Crisis Every Week

ARGENTINA If three square meals and a good education could turn the trick, democracy would flourish in Argentina, South America's best-fed, best-educated nation. But democracy barely survives. Almost every week brings a new crisis and an old question: Why?

In Buenos Aires last week, the elected President, Arturo Frondizi. managed to cling to his job through just one curious advantage: his Vice President, Alejandro Gomez, had already been sacked in another crisis ten months before, and Argentina's rebellious military could find no constitutional successor to take over Frondizi's post. Dealing from new strength gained by open revolt (TIME, Sept. 14), the army began purging all pro-Frondizi officers from key positions of command. It was, in a word, a typical week.

Root Cause. The continuing cause of crisis in Argentina is that stomach interest and personal politics have kept civil government weak and invited the military power centers to take charge.

Argentina grew out of experiences deceptively similar to those that made the U.S. strong--a frontier tradition of hard-riding gaucho and hard-working settler, a Buenos Aires melting pot that produced a prosperous middle class, a good public school system based on the ideas of egalitarian U.S. Educator Horace Mann. But the immigrant millions came mostly from impecunious southern Italy and Spanish Galicia, and their deepest hunger proved to be for economic security, not freedom. They added a significant saying to the Argentine speech: "Don't get involved." Their sons, who like their beefsteaks cut thick and their suits cut on Savile Row lines, will riot over an increase in the cost of living--but not over the fall of an elected government. Cynical corruption wrecked the middle-class Radicals' one chance in power (1916-30), and the disgusted army sent General Jose Uriburu, astride a white charger and backed by 10,000 troops, to take over the presidential residence, the Casa Rosada. The brass has never been out of politics since.

Military tentacles spread wide. The army owns the country's largest industrial empire, comprising 18 plants and 17,000 civilian workers, turning out everything from plows to TV sets. The air force produces cars, tractors; the navy operates commercial freighter and passenger lines. Though it has not fought a foreign enemy since beating tiny Paraguay in 1870, the military commands 17.5% of the budget.

Peronism. But military domination is not all that Argentine democracy must try to swallow. Peronism. the demagogic workers' movement started by Juan Peron, is almost as strong today as when the army booted the dictator four years ago. The Peronistas still burn candles to Peron's late wife, Eva, whom they call "St. Eva Immortal.'' They control 88 out of 138 trade unions and with their 2,000,000 votes can swing close elections (as they did in Frondizi's favor last year).

Most of Argentina's military is dead set against any upsurge of Peronism. and most of the arbitrary military control is directed at stopping the Peronistas. The bulk of the 20 million Argentines appreciate this attitude--but they fret over the implications that civil government is so feeble. "What we see and feel in our country." said Buenos Aires' Correo de la Tarde, "can only be expressed in a single word, 'shame.' "

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