Not a coup, but an erosion of democracy which should be condemned

Jun 30th 2012 | from the print edition

LIFE in Paraguay, landlocked in South America's sweltering heart, normally moves slowly, and well behind the times. The trappings of democracy arrived only in 1992, after 35 years of dictatorship under General Stroessner and the Colorado Party, and well after the rest of the continent. The Colorados, their creole fascism discarded but not erased, held on to power at successive elections.

The victory of Fernando Lugo (pictured) in 2008 promised a democratic breakthrough at last. A former bishop, President Lugo promised to help the poor and landless in a country marked by huge inequalities of race, income and land ownership. But in temporal matters the president never showed much skill. His nominal allies, let alone his Colorado opponents who retained a legislative majority, rarely let him govern. On June 21st and 22nd, accused of “poor performance of his duties” over a murky incident earlier this month in which six policemen and eleven landless protesters were killed, he was impeached in less than 36 hours, bundled out of office by 39 votes to four in the Senate, and replaced by his deputy and erstwhile ally, Federico Franco

Venezuela and Argentina said it was a coup; but it wasn't quite. The actions of Paraguay's Congress were legal and constitutional. Mr Lugo himself at first accepted his fate. Paraguayans have reacted calmly to it. Nevertheless, the manner in which he was kicked out was not democratic. Above all, he was given no time to organise his defence. He faced a summary trial worthy of Communist Cuba.

Mr Lugo thus follows Manuel Zelaya of Honduras in becoming only the second Latin American president since 2005 to be forced out before completing his term. Mr Zelaya was ousted by soldiers. The region, rightly, called that a coup, though it was also a conflict between a headstrong president and his foes in the legislature, who thwarted outsiders' attempts to restore Mr Zelaya. Part of the problem in Honduras was that the constitution made impeachment impossible. In Paraguay, it was too easy. This “express impeachment” marks a dangerous precedent in a region where democracy is still being consolidated, and where presidents often find themselves unpopular and lacking a majority in congress.

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