Paraguay’s El Tigre: Rodriguez Proves Wily in the Ways of Power

Through much of the long night of combat that finally drove him from power, President Alfredo Stroessner apparently believed that his second in command, Gen. Andres Rodriguez, was also under siege by the rebel troops.

Only just before he surrendered did Stroessner at last accept that he was undone not by junior officers but by Rodriguez himself, according to one officer’s account.

Indeed, the coup leader had proved his loyalty to Stroessner over a period of years and had been well rewarded for doing so, becoming one of Paraguay’s richest men.

Was Unlikely Coup Target

Stroessner, who had been considered among the least likely coup targets in Latin America, is suddenly in exile in Brazil. Rodriguez, whose affable, gentlemanly manner belies a wily grasp of the ways of power, demonstrated why his soldiers call him el tigre, the tiger.

Rodriguez was sworn in as provisional president a few hours after the shooting stopped on Feb. 3 and has since made a series of bold promises in a country ruled by military strongmen much of the time since its independence from Spain in 1811. His pledges include multiparty democracy, human rights and the rule of law. So far, he has earned considerable civilian and foreign good will.

The 65-year-old general, 11 years younger than Stroessner, comes to power in a world far different from that of Stroessner’s after his 1954 coup. Paraguay is now surrounded by democratically ruled neighbors urging Rodriguez to make changes.

The United States, more worried in the 1950s about finding anti-communist allies, now says it seeks to entrench democracy as a bulwark against communism. Moreover, Washington is obsessed with the narcotics trade and is well aware of news reports linking Rodriguez to drugs moving through Paraguay. Rodriguez calls the reports lies planted by his enemies to ruin him.

Unprecedented Challenge

The provisional president has set himself an unprecedented challenge for a Paraguayan ruler: to draw the opposition into a newly democratic system, giving the government legitimacy at home and abroad without losing the loyalty of his--and Stroessner’s--two pillars of support, the powerful Colorado Party and the armed forces.

Most Paraguayans have found it hard not to conclude that Rodriguez seized power because his own position was threatened. Stroessner had been maneuvering to place his son, air force Col. Gustavo Stroessner, in line to succeed him as armed forces commander--and perhaps president as well. Rodriguez, commander of the 1st Army Corps in the capital region, is thought to have counterattacked when Stroessner tried to push him into a ceremonial position.

Yet the coup would not have succeeded if the political environment had not been changing, knowledgeable Paraguayans and diplomats agree.

Stroessner had expanded the reach of the 110-year-old Colorado Party into every village, trade union and school, while banning the main opposition force, the Liberals. He elevated supporters to key military posts, making it unlikely that either the party or the military would revolt. Stroessner realized that the way to preserve power was to keep each group wary of--and dependent on--the other, to prevent a repeat of the bloody Paraguayan civil war of 1947.

Support Began to Erode

In August, 1987, Stroessner’s party support began to erode when his most fanatical supporters seized the party leadership and ousted the Traditionalists, who opposed a dynastic, corrupt order. Some of the most venerable party figures, such as elderly Chairman Juan Ramon Chaves and Supreme Court Justice Luis Maria Argana, were driven into the political wilderness.

Rodriguez judged that these disaffected forces would welcome him if he turned on Stroessner, and Argana acknowledged Tuesday that he and Rodriguez had spoken before the coup.

One of Rodriguez’s first moves as provisional president was a call to restore unity and integrity in the Colorado Party. In the first days, Stroessner’s backers were purged from party posts. Chaves was renamed to the party presidency.

Rodriguez said he would be willing to serve as president if the party wanted him, and Colorado supporters quickly endorsed his candidacy in an election hurriedly scheduled for May 1.

Ended Ban on Opposition Party

He agreed to allow all parties to compete--ending Stroessner’s ban on the Liberals--the other significant political force for more than a century--and smaller groups. But he has stood firm on the election date despite opposition complaints that reorganizing would be impossible in such a short time.

Rafael Saguier, a leader of the Liberals, said he suspects that Rodriguez will adopt some of the trappings of democracy, in the hope of ending Paraguay’s pariah status, but will not permit any real competition.

“They are going to change what they have to change to make sure that things stay the same,” Saguier said.

