join the blockade of Iraq. (1990-9-29, Economist, Their very own taskforce) An example of Menems harshness towards the unions was his issuing of a decree on the 17 of October 1990 (symbolic date for Peronism) limiting the right to strike. Furthermore, when necessary, Menem retained unions funds. (Acua, Carlos, Sebastian Galiani,
Sergio Pernice, Understanding Reform, Argentine Case Study, Dec31_2003)

October 17

November

Thanks to tight money and slashed public spending, monthly inflation has fallen from 95% in March to 6.2% in November.
(1990-12-15, Economist, Virtues reward)

November (late)

Only days after selling off its telephone network, Argentina saw its second big privatisation fail at the last minute to go through. Spain's Iberia and six Argentine investors failed to provide satisfactory bank guarantees to buy the staterun airline Aerolineas Argentinas. (1990-11-24, Economist, Business this Week) Aerolineas Argentinas was eventually sold to a consortium of Spain's Iberia and six Argentine investors. In exchange for the loss-making airline, the Argentine government will receive $ 260m and $ 2 billion of its own debt certificates.

68
(1990-12-1, Economist, Business This Week)

December

With the economy again in critical condition, a public scandal erupted Swiftgate a scandal involving a complaint by the US meatpacking firm Swift to US Ambassador Todman that he company had been asked to pay a bribe to expedite resolution of a routine government regulation. The Carapintadas, a faction of the Army, attempted a coup, but were crushed. (1990-12-8, Economist, Shaken and a little stirred) International Monetary Fund disbursed $ 267m, the third slice of a $ 1.4 billion loan agreed a year ago. (1990-12-15, Economist, Virtues
reward)

December 3 December 3

December 5

President George Bush visited Argentina and praised Carlos Menem as an esteemed friend.

*Was this visit granted because of Argentinas support in the Persian Gulf War? No doubt this visit was on Menems mind during the Swiftgate scandal.

December 10

Bush's ambassador in Buenos Aires, Terence Todman, sent a "very urgent" letter to the economy minister, Antonio Erman Gonzalez. Mr Todman pointed to several instances in which American companies had faced delays in doing business. He also noted that Swift-Armour, a meat-processing subsidiary of Campbell's Soups, an American food group, had been asked by government functionaries for "substantial payments" to expedite machinery imports for a $ 115m plant investment.
(1991-1-19, Economist, Now even freer enterprise)

*Perhaps this is a good reason for doing business in Argentina as an American company. ? Finance Minister Erman Gonzalez implements the Plan Bonex, whereby the government confiscated personal savings in the countrys high interest paying savings accounts (plazos fjos) and exchanged them for long term bonds redeemable in dollars. This measure was described by some as outright robbery, and, in its violation of property rights, unconstitutional (Lewis). According to others (Eyras?), the subsequent, unexpected appreciation of the bonds made it a good deal. Following pressure from the governments of the US, Britain and Israel, in 1990 President Carlos Menem decided to freeze missile development, which had been financed by Egypt. (1992-2-26, Notisur,
US Officials Inspect Condor II Missile Factory)

??

69

1991 1994
In hindsight, these were three golden years. The gross national product (GNP) grew steadily, interest rates were more than respectable, and consumption increased, thanks to new credit plans with installment payments contracted in dollars [later a problem?]. Inflation also fell drastically with the memory still alive of the outrageous inflation rates of 1989 and 1990 economic activity increased, and the state improved tax collection and even enjoyed a few years of surplus, in large measure from the income provided by the privatizations. (Source: Romero, Luis Alberto, A History of Argentina, p?)

1991
GDP, real % change: Consumption Investment Government Spending Trade balance Exports Imports Inflation Debt Debt / GDP Debt / exports Poverty rate Unemployment Trends: -Inflation begins to seriously fall for the first time following the successful introduction of the Convertibility Law. -The value of Argentinas stockmarket increases 324 %

January 6

Todmans letter was finally answered after its contents were leaked to the press. Then big trouble began. Mr Menem railed at "journalistic delinquency". Tame newspapers dutifully disparaged Mr Todman for believing bad information; cartoons depicted him

70 with Yankee vampire teeth and a monkeyish manner. (Mr Todman, 20 years an ambassador, is black.) But, at last, he got his appointment with the economy minister. Local officials from Swift-Armour, called to the presidential palace, issued an ambiguous statement saying the company "has not been the object of any governmental pressure". Mr Todman did not budge, and the State Department backed him up. Mr Menem declared that the State Department should mind its own business and bother about "alarming corruption" at home. Mr Todman, still smiling, met him as a cabinet crisis bubbled in the background. Mr Gonzalez, the economy minister, announced his seventh economic package since he became minister, 13 months ago. As part of it, he closed down the public-works ministry, and its head, Robert Dromi, lost his job. Half the eight-man cabinet went too. Emir Yoma, a businessman who is an adviser to the president as well as his brother-in-law, resigned from his job and threatened to sue his many critics. (1991-1-19, Economist, Now even
freer enterprise)

????

Following Swiftgate, the entire cabinet resigned. Brazilians and Argentines alike found their banks closed by government order. Argentina's uncomfortable economic symptom was a sudden collapse of the exchange rate. For almost a year (see chart) the government held the austral steady against the dollar, hoping to keep imports cheap and thus restrain consumer prices. But inflation trundled on, at some 5% a month. The exchange rate was bound to collapse, and did so in mid-January, just after Mr Menem, amid accusations of corruption, had sacked half his cabinet and appointed his third finance minister in 18 months. So he replaced the third man by a fourth, Domingo Cavallo, formerly foreign minister. Mr Cavallo closed the banks and announced the 11th crash economic package since Mr Menem took office. He raised fuel prices, simplified some charges and regulations, and banned some profitable banking fiddles. The government, he said, must not interfere in detail, but should clearly explain its rules and see they are obeyed. To show that he meant it, he began a methodical drive to collect the income tax that middle-class Argentines think it odd to pay. (1991-2-9, Economist, Bankshut)

January (late)

??

Mercosur was launched.

71

??

The Argentine government dispatched army and air force personnel and several ships to participate in the US-led military actions against Iraq. The man who until then had been the foreign minister, Domingo Cavallo, was made minister of the economy. Mercosur. In Asuncion, the presidents of Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay signed up for a four-nation Southern Cone Common Market by the end of 1994. (1991-3-30, Economist, Getting
together)

January 31 March 26

April 1

The Convertibility Law went into effect. YPF, the state oil company is privatized [?????]

May 28

Condor II project cancelled.

(1992-2-26, Notisur, US Officials Inspect Condor II Missile Factory) (1991-6-8, Economist, The Condor is grounded)

June 26

A letter approved by President Carlos Menem and his clever, allpowerful economy minister, Domingo Cavallo, was on its way to the IMF expressing their intent to push through austerity measures that would qualify the country for a sorely needed loan of $ 1.08 billion. In return they would aim to cut inflation to 0.5% a month and public spending by 20%. Their hope is that this, with the loan, will ere long give Argentina an annual growth rate of 3%. But austerity means discontent. The president has been trying to crush it before it arrives. (1991-6-29, Economist, Loansome blues) The IMF approved a $1.04 billion stand-by loan, unlocking a further $325m from the World Bank. (1991-8-10, Economist, Argentinas privatization plans) Paul Lewis wrote of a stormy cabinet meeting where Cavallo pressed for a continuation of reforms. Following a strong macroeconomic performance, Mexicos government won a mid-term election. Mid-term elections. The Peronists gained four seats in the election, which was for 86 seats in the 254-seat Chamber of Deputies. They now have 123 to the opposition Radicals' 87 and the Centre Democrats' ten. Although they failed to gain the seats they needed

??

August? August September 8

72 for a majority in the chamber, they have another chance in an election next month for 40 deputies. The Radicals, devoid of original ideas, saw their share of the vote dive to 30%, the lowest since democracy returned to Argentina in 1983. They lost eight seats. Mr Menem's vice-president, Eduardo Duhalde, resigned to stand for governor of Buenos Aires province, easily defeating the Radicals' ageing and cheerless candidate, Juan Carlos Pugliese. MID-TERM elections came at a good time for President Carlos Menem. They were preceded by an announcement that the monthly rate of inflation was down to 1.3% in August from 1.5% in July. For voters accustomed to hyperinflation, the rate in recent months has seemed little short of a miracle. Moreover, the stockmarket has been booming, millions of dollars which had fled to Miami in the bad times have been flying back, more plans are under way for privatisation and the exchange rate seems stable. The plan of the economy minister, Domingo Cavallo, shows signs of working.
(1991-9-14, Economist, Virtue rewarded)

October 17

US Ambassador to Argentina Terence Todman and Defense Minister Antonio Erman Gonzalez finalized an agreement under which Washington will donate US$2.5 million to the Argentine air force for upgrading four Lockheed C-130 Hercules transport planes. Early this year, the Argentine government dispatched army and air force personnel and several ships to participate in the USled military actions against Iraq. (1991-11-13, Notisur, Argentina: US
Donates US$2.5 Million for Upgrading Military Planes)

October 27

Argentine voters elected 34 members of the Chamber of Deputies, six provincial governors, and over 20 provincial government legislators. Candidates affiliated with President Carlos Menem's Justicialista Party received 40% of all votes cast, winning 15 seats in the Chamber, and three governorships. Highlights of election results are summarized below. http://ladb.unm.edu/prot/search/retrieve.php3?ID[0]=11527 The government handily won its first electoral test following a series of structural reforms, whose detrimental effects were masked by the influx of money from abroad. The victory granted Menem peace of mind and convinced the government it had a mandate, and Minister Cavallo accelerated the pace of reforms.

October 31

Menem announced a decree to do away with the "spider's web" of state regulations. He banned all restrictions on sales of goods and services, deregulated road freight, closed down the national grain and meat boards and a flock of other state agencies, did away with

73 most regulations and taxes on imports and exports, told the ports to stay open 24 hours a day, ordered custom officials not to block trade, and took on the local pharmaceuticals lobby by lifting restrictions on imports and retail sales of medicines. Deregulation was part of the strategy for ensuring Convertibilitys survival: the import of cheaper, foreign goods put downward pressure on prices, without which Convertibility would fall. (1991-11-9, Economist, The starting gun) *Why would it fall? This deflationary strategy was one already implanted by Martinez de Hoz.

December 5

The national congress accepted the resignation of Vice President Eduardo Duhalde, who was elected governor of Buenos Aires province. http://ladb.unm.edu/prot/search/retrieve.php3?ID[0]=14265 Argentine President Carlos Menem and Brazilian counterpart Fernando Collor de Mello witnessed the formalization of a bilateral agreement committing both governments to the peaceful use of nuclear energy. The pact, proposed by the UN International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), includes the creation of a joint control institution under IAEA auspices to monitor nuclear plants in Argentina and Brazil. (Source: 1992-1-8, Notisur, Argentina & Brazil
sign nuclear control agreement)

December 13

The star economy of 1991 was China. The country's private sector, which now accounts for nearly half of industrial output, grew by 15-20% nationwide and by more than 25% in the booming south. The star bourse was Argentina's, whose value jumped 324% in dollar terms. In the old world, recession in America and Britain spread to Germany and Japan. Insolvencies rose. Equities went nowhere. Property prices fell everywhere, bar exceptions like Berlin (bornagain superpower capital) and Atlanta (due to host the Olympic games in 1996). 1992-1-3, Economist, Business This Week

1992
GDP, real % change: Consumption

74 Investment Government Spending Trade balance Exports Imports Budget balance Inflation Debt Debt / GDP Debt / exports Poverty rate Unemployment Trends -high inflation / hyperinflation -dollarization of the economy -Brady Plan introduced???? -Menem launches his reelection bid: Menem in 1995 is a slogan that popus up all over the capital. Amid the countrys boom in credit, consumption and imorts, the graffiti reflect Argentinas newfound optimism, after decades when nothing seemed to go right. Thrilled, the ruling Peronist party is pushing for the re-election of the president under whom it has all happened. (Source: 1992-6-6, Economist, Which Menem?) -The Treaty of the European Union accelerates the Economic Integration of Europe

The Treaty of European Union, signed in Maastricht, the Netherlands, in 1992 and ratified in 1993, provided for a central banking system, a common currency to replace the national currencies (the euro, see European Monetary System), a legal definition of the EU, and a framework for expanding the EUs political role, particularly in the area of foreign and security policy. (Source: bartelby.com European Union)

January 1

The moribund austral was removed from circulation and replaced with the new peso in accordance with the Convertibility Law (Source?)

