Juan Velasco Alvarado

Juan Velasco Alvarado is a Militaire and Peruvian politician born with Piura the June 16th 1910 and died with Lima the December 24th 1977. It was President Peru between 1968 and 1975 with the title of President of the revolutionary Government .

Youths

Wire of Handbook Jose Velasco and Clara Luz Alvarado, it grows within a modest family. He marries Consuelo Gonzáles Arriola. He integrates the Peruvian Army, in the infantry, in 1929. Because of its excellent discipline, it is selected to enter to the Military academy of Chorrillos. In 1934, it leaves among the best its promotion. It will preserve close links with his comrades, whose majority will study in the Center of the High military Studies (CMEA). In 1965, it reaches the rank of major general.

The military revolutionary government (1968-1975)

Become general commander, it is with the head of the military Junte which reverses the president Fernando Belaúnde Terry the October 3rd 1968, after her attempt at exproprier the oil companies states-uniennes.

Velasco constitutes a cabinet of military ministers, the “ revolutionary Gouvernement of the Armed forces .” It nationalizes the oil sector immediately, the Army takes the control of the oil wells the October 8th. It restricts freedom of the press, launches a Land reform and nationalizes the key sectors of the economy. The fisheries, the mines, telecommunications, energy, oil, are gathered in conglomerates managed by the State ( PescaPeru , MineroPeru , PetroPeru , ElectroPeru , EntelPeru , etc). Foreign exchange rate and the foreign trade are narrowly controlled.

The angular stone of the economic policy of this government is the land reform aiming at eliminating large the Hacienda S. the opponents with this program shout with the confiscation, because the expropriés goods are paid in non-negotiable goods being likely to lose any value with inflation.

The mode of Velasco, called the Velascato , is also characterized by an increasingly authoritative capacity. It does not tolerate any dissidence, imprisoning, off-setting and badgering the people suspectées to be opponents. It suspends and censures the audio-visual mediums and writings, for finally all the exproprier in 1974 and to send their owners in exile.

In foreign policy, contrasting with the contemporary Latin-American military dictatorships, which are of right-hand side for the majority, it establishes a partnership with the Soviet Bloc, approaches Cuba and Fidel Castro and buys Soviet military material. This is worth the hostility of the the United States to him, which answer by commercial pressures, economic and diplomatic.

In economy, the policy of the government of Velasco proves to be ineffective. The industrial entities directed by the administration are sources of corruption and incompetence and absorb the resources of the budget. The national debt and the inflationary policy force to devaluate the currency.

Fishing and agriculture are particularly obvious failures. PescaPeru surpêche the Anchovy which is useful mainly for the production of Fish meal and is a element-key in the Peruvian marine ecosystem. The production reaches records during the first years but being added to the effects of the phenomenon El Niño of 1972, that led to a vertiginous fall of the catches so much so that it will take more than one decade to find a correct level of activity. The land reform evil led is translated as for it by the creation of thousands of farmers without capital and for the majority insufficiently formed. The agricultural production and the distribution go down clearly in lower part from the level former to the reform. With the restrictions brought to the trade, this has as a consequence of the periodic shortages, rationing, and nourishes the social unrest.

Driven out Velasco of the capacity

These economic difficulties and the increasing political opposition after the blow carried with the press into 1974 end up weakening the Velasco administration and lead to its fall. The August 29th 1975, a group of important military commanders (of 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th military regions) causes a coup d'etat which will be called Tacnazo because it takes place in the town of Tacna in the south of the country. The commanders declare that Velasco failed to achieve the goals of the “ Peruvian Révolution ” and is in the incapacity to remain at its station.

The general Francisco Morals Bermúdez Cerruti, then president of the Council of Ministers, raises Velasco of his functions and is named president, by a unanimous decision of the new military junta. He takes for pretext the bad economic situation and the fragile health of Velasco, with which one had to cut down a leg in 1973 following an embolism and which one says that cognitive faculties are affected by circulatory problems. This last is then in convalescence with Chaclacayo, close to Lima. It decides to meet with its Council of Ministers but it realizes that there is practically nothing any more to make. It writes a last speech with the nation in which it announces its decision not to oppose resistance.

Drawn aside of the capacity, Velasco will die with the Military hospital of Lima in 1977.

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