Paraguay

Coordinates: Template:Coor dm The Republic of Paraguay (Spanish: República del Paraguay, pron. IPA Template:IPA, Guarani: Tetä Paraguáype) is a landlocked nation in South America. It lies on both banks of the Paraguay River, bordering Argentina to the south and southwest, Brazil to the northeast, and Bolivia to the northwest. The name of the country means "water that goes to the water," derived from the Guaraní words pará ("ocean"), gua ("to/from"), and y ("water"). The expression in Guaraní often refers solely to Asunción, but in Spanish refers to the entire country.

History

Template:Main Europeans first arrived in the area in the early 16th century and the settlement of Asunción was founded on August 15, 1537, by the Spanish explorer Juan de Salazar. The city eventually became the centre of a Spanish colonial province, as well as a primary site of the Jesuit missions and settlements in South America in the 18th century. Paraguay declared its independence by overthrowing the local Spanish authorities on May 15, 1811.

In the disastrous War of the Triple Alliance (1865–1870), Paraguay lost 140,000 square kilometres (54,000 sq mi) of territory and suffered a huge loss of its male population. Tradition holds that up to two thirds of the adult male population was killed, but upon analysis from historic records and census reports, this figure is greatly exaggerated.Template:Fact Nevertheless, the war caused Paraguay's economy to stagnate for at least the next half century. In the Chaco War of 1932 to 1935, Paraguay gained a large part of its current territory at the expense of Bolivia. The war was the culmination of a long series of border disputes between the two countries. Paraguay and Bolivia had tried to settle their claims diplomatically since at least the middle of the 19th century. Successive negotiations failed to produce a definitive agreement, and Paraguay established its jurisdiction by encouraging the settlement of the largely unpopulated Chaco area. Once the conflict started, Paraguay made large territorial gains that allowed it to capture more territory than it originally claimed. By 1935; however, Bolivia had regrouped and was able to stop the advance of the Paraguayan army. Exhausted by a long war, and having expanded its territory considerably, Paraguay accepted the mediation of the League of Nations.

The 35-year military dictatorship of Alfredo Stroessner was overthrown in 1989, and, despite a marked increase in political infighting in recent years, relatively free and regular presidential elections have been held since then. However, the democracy that exists in the country, while a great improvement on the 'Stronato' (the name given to the era of Stroessner's rule), is very limited. It is hampered by the widespread corruption and lack of a solid democratic political culture.

Politics

Template:Main Paraguay's highly centralised and often dictatorial government was fundamentally changed by the 1992 constitution, which provides for a division of powers. The president and vice president are elected on the same ticket by popular vote for five-year terms. The president functions as both head of state and head of government, for which the president appoints a cabinet.

The bicameral parliament is the Congress (Congreso), comprising an 80-member Chamber of Deputies (Cámara de Diputados) and a 45-member Senate (Cámara de Senadores), elected concurrently with the president through a proportional representation system. Deputies are elected by department and senators nationwide on a list system, both for five-year terms. Each of Paraguay's eighteen departments is headed by a popularly-elected governor.

Paraguay's highest court is the nine-member Supreme Court, appointed by the Senate and the President on the basis of recommendations from a constitutionally created Magistrates Council.

A Paraguayan peculiarity is its flag, which features a slightly different design on the reverse side than on the front. The three stripes on the flag (red, white, and blue) derive from the French flag. The front side contains the National Seal of Paraguay and the reverse contains the words "Paz y Justicia"(Peace and Justice) along with a lion and a Phrygian Cap on a pole.

Departments

Template:Main Paraguay comprises eighteen departments (departamentos, singular - departamento):

Geography

Image:Pa-map.png Template:Main The (Gran) Chaco mostly features low, marshy plains near the river and dry forest and thorny scrub further west. The highest point is the Cerro Pero (Cerro Tres Kandu) at 842 metres (2,762 ft). The southeastern border is formed by the Parana River, containing the Itaipu dam shared with Brazil. It is currently the largest hydroelectric power plant in the world, generating nearly all of Paraguay's electricity.

The local climate ranges from subtropical to temperate, with substantial rainfall in the eastern portions, though becoming semi-arid in the far west.

Economy

Template:Main Paraguay has a market economy marked by a large informal sector that features both re-export of imported consumer goods to neighbouring countries as well as the activities of thousands of microenterprises and urban street vendors. Because of the importance of the informal sector, accurate economic measures are difficult to obtain. A large percentage of the population derive their living from agricultural activity, often on a subsistence basis.

Paraguay's economy is very dependent on Brazil, its neighbour in the east. Most of the country's imports come by road through the Brazilian port of Paranaguá. Ciudad del Este is the third largest free-tax commerce zoneTemplate:Fact of the world, only behind Hong Kong and Miami. The country holds the Itaipu dam, which used to be the largest concrete structure, the largest dam and the largest power plant of the world. Itaipu's energy supplies about 20% of the current Brazilian needs and is the most important export good of Paraguay. The selling of cheaper goods is another important source of revenue and it is still a common habit in Brazil to go to Paraguay and buy electronics there. About 60% of the GDP is from commerce with Brazil. Most of the rest comes from commerce with Argentina with which the country shares another major power plant: Yaciretá.