75

January 26

El Clarin reported that Argentina had suspended negotiations with Iran on export of Nuclear Power Plant Equipment following pressure from US. (Source: 1992-2-12, Notisur, Argentina Suspends
Negotiations with Iran on Export of Nuclear Power Plant Equipment)

February 7

US National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) officials inspected the Condor II missile factory in Cordoba province. Control of the Condor II missile factory was transferred from the Argentine Air Force to the National Atomic Energy Commission (CNAE), which is supervised by the office of the presidency. (19922-26, Notisur, US Officials Inspect Condor II Missile Factory)

February 10

February 20

US Secretary of Defense Richard Cheney and Argentine counterpart Antonio Erman Gonzalez signed an agreement on donation and purchase of military hardware. Buenos Aires is to receive a ship and two C-130 planes from the Pentagon, and plans to purchase US$60 million worth of helicopter and tank replacement parts from the US. Next, the US Department of Defense is investigating purchase of about 1,000 Argentine IA 63 Pampa planes. The aircraft were developed with German technology and financing. The agreement marked the first exchange of military hardware since the 1982 war between Argentina and Britain over the Malvinas / Falkland islands. At the time, Washington suspended military exchanges with Argentina.
(Source: 1992-3-11, Notisur, Argentina-US Military Hardware Agreement)

March 17
?

Terrorist attack on Israeli Embassy Brady Plan agreed on. Argentinas foreign debt swapped for shares in privatized companies.

In 1992, to support the independence of the central bank, its charter was rewritten to prohibit the financing of public sector deficits and to remove lender-of-last-resort functions in the banks relations with the rest of the financial system. The central bank retained some policy instruments that it uses in its relations with the rest of the financial system. The central bank retained some policy instruments that it uses in its relations with banks, such as repurchase agremments, but in practice these facilities have remained small and are used mostly at the margin for overnight liquidity management. (Source: IMF???)

April (early)

After two months of talks, Argentina and a group of banks reached agreement on forgiveness of at least $ 8 billion of the country's $ 62 billion commercial-bank foreign debt. (1992-4-11, Economist, Business This Week)

76

April June 9 10

The Peruvian president, Alberto Fujimori, conducted his infamous auto-golpe. (1993-12-25, Economist, Latin America) British Prime Minister John Major made the first ever official visit by a British prime minister to Latin America, stopping in Colombia after meeting with President Bush and before attending the Earth summit in Rio, and signaling a real policy initiative. (1992-6-13, Economist, After a long siesta) William Jefferson Clinton was elected president of the United States. A run on the Argentinian peso forced the central bank to intervene in support of the currency and to increase interest rates. (1993-4-3, Economist, Montezumas revenge)

November November ?

1993
GDP, real % change: Consumption Investment Government Spending Trade balance Exports Imports Budget balance Inflation Debt Debt / GDP Debt / exports Poverty rate Unemployment Trends ?? YFP was privatized after admitting at last that government management did not work, becoming the first oil giant in a developing country to be set free. Now, with a market capitalisation of $ 8.6 billion, YPF wants to become an oil

77 multinational in its own right. (1994-6-2, Economist, Drill-bit diaspora) ?? The British foreign secretary, Douglas Hurd, made the first visit to Argentina by a British cabinet minister since the Falklands war in 1982. Both sides went through the motions of restating their claims to sovereignty over the islands, while chirping about the improvements in relations renewed only three years ago. Most of Argentina yawned. It is hard to get excited about a territorial squabble when there is a serious prospect of getting seriously richer. Gonzalo Sanchez de Lozada was elected president of Bolivia. Carlos Menem unveiled his Social Plan to spend $1.8 billion on Argentinas have-nots. His promises range from food for pensioners to gardens for poor families. The fact that the president went on television to boast about funds already accounted for in the budget promotes charges that he is mainly playing politics. If Mr Menem's Peronist Party adds to its majority in the House of Deputies at the congressional election in September, the president is expected to push for the constitutional reform needed to allow him to stand for re-election in 1995. An amendment requires a two-thirds majority in Congress, which Mr Menem would probably not get if he pressed the issue now. (Source: ?) William Jefferson (Bill) Clinton assumed the presidency of the United States. Argentina's 11-year debt crisis officially ended (Source: ?)

??

January 7

January 20

May May

The Venezuelan president and neoliberal reformer, Carlos Andres Perez, was forced out of office after an impeachment hearing. Fernando Henrique Cardoso was appointed the new (and current presidents fourth) finance minister of Brazil. He would go on to end the hyperinflation, a feat that would win him the presidency. ( Gustavo Beliz, a 32-year-old lawyer sworn in nine months previously as an honest interior minister, resigned abruptly over reelection manoeuvres. In a parting shot, he said that "if some cowboy operator thinks the constitutional reform can be obtained by buying votes, he's crazy". (1993-10-2, Economist, Menem wants a second term)

August

78

October ?

The ruling Peronists won the congressional elections but still lacked the votes to convene a constituent assembly to vote for a third term for Menem. The opposition Radicals, led by Raul Alfonsin, Mr Menem's predecessor in the presidency, were blocking the way. Mr Menem planned a non-binding plebiscite to apply extra pressure, but there was no guarantee that the Radicals would buckle. (1994-4-2, Economist, A happy Menem) The "Olivos" pact -- named after the presidential residence where it was signed -- turned Argentine politics on its head. Mr Alfonsin promised Radical backing for Mr Menem's proposed reform. Mr Menem in return accepted checks on presidential power. These included a reshuffle of the Supreme Court, putting opposition members in charge of certain state bodies, creating the post of a sort of prime minister and awarding a third senator to each province. The presidential term will be cut from six years to four. (1994-4-2, Economist, A happy Menem) The Radicals, battered by the voters last November, accepted the idea of constitutional change. In return, Mr Alfonsin was promised, in a deal known as the Olivos pact, that the change would include several checks on presidential power. (Source: 1994-6-25, Economist, Rougher road)

November

December 27?

Argentina installs Armando Caro Figueroa as labor minister, succeeding Enrique Rodriguez, who resigned to protest a rule that slashes employer contributions to union-managed benefit programs. (1993-12-27, WSJ, World Wire) The labour minister resigned because, he said, the government simply had no social policy. (1994-2-12, Economist, The other side of the halo) The poor struck back. In the northern province of Santiago de Estero, a mob of several thousand public workers looted and burned government buildings and the houses of senior officials. The provincial government has refused to fork up two months' back pay, averaging $ 300 a month. Legislators and top civil servants were raking in 30 times as much.

December ?

December ?

1994
GDP, real % change:

79 Consumption Investment Government Spending Trade balance Exports Imports Budget balance Inflation Debt Debt / GDP Debt / exports Poverty rate Unemployment Trends Inflation is down to 4%. Cavallo launches his so-called Second Reform of the State, with new privatizations among them the countrys nuclear power plants and postal system and a drastic cut in federal monies sent to the provinces. Confronted with such measures, the governors and other sectors of old-guard Peronists affirmed that the time had come for dividing the wealth, softening the impact of austerity, and acting with thoughts of the next elections in mind. (Romero, 3056) The longs slide began when the US Federal Reserve Board began a series of interest rate hikes in February of 1994, which would double US short-term rates (from 3 to 6 percent) over the next year. Argentina was hit immediately with the first rate increase, because of the uncertainty it created in emerging debt markets. Thus the cost of the governments borrowing, simply to roll over past debt, increased by both the Feds 3 percentage points, as well as the increasing spread between Argentine government bonds and US Treasuries of the same maturity. (Mark Weisbrot, ?? Argentina, together with Chile, among other countries, sends peacekeepers to Haiti, backing the Clinton government. (Source: 1994-7-2, Economist, A tale of two invasions) NAFTA went into effect and the Zapatistas launched their attacks.

January 1

80

January

Three job-creation plans unveiled. Under one, the state will pay the first three months' wages for young workers hired on one-year contracts by private employers. A coming labour reform should make hiring easier. Cheap housing is promised for the poor. (19942-12, Economist, The other side of the halo) For all the global jitters that have afflicted stock markets since America's central bank raised interest rates early this month, Latin American shares have barely flickered. On February 21st Brazil's main share-price index was 49% above its level at the beginning of November, in dollar terms; Argentina's was up 42%, Chile's 41% and Mexico's 36%. America's ratification of the North American Free Trade Agreement gave a fillip to share prices that were rising anyway. (1994-2-26, Economist, South of the border) In a deal arranged by Argentine and Spanish governments, Iberia's stake in Aerolineas was increased to 85% from 30%, in return for writing off a $ 400 m debt. The Spanish airline now claims that Aerolineas will move into profit by 1995. (1994-3-26, Economist, Latin American airlines; flight of the condor) A scandal was touched off when a conscript was murdered at a military base. The government responded by abolishing compulsory military service, ending nine decades of conscription. (1994-9-24, Economist, A new model army) Parliamentary elections. Economic hardships probably lead to the Peronists' poor showing (38%). (Source: ?) National and lower-level elections in April gave Mr Menem's Peronists and the Radicals enough seats between them virtually to assure passage of the Olivos reforms. But there were also blows to the Peronist aura of invincibility. On an anti-corruption platform, the Broad Front, a centre-left coalition, took 13% of the vote and won the federal district of Buenos Aires. Several Peronist governors failed to muster enough seats in provincial assemblies to ensure changes that would give them too a right to re-election, so depriving Mr Menem of useful running-mates in 1995 -- and freeing any ambitious one to dream of higher things. (Source: 1994-6-25, Economist, Rougher road) Until April it seemed voters would put up with almost anything for economic stability. Now some are daring to imagine stability without Mr Menem. His poll rating is sagging. The cabinet is squabbling and one Peronist senator is already vying for the party nomination. Until Mr Menem put his foot down, Peronist

February 21

March 18

March ?

April

81 governors were pushing hard for changes to the national constitution that would allow them to stand again. Mindful that most voters view the constituent assembly as a political plaything, and annoyed that the Broad Front has staked out the moral high ground, some Peronists are restless with their perceived role as rubber-stamps for the Olivos pact. (Source: 1994-6-25, Economist, Rougher road)

April 10

Voters elect a constituent assembly which might allow President Carlos Menem to try for the second presidential term currently forbidden by the constitution. (Source: ?) Argentinas pension system is partially privatized for those who pick that option. (1994-11-12, Economist, These lawyers) This marks the beginning of enormous an enormous fiscal problem. (Personal knowledge) A car-bomb exploded in front of the Jewish center, AMIA, in downtown Buenos Aires, killing 96 people. Two similar but far less devastating attacks followed in London a week later. (Source: 1994-8-6, Economist, Israel and terrorism) Brazil launches the real. (1994-11-26, Economist, Reforming Latin America) The presidents of the four countries in the Mercosur trade pact (Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay) agreed to form a customs union on January 1st 1995. (1994-8-13, Economist, Mercosur) Juan Jose Galeano, the investigating judge of the AMIA bombing, issued international arrest warrants for four Iranian diplomats. His evidence: statements made to him in Venezuela by an Iranian emigre whose credibility has since been called into doubt. The four diplomats are claiming to have documents that prove they had not been in Argentina for at least three months before the bombing. Judge Galeano has also fingered two present members of Iran's embassy in Buenos Aires as possible suspects. (1994-8-20, Economist, Argentina and Iran) Three of the four main farming unions began a ten-day national strike aimed at halting the purchase, sale and transport of most farm produce in protest over financial conditions. (1994-8-20, Economist, Argentine farms)

May

July 18

July August 5

August 9

August 12

82

October Late

Grateful Brazilians elect Fernando Henrique Cardoso, after he quells the inflation with his measures as Finance Minister. At the height of the congressional electoral campaign, Menem still declares that Cavallo is not leaving, despite evident tensions between the two men. Ernesto Zedillo succeeds Carlos Salinas de Gotari as president of Mexico. Beginning of the Mexican Crisis

December 1 December

1995
GDP, real % change: Consumption Investment Government Spending Trade balance Exports Imports Budget balance Inflation Debt Debt / GDP Debt / exports Poverty rate Unemployment Trends 1995 The arms-smuggling investigation began in 1995, and 46 people have already been indicted. Between 1991 and 1995, Argentina sold 6,500 tons of arms that were officially destined for Panama and Venezuela but ended up in Croatia and Ecuador. The sales violated international bans on arms sales in place at the time (see NotiSur, 2001-04-27). http://ladb.unm.edu/prot/search/retrieve.php3?ID[0]=24619

