Alfredo Stroessner (3 November 1912-16 August 2006) was President of Paraguay from 15 August 1954 to 3 February 1989, succeeding Tomas Romero Pereira and preceding Andres Rodriguez. His 35-year rule began with his rise to power in a military coup, and ended with his fall during one. During his reign of terror, Colorado Party membership was mandatory for job promotion, free medical care, and other services; his supportes packed the legislature and ran the courts, and he ruthlessly suppressed opponents of his fascist dictatorship.
Biography[]
Alfredo Stroessner was born in Encarnacion, Paraguay in 1912 of German descent, and he joined the military and became its supreme commander in 1953. He led a coup in 1954 and assuemd the presidency, which was subsequently confirmed in nine successive rigged elections. Under his authoritarian leadership, social inequalities increased, so that in 1981, around 1% of the population possessed about 80% of the land. A growing economic crisis which accelerated in 1985 increased political repression, and growing opposition from his own supporters led to his eventual removal in a military coup on 3 February 1989. He spent the last 17 years of his life in exile in Brazil, and he died in Brasilia in 2006.