Hernan Siles Zuazo (21 March 1914-6 August 1996) was President of Bolivia from 11 to 16 April 1952, succeeding Hugo Ballivian and preceding Victor Paz Estenssoro; from 6 August 1956 to 6 August 1960, succeeding and preceding Victor Paz Estenssoro, and from 10 October 1982 to 6 August 1985, succeeding Guido Vildoso and preceding Victor Paz Estenssoro.
Biography[]
Hernan Siles Zuazo was born on 21 March 1914 in La Paz, Bolivia, the son of former President Hernando Siles. In 1941, he founded the populist Revolutionary Nationalist Movement alongside Victor Paz Estenssoro, and in 1951 Paz Estenssoro won the elections with Siles as vice-president. However, Hugo Ballivian and the military instead seized power, and in April 1952 Siles led a revolution against Ballivian, overthrowing the military regime and restoring democracy. From 1952 to 1964, Siles and Paz Estenssoro ran for office with each other as their running mates, alternating presidencies. This cycle ended with Rene Barrientos' 1964 coup, and the armed forces remained in power until 1982, when Guido Vildoso oversaw the transition to democracy. Siles was sworn into office as President when the military used the results from the 1980 elections to choose the new national leader. His term saw the 1983 extradition of war criminal Klaus Barbie to France, but it also saw an economic crisis that led to him becoming unpopular. Paz Estenssoro succeeded him in 1985, and he died in 1996.