83

1995

FREPASO is born???????// Mexican Crisis The government introduced an austerity plan to fight the budget deficit and to cushion the shocks of Mexico's devaluation. As Argentina's economy began to flourish, Menem was reelected, and his party won majorities in both houses of the legislature and control of more than half of Argentina's provincial governments. But the cost of financing the budgetary deficit which grew from $1.3 billion in 1995 to $5.6 billion in 1996, with falling revenues and rising interest payments had set the country on the first turn of the rising debt spiral that would culminate in the massive debt default of December 2001. (David Rock, Racking Argentina) The appreciation of the Brazilian real Cardoso had raised interest rates to nearly 65 percent, in response to the Tequila crisis came to the rescue of the Argentine economy, by creating a big pull from its main export market. (David Rock, Racking Argentina, New Left Review, pg. 79) Argentine authorities used the experience [of the Tequilazo] to lengthen the maturity of public debt, improve the liquidity of the Treasury, upgrade banking regulation and create a novel liquidity policy that helped reassure investors and kept deposits growing through the recession started in 1999 and until as late as February 2001. Hausmann and Velasco, Hard Moneys Soft Underbelly

March 4 11

Shares in Latin America took a battering as Argentina faced a flight of capital and a credit crunch. Brazil's newish real dived and Mexico's already battered peso managed to plumb historic lows against a collapsing dollar. (1995-3-11, Economist, WORLD THIS WEEK) Menems son, Carlos Menem Jr, is killed in a suspicious helicopter accident. Menems estranged wife, Zulema Yoma, alleges that the accident was tied to the arms scandal. After the confessions of a former army sergeant, Argentina's army commander, General Martin Balza, officially admitted its responsibility for the thousands of tortures and killings of the 1970s "dirty war". The navy, one of whose ex-officers last month admitted that he had helped dump drugged prisoners alive into the

March 15

April

84 Atlantic, remained silent. (1995-4-29, Economist, WORLD THIS WEEK)

May 14 July 6

Menem is reelected. UCR Governor of Cordoba, Eduardo Angeloz, resigns over provinces fiscal problems after workers riot and federal government refuses to extend bailout. Menem was sworn into a second term. During a television interview on August 17, Cavallo said that mafias within government agencies were obstructing progress, especially privatization of postal services and customs operations. (Notisur, 1995-9-8) Cavallo testified for 11 hours before Congress about Alfredo Yabran. Elections??? An old-style international left-wing guerrilla, Enrique Gorriaran Merlo, whose exploits include the assassination of Nicaragua's former dictator Anastasio Somoza, was arrested in Mexico and extradited to Argentina, his native country. (1995-11-4, Economist, WORLD THIS WEEK) Argentina's government backed away from a plan to force provincial governments to cut their employees' wages. The IMF, closely watching Argentina, did not demur: the central government has more far-reaching plans to tighten its grip on overspending governors. (1995-11-18, Economist, WORLD THIS WEEK)

July 8 August 17

August 23? October??? November

November 11 18

1996
GDP, real % change: Consumption Investment Government Spending Trade balance Exports Imports

85 Budget balance Inflation Debt Debt / GDP Debt / exports Poverty rate Unemployment Trends

Early
???

US interest rates begin to rise. (David Rock, Racking Argentina, p. 79) Cavallo begins his anti corruption crusade, targeting Alfredo Yabran. This June, a Transparency International survey sent shock waves through the Menem administration when it gave Argentina a poor 3.4 grade in its International Corruption Perception Index (New Zealand ranked as the least corrupt country, with a 9.4 grade and Nigeria as the most corrupt with 0.69), backing up Cavallo's attack on the culture of corruption which is widely perceived to permeate Menem's administration. (First Page, Uki Goi, 8 December 1996, mimeo) June elections for mayor of Buenos Aires, the governing Partido Justicialista-peronista (PJ) came in a poor third behind the winning Union Civica Radical (UCR) and the Frente del Pais Solidario (FREPASO). This loss contributed to a re-examination of Cavallo's position in the administration, since most analysts cited dissatisfaction with the economy as a major factor in the PJ's loss (see NotiSur, 07/19/96). Cavallo is ousted and replaced with Roque Fernandez. Cavallo resigned over a row about health spending, to be replaced by Roque Fernandez. (David Rock, Racking Argentina)

June

June

July 26

1997
GDP, real % change: Consumption

86 Investment Government Spending Trade balance Exports Imports Budget balance Inflation Debt Debt / GDP Debt / exports Poverty rate Unemployment Trends

May October ? ??? mid???

Violent protests erupted in several major cities as unemployment rose to nearly 20 percent. The Peronists lost control of the Chamber of Deputies, for the first time since 1983, to a left-wing coalition known as The Alliance. It was Alfonsn himself who brokered the Alianza in 1997 (Corrales, The Political Causes of Argentinas Recession) Asian crisis

1998
GDP, real % change: Consumption Investment Government Spending Trade balance Exports Imports Budget balance Inflation Debt Debt / GDP Debt / exports

87

Poverty rate Unemployment Trends Menem actually proposed increases in his 1998 budget. And in 1998, Congress rejected Minister Roque Fernndezs watered down proposal to increase taxes and expand VAT coverage to exempted sectors. (Source: ?)

April

An IMF team visiting Argentina sounded the alarm that the rising debt together with the planned expansion of public investment placed Argentina in an explosive situation (Latin American Weekly Report, April 7, 1998:1). In a response that sounded more like the populist ex-president of Peru, Aln Garca, than the Menem of the early 1990s, he said: The IMF gives no orders. Nobody gives orders to Argentina. Javier Corrales, The Political Causes of Argentinas Recession Russia defaults. Beginning of the recession (GDP begins to contract). Long Term Capital Management collapses. Menem gives a triumphal discourse before the Annual Meeting of the World Bank and IMF, magnifying the international approbation for Argentinas policies. (Mussa, 2002, p 2) Fernando de la Rua defeats Graciela Fernndez Meijide in the Alianzas open internal ballots held to elect its presidential nomination.

August 3rd quarter September? October 4

October

1998 99
This hostility in Executive-ruling party relations undermined Argentinas economic performance in 1998-1999. With an Executive in desperate need of allies, and a group of party leaders desperate to contain the Executive, the political grounding for fiscal prudence evaporated. The formation of the Alianzaan electoral coalition between the two main opposition parties, the UCR and FREPASOheightened the feeling of threat of each warring faction of the PJ. In this context, nobody was about to become a defender of fiscal austerity. (Javier Corrales, The Political Causes of Argentinas Recession)

88

1999
Argentinas relations with Paraguay soured in 1999 when Menems government sheltered Paraguayan Gen. Lino Oviedo for eight months; Oviedo was wanted for the murder of Paraguays vice president. (Columbia Encyclopedia)

January ?

Argentina passed the Fiscal Responsibility Law, which mandates a declining deficit until the federal budget reaches balance in 2003. (Source: ?) Brazil devalues. That day, as Fischer and his colleagues had feared, the new currency regime fared abysmally in its debut, despite Lopess assurances that it represented an improvement in policy rather than a departure from the past. Brazilian stocks fell more than 10 percent in the first few minutes of trading before recovering somewhat to end the day down 5 percent. The real popped through the bottom part of the new range, prompting the central bank to sell a significant amount of dollars to brake the currencys descent. Markets went into paroxysms the world over, with the Dow plummeting as much as 261 points, Germanys main stock index down 4 percent, and Argentinas down 10 percent. (Blustein, 2001, p. 359)

January 13

January

The Argentine government promised the IMF a primary surplus of 1.2 percent of GDP by year end (Argentina Policy Memorandum 1999:3). Instead it delivered a deficit of 4.1 percent [but here were talking overall balance, no?]. (Javier Corrales, The Political Causes of Argentinas Recession) The Alliance candidate Fernando De la Ra beats the Peronist candidate and mayor of BsAs Eduardo Duhalde to become president. State workers take to the streets, demanding back pay from the provincial government. Washington Post Chronology In Argentina, the Law of Fiscal Solvency introduced in September 1999 requires the federal government to maintain a balanced budget from 2003, and also to ensure that spending does not run ahead of economic growth. It also establishes a stabilization fund

??

mid September

89 to mitigate the impact of the economic cycle on the budget. (IMF, Stanley Fischer, Address on Argentina, 2000)

October ? December 10?

Elections??? De la Ra took power. The country was already in recession and the public debt had reached high levels. The government tried to gain confidence by implementing a fiscal adjustment the impuestazo. These are unpopular measures, and for many economists, suboptimal because they are intensely recessionary, and thus, inadvisable in the context of a deep recession such as that of the fourth quarter of 1999 (see Figure 2). The administration thus made its debut by displeasing two important groups: the center-left sectors who elected the president and the private sector that longed for a supply-side economic stimulus. (Javier Corrales, The Political Causes of Argentinas Recession) But the adjustment did not bring growth. Rather, the recession deepened and doubts about debt sustainability were raised once more. (Source?)

2000
March
Argentina receives a $7.2bn, three-year IMF stand-by credit in exchange for a harsh austerity program. (The Economist, 20 November 2000) The downturn on Wall Street signaled the end of the US boom and the onset of a grave deterioration in the world economy. Capital flew out of the country as predictions grew that Argentina faced a hard landing. The deficit worsened, despite spending cuts. (David Rock, Racking Argentina, p.83) Labor-reform law passed in which members of the Senate are subsequently accused of having taken bribes. Vice President Carlos Chacho Alvarez resigns, exposing the weakness of De la Ras coalition administration. Even Alfonsn turned against Machinea, as evidenced by his famous declaration on national TV: the Convertibility Law of

April

April October 6 October 20

90 1991 is the gravest episode in economic affairs of this century a clear attack against Machineas policy of continuity (Microsemanario 420, 10/20/00), cited in Javier Corrales, The Political Causes of Argentinas Recession)

October 21

The following day, the government felt compelled to offer a harsh rebuttal: The Convertibility Law is the fulcrum (piedra angular) of our monetary, credit and financial markets (Chrystian Colombo, ibid.). (Javier Corrales, The Political Causes of Argentinas Recession) With recession dragging on, interest rates high, and Argentina's debt reaching 50 percent of GDP, Columbia University economist Charles Calomiris privately urges the government to restructure its obligations. Washington Post Chronology Unions staged a general strike. (Economist, The slow road to reform, 30 Nov 2000) Default was looming. (David Rock, Racking Argentina, p.83) A political split in the government sends capital fleeing and interest rates soaring. - Washington Post Chronology To regain the confidence of investors, the government announced a new economic plan featuring a public spending freeze and lower taxes. Argentina began to experience severely diminished access to capital markets, as reflected by a sharp and sustained rise in spreads on Argentine bonds over US Treasuries. To this, the IMF responded by providing exceptional financial support (IMF IEO, July 2003, p. 3) Finance Minister Machinea negotiates a large package of 40 billion dollars with the international financial institutions and domestic financial institutions to extend the public debt maturity and try to ease fears of default for the following two years. The governments bet was that, once these fears were eased, growth would resume. (Source?)

October

November November November November 10

Late

December ?

December 12

After weeks of wrangling, on December 12th Congress approved a budget law. The government failed to remove regional subsidies added to the bill by opposition senators; nor could it block a clause

91 backed by some of its own erstwhile supporters reversing the public-sector wage cuts enacted last May. But Mr de la Rua was expected to veto those clauses, which could add $600m to a fiscal deficit now forecast at $6.5 billion next year (against an original target of $4 billion). The government has already agreed with provincial governors to freeze central-government transfers to the provinces. Still pending are some tough measures to tighten pension rules and trade-union health schemes, which may be imposed by decree. Though the loans may not be disbursed until the pension measure has been implemented, the IMF made it clear that it expects a letter of intent to be completed before Christmas. In return for these reforms in the public finances, the IMF has agreed to a more relaxed fiscal policy in the short term, in the hope that this will bring economic growth. That will add to Argentinas growing debt burden. But by covering the countrys financing needs for next yearwhich could now total some $22 billionthe loan is intended to eliminate fears of a debt default, and thus cut borrowing costs. (The Economist, Long recession, short shrift, 14 December 2000)

2001
Compare with 1890. January 1 January 20
El Salvador dollarizes (on the rec of Cavallo?). The administration of George W. Bush takes power. Treasury: Paul ONeil State: Colin Powell NSA: Condoleeza Rice [Does foreign policy towards Argentina change? Does Colin Powell do anything?]

