Preceded by Jorge Rafael Videla Children 3 Resigned December 11, 1981 Spouse(s) Nelida Giorgio Valente Succeeded by Carlos Lacoste | Political party None Name Roberto Viola Nationality Argentine Profession Military Service/branch Argentine Army | |
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Born October 13, 1924
Buenos Aires, Argentina ( 1924-10-13 ) Role Former President of Argentina Died September 30, 1994, Buenos Aires, Argentina Presidential term March 29, 1981 – December 11, 1981 Previous office President of Argentina (1981–1981) | ||
General Roberto Viola se despide del periodismo argentino 1979
Roberto Eduardo Viola (October 13, 1924 – September 30, 1994) was an Argentine military officer who briefly served as president of Argentina from March 29 to December 11, 1981 as a military dictatorship.
Contents
- General Roberto Viola se despide del periodismo argentino 1979
- Early life
- President of Argentina
- Ousted in a coup
- Later years
- References
Early life
He was born as Roberto Eduardo Viola Prevedini on October 13, 1924.
President of Argentina
Viola appointed Lorenzo Sigaut as finance minister, and it became clear that Sigaut (and his protégé Domingo Cavallo) were looking for ways to reverse some of the economic policies of Videla's minister José Alfredo Martínez de Hoz. Notably, Sigaut abandoned the sliding exchange rate mechanism and devalued the peso, after boasting that "they who gamble on the dollar, will lose". Argentines braced for a recession after the excesses of the plata dulce ("sweet money") years, which destabilized Viola's position.
Viola was also the victim of infighting within the armed forces. After being replaced as Navy chief, Eduardo Massera started looking for a political space to call his own, even enlisting the enforced and unpaid services of political prisoners held in concentration camps by the regime. The mainstream of the Junta's support was strongly opposed to Massera's designs and to any attempt to bring about more "populist" economic policies.
Ousted in a coup
Viola found his maneuvering space greatly reduced, and was ousted by a military coup in December 1981, led by the Commander-in-Chief of the Army, Lieutenant General Leopoldo Galtieri, who soon became President. The official explanation given for the ousting was Viola's alleged health problems. Galtieri swiftly appointed Roberto Alemann as finance minister and presided over the build-up and pursuit of the Falklands War.
Later years
After the collapse of the military regime and the election of Raúl Alfonsín in 1983, Viola was arrested, judged for human rights violations committed by the military junta during the Dirty War, and sentenced to 17 years in prison. His health deteriorated in prison; Viola was pardoned by Carlos Menem in 1990 together with all junta members. He died on 30 September 1994, two weeks before his 70th birthday.