Caudillismo

Caudillismo is an economically variable, authoritarian, and usually culturally right-wing ideology based around Latino (Spanish, Portuguese, or Latin American) nationalism, military power, and a reliance on a powerful military strongman known as a Caudillo. Caudillismo as an ideology started with the personality cults of leaders in the Latin American Wars of Independence, and became a defining feature of Latino authoritarianism. Some defining traits of Caudillos are Latino chauvinism, being the heads of powerful military dictatorships, and cults of personality. Caudillismo and Great Man Theory go hand-in-hand. In Latin America, the term "Caudillo" is used as both a detractor for authoritarian political opponents and a word of praise for great leaders; for example, Pinochet may be called a "Caudillo" for his inhumane practices while Castro may be called a "Caudillo" for his strength in building his nation's economy, and vice-versa.

History

Portugal

Main Article: Salazarism

W.I.P.

Spain

Main Article: Francoism

W.I.P.

Mexico

WIP

Argentina

Main Articles: Peronism, Videlaism and Galtierism

National Reorganization Process

In Argentina, the dictatorship began after the fall of Isabel~~ita~~ Perón with a military coup in 1976, swearing in Jorge Rafael Videla as president in a dictatorship known as "Proceso de Reorganización Nacional". The dictatorship became known for its brutality and authoritarianism (with some considering it as totalitarianism), as well as a refuge from post-war Nazis and anti-Semitism, so much so that Videla became known as "Hitler of the Pampa", but also had some economic improvements thanks to the minister of José Alfredo Martínez de Hoz's economy, even if he subsequently had increased debt and tax evasion. Videla stayed in power for 5 years, being succeeded by Roberto Eduardo Viola (8 months), Leopoldo Galtieri (5 months) and finally, Reynaldo Bignone (1 year and 5 months).

Jorge Rafael Videla - As already said, Videla was known for his high degree of brutality and authoritarianism, forbidding and burning books, media, committing kidnappings, torture, murders and others, but still tried to leave the image that Argentina fulfilled human rights and had freedom, as in the case of the 1978 world cup.^[2] There was an increase in public works of considerable utility, but there were also overpricings obscured by the government.
Albano Harguindeguy - Albano Harguindeguy was a military former Minister of the Interior of Argentina, known for his crimes against humanity. Under the dictatorship, he was responsible for torturing opponents, usually using torture methods used by France in the Algerian War of Independence, which he learned at the School of the Americas (school of torture in Panama). He subsequently benefited from Carlos Menem's pardon, but later he went through prosecutions and died in 2012 while serving criminal proceedings.
Roberto Eduardo Viola - Roberto Eduardo Viola was a military man and former president of Argentina during the dictatorship. He took over after tensions in the military leadership, replacing Videla, as well as having a "soft line" stance towards Videla. During Viola's administration, the economy took a considerable turn, especially after appointing Lorenzo Sigaut as minister of economy, with a devaluation and making foreign investors avoid Argentina. Even though he had a "softer" stance compared to Videla, he still ordered 86 kidnappings, 11 tortures and 3 robberies. He was later removed from power by the military junta, trying to lead a coup against Leopoldo Galtieri during the Falklands wars in 1982, but ultimately failing. After the dictatorship, he was arrested in 1985 for crimes committed during the junta, being pardoned by Carlos Menem in 1990, dying in 1994 before the reopening of proceedings.
Guillermo Suárez Mason - Guillermo Suárez Mason was a former businessman and ex-military during the dictatorship. He was known for his extreme brutality and crimes against humanity, making him known as "el carnicero del Olimpo" (El Olimpo was a clandestine detention camp). He operated 4 detention camps, in addition to operating Intelligence Battalion 601, also ordering kidnappings and training the Contras in Nicaragua. He promoted the execution of Operação Soberania, starting an armed crisis, in addition to considering Jorge Rafael Videla and Roberto Eduardo Viola as "soft", preferring "hard" people from the junta, such as Emilio Eduardo Massera. After the Falklands War, he was appointed president of Yacimientos Petrolliferos Fiscales, which, while growing considerably, was accused of tampering with oil from Sol Petróleo S.A. to finance the Contras in Nicaragua as part of Operation Condor, later he operated a Masonic movement and have been a member of the Asociación Atlética Argentinos Juniors. After the dictatorship, he fled to the USA, which, before the process against him, ended up being one of the beneficiaries of Carlos Menem's pardons, who even so continued to be invested. In 2003, he sentenced to 3 and a half years in prison, dying in 2005 of cardiac arrest.
Leopoldo Fortunato Galtieri - Leopoldo Fortunato Galtieri was a military man and former president of Argentina during the military dictatorship. Before the presidency, he had disagreements with Roberto Eduardo Viola, negotiating his departure. As president, he was known for his irredentism seen in the disastrous Falklands War, in addition to being economically privatizing, freezing wages, understanding money in circulation and repressing unions, in addition to the economic crisis caused by incompetence in privatization. What made him famous was the Falklands War, in which he invaded the Falkland Islands in 1982, islands that belonged to the United Kingdom under Margaret Thatcher. In April, he managed to take the Falklands, but the United Kingdom managed to take it back and emerged as the victor of the war, guaranteeing Margaret Thatcher's re-election and anticipating the end of the dictatorship in Argentina, in addition to both breaking off relations until 1990. Other characteristics would be its anti-communism, even though it approached Gaddafi's Libya, Cuba, Angola and pro-USSR countries.
Reynaldo Bignone -

