Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Britain had controlled the islands, which they
called the Falklands, since the 19th century -
much to Argentina's dismay. The rise of strong
nationalistic fervor was quickly dispelled when
Britain decided to fight for the islands. Out-
classed, the Argentine “war” effort was over in
two months. Galtieri was forced to resign and
was replaced by yet another military man.
Civilian Rule
The humiliation felt by the people over this
defeat heightened their dissatisfaction with
military rule. Massive demonstrations took
place in the Plaza de Mayo and pressure for a
change to civilian rule increased. In the election
of 1983 a civilian,
Raul Alfonsín
, was elected.
Alfonsín re-instituted the independent legisla-
tive branch, stopped censorship of the press
and encouraged free enterprise. He also pro-
ceeded to prosecute the military leaders for
their part in The Dirty War.
Unfortunately, the new liberalism and freedom
in Argentinean life did not cure the economic
problems. Inflation rose to an annual rate of
1,000% shortly after Alfonsín took over. He
reacted by freezing wages and prices, and
changed the currency from the peso to the aus-
tral - a bold plan that initially helped greatly to
reduce inflation, yet was unsuccessful in stimu-
lating the economy.
The lack of economic growth, dissatisfaction
with Alfonsín's austerity plans, which included
heavy taxes on gasoline and electricity, ulti-