The formal economy grew by an average of about 3% annually in 1995-1997, but its GDP declined slightly in 1998, 1999, and 2000. Despite difficulties arising from political instability, corruption, slow structural reforms, high internal and external debts and deficient infrastructure; it is believed that the factor that most contributed to the stagnation of Paraguayan economy was the devaluation of the Brazilian currency, the Real, in 1998; which caused Paraguayan shops to lose their attractiveness (as prices there are mostly in U.S. dollars).

Since 1991 Paraguay has been a member of the free trade bloc MERCOSUR.

Demographics

Template:Main Ethnically, culturally, and socially, Paraguay has one of the most homogeneous populations in Latin America. About 95% of the people are mestizos of mixed Spanish and Guaraní Indian descent. The only trace of the original Guaraní culture is the Guaraní language, spoken by 90% of the population. About 75% of all Paraguayans can speak Spanish. Guaraní and Spanish are both official languages. Germans, Japanese, Koreans, ethnic Chinese, Arabs, Brazilians, and Argentines are among those who have settled in Paraguay and they have to an extent retained their respective languages.

Paraguay's population is distributed unevenly throughout the country. The vast majority of the people live in the eastern region, most within 160 kilometers of Asunción, the capital and largest city. The Chaco, which accounts for about 60% of the territory, is home to less than 2% of the population. The country is predominantly Roman Catholic, with some Mennonite and other Protestant minorities.

Culture

Paraguayans express their culture in arts such as embroidery (aho poí) and lace making (ñandutí). Their music, which consists of lilting polkas, bouncy galopas, and languid guaranías played on the native harp, is also distinctive and beautiful. Outstanding harpists and composers, such as Félix Pérez Cardozo and José Asunción Flores, were not only held in high esteem locally but also achieved fame abroad during their lives.

In the 1950s and 1960s the Paraguayan novel came of age. Gabriel Casaccia's La babosa (1952; "The Driveler") employs realism to denounce corruption. Augusto Roa Bastos's Hijo de hombre (1960; Son of Man, 1965) provides a diorama of Paraguay's history; through the technique of magic realism, social and religious themes are scrutinized; the novel has been acclaimed as a masterpiece of recent Latin American fiction. His standing in the front rank of Latin American novelists was confirmed with Yo, El Supremo (1974; "I the Supreme"), a psychological portrait of José Gaspar Rodríguez de Francia, one of Paraguay's early dictators. As for nonfiction, Paraguay has produced at least three excellent historians: Julio César Cháves, whose biography of Francia, El Supremo Dictador (1942; "The Supreme Dictator"), is a classic; Efraím Cardozo, who wrote several works on the colonial and early national periods; and Pablo Max Ynsfrán, with his scholarly examination of a quarrel between President Carlos Antonio López and the United States, La Expedición norteamericana contra el Paraguay, 1858–1859 (1954; "The American Expedition against Paraguay, 1858–1859").

Institutions

Unlike many Latin American countries, Paraguay has no aristocratic upper class. Wars, revolutions, and party strife eliminated the old leading families during the 19th century, and many of the people now in power are only a generation or two from the peasantry. That does not mean there is no social hierarchy, for the usual distinctions between town and country dweller, employer and laborer, and mental and manual worker still apply. But there is a fairly high degree of mobility between classes, and even the poorest peasant displays a strong degree of personal pride.

Social life revolves largely around an extended family of parents, children and blood relations as well as godparents. The Paraguayans' chief loyalty is to their family, and it, in turn, is their haven and support. Family interests determine to a large extent which party they will join, to whom they will marry, what sort of job they will get, whether they will win a lawsuit, and—in some cases—whether they would be wise to emigrate for a time. Anyone outside the family, except for an old and trusted friend, is viewed with indifference, if not with suspicion.

Inside the family, conservative values predominate. Children must be obedient to their parents, and women are supposed to be subservient to their menfolk. Godparents have a special relationship to the family, since usually they are chosen because of their favorable social position, in order to provide extra security for the children. Particular respect is owed them, in return for which the family can expect protection and patronage. Thus arises the pattern of personal favors that so colors all of the institutions of Paraguayan society.

See also

• Communications in Paraguay
• Foreign relations of Paraguay
• Guaraní mythology
• Guaraní language
• List of cities in Paraguay
• List of Paraguayans
• Military of Paraguay
• Music of Paraguay
• Public holidays in Paraguay
• Transportation in Paraguay
• Asociación de Scouts del Paraguay

Further reading

• At the Tomb of the Inflatable Pig : Travels Through Paraguay John Gimlette
• Lonely Planet Guide: Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay Sandra Bao, Ben Greensfelder and Carolyn Hubbard

External links

Template:Sisterlinks

• Guerra do Paraguai - História Geral
• Open Directory Project - Paraguay directory category
• Living in Paraguay A point of view: Asuncion and Paraguay
• Paraguay de Antes Old pictures and postcards from Paraguay
• Recipes for Chipas, a cheese and cornmeal bread
• WWW-VL: History: Paraguay

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