Bolivia

Main Article: Banzerismo

In Bolivia, the dictatorship began after the overthrow of the dictator Juan José Torres, being overthrown in the 1971 coup and assassinated in Buenos Aires in 1976. The coup swore in Hugo Banzer as president and had the support of the Brazilian dictatorship (Médici), Argentine dictatorship (Videla ) and the United States, being characterized by its instability.

Hugo Banzer - As already mentioned, Hugo Banzer came to power after the 1971 coup. In the presidency, there was strong anti-communism, anti-unionism, reception of Nazi refugees, even though there was no considerable repression of minority groups compared to other countries. . Another characteristic would be the high levels of corruption and drug trafficking, in addition to an economic failure due to customerism and loans to "white elephants". He left after opponents overthrew him in the 1978 coup, swearing in Juan Pereda as president.
Luis Garcia Meza - Luís Garcia Meza was a former dictator of Bolivia between 1980 and 1981, known for his high degree of authoritarianism and corruption. He came to power after overthrowing Lidia Gueiler, who, when he came to power, he implemented state terrorism, being responsible for 500 victims, in addition to other torture, prisons and others. Some notable cases of authoritarianism would be the genocide on Harrington Street, assault on the COB union and the murder of its leaders, influence Klaus Barbie's policy and countless others that were responsible for delays involving diplomacy with the United States.^[3] Another characteristic was his involvement with drug trafficking and his high degree of corruption, as in cases of irregularity in the purchase of oil and agricultural equipment, illegal exploitation of stones and others. He later left power after the collapse of the dictatorship in 1981, being tried and imprisoned in 1995, dying in 2018 before serving his sentence.
Luis Arce Gómez - Luis Arce Gómez was a former soldier and former minister of the interior of Bolivia during the Luis Garcia Meza government. He cooperated with the coup that brought Garcia Meza to power in 1980, which, as minister of the interior, was seen as a "strong man" and extremely influential in the government. In January 1980, he, along with Meza, made a list of 115 people who should be killed, including some leaders, unions, priests, journalists and several others, also having been involved in the disappearance of 28 people and the government's relationship with Nazis like Klaus Barbie. What he made known was his involvement with drug trafficking, causing him to be extradited to the United States and arrested there. He was subsequently expelled to Bolivia, where he was sentenced and imprisoned in Bolivia in 2009, dying in 2020.
Celso Torrelio - Celso Torrelio was an ex-military and ex-president of Bolivia from 1981 to 1982. He took over after the resignation of Garcia Meza due to instability and international isolation due to drug trafficking. He was seen as more "lite" than his predecessor, yet he committed to anti-communism and making Bolivia less controversial. Even so, international isolation remained and the economic crisis continued (as well as other Latin countries), causing him to be replaced by Guido Vildoso.
Guido Vildoso -

Brazil

W.I.P

Chile

W.I.P

Paraguay

W.I.P

Uruguay

W.I.P

Colombia

W.I.P.

Peru

Alberto Fujimori, the president of Peu from 1990 to 2000 and his 'Fujomirism' has been called a caudillo.