February

Argentine markets begin to slide anew as turmoil in Turkey undermines confidence in emerging markets, and evidence suggests that the government will not fulfill the IMF's targets (Washington Post timeline)

92

February

The government exchanged US$3.6 million worth of bonds due to mature soon for US$4.2 million of bonds maturing in 2006-2007. (Notisur, 2001-05-11, Argentina Reaches New Agreement with Lenders,http://ladb.unm.edu/prot/search/retrieve.php3?ID[0]=2458 1) The US$ 5.543 billion bank run of March 2001, the most critical in all Argentina history, indicated default and devaluation fears on the part of Argentineans, which needed to be dispelled. (Cavallo, An Institutional Coup, p. 2) Growth has not picked up by this time, so De la Ras first Economy Minister, Machinea, resigns. Faced with faltering economic growth, soaring country risk (the interest premium Argentina pays for its debt) and evaporating support, Jose Luis Machinea surprised President Fernando de la Rua by resigning as economy minister on March 2nd. The Argentine stockmarket rejoiced, surging by 2%. It went up another 8% after the weekend, when Mr de la Rua named Ricardo Lopez Murphy to succeed him. (Economist, Can Lopez Murphy save Argentina?, 8 March 2001)

March

March 2

March 4? March 16

Ricardo Lpez Murphy becomes Economy Minister. Ricardo Lpez Murphy sends a reform package based on a large reduction of the deficit to Congress, and it encounters fierce opposition. Murphyduly declared war on the provinces welfare and employment programmes, but met with a solid front of opposition from the Peronist governors of Buenos Aires, Cordoba and Santa Fe. Lopez Murphy shifted his focus to higher education, no doubt hoping to find a softer target, only to encounter the collective fury of the university students. (David Rock, Racking Argentina, p. 84)

March 16

The ruling Alianza coalition, formed in 1997, collapsed on March 16th with the departure of six cabinet members from both Mr de la Rua's Union Civica Radical (UCR) and his coalition partner, Frente del Pais Solidario (Frepaso). Other high-ranking Frepaso members also deserted the government, effectively ending the alliance. They departed after the new economy minister, Ricardo Lopez Murphy, presented an austerity plan they could not endorse. The plan, intended to revive support for Argentina in financial

93 markets, was subsequently scrapped, and Mr Lopez Murphy went with it. (The Economist, 26 March 2001)

March 19? March 20 April 16

Lpez Murphy resigns upon strong opposition to the new package he has sent to Congress. (Source: ?) Cavallo becomes Finance Minister once again and tries different measures to revive growth. Cavallo sends to Congress a proposed amendment to the Convertibility Law, according to which the peso would be pegged to a basket consisting of US dollars and euros with equal weights, when the dollar-euro rate reaches 1:1. The rationale behind this measure was to align Argentinas currency board with its major trading partner. (Perry and Serven, Anatomy of a Multiple Crisis) Letter to the Markets: INDIGNANT at rumours that Argentina might default on its debts or devalue its currency, or that he was resigning, Domingo Cavallo sent a stiff open letter to the markets on April 22nd: how dare dealers spread such tittle-tattle instead of lauding his achievements since returning as economy minister a month ago? The letter was like a confession of weakness and, predictably, that is the way the markets interpreted it. (Cavallos Crisis, The Economist, April 25, 2001) Quebec Summit It is worth mentioning that on Sunday, April 22, when the Presidents of the Americas Summit in Quebec began and Argentinas country-risk exceeded 1,000 points, Bush publicly stated Argentina might receive bilateral aid even at the level of that given to Mexico in 1995. Two hours later, ONeill dismissed the Presidents statement explaining that the administrations policy would not allocate US tax-payers contributions to finance debt-ridden countries that systematically failed to honor their obligations. (Paul ONeills policy, 2 August 2001, in Nueva Mayoria, Rosendo Fraga)

April 22

April 22

April 23

The government cancelled its previous semi-monthly [bond] auction on April 24th when the market demanded exorbitant yields. On Monday, Argentine bonds plummeted again as investors gave the decision to suspend an auction of up to $700m in domestic

94 government debt to avoid paying high interest rates the thumbs down. Many investors have sold on doubts that Latin America's biggest borrower can repay its $128bn in loans, despite a $40 billion aid package from the IMF. Argentina's risk rating, which compares its government bonds to that of the US, widened more than those of Russia and Turkey on Monday. (BBC, Argentinas Central Banker must go, 1996-424)

April 24

Argentine stocks closed firmer on Tuesday, rebounding from recent losses as investors pinned their hopes on the ousting of Mr Pou. Cavallo replaces Pedro Pou with Roque Maccarone as the new President of the Central Bank. (Perry and Serven, Anatomy of a Multiple Crisis) *Erosion of independence of the Central Bank. How did the markets react? Anne Krueger claims negatively.

April 25

May 3

In ongoing efforts to improve the health of the Argentine economy, on May 3 Economy Minister Domingo Cavallo and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) announced a new agreement that would allow the release this quarter of US$1.26 billion in previously frozen loans. The agreement with the IMF follows Cavallo's announcement of new tax and spending measures. Disbursements of the US$40 billion loan package approved last December were frozen because poor tax collections and spending hikes contributed to a first-quarter budget deficit US$1.2 billion above the US$2.1 billion target. Argentina is unlikely to reach the US$6.5 billion goal set for the year. With few signs that an economic turnaround is ahead, Argentina is relying on the aid package to help revive its economy and enable it to make payments on more than US$128 billion in foreign debt. (Notisur, 2001-5-11, Argentina reaches new agreement with lenders) Megacanje, or Mega-swap: 30 billion dollar debt swap. (Hausmann and Velasco, Hard Moneys Soft Underbelly) A "mega-swap" of Argentine bonds, aimed at giving the country breathing space to resume growth by stretching out the government's principal and interest payments, is concluded, with

May?

95 nearly $30 billion worth of bonds exchanged. (Washington Post timeline)

June ?

Debt exchange. Interest rates as high as 16 percent were consolidated for periods of up to 30 years. This aggravated the perception of desperation, and the run on the banks. The placement of public debt on pension funds accelerated the drop in deposits. The end result was the so called policy of zero deficit that implied a politically impossible shrinking salary of public employees. By mid 2001, the run on Argentinean assets in general, including bank deposits, was very fast. The significant uncertainty caused by that movement led to a huge drop in investment (-25 % only during 2001) and consumer confidence. (Pedro Pou, The Argentine Crisis, July 17, 2002)

June (early)

Budget gap. Argentina's fiscal deficit topped US$4bn in the first four months of the year. This is almost two-thirds of the annual target of US$6.5bn agreed with the IMF. Officials hope that an auction scheduled for October to sell new mobile telephony licences, expected to bring in some US$800m, will help to ease the gap. (The Economist, Country Monitor, Key Developments in Argentina, 4 June 2001) Markets continue to slide, and Argentina turns again to the IMF for help. (Washington Post Timeline) When by mid-July Argentinas country-risk topped 1,600 points, the crisis starategy devised by late April was implemented. Brazil with close to 1,000 country-risk begins to negotiate a $20 billion support with the IMF while Turkey with a risk near 1,100 negotiates an $11 billion aid with the international entity. So in view of the increased exposure to default in Argentina the crisis plan devised in April was implemented. While the State Department called for the need to avert a domino effect an Argentine crisis might trigger first in Latin America, then in emerging markets and from there to the world economy, the Treasury was firm on its stance to avoid bail-outs such as so-called blindaje granted by the Clinton Administration to Argentina by late 2000. By late April the US National Security council devised the policy that contains the opposing stances within the American government: in case of an Argentine default, Brazil should be strengthened to avert contagion toward Latin America and Turkey

June July July-mid

96 and stop it from shaking the rest of the merging markets. Regarding Argentina, efforts will be made to channel support through the obligations assumed with the IMF. (Paul ONeills policy, 2 August 2001, in Nueva Mayoria, Rosendo Fraga)

June mid August

Foreign exchange reserves decline from US$22.7bn at end of June to US$15.6bn, owing to heavy withdrawals from the financial system. (2001 August 27, The Economist, Country Monitor, Argentina: IMF extends emergency aid) President de la Rua also announced a series of tax breaks, another piece of the effort to pull the country out of the three year recession. (Notisur, 2001-6-29, Argentina: Economy Minister Cavallo Modifies Currency Peg) Dual exchange rate introduced. The Financial Times of London wrote that, after three months, some question whether Cavallo really has the magic touch or is just a talented illusionistfrantically distracting attention from Argentinas problems with a stream of clever measures. It said the new measures have prompted the question expressed by one market participant: does he have a grand plan to rescue Argentina or is he making it up as he goes along? (2001-6-29, Notisur, Argentina: Economy Minister Cavallo Modifies Currency Peg) The Argentine Senate, controlled by the opposition Partido Justicialista-peronista (PJ), approved Economy Minister Domingo Cavallos bill to include the euro in the nations convertibility plan. The bill, which was previously passed in the lower house, allows Argentina's dollar-peso currency peg to be expanded to float at a 50-50 intraday average of the dollar and the European common currency, the euro. But the change would not take effect until the dollar and the euro reach parity, which could take months or even years. (Notisur)

June 15

June 18 June 19

June 21

July ? July

Argentina is unable to tap capital markets and must turn to the IMF. I give my life to the fight, I will never devalue. De la Rua is quoted as saying in the Financial Times (16 July 2001). (David Rock, Racking Argentina, p. 84)

97

July 10

After the government was forced to pay an interest rate of 1,410 basis points at the time it issued a short-term bond, the government announced the zero deficit law. It then becomes obvious that the government could not tap capital markets without the debt exploding. (Perry and Serven) Given its inability to access the credit markets, the government pushes hard to obtain a new agreement with the IMF. To do so, it needs an agreement with the provinces on tax redistributions.

July 19

The bluntest statement of official indifference came from Treasury Secretary Paul H. O'Neill this summer and helped accelerate the loss of capital and confidence here. "They've been off and on in trouble for 70 years or more," Mr. O'Neill said dismissively in an interview with the British magazine The Economist. "They don't have any export industry to speak of at all. And they like it that way. Nobody forced them to be what they are." What was missing from Mr. O'Neill's analysis, however, was any mention of the high tariffs the United States imposes on Argentine exports or of the aversion to easing those barriers to help Argentina regain its footing. Nor was the Bush administration particularly helpful in "creating some kind of framework for how the international system could respond, rather than saying, `It's all up to you,' " said Peter Hakim, president of Inter-American Dialogue, a Washington-based conference of hemisphere leaders. Larry Rohter, NYT, 12/25/2001 Some have suggested that Washington had already come to the conclusion that Argentina, unlike Mexico and Turkey, was not a strategically significant country, and could therefore be sacrificed (see Michele Wucker, Searching for Argentinas Silver Lining)

July

The countrys international reserves fell by nearly a quarter in July, and are down almost 40% since the end of last year. Tax revenues weaker than anticipated. (The Economist, A test of nerve, 17 August 2001) The government implemented a zero-deficit plan under which the government spends only what it collects in taxes. Last week, the message appeared to shift. President Bush, by phone, offered Argentina's president, Fernando de la Rua, verbal support at least for Argentina's efforts to fight the crisis. Tony

August ? August 2?

98 Blair, Britain's prime minister, hopped over the border during a trip to Brazil, in another show of support. And John Taylor, the Treasury's point man on international policy, flew to Buenos Aires. After a two-day visit, he pronounced himself impressed with the government's efforts to pull out of crisis. Though Mr Taylor was careful to say nothing about more money, the arrival in Buenos Aires of such a senior Treasury official was interpreted as a sign that help was on the way. He was, people said, hardly there just to taste the wine. (Mixed signals: American policy towards Argentina, The Economist, 9 August 2001)

August 7

Argentina will not devalue, will not default on its debt, said Mr Cavallo on August 7th. Finance ministers have to defend exchange-rate policies right up to the moment such policies are reversed or modified. To do otherwise would guarantee a financial panic. But the inevitable suddenness with which such policies have to be modified ensures an equally inevitable loss of credibility, both for the minister caught when the music stops and for the government as a whole. Argentina would pay a high price for devaluation and default in terms of future access to international capital and the interest it has to payeven the perceived risk of default has pushed up its borrowing costs. (The Economist, A test of nerve, 17 August 2001) Negotiations with the IMF. The Argentine Finance secretary, Daniel Marx, who is heading his country's team in the Washington talks, said on August 15th that progress was being made. This led to renewed optimism that an end to the current uncertainty might be in sight. But on August 17th, an IMF spokesman said that while progress was being made, there was no news on when a deal might be announced. (The Economist, A test of nerve, 17 August 2001) The 19 Latin American nations of the Rio Group met in Santiago, Chile, Aug. 17-18 for their 15th annual summit. While the leaders issued an urgent call to the US to help Argentina, which is mired in an economic crisis that threatens to spill over into the rest of the region, they also directed attention to political and social problems in the region. The closing address was delayed an hour as summit host Chilean President Ricardo Lagos was apprising Bush of the leaders concern that talks between the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and Argentina were dragging on and increasing unease in global financial markets. (Notisur, Rio Group Supports Argentina, 2001-08-31)

August 9 21 August 15 17

August 17-18

99

August 21

IMF announced a rescue package of $8 billion dollars, $3 billion of which were conditional on a restructuring of the debt. IMF, under Horst Kohler's management, approves an $8 billion increase in its loan package for Argentina, including a vague proposal for some of the money to go toward restructuring the country's debt, but markets resume their decline soon thereafter. (Washington Post Timeline)

September 11

The United States is attacked by the terrorist organization AlQueda, and US foreign policy suddenly becomes focused purely on the War on Terror. Even with its economy disintegrating, Argentina has not wavered from a commitment to send up to 600 troops as part of the peacekeeping force in Afghanistan and to open a field hospital in Pakistan. That effort, which will cost Argentina up to $20 million, has been criticized here as an expenditure that would be better directed at creating jobs for the millions of unemployed. (Larry Rohter, NYT, 12/25/01)

*I wonder: was there anything domestically strategic about sending these troops out of the country? Perhaps an attempt to prevent a coup?

