1972-1983 since 1991







Argentina 1983-1991


In 1983, the Radical Party won the election and Raul Alfonsin assumed the presidency. A currency reform deleted the last 4 digits of prices and wages which had become astronimical figures due to continued hyperinflation. The government failed to alleviate the critical economic situation and in 1985 the IMF demanded Argentina to come up with a definite plan on its debt repayment.
That year another currency reform was introduced, the Austral replacing the Argentine Peso at a ratio of 1:1000. The Radical Party won the 1985 elections.
The question of coming clean on the Dirty War was a subtle one, as Alfonsin had to be cautious not to alienate the military (which had staged coups in 1943, 1955, 1962, 1966 and 1976. The Mothers of the Plaza del Mayo continued to demand the investigation of the 'disappearances' and the punishment of the responsible; after his reelection, President Alfonsin revoked the amnesty the dictatorial military government had granted before handing over power to civilians. Ex-President Videla was sentenced to life in prison (1985).
In 1986 the Argentinian soccer team, for the second time, won the World Cup by defeating Germany in the final 3-2.
The introduction of the Austral in 1985 was followed by limited inflation 1985-1988 (at Argentine standard, the currency losing only half to three quarters of her value per annum); 1989 saw the return of hyperinflation. In 1988 Brazil and Argentina had agreed on closer economic cooperation.
In the 1989 election the Peronists won; the new president was reformist Peronist Carlos Saul Menem. Menem tackled the economic crisis by launching an ambitious program. In 1992 the new Argentine Peso was introduced, at 1:10,000 against the outgoing Austral. Moreover, the new Peso was tied to the US Dollar at par. Currency exchange restrictions were lifted. This parity was kept up until 2001. Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay and Argentina formed a Latin American common market, referred to as MERCOSUR. Argentina finally had a stable currency; however, unemployment rates soared.






EXTERNAL
FILES 		Articles from infoplease : Argentina
Historia del Pais, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, in Spanish, illustrated (on Argentina)
Website Madres del Plaza del Mayo, in Spanish; English version in preparation
La Democracia, 1983-, from Todo Argentina, in Spanish
The Tragedy of Argentina, from National Vanguard, 1984
Mercosur History, from Mercosur Website
CASCON Case CAR : Chile-Argentina (Beagle Channel) 1977-85, by L.P. Bloomfield, L. Moulton
DOCUMENTS
REFERENCE David Rock, Argentina 1516-1987, Univ. of California Press, 1989, KMLA Lib.Sign. 982 R682a
Daniel K. Lewis, The History of Argentina, Greenwood 2001, 240 pp., KMLA Lib. Sign. 982 L673h
Article : Argentina, in : Britannica Book of the Year 1985 pp.580-581, 628, 1986 pp.569-571, 624, 1987 pp.539-540, 592, 1988 pp.492-494, 544, 1989 pp.493-494, 544, 1990 pp.509-510, 560 [G]
Article : Argentina, in : Statesman's Yearbook 1984-1985 pp.89-95, 1985-1986 pp.87-93, 1986-1987 pp.87-93, 1987-1988 pp.88-94, 1988-1989 pp.88-94, 1989-1990 pp.90-96, 1990-1991 pp.90-96, 1991-1992 pp.91-97 [G]
Article : Argentina, in : The World in Figures 4th ed. 1984 pp.109-110 [G]
Article : Argentina, in : Americana Annual 1988 pp.109-110, 1989 pp.112-113, 1990 pp.107-108, 1992 pp.119-120 [G]



This page is part of World History at KMLA
First posted on February 9th 2003, last revised on March 17th 2007

Click here to go Home
Click here to go to Information about KMLA, WHKMLA, the author and webmaster
Click here to go to Statistics