Peron

I. During the first years of his presidency, Juan Peron’s domestic policies were very successful. a. Once in office, Peron adopted “justicialism” as his philosophy. i. A mix between Capitalism and Communism ii. Called for social justice in domestic policy iii. Called for economic independence and political sovereignty in foreign affairs b. Economic Reforms i. Peron’s main group of supporters was laborers. 1. He had silenced opposition within the labor force early on, but the vast majority was sincerely very supportive. ii. Important labor reforms included: 1. Forty hour week 2. Retirement pensions 3. Paid vacations 4. Higher salaries 5. Small consumer industries built – to promote economic independence. iii. Peron expanded the number of unionized workers. iv. Peron grew popular with the labor force because for the first time, workers/laborers were a powerful economic and political force. c. Peron organized a five-year plan for industrialization and nationalization i. He nationalized many industries, like railroads (previously British) and banks ii. This plan also included the economic and labor reforms above d. Eva Peron i. Eva (Evita) Peron, Juan’s wife, was a powerful political force and was arguably more popular than Peron himself ii. Eva Peron Foundation 1. This foundation provided the vast majority of the labor reforms above 2. The sole organization for charity 3. Hugely popular among the poor iii. Women 1. Eva Peron was the face of women’s rights in Argentina 2. Through her leadership and under Peron’s rule, women gained the right to vote e. Education: Peron censored education so that children were taught to think of him and his wife as saints. f. Religion i. Nearly all Argentines are Roman Catholic. The Catholic Church at least initially supported Peron. ii. The Church’s approval helped him to gain popularity among the people. g. The military also supported Peron i. Salary raises ii. Peron was a former military official – many officers supported his nationalistic ideas. II. The last years of his rule were chaos. a. Economic Problems i. The postwar boom eventually faded ii. Heavy government spending led to inflation iii. Industrialized industries languished without international assistance iv. Growth in corruption b. The chaos caused Peron to become increasingly dictatorial i. Judiciary control ii. Press censorship iii. Breaking down of opposition groups in labor unions, universities and political parties c. Peron’s attempts at modernization alienated the Catholic Church i. Cut religious education from schools ii. Legalized divorce iii. He was excommunicated in 1955, signaling the beginning of his demise. Without the Church’s approval, his power decreased significantly. d. After Eva’s death, Peron’s popularity plummeted, as she had been the main force behind labor and social reforms.