It took a week for Rodriguez to win recognition from the United States, and it came with this statement from U.S. Ambassador Timothy L. Towell: “Words are not enough. . . . Their credibility will be based on following through on what they say they are going to do.”

‘A Tough Character’

A foreign diplomat said of Rodriguez: “Here is a guy who has been with Stroessner since Day 1 and is a tough character. Why would anyone believe that he is going to be the flower of democracy in Paraguay? There is no reason to believe that this is an instant democrat.”

Others wondered whether Rodriguez might have recognized that the system had become bloated, outdated and stagnant, keeping Paraguay among the poorest countries on the continent.

Certainly Rodriguez has set a different tone. Receiving reporters in the presidential palace, Rodriguez expressed his support for democracy and human rights and free expression. He indicated that closed newspapers and radio stations would be allowed to reopen.

He also declined to criticize Stroessner or discuss the coup itself, except to assert that no more than 50 people were killed or wounded, denying diplomatic sources’ reports of about 300 dead.

A Series of Promotions

Criticizing Stroessner would have been disingenuous. Rodriguez aligned with Stroessner early on and stayed by his side. When there was an internal coup attempt in 1955, Rodriguez, then a captain, played a key role in thwarting it--along with Argana, who was also an army captain and head of the presidential military staff. This brought the first of a series of promotions for Rodriguez, a cavalry officer said to be respected by his troops for his fairness and lack of ostentation, despite his wealth.

To make sure that no pro-Stroessner army forces challenge him, Rodriguez has carried out a thorough military reorganization. He has appointed Gen. Ramon Humberto Garcete, an infantry division commander who was the first to declare his support for the coup, to Rodriguez’s former job as commander of the 1st Army Corps. Col. Lino Cesar Oviedo Silva, who led the combat troops in the coup, has been named commander of the 1st Cavalry Division.

If Paraguayan tradition holds, these men will enjoy not only more power but more privilege as well. Stroessner offered key business posts to loyal officers, such as presidencies of state-owned companies, and is said to have parceled out the rights to Paraguay’s No. 1 industry, contraband.

Rodriguez is described as an excellent businessman, with vast cattle ranches, currency exchange houses that a diplomat estimates bring in $20,000 to $30,000 a day, and an import company the diplomat says would be a perfect channel for smuggling.

Unsubstantiated Reports

But nothing has emerged so far to substantiate reports that Rodriguez has ties to drug trafficking. These reports first appeared in the early 1970s, at the time of a conflict over a U.S. request for the extradition of Auguste Ricord, an expatriate Frenchman later convicted of being part of the Marseilles heroin ring.

According to Paul H. Lewis’ 1980 book, “Paraguay Under Stroessner,” Rodriguez had made available to Ricord airstrips on his ranches for smuggling drugs and had sought to block his extradition. Rodriguez made a point of denying any involvement, past or present, with anyone linked to drug dealing. He has not spoken publicly on the Ricord case, or about a subsequent report linking him to the shipment of chemicals used to refine coca leaves into cocaine.

Importing goods and smuggling them into neighboring countries is a tradition in Paraguay. It accounts for more than half the country’s income. After-hours business by senior military officers is also accepted.

In a country of 3.1 million with a small, sleepy capital, there are few secrets. Everyone seems to be related to someone in power. Stroessner was known to keep a mistress. Rodriguez, by contrast, has maintained a flawless family image and is seen frequently with his wife, Nelida. One of his three daughters, Marta, is married to one of Stroessner’s sons, Alfredo, a businessman.

Rumors Grew Strong Feb. 2

Paraguayans guess that planning for the coup began no more than 10 days beforehand. Rodriguez reportedly sent a note to his daughter and son-in-law to extend their vacation in Uruguay for a few more days. Rumors grew strong on Feb. 2 that something was afoot, yet many citizens believed that the first sounds of gunfire were fireworks celebrating the San Blas national holiday.

With the strength of the 1st Army Corps behind him, Rodriguez had numerical superiority when his men burst out of corps headquarters near the airport at 9:45 p.m. Support quickly galvanized in the air force and navy, which joined him after minor skirmishes.

It took more than six hours of machine gun and artillery fire before Stroessner gave in and was taken into custody.

Asked three days later how it felt to have overthrown his in-law, Rodriguez smiled, looked down for a moment and said, “I wouldn’t say ‘overthrown.’ I consider it to have been defending a fine and just cause.”