El Stronato
| Republic of Paraguay | ||||||||
| República del Paraguay | ||||||||
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| Capital | Asunción | |||||||
| Languages | Spanish, Guarani | |||||||
| Government | Single Party military dictatorship | |||||||
| President | ||||||||
| • | 1954-1989 | Alfredo Stroessner | ||||||
| Historical era | Cold War | |||||||
| • | Coup d'etát | August 15, 1954 | ||||||
| • | Transition to democracy | February 3, 1989 | ||||||
| Currency | Guaraní | |||||||
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El Stronato is the 35-year period in the history of Paraguay between 1954 and 1989, when Paraguay was ruled by the dictator Alfredo Stroessner.
After the Paraguayan Civil war and overthrow of the Higinio Moríñigo regime, Juan Natalicio González assumed the Presidency, but he was soon overthrown and followed by Presidents who held power for only a few months each. Some stability was achieved after Federico Chávez was elected on September 10, 1949. Three weeks after taking office, Chávez imposed a state of siege, using his executive emergency powers under the Constitution of 1940 to attack the supporters of González and of ex-President Felipe Molas López.
The growing economic problems after two decades of extreme political and social unrest had undermined and shattered Paraguay's economy. The national and per capita income had fallen sharply. The Central Bank's practice of granting soft loans to the regime's cronies was spurring a rise in inflation and a growing black market. Finally, Argentina's economic problems were also negatively influencing Paraguay. By 1953 political and military support for the 73-year-old Chávez had eroded.
Chavez's decision to run for re-election disappointed younger politicians, who wanted power and military officers who did not approve reduction of military's budget in favor of National police. In early 1954 the recently fired Director of Central Bank Epifanio Méndez Fleitas joined forces with General Alfredo Stroessner, who was the Commander-in-chief of the armed forces, in a plot to oust Chaves. Méndez Fleitas was unpopular with Colorado Party stalwarts and the army, who feared that he was trying to create a dictatorship like his hero, President Juan Domingo Perón of Argentina (1946 - 1955). On May 4, 1954 Stroessner ordered his troops into streets and staged a coup. Fierce resistance by police left almost fifty dead.
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