October ?

Top bankers meeting in New York conclude that the country must restructure. [But wasnt the megacanje effectively a restructuring???] (Washington Post Timeline) *Who was present at the top bankers meeting in New York in October 2001?

October

En las elecciones legislativas de octubre de 2001 cuando cerca de la mitad del electorado se abstuvo o anul su sufragio mediante el "voto protesta" el peronismo se transform en el partido mayoritario, por lo que detentaba las presidencias del Senado y de la Cmara de Diputados. (Maria Victoria Murillo, Tango de un desencanto anunciado) Even before the economy collapsed, a record 40% of voters in a congressional election last October cast blank or spoiled votes. (The Economist, February 28, 2002, A decline without parallel)

October 26

Negotiations on an agreement on the distribution of tax revenues to the provinces by the central government fail again.

100 At the same time, John Taylor (US Treasury) [Who is he?] says there will not be any external help to Argentina until she obtains her objective of a zero deficit. (Source?)

October 28

Cavallo starts negotiations to obtain warranties from the IMF and US Treasury for the new bonds issued in an exchange for Argentinas local and external debt, which sums up to more than $100 billion. He is also trying to obtain more warranties from the World Bank and the IDB. Cavallo defines the debt exchange operation as being a voluntary exchange for bonds that will pay 7 % annual interest but will have tax revenues for a guarantee. However, the US Treasury still demands the deficit be reduced to zero and that an agreement with the provinces on tax distribution be arrived at as a condition for any guarantee. The negotiations last more than a month. (Perry & Serven) Tomas Eloy Martinez sat at a luncheon with De la Rua and Cavallo and felt that the president was absent and that the minister was sick and indifferent. (Repensando la Argentina) The government announces a partial debt restructuring plan. (Washington Post timeline) Sovereign Default. The sovereign credit rating is downgraded to SD on Nov. 6, 2001, following the governments decision to carry out a distressed debt exchange. (S & P) President de la Rua and other administration officials made a threeday visit to the US Nov. 9-11 to explain to investors the debt-swap plan and to participate in the UN General Assembly. Economy Minister Domingo Cavallo and Foreign Relations Minister Adalberto Rodriguez Giavarini accompanied the president. De la Rua had hoped to have the agreement with the governors in place before meeting with US President George W. Bush in New York, but that did not happen. De la Rua went before Wall Street investors on Nov. 9 to defend his plan for rescuing the economy, saying the debt swap was the best way to keep Argentina solvent. Although critics see the move as a sign that a default is imminent, de la Rua pledged that Argentina would find a way to pay off its debt and emerge from recession. "Argentina has always honored and will continue to honor its obligations," he said in a speech to about 300 investors and analysts.

October 29

November ?

November November 6

November 9 11

101 The Argentine president met with Bush on Nov. 11. A Bush administration official told reporters that the US president had expressed support for IMF efforts to come to Argentina's aid and for efforts to restructure the debt. When he returned to Buenos Aires, de la Rua said the trip had been a success. But some news reports said that Bush warned de la Rua that he must resolve the political problems at home to ensure fulfillment of the zero deficit policy if he wanted further monies from the IMF and the political support of the White House. "Beyond the good wishes, the interest on the part of President Bush, I didn't see anything else," said political analyst Ricardo Rouvier, after watching de la Rua summarize the trip on Argentine television. http://ladb.unm.edu/prot/search/retrieve.php3?ID[0]=24782&ID[1]=24749

November 11?

Economy Minister Domingo Cavallo says the country is now in a full blown depression. To avert the total collapse of the countrys finances, he wants to restructure US$154 billion in federal and provincial debt to free up resources to restart growth. The Emerging Market Creditors Association (EMCA) had become increasingly edgy as Argentina prepared to swap US$60 billion in locally held debt for new securities that would pay less interest over a longer time period. "The international bondholding community is increasingly anxious about being excluded from dialogue with the Argentines regarding the shape of the government's liability management and restructuring process," said Mark Siegel, a board member at EMCA. The Argentine government, which devotes a fifth of its budget to servicing its debt, describes the swap as "voluntary." But some ratings agencies that believe local banks were pressured into it said it is tantamount to default. http://ladb.unm.edu/prot/search/retrieve.php3?ID[0]=24782&ID[1] =24749

November 14

Opposition governors from Argentina's largest provinces finally signed a deficit-reduction agreement with the administration of President Fernando de la Rua. The agreement is seen as crucial to government efforts to avert a default on its debt or a currency devaluation. http://ladb.unm.edu/prot/search/retrieve.php3?ID[0]=24782 &ID[1]=24749 The IMF announces that it will not give any new disbursements to Argentina prior to receiving evidence that all the goals had been met. (Perry & Serven)

November 19

102

Cavallo is due to meet US Treasury Secretary Paul O'Neill on Nov. 19 at a meeting in Ottawa of the Group of 20 finance ministers from industrialized and emerging countries. Argentina's economic crisis and the ongoing efforts to resolve it are expected to be a major topic for discussion.(Source: ?) *Did it occur?

November 30

Deposit Run. Total collapse of confidence results in the acceleration of the deposit run. During the day, deposits decrease $1.8 billion (2.7%) and interbank rates reach 900%. (Standard & Poors) Withdrawals from bank deposits reached $500 million per day in late November, and a staggering $1 billion per day in early December. (David Rock, Racking Argentina, p. 84) Corralito. The government announced several measures restricting withdrawals from all bank accounts known as the corralito and corraln (ie, the little corral and the big corral) including a weekly withdrawal limit of 250 pesos (dollars) per week for each account. (Source: ?) Bank Deposit Freeze (Corralito) / Foreign Exchange Controls. The De la Ra administration imposed restrictions on deposit withdrawals from checking and savings accounts to $1,000 per month, although the funds deposited could be used as a means of payment (electronic transfers, credit and debt cards, and checks). All new lending granted by local banks had to be dollar denominated. Cross-border transfers were restricted to foreign trade transactions and credit card international clearing, while transfers abroad to honor financial obligations were subject to consent from the Central Bank of Argentina. No authorizations were granted (decree 1570/01). (Standard & Poors) The final mistake of Minister Cavallo was the way in which deposits were freezed. Instead of using all international reserves to back means of payment, and freeze only time deposits, all bank deposits were treated alike. The result was the breaking of the payment system with a significant impact on the level of economic activity. (Pedro Pou, The Argentine Crisis, 17 July 2002)

Nov / Dec

December 2?

December 3

December 7

Foreign Exchange Controls: Export Repatriation Requirement. Proceeds of exports had to be transferred to Argentina, though funds could be maintained in original currency, with no need of

103 conversion into pesos. Central Bank regulation specifically established that while certain cross-border transfers would have automatic approval by the Central Bank (i.e., public debt service, delivery versus payment operations resulting fro securities brokerage), some others would require Central Bank authorization (trade finance, private debt service; CB res. 3382). Still, no authorizations were granted. (Standard & Poors)

December 11

Foreign Exchange Controls. The Central Bank communicates to financial entities that they were authorized to make payments abroad to honor their financial obligations due in December (CB telephone res. 3893). (Standard & Poors) Foreign Exchange and Trade Regulations. Some of the trade related transfer regulations are changed again. Proceeds of exports destined to pay the debt service of future-flow transactions are exempted from the requirement of transfer to Argentina, as was payment of obligations originated in prefinance and finance of exports with inflows into the Argentine financial system after Dec. 6. The changes facilitate the payment of exporters' financial obligations, while paying imports is made more cumbersome. Under certain conditions, transfers abroad of funds that are introduced into the financial system after Dec. 3 are authorized (CB res. 3394). (Standard & Poors) That was followed by the fund's public declaration on Dec. 18 of its lack of confidence in the Argentine authorities, which helped hasten the government's fall. "It's clear that the mix of fiscal policy, debt and the exchange rate regime is not sustainable," said Kenneth Rogoff, the fund's chief economist. He also maintained that "everyone recognizes that to a large extent the problem lies in Argentina," a statement that did not ring true to other governments in the region. (Larry Rohter, NYT, 12/25/2001)

December 13

December 18

December 19

Supermarket sackings in greater Buenos Aires. Groups of the poor and unemployed surround the supermarkets demanding bags of food or simply entering and taking what they can. In general, the police do not intervene and it is suspected that the looters are encouraged by local Peronist ward bossesThe supermarket ransackings are something familiar, almost predictable. (Romero. 2002. p. 347)

104

December 19

The president calls a state of siege and asks the army to intervene. The army, constitutionally barred from intervention, does not react. The country, however, does. Fearful of a return of military government, the population spontaneously pours into the streets to protest the state of siege. Repression, supermarket sackings, bank holiday. Cavallo resigns.

December 19 - 20

December 19, midnight December 19 30

AN INSTITUTIONAL COUP??????????? Domingo Cavallo: From December 19th through 30th, 2001, Argentina suffered an institutional coup that resulted in the subsequent resignations of President Fernando De la Rua and Provisional President Adolfo Rodriguez Saa. The aims behind the institutional coup were Argentina defaulting on its debts and abandoning convertibility. The coup was carried out by National Deputy Leopoldo Moreau, the ringleader that devised the plan, as well as Governor ngel Rozas, Head of the Radical Party. Of course, they could not have followed this course of action without the approval of former president Raul Alfonsin. To trigger the institutional breakdown several instruments were used in steps: First, the Radical Party decided to boycott the 2002 National Budget Bill it was not discussed on Wednesday, December 19, 2001, as initially scheduled. Second, on that same day they demanded the resignation of the full National Cabinet. Third, on Tuesday December 20, 2001 they demanded the resignation of President De la Ra. Fourth, they did not allow Congress to call for elections within 90 days. Last, but not least, they set the condition that the Convertibility Law should be repealed and the countrys economy pesified in order to lend parliamentary support to President Eduardo Duhalde. (Source: Domingo Cavallo, An Institutional Coup)

December 20

Presidential Resignation. Following riots, looting, and demonstrations, Minister of the Economy Cavallo resigned in the early morning hours. At 7:50 pm President De la Ra resigns. (Standard & Poors) Ramn Puesta, the Senate Majority Leader and a Peronist, is appointed interim president following De la Ras resignation.

105

December 21 (Fri)

Banking Holiday. Banking operations are virtually nonexistent, and clearing of operations is unavailable, as the Central Bank establishes bank and foreign exchange holidays between Dec. 21 and Dec. 26, and then extends the foreign exchange holiday. (Standard & Poors). ...something more shocking ocurred: cacerolazos. Large contingents of the Buenos Aires middle classthe very people who had voted massively for the UCR and De la Ra took to the streets, banging pots in protest. Both rowdy and orderly multitudes gathered at the citys principal street corners, as well as in the Plaza de Mayo. They protested for many reasons, but above all because of the corralito, which froze their deposits and savings. One of the groups gathered outside the house of Minister Cavallo, who resigned on the morning of December 21. (Romero, 2002, p. 347) While this was happening, crowds were filling the Plaza de Mayo, and a brutal police repression followed. De la Ra stepped down and was forced to abandon the presidential mansion, the Casa Rosada, by helicopter.

