Gualberto Villarroel
| Gualberto Villarroel | |
|---|---|
 |
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| 46th President of Bolivia | |
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In office 20 December 1943 – 21 July 1946 |
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| Vice President | None (1943-1945) Julián Montellano (1945-1946) |
| Preceded by | Enrique Peñaranda |
| Succeeded by | Néstor Guillén |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Gualberto Villarroel López 15 December 1908 Cochabamba, Bolivia |
| Died | 21 July 1946 (aged 37) La Paz, Bolivia |
| Nationality | Bolivian |
| Political party | Non-party |
Gualberto Villarroel López (December 15, 1908 – July 21, 1946) was the head of state of Bolivia from December 20, 1943 to July 21, 1946. A reformist, sometimes compared with Argentina's Juan Domingo Perón, he is nonetheless remembered for his alleged fascist sympathies and for his violent demise on July 21, 1946.
Villarroel was born in Villa Rivero, Cochabamba Department, on December 15, 1908. He participated in the Chaco War (1932–35) against Paraguay. After Bolivia's disastrous defeat in that conflict, he became convinced that Bolivia needed profound structural changes and supported the progressive Military-Socialist dictatorships of David Toro Ruilova and Germán Busch (1936–39). Following Busch's suicide in August 1939, conservative forces reasserted themselves, took power, and won the 1940 elections in which the traditional (oligarchic) parties linked to the country's big mining interests (known as "La Rosca") triumphed at the polls with General Enrique Peñaranda. Villarroel was part of the younger, more idealistic military officer corps that had supported Toro and Busch.
After the December 1943 coup d'état, Villarroel became the de facto president. He formed a coalition with the main reformist party of the time, the Revolutionary Nationalist Movement, as well as with a now-open military faction known as Radepa (Razón de Patria, or Fatherland's Cause) inspired on the ideals of Busch.
Villarroel enacted a number of far-reaching reforms, including official recognition of worker unions, creation of a retirement pension and the abolition of obligatory unpaid servitude known as mit'a and pongueaje. He also followed Busch's lead in calling a National Assembly, instituting Constitutional reforms and having himself proclaimed Constitutional President by Congress in August 1944.
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