Fujumorism arose in 1989 with the creation of the political party "Cambio 90", created by the Peruvian-Japanese politician Alberto Fujimori. At that time, Peru was suffering an era of serious terrorism by far-left groups, being the main Shining Path, a group which followed an ideology called "Gonzalo Thought", which was an extremely radical fusion of Marxism, Leninism and Maoism.

It is in this climate of terror that Fujimori, of a neoliberal and anti-communist nature, easily wins the 1990 general elections against his rival, the democratic liberal Mario Vargas Llosa, making Fujimori president of Peru.

During his rule, Fujimori practically destroyed the terrorist groups using unconventional means (repression, assassinations, death squads), and to remain in power, he decided to carry out a self-coup in 1992, turning Peru into a dictatorship.

By 2000, and due to unpopularity, accusations of corruption, and Fujimori health problems, Fujimori was forced to leave power.

After this, Fujimorism became a political opposition force, and despite the fact that in the early 2000s it was not doing very well in electoral results, over time it took more and more power, until it almost dominated half of the Peruvian congress, although since then its results have dropped a bit.

Currently its main party is Popular Force, led by Keiko Fujimori (daughter of Alberto Fujimori), and continues to be one of the most important ideologies in Peru.

Nicaragua

Nicaragua experienced a Caudillo in the form of Augusto Cesar Sandino.

Augusto César Sandino was a Nicaraguan revolutionary who from 1927 to 1933 was the leader of an armed rebellion against the US occupation of Nicaragua. Despite being assassinated, Sandino became an anti-imperialist icon.

In 1961, Nicaragua was under the dictatorship of the Somoza Family, which was backed by the United States, so, inspired by Sandino's asañas, the socialist politician Carlos Fonseca founded the Sandinista National Liberation Front, a guerrilla organization from socialist court that, after waging a violent revolution, managed to overthrow the Somoza Family and establish a socialist government.

Following this, the Sandinistas clashed with anti-communist insurgent groups called "Contras" in a civil war that lasted until 1990, when the opposition defeated the Sandinistas in pre-presidential elections.

After a long time without being in power, the Sandinistas would win the 2006 presidential elections with Daniel Ortega, who over time would perpetuate himself in power. Currently the Sandinistas control almost the entire national samblea, and have turned Nicaragua into an authoritarian government of the left.

Personality

Caudillismo is really self-righteous, and sees himself as a powerful historical figure. He sees himself as the successor to a long line of powerful dictators, and loves to crush those he disagrees with. He speaks Spanish and Portuguese. When nobody is looking, he worships at his shrine to personality cults like Augusto Pinochet, Francisco Franco, António de Oliveira Salazar, and Getúlio Vargas.

How to Draw

Draw a purple ball
Draw a golden bar going diagonally across the ball
Draw two dragon heads swallowing both sides of the bar in the top and bottom corners
On either side of the bar, draw two white pillars with a crown on top
On the pillars, draw red banners with the words "PLVS VLTRA"
Draw the eyes, and you're done

Props

Caudillismo may use certain props:

A peaked cap
A military beret
The flag of the nation he's representing
A Cuban cigar

Relationships

Friends

Francoism - My son and good friend, keep fighting the good fight!
Brazilian Integralism - Another son of mine, a great Brazilian hero!
Castroism - Showing off the great strength of the Latino people, able to have a strong leader even in economic blockade!
Pinochetism - You show anyone who opposes you who's boss!
Salazarism - Deus, Pátria, e Família!
Monarchism - Protect the Spanish throne! Reinstate the Mexican, Brazilian, and Portuguese Empires!
Bolivarianism - My son who helped forge many of the nations in South America

Frenemies

Peronism - He repeatedly insists that he isn't a dictator like me, but a conductor.
Authoritarian Democracy - Why are you even keeping democracy around if it just gets in the way?
Bonapartism - He's a lot like me. but he's French, and we Spanish speakers dont like the French too much.
Caesarism - Dad likes the fact I'm learning from him, but he thinks my lack of empire building is cringe.
Neoconservatism - American imperialism is a pain in the ass for Latin American countries sometimes, but some of our anti-communist leaders work well with you.
Trotskyism - Could we take a break with all the revolutions for a while? You're acting a lot like him.