December 21

Dec 21-Jan 1

Power vacuum. Some five presidents rapidly succeeded one another. The Peronist leaders, with a sizable majority in the Congress where the new president would be chosen, only could agree on a minor political figureAdolfo Rodriguez Sa, governor of the small province of San Luisand on a rapid call for elections.

December 23?

Rodriguez Sa, governor of one of the provinces, becomes the new (provisory) president for the next 60 days, until elections on March 3rd. He declared the suspension of external debt payments for at least 60 days. Presidential Appointment / Debt Moratorium. The National Assembly appointed Rodriguez Sa as new president. In his inaugural speech, he stated that payments on the Argentine external debt were to be suspended, and that devaluation and dollarization were not under consideration. Mr. Sas economic plan includes the issue of a second currency (the argentino) without currency backing. (S & P) Sa sworn in.

December 24?

December 25

106

Sa announces that Argentina is ceasing payment on its foreign debt, the dreaded default.

December 28

Another cacerolazo and more supermarket sackings. Sa resigns?

December 30

Presidential Resignation. After a new round of demonstrations triggered by the appointment of officials believed to have been involved in illegal activities in the past, as well as other worrisome political and economic signs, Rodriguez Sa resigns. (Standard & Poors) *Does Rodriguez Sa resign because Duhaldismo threatens his family?

Eduardo Camao, the Speaker of the House, replaces Sa after Ramn Puesta declines to serve as interim president a second time.

2002
January 1
Eduardo Duhalde is elected President by the two chambers of Congress. ARGENTINA is bust. It's bankrupt. Business is halted, the chain of payments is broken, there is no currency to get the economy moving and we don't have a peso to pay Christmas bonuses, wages or pensions. Thus Eduardo Duhalde, in his speech to Congress after it had chosen him as Argentina's president on January 1st. (2002-1-3, Economist, Between the creditors and the streets)

January 1 11

Last week, the government missed its first payment of interest, officially placing the country in default. (2002-1-11, Economist, Fixing the rate, not a problem) Eduardo Duhalde assumes the presidency, converts the corralito into the corralon, and ends the currency board, devaluing the peso to 1.4 pesos per dollar. His term is scheduled to end in December 2003. (Source: ?) [Why did Duhalde succeed in lasting a full year (where others failed)?]

January 2

107

January 6 (Sunday)

By devaluing the peso to a fixed rate of 1.40 to the dollar on Sunday January 6th, Argentinas new government bowed to the inevitable. (2002-1-11, Economist, Fixing the rate, not a problem) Banking Holiday/Peso Devalued. Banking operations were virtually nonexistent and clearing of operations was unavailable as the Central Bank established bank and foreign exchange holidays. Mr. Duhaldes new administration promoted the end of the convertibility regime and established a dual foreign exchange market. The official parity was fixed at Argentine peso (ArP) 1.4 per dollar (Economic Emergency Law 25.561) Other provisions of the law include:

January 6-10

Pesification of most debts with original amounts below $100,000. Freeze of tariffs and other obligations emerging from private contracts originally in dollars for 180 days, during which agreements and renegotiations were to take place. The government is to implement measures to preserve the dollar-denominated savings of depositors trapped in the financial system. The law also entitles the government to restructure the maturity of deposits as the financial system's solvency evolves. The government is entitled to impose a tax on oil exports to compensate banks for the cost of pesification of assets.

The official market coexisted with a free market, although the government claimed that its ultimate goal was a floating exchangerate regime. Although the legal framework was not clear-cut, according to some interpretations of the Central Bank regulation of foreign exchange markets issued on Jan. 10, 2001, (CB res. 3425) cross-border transfers were not prohibited as long as the issuers acquired the dollars in the "free market"; that is, if the transfer did not imply a reduction in the Central Bank reserves. The free market was not deep, however, with scarcity of dollar bills and small operations, which made it virtually impossible for companies to acquire the necessary amounts of dollars to pay obligations abroad. In any case, because the free market price of the dollar was much higher than the official parity (although the Central Bank injected small amounts in the free market to cap the increase), this alternative became increasingly costly for private entities. Additionally, the Central Bank increased restrictions on the use of bank deposits as a means of payment, compulsorily converting into long-term CDs (extending maturities up to four years) most deposits (CB res. 3426). (Standard & Poors)

108

January 10 17 (?)

it is still uncertain what will happen to the $37 billion of loans not covered by peso-ification at one-for-one. This week the government announced that large loans could be repaid at 1.40 pesos to the dollar, the official rate. That is one more blow for bankers, who are alarmed and furious at the spate of decrees. On the other hand, the government might change its mind yet again. (2002-1-17, Economist, Should I stay or should I go) This week the protests turned uglier again, as gangs of youths trashed branches of foreign banks in several cities. In Casilda, a quiet town in Sante Fe province, a quarter of the residents staged protests which ended with the destruction of five banks and several public offices. In Jujuy, in the north, 100 people were reported to have volunteered to be crucified in protest at the economy's plight. (2002-1-17, Economist, Survival struggle)

January 11

Foreign Exchange Holiday Lifted. The government lifted the ban on foreign exchange transactions that had lasted three weeks. (S & P) Bankruptcy Bill Passed by Senate. The Senate approved a new bankruptcy bill, which if finally enacted, would not only unilaterally impose a moratorium on most private-sector foreign debt, but would provide debtors with significant incentives and legal protection to default and restructure both local and foreign currency debt, leading to an indefinite delay in the restoration of credit for Argentine firms. Moreover, the attempt to modify the Bankruptcy Law, a fundamental law, through an improvised emergency bill, added uncertainty to the already critical economic environment. (S & P) Bankruptcy Bill Modified by Lower Chamber. The Lower Chamber approved the bill reforming the bankruptcy law that had been passed by the Senate on Jan. 23. There was considerable pressure by multilaterals and other governments for the Argentine government to veto the law. (S & P) Supreme Court Ruling on Deposits. The Supreme Court ruled against the restrictions on deposit withdrawals in response to claims filed by certain individuals. On prior occasions, the Supreme Court had ruled in favor of the restrictions, but after a period of continuous demonstrations against the court's members, and the initiation of impeachment proceedings by the Argentine Congress, the Supreme Court finally ruled in favor of lifting restrictions. (S & P)

January 23

January 30

February 1

109 February 3 Banking Holiday/Economic Plan Announcement/Pesification of the Economy. The Central Bank established a banking holiday for Feb. 4-5 to gain time to solve the problems raised by the Supreme Court's ruling of Feb. 1, and to prepare the banks to adjust to the new economic plan. The day's announcements included the plan to fully float the peso starting Feb. 6, to lift restrictions on cross-border transfers once multilateral financial assistance is granted, to lift restrictions on cash withdrawals of payroll accounts, to target a fiscal deficit of $3 billion for 2002, not to exceed a monetary target of an additional $3.5 billion (newly printed currency) for the whole year, and other measures concerning the pesification of the economy (decree 214/2002). The most important measures included in the decree were:

Pesification of all debts at the 1:1 parity, regardless of original amount or nature, within or outside the financial system, including those transferred to trusts. They are to be indexed according to inflation and a maximum interest rate will be established by the Central Bank; Pesification of dollar deposits at the 1.4 parity, also to be indexed according to inflation. A minimum interest rate to be established by the Central Bank; Despite the adjustment of debts and deposits to preserve purchasing power, new contracts or obligations are not allowed to include indexation clauses; The government will issue a bond to compensate banks for the difference between the rate of conversion into pesos of assets and deposits; Depositors have the option to require the replacement of their dollar deposits with a new dollar government bond, up to a maximum of $30,000. Banks will have to transfer assets to the government sufficient to finance the obligation; Dollar bills held by banks will have to be deposited in the Central Bank and converted into pesos at a 1.4 parity. This clause effectively prevented banks from selling dollars once banking activities restarted, and sought to make the realization of the populace's desire to escape from the peso more difficult. After considerable protests, this provision was reversed by a new decree the following day; and All legal actions against the deposit restrictions are suspended for 180 days. Although the government devised this provision to counter the Supreme Court ruling, allegations of its unconstitutionality had already been filed in local courts by Feb. 4. In any case, the legal framework remained uncertain and from this date on, banks started to suffer considerable additional withdrawals (estimated at $30 million per day for the system) when depositors who had previously initiated legal actions approached banks with a court representative to seize funds. (S & P)

110 February 5 Banking Holiday. The Central Bank extended the banking holiday for the rest of the week (until Feb. 8). (S & P) Foreign Exchange Controls and Trade Regulations. The Central Bank issued new regulations on the foreign exchange market and trade-related transactions, effective on Feb. 11. The most important measures concerning the foreign exchange market were the following (CB res. 3471):

February 8

There will be only one foreign exchange market, in which the price of the dollar will result from the free interaction of supply and demand. Authorized entities will be able to sell dollars against peso bills. Foreign currency will be sold against money deposited in the financial system only when the transfer abroad is originated by expenses related to the promotion of exports, trade-related transactions, the payment of financial obligations that don't require Central Bank authorization or in which the authorization has been granted, or dividends with Central Bank's specific authorization. Cross-border transfers destined to meet the payment of the principal of financial obligations require Central Bank authorization for the following 90 days. Indebtedness involving multilateral creditors is exempted from this requirement. As no reference is made to interest payments, cross-border transfers to pay interest no longer require Central Bank authorization.

The most important measures concerning the trade related transactions were (Com 3473):

Collections resulting from exports, net of prefinancing loans, are to be liquidated in the free foreign exchange market within the period established by other regulatory entities. The pesos resulting from the liquidation of exports proceeds will be deposited in sight accounts in the local financial system. Imports will require a minimum financing period (from 180-360 days). Critical goods (i.e., medicine, certain raw goods, etc.) will be exempted from this requirement and will be subject to be paid in advance. (S & P)

February 11

Floating Exchange Regime. The peso started to float, the restrictions on deposit withdrawals were effectively lifted for payroll accounts, and banks resumed almost normal activity. The Central Bank suspended payment and prepayment of loans for Feb. 11-13, however, with the sole exception of credit card financing. The exchange rate closed at 2.15 pesos per dollar. (S & P) Jorge Remes Lenicov visits Washington to start talks.

February 12

111 February 14 Duties on Oil Exports. Although strong lobbies against the tax on oil exports created by the Economic Emergency Law 25.561 (Jan. 6) suggested that it was not going to be implemented, the government finally signed a decree (decree 310/02) establishing a 20% duty on oil exports. (S & P) [Look into the privatization of Petroleras Argentinas. Look into Argentinas reliance on oil as a source of foreign exchange earnings. Look into who owns the oil companies. Analyze their influence.] February 15 Bankruptcy Law Partial Veto and Signed into Law. The reform of the bankruptcy law was signed into law by the president, after he vetoed some of the provisions included in the bill approved by the Congress. In general, the new law opted for the protection of debtors' rights over those of creditors, which, combined with the pesification and restructuring of debts instructed by Decree 214 (Feb. 3, 2002), virtually forced all issuers into default, destroying the incentive structure [which is? Who might provide insight into this? Someone at S & Ps? Someone at Wharton?] needed for a healthy credit culture and indefinitely delaying the restoration of credit. The most relevant measures of the law were:

The exclusivity period during which firms that have filed for reorganization proceedings (similar to filing for protection under Chapter 11) [How does chpt 11 work? Where does it get its name?] are entitled to submit proposals to their creditors is extended from 30 to 180 days, and the ceiling that the previous law set on the reduction in the original amount owed that debtors could present was eliminated. Judicial or extra judicial foreclosures are suspended for 180 days, including those of mortgages and other pledged loans, and those provided for in the Securitization Law. New bankruptcy requests were also suspended. The section of the Bankruptcy Law governing "cram down" is eliminated. This was an alternative that provided for the acquisition of troubled companies by creditors, which besides being a valid option for debtors and creditors, discouraged abusive behavior on the part of debtors during the negotiation period. (S & P)

[what are the 50 most representative firms in Argentina?] February 27 Agreement Between Federal Government and Provinces. An agreement between the federal and the provincial governments was finally signed. The agreement included the removal of the fixed amount that had to be transferred to provinces (with the objective of sharing the costs of Argentina's deteriorating economic activity with the provinces), the inclusion of 30% of the financial transactions tax in the revenues shared, and the restructuring of the provincial debt. The last included a plan to

