19243: (Craig) NYT Editorial: Latin America's Half-Term Presidents (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: Dan Craig <hoosier@att.net>


Latin Americas Half-Term Presidents
February 26, 2004

Rebel efforts to oust President Jean-Bertrand Aristide of
Haiti fit a troubling pattern across Latin America. For
years, democratically elected presidents in the region were
routinely deposed through military coups. Today, many
elected leaders continue to see their terms cut short, but
through popular uprisings aimed at their removal, like the
one in Haiti. Not long ago, Gonzalo Sanchez de Lozada was
ousted as president of Bolivia after widespread protests
stemming from a natural gas deal. In 2001, President
Fernando de la R?a of Argentina resigned halfway through
his term after protests about the economy. Today, in
addition to efforts to depose Mr. Aristide, large groups of
citizens or foreign governments are calling for the
resignation of Hugo Chavez in Venezuela and Alejandro
Toledo in Peru.

Such demands seek to short-circuit the democratic process.
Usually occurring in the most unfortunate countries, they
degrade institutions, polarize politics and impede the
continuity necessary for growth. Even when constitutions
provide for referendums and other mechanisms to remove a
president early, they should be invoked only in extreme
circumstances.

Early removal is most appropriate when presidents were
fraudulently elected. One example is Alberto Fujimori's
resignation in Peru in 2000. Corruption scandals were the
immediate cause, but Mr. Fujimori would not have been so
widely resented had he not stolen elections earlier in the
year, and his ouster was correctly seen as just.

For legitimately elected leaders, however, the bar for
early removal must be set very high. Mr. Toledo's sin in
Peru is that he is weak and apparently corrupt - not a good
enough reason for yet another interruption of democracy.
The opposition to Mr. Chavez, whose autocratic leanings and
populist demagogy have divided Venezuela in two, has yet to
show he has crossed the line into tyranny. He survived
large national strikes directed at his ouster last year.
Mr. Chavez wrote a constitution that included the
possibility of a referendum on his rule. If he is to leave
office early, a referendum should be the only acceptable
means.

Mr. Chavez is an example of a president who is wildly
unpopular with half his country, but fiercely defended by
the other. Mr. Aristide in Haiti is another. He is an
autocrat whose use of popular violence during legislative
elections led to a cutoff of international aid. While he
should be sharing power more broadly, he should not be
forced out of office by protesters who promise only more
bloodshed.

Sacking a president usually makes things worse. Politicians
will not make unpopular decisions - or decisions that
offend powerful groups - if they must face the political
guillotine every day. While many protesters want to destroy
everything and start from zero, Latin America needs more
continuity, not less. Also, with the presidency in constant
play, opposition leaders will not make constructive
compromises, instead manipulating every issue to try to win
power.

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/02/26/opinion/26THU3.html?ex=1078804067&ei=1&en=62ef403100ee173f
Copyright 2004 The New