The Look of Chaos

In the 13 months since President Arturo Frondizi was overthrown, Argentina has had: Five Ministers of the Interior. Three Ministers of Foreign Affairs. Four Defense Ministers. Three Economics Ministers. Five War Secretaries. Four Navy Secretaries. Three Air Secretaries. Five Treasury Secretaries. And an economy in a mess. The number of Argentine bankruptcies increased 46% last year, the cost of living rose 50%, the peso dropped 67%, and the gross national product actually slipped 3.9%. Argentina's wheat crop and meat production--the country's two main exports--finished disappointingly low, and the nation's balance-of-payments deficit soared to $320 million. Argentina's total gold and foreign exchange reserves have also dropped from $351 million to $185 million--only a shade more than those of Morocco. The military men who half-run Argentina behind a civilian facade have promised elections to return the country to constitutional rule, but are as hesitant to step aside as they were once eager to step in. Their problem is still the same as when they deposed President Frondizi a year ago: how to keep the 3,000,000 followers of exiled Dictator Juan Peron from taking over the country. When the Peronistas were allowed to run last time, they won 35% of the vote, thus triggering the coup by the Peron-hating military. Now the military cannot agree whether to let Peronistas on the ballot, and on what conditions. Some politicians and liberal military men insist that Peronistas must be allowed to participate--provided they renounce the exiled Peron and run under strict electoral rules that would prevent them from winning any real power. Others are just as determined to keep them off the ballot altogether. As for the Peronistas themselves, they cannot decide whether to accept a minor role or go for broke. Originally scheduled for June 16, the elections have been postponed twice in the past three months. The new date is July 7, but many Argentines doubt that they will come to pass. Last week a new crisis threatened after General Enrique Rauch, Argentina's new Interior Minister, issued a communique attacking four other Cabinet ministries and calling for a raft of new reforms before the July 7 elections. Instead of compromise and cooperation, today's Argentina seems only to invite collisions of extremes. As one Argentine sociologist put it: "There is no community in Argentina. We form a conglomeration. Instead of life, Argentina has rancorous, factious chaos, periodically illuminated by coups d'etat."

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