112 issue a central government bond to assume the provincial debt (while debt service was to be discounted from coparticipation revenue), the pesification of the debt at the exchange rate of ArP1.4 per dollar, and the instrumentation of a still-undefined foreign exchange hedge for provincial multilateral debt [confirm you understand this]. It was also agreed that provincial debt issued in foreign markets was to receive the same treatment as central government foreign debt [is it normal for a countrys provinces / states to be able to float bonds on the international market]. A precondition [imposed by who?] for the debt restructuring was a reduction [ie, conversion into fedral debt?] of about 60% in the provincial fiscal deficit. The new Coparticipation Law was to be passed by the end of 2002. A highly controversial issue that was not included in the agreement regarded limiting the issuance of provincial currencies [how did the provinces get away with this?]. (S & P) Feb 28 Inflation. During February, consumer prices and wholesale prices increased 3.1% and 11% respectively, despite the continuing deep recession. [confirm these stats with INDEC] (S & P) Liquidity Reserve Requirements. The Central Bank changed liquidity regulations, imposing a requirement of 40% for most deposits [what are the different deposits?] (CB res. 3498). Prior to this change, "old deposits" had an average 18% requirement, while deposits acquired from other institutions had a 100% requirement, since the Central Bank needed funds to grant repos [?] in the context of a flight-to-quality within the financial system. With the new regulations, the Central Bank estimated a similar amount of liquidity reserves for the whole system, but ensured that banks would be more willing to attract funds as they would not have to place 100% of new deposits in reserves. Government Bonds for Depositors and Banks/Pesification of Public Debt/Duties on Exports/Foreign Exchange Controls/Other Economic Measures Announced. The Minister of Economy announced a new set of measures. Most relevant were:

March 1

March 4

Depositors will have the option [Option? What is the alternative?] to receive new government bonds in exchange for rescheduled deposits up to $30,000. Dollar depositors will be entitled to choose between a peso bond or two dollar-denominated bonds. Both new dollar bonds will have 10-year maturities: one with an interest rate of 2% and principal payable in annual installments; the other with an interest rate of Libor + 1%, both interest and principal payable at its maturity. The peso bond is to be issued with a five-year maturity, indexed with inflation and a 3% interest rate. The period to choose government bonds in exchange for rescheduled deposits expires April 15. Banks will be able to reduce their exposure to the Argentine government. In

113 exchange for the reduction of liabilities that will result from depositors choosing government bonds instead of deposits, banks will transfer part of their public sector holdings to the Treasury. The total amount of original dollar deposits subject to be exchanged by dollar government bonds is approximately $35 billion. A new peso government bond will be issued to compensate banks for the asymmetric pesification of assets and liabilities (dollar loans were converted into pesos at the 1:1 parity, whereas deposits were converted at 1:1.4). The total amount of the compensation for the financial system is approximately $15 billion. All government debt issued under Argentine law (municipal, provincial, and federal indebtedness) will be converted into pesos at the 1.40 parity and indexed to inflation. Loans that replaced government securities in last November's debt exchange are also included. The total amount of public sector debt subject to this pesification was approximately $52 billion. Individual investors and local pension funds afterwards filed legal actions against this measure. Pesified loans will have maximum interest rates of 4% for individuals and 7% for corporates. Futures and forward markets will continue operating in dollars. Banco Nacin [state owned?] is to establish a $1 billion credit line to finance certain productive activities (export financing, SME [?] working capital, tourism, agricultural sector, etc.). Other initiatives of this kind were said to be under implementation. A general tax on exports was established (10% for primary goods and 5% for manufactured goods). Collections of this new tax were estimated at about $1.4 billion annually.

A new Central Bank regulation (CB res. 3501) removed the need to request Central Bank authorization to make transfers to meet principal payments on cross-border debt, if at least 80% of the maturing principal amount was refinanced for at least 180 days. This regulation provided both debtors and creditors with significant incentives to restructure principal, as creditors could feel compelled to enter into these renegotiations to avoid the uncertainties regarding Central Bank approval to transfer funds. March 5 Federal Budget Approved [who put together this budget?]. The Congress approved the federal budget for 2002. The main assumptions of the law included a decrease of GDP [ended up being 10.9 percent] and tax collections of 4.9%, a fiscal deficit target of $3 billion (1% of GDP), and inflation of 14% [ended up being 40 %]. These assumptions did not seem realistic at the time of the approval, since tax collections had already fallen by 20% both in January and February, and consumer prices had increased 5.4% in the first two months of the year. (S & P)

114 March 12 Government Bonds for Banks. The government issued a decree (N 494) describing the new government bonds to be issued to compensate depositors up to an amount of $30,000 (see description of terms and conditions under the set of measures announced on March 4, 2002), and to compensate banks for the pesification, including the reduction in equity caused by the banks' dollar-denominated cross-border debt, which was no longer backed by dollar assets after the pesification of the economy. Banks will be compensated by a peso bond for the difference of 0.4 that resulted from the conversion of dollar assets into pesos at the 1:1 parity, while dollar deposits were converted at the 1:1.4 parity. Banks will be entitled to receive a dollar bond to compensate the loss in equity caused by the dollar liabilities that were not subject to pesification (mainly cross-border debt). (S & P) Pesification of Economy Regulated. The Central Bank issued regulations implementing the conversion into pesos at the 1:1 parity of most dollardenominated debts or contracts [a great boon to borrowers. Why stand up for them and not lenders?] within the financial system or among private parties (Com 3507). Besides the pesification itself, other important provisions of this regulation were the following:

March 13

Debts originated from foreign trade transactions, future and forwards contracts, and obligations issued under or ruled by foreign law are not subject to pesification, and remain dollar denominated. [which accounts for the terrifying rate of bankruptcyspeaking of which, are there stats on this?] For a period of six months (from April 2 to Aug. 3, 2002), ongoing debt service (both interest and principal) will maintain its original schedule and installments will be converted into pesos at the 1:1 parity. After this period, these payments will be complemented by an additional amount that will result from the application of the coefficient adjusting for inflation (CER), and from then on, all new payments will be adjusted according to inflation. From April 2 to Aug. 3, 2002, bullet principal payments will be granted a six-month grace period and will be adjusted according to inflation. Annual interest rates will be capped at 3.5% for pesified mortgages and 6% for other guaranteed loans to individuals and companies. Annual interest rates will be capped at 5% and 8% for other pesified unsecured debt. [What are the mechanics of such state intervention?] Interbank loans will be converted into pesos at the 1.4 parity, except for those credit lines destined to provide foreign trade financing, which will remain dollar denominated.

115

March 25

Measures to Control Dollar Price/Foreign Exchange Controls. The rising exchange rate (reaching ArP4 per dollar at one point) led the government to impose a series of measures (mostly through the Central Bank) to control the price of the dollar by inducing sales of foreign currency in the local foreign exchange market by exporters and banks. Main measures were:

The Central Bank reduced the hours during which exchange houses could open (CB res. 3530; which seemed counterproductive to the objective of calming the population's desperate demand for dollars). A Central Bank regulation established that the conversion of the export proceeds into pesos could not take longer than 10 days after the foreign currency funds were deposited in the local bank involved in the trade transaction or were made available in foreign accounts (CB res. 3534). The Central Bank announced that all banks whose net foreign exchange holdings exceeded 5% of equity had to reduce their position before Apr. 19, or would be subject to penalties and prevented from operating in the foreign exchange market (CB res. 3511 and 3512). [therefore forcing them to buy pesos] A new Central Bank regulation established that the payment of both interest and principal external financial obligations required Central Bank authorization [to limit the demand for foreign currency and sale of the peso, right?]. In previous

116 regulations, the restrictions were on the cross-border transfers to meet principal payments of financial obligations (interest payments did not require authorization), and not on the payment of the obligations themselves. Therefore, if the bank or corporation had funds abroad, they could be used to pay the obligations without requesting authorization. Although the new language of the regulation would not leave room for that alternative, when contacted, Central Bank representatives said that it had not been their intention to require authorization for the "payment" of obligations, but for making "transfers" to pay the obligations. Although the regulation was addressed to banks, because corporations operate in the foreign exchange market through financial institutions, all firms were potentially affected by these new restrictions. In any case, the ambiguity of the text added to the general uncertainty. The regulation also emphasized that the authorization had to be granted for "financial obligations," implying that foreign trade transactions were excluded from this new requirement (CB res. 3537) (S & P) [were these measures enforced and obeyed?] March 26 Foreign Exchange Controls. The Central Bank announced that the regulation that had been issued the day before regarding new restrictions on cross-border transfers (CB res. 3537) was to expire 30 days after its publication (CB res. 3543). This announcement was just another indication of the degree of improvisation in the implementation of new measures. (S & P) Inflation/Tax Collections. During March, consumer prices and wholesale prices increased 4% and 11.2%, respectively, accumulating increases of 5.9% and 25.7% for the first quarter and seriously diminishing the purchasing power of salary, thus contributing to increased social tensions. Tax collections decreased only 7.3% against the previous year, which implied an improvement from January and February figures (negative 20%). [when they measure this, it is relative to what?] Social Plan Announced. The government announced a plan of subsidies for the unemployed (decree 565/02), which would amount to $3 billion (apparently to be financed with new duties on exports), in an attempt to ease social tensions and stimulate a reactivation of the economy through consumption. [what were the results? Which economists devised this?] Deposits to be Released. The Central Bank issued a regulation stating that, from January 2003, banks would be entitled to give all rescheduled deposits back to investors if they chose to (CB res. 3555). Apparently, the

March 29

April 3

April 4

117 Ministry of Economy was not in agreement [why? Who trumped who? Which institution was / is more powerful?], and rumors of the measure being withdrawn started to gain strength. April 5 Duties on Exports. The Ministry of Economy established new duties on exports. The export tax on grains and vegetable oils was raised to 20% (grains and processed oilseeds increased from 10%, vegetable oils and meals increased from 5%). The government estimated the tax increase could raise additional collections of $1 billion. There were no changes on taxes on industrial and agro-industrial exports, which remained at 10% and 5%, respectively, nor on petroleum exports, which remained at 20%. (S & P) Freeze of Tariffs. The Ministry of Economy issued a regulation suspending the revision of tariffs, which implicitly included seasonal adjustments. As a consequence of this decision, rumors of increased risks of potential blackouts started to gain strength (Min. Economy res. 38). (S & P) Tariffs Seasonal Adjustment. In view of the increased risks of suspension of services caused by the freeze of tariffs, the Ministry of Economy issued a regulation stating that seasonal adjustments of tariffs were not to be suspended (Min.Economy res.53). (S & P) Foreign Exchange Market. In a new attempt to control the foreign exchange rate, the Central Bank issued a regulation limiting foreign exchange operations between financial entities to those necessary to match the transactions carried out on behalf of the banks' customers (CB.res. 3567). [?????] (S&P) Central Bank Suspended Scotiabank/Foreign Exchange Controls. Continuous deposit withdrawals and the lack of support from its parent bank led to the suspension [???] of Scotiabank Quilmes S.A. [how does this bank rank in size and importance?]. The already critical liquidity situation of the financial system, combined with the nervousness triggered by Scotiabank's fall, forced the government to devise new alternatives to solve the banking system's liquidity crisis. Over the weekend, the Ministry of Economy worked on a plan (the Bonex Plan [same plan as in 1990?]) to be presented to Congress the following week. The plan consisted in providing depositors with government bonds (Bonex) in exchange for their rescheduled deposits [an exact repeat of 1990?]. Depositors going to banks with court representatives to seize cashwhich caused more than $100 million in withdrawals to this date-were also to be given government bonds according to the plan. The Central Bank issued a regulation exempting trusts with mortgage loans as underlying assets from requesting

April 9

April 15

April 17

April 19

118 Central Bank authorization to make cross-border transfers to meet principal payments (CB res. 3568). April 22-25 Banking Holiday. The Central Bank established bank and foreign exchange holidays, as most banks were not in a position to start operations unless their most urgent liquidity constraints were solved, which in turn required Congress' approval of the Bonex Plan. Minister of Economy's Resignation. Congress' failure to approve the Bonex Plan triggered the resignation of Minister of Economy Remes Lenicov, and also put Duhalde's administration at stake, since his presidential appointment had been the design of a Congress that now seemed reluctant to support his actions. With the chain of payments paralyzed, and a lack of cash due to the prolonged banking holiday, social tensions increased. Moreover, President Duhalde's delay in finding candidates willing to accept the vacant Minister of Economy position, the rumors of a potential end to discussions with multilateral agencies, and Argentina's isolation from the rest of the world added to the political and economic uncertainties. Governors' Support for the President. Political uncertainty receded when most of the provincial governors signed a document supporting President Duhalde and stating the overall direction that was expected from his administration. The most important statements of the agreement were as follows:

April 23

April 24

Argentina was to abide by international agreements and the country's economic integration with the rest of the world was to be promoted. Provinces were to sign bilateral agreements of the provincial fiscal adjustment. Amendments to the Bankruptcy Law and the Economic Subversion Law were encouraged (both amendments promoted by the IMF). Measures attracting investments, reducing political expenditures, and restoring solvency of the financial system were encouraged.

April 25

Law Regulating Procedures to Recover Deposits through Lawsuits/Multilateral Creditors Privileged. In an attempt to allow banks to start operating again without suffering renewed liquidity problems, the Congress approved a law extending and making more cumbersome the procedures for investors to get their frozen deposits back through lawsuits (Law N25.587). Additionally, the Ministry of Economy issued a regulation establishing that, although the payment of public debt service was postponed, multilateral creditors were exempted from this deferral (Min. Economy res. 73).

119 April 26 Banks Partially Reopened. Banks reopened partially, performing only operations that did not imply cash movement to prevent court officials from seizing cash on behalf of depositors who had successfully initiated lawsuits against banks (the law approved the previous day was not yet in effect). Ministry of Economy Appointment. Roberto Lavagna was appointed Minister of Economy after five days of the position being vacant. The new minister confirmed his intention to maintain the floating exchange regime, reach an agreement with the IMF, encourage amendments to the economic subversion and bankruptcy law, approve a Bonex Plan in an attempt to lift the corralito, and reach fiscal agreements with the provinces. In an investor-friendly spirit, extending the term of public services concession in exchange for the freeze of tariffs was also mentioned as a possibility. Foreign Exchange Controls/Inflation/Tax Collections. The Central Bank issued a regulation (CB res. 3584) extending the period during which cross-border transfers require Central Bank authorization in the terms of CB. Res. 3537 (Mar. 25, 2002) and 3471 (Feb. 8, 2002) to Aug. 8, 2002. During April, consumer prices and wholesale prices increased 10.4% and 19.7%, respectively, accumulating increases of 21.1% and 60.7% during the year and exacerbating the decrease in the purchasing power of salary. Tax collections decreased 18.5% from the previous year. Members of Cabinet Replaced. Three members of the Cabinet were replaced by politicians said to have negotiation power with the Congress and Unions, amid rumors of Duhalde's gathering political support for the approval of laws and the discouragement of strikes. Indexation of Debts Suspended. In light of the increasing inflation, President Duhalde signed a decree suspending the indexation to inflation of pesified mortgage and personal loans. This introduced a new mismatch in banks' balance sheets, as pesified deposits continue to be indexed to inflation (Decree 762). Provision of Gas Suspended in Patagonia. Large gas consumers in Patagonia suffered from the suspension of the provision of gas as a result of the utility company's (Camuzzi Gas del Sur S.A.) difficulty in making payments to gas suppliers due to the large uncollected gas subsidies from the government, who stopped making these payments to the distribution company by the end of 2001. Although the suspension of service for individual consumers was said to be imminent, the government was able to prevent it and restore the service for all consumers by authorizing a countrywide tariff increase.

April 28

April 29

May 3

May 5

May 7

120 May 16 Bankruptcy Law Reformed. Congress reformed the Bankruptcy Law, as encouraged by the IMF and the agreement with the governors of April 24. Main amendments to the law consisted of eliminating some of the prodebtor clauses that had been introduced by Congress in the version signed February 15. The most relevant changes were the following:

The exclusivity period, during which firms that have filed for reorganization proceedings (similar to filing for protection under Chapter 11) are entitled to submit proposals to their creditors, is reduced to 90 days from 180 days. The 180-day suspension of judicial or extrajudicial foreclosures and new bankruptcy requests is no longer in effect. The section of the Bankruptcy Law governing "cram down" eliminated in the previous reform-was restated. This is an alternative that provides for the acquisition of troubled companies by creditors.

May 18

Credit Agricole's Bank Subsidiaries Suspended by the Central Bank. In the context of a severe and prolonged liquidity crisis, Banco Bisel S.A. and Banco Suquia S.A. were suspended by the Central Bank. The suspension followed the banks' liquidity constraints and Credit Agricole S.A.'s refusal to inject new funds into its Argentine subsidiaries. As both banks had large networks in the interior of the country and an important penetration in the agricultural sector, the government decided that Banco de la Nacion Argentina would take over the operations of both subsidiaries until the entities could be sold, which was considered by many as a first step toward nationalizing the banking system. To sustain the operations of the absorbed banks, Banco de la Nacion required ample assistance from the Central Bank. Governors Sign Second Document of Support for the President. Amid renewed economic and political pressures triggered by the nervousness over the suspension of Credit Agricole's subsidiaries, the increase in the foreign exchange rate, the rumors of resignation of the president of the Central Bank, and Congress' reluctance to approve the laws encouraged by the IMF, the chances of Duhalde's administration coming to an end seemed to increase. In this context, most of the governors signed a new document supporting the President and the direction expected from his administrationaffirming the ideas agreed to on April 24-only a month after the previous document of support had been signed. Economic Subversion Law Repealed/Exports of Oil Limited. The Congress repealed the Economic Subversion Law, as had been encouraged by the agreement with the governors and the IMF. Additionally, with the argument that the provision of oil was in a "state of emergency" in the whole country (decree No. 867), the Ministry of Economy limited total exports of oil companies to 36% of their production from June to

May 27

May 30

121 September 2002 in an attempt to mitigate the upward pressures on the price of gasoline sold in the country (Min. of Economy Res.140). May 31 Exports' Proceeds to be Liquidated Through Central Bank/New Regulations for the Restructuring of the Financial System/Inflation/Tax Collections. In a dangerously escalating foreign exchange rate, and amid government officials' accusations of exporters not complying with foreign currency repatriation requirements and therefore exacerbating the excess demand for dollars, the Central Bank established that exports above $1 million were to be liquidated through the Central Bank, and serious penalties were announced for noncompliers (res. CB 3619). Additionally, in a new attempt to address the financial system's problems, the government signed a decree (decree No. 905) modifying the previous restructuring announced on March 4, 2002. The decree did not include a comprehensive treatment of the banks' most urgent problem, liquidity constraints. The most important measures were the following:

Depositors will have the option to receive new government bonds in exchange for rescheduled deposits. 'Pesified' dollar depositors will be entitled to choose between a peso- or a dollar-denominated bond, while original peso depositors will only be entitled to choose the peso bond. The new dollar bond will have a 10-year maturity, payable in eight annual installments, with Libor interest rate. The peso bond is to be issued with a five-year maturity, indexed to inflation, and with a 2% interest rate. Depositors with special needs (age above 75, in need of medical treatment, etc.) will be entitled to choose a dollar-denominated bond with a five-year maturity. In exchange for the reduction of deposits that will result from depositors choosing government bonds, banks will provide the government with sufficient guarantees to access the Central Bank's financing to purchase the government bonds. Only if these new government bonds default, or after the external debt restructuring takes place, will banks be entitled to use their pledged assets to cancel the loans granted by the Central Bank to finance this deposit-bond swap, which would finally allow financial institutions to reduce their exposure and their balance sheet to the Argentine government. The period to choose government bonds in exchange for rescheduled deposits expires 30 working days after the signature of the present decree. Those rescheduled deposits not exchanged by government bonds will be converted into securities and listed in local markets. These new securities will be accepted to acquire new stocks and new CP placements. Depositors will also be entitled to use these certificates to cancel loans granted by the same bank that issued the deposit.

122

The government bonds can be used to cancel mortgage and personal loans. The government will prepay the bonds if the holder wishes to use them to acquire government assets, new cars, finance the construction of new buildings, and the like, within certain limitations. Depositors with funds in sight accounts will be entitled to bid for acquiring the new 10-year dollar bond. Banks will be allowed to create new savings and current accounts that will not be subject to the restrictions of cash withdrawals imposed on "old" accounts, both in pesos and dollars. New loans and deposits can be indexed to inflation, despite this measure's contribution to the continuous increase in most of the economy's prices. Banks will receive government bonds in compensation for the asymmetric pesification of assets and deposits, as well as the reduction in equity caused by the banks' dollar-denominated crossborder debt, which was no longer backed by dollar assets after the pesification of the economy. Banks will be compensated by a peso bond for the difference of 0.4 that resulted from the conversion of dollar assets into pesos at the 1:1 parity, while dollar deposits were converted at the 1:1.4 parity. Banks will be entitled to receive a dollar bond to compensate the loss in equity caused by the dollar liabilities that were not subject to pesification (mainly cross-border debt). Investors whose government bond holdings had been converted into pesos may request the redollarization of their holdings if they accept the government's invitation to participate in an eventual external debt restructuring.

May

Consumer prices and wholesale prices increased 4% and 12.3%, respectively, accumulating increases of 23% and 72.3% during the year and exacerbating the decrease in the purchasing power of salary. Nominal tax collections during May increased 2.9% over the previous year's figures, benefiting from the various banking holidays of April and rising inflation. IMF's Executive Board agreed on July 15 to extend by one year the expected repayment of $985m due from Argentina under the Supplemental Reserve Facility. (Anne Krueger, Crisis Prevention and Resolution) Paul ONeill lands in Argentina for 30 hours of talks with Lavagna and Duhalde. ONeill is greeted with protests.

July

August

123 November 14 The Argentine government defaulted on all but a fraction of an $805 million payment due Thursday to the World Bank, deepening the countrys rift with the international financial establishment and stirring concern about a new deterioration in relations between Washington and Latin America. (Argentina Defaults on World Bank Payment, Worsen Credit Record, Washington Post, 15 November 2002, Paul Blustein and Anthony Faiola) ONeill and Larry Lindsey resign.

December 6

2003
Terry: Duhalde intervened and killed the Peronist primary. The result was that PJ ran several candidates. Otherwise Menem would have picked up the PJ vote and won.

April 27

The Peronist Nestor Kirchner obtains second place in the elections. Because Carlos Menem did not obtain at least 45 percent of the vote, a runoff was scheduled. But Menem dropped out of the race after polls showed he would lose massively. Kirchner would have benefited from the anti-Menem vote, garnering the votes that went to the third and fourth place candidates, Ricardo Lopez Murphy and Elisa Carrio.

2004
March June 14
Axel Blumberg
With the IMF team in town, Roberto Lavagna sent a fiscal responsibility bill to Congress. This aims to set limits on spending by provincial governmentslong an Achilles heel of Argentine public finance. Yet the bill is only part of a wider fiscal fight that has already set Mr Kirchner at odds with Eduardo Duhalde, his predecessor and former political patron.

June(?)

Martn Cisneros, a piqueteros leader, was shot dead in La Boca, as thousands of piqueteros gathered to mark the killing by policemen two years ago of two of their number. In 2002, anger at the killings and fears of further disorder prompted Eduardo Duhalde, then Argentina's president, to cut short his term in office. This time, sympathy for the piqueteros has been more muted; but fear of disorder is just as great. How to deal with the protesters is turning

124 into a big headache for Nstor Kirchner, Mr Duhalde's successor as president. (2004-7-1, Economist, Pickets and police)

July 16

Several hundred demonstrators stormed the Buenos Aires city council building, smashing doors and windows and causing more than $30,000 in damage. They went unmolested by the police for more than three hours. As a result, Mr Kirchner sacked the head of the federal police force and a deputy minister at the justice ministry, which is responsible for security. That provoked a furious riposte from the justice minister, Gustavo Beliz. He in turn was sacked. He left with a fusillade against his former boss. The illtreatment that [Mr Kirchner] subjects you to is terrible. He humiliates you, he humiliates everyone, said the former minister. He complained that the president took up to 15 days to return his phone calls. (Source: 2004-7-29, Economist, Disorderly conduct)

Gustavo Beliz, the justice minister, is sacked. Nicolas Garnil, the kidnapped child from San Isidro, returns. Juan Carlos Blumberg, the father of Axel Blumberg, leads another (the second?) late night march to protest crime and the inadequate response to it on the part of authorities. Estimates on attendance range from 30,000 to _____.

August 14 August 26 (Thurs)

2005
Source: Diccionario Biogrfico, Histrico y Geogrfico Argentino El Ateneo. Segunda edicin. 1998. Buenos Aires: El Ateneo.

Sources and their abbreviations: Columbia Encyclopedia = (CE) Diccionario Biogrfico, Histrico y Geogrfico Argentino El Ateneo. Segunda edicin. 1998. Buenos Aires: El Ateneo. = BHG The Economist New York Times = NYT Notisur

125

Rock, David, Argentina, 1516 1987: from Spanish Colonization to Alfonsin Romero, Luis Alberto, A History of Argentina in the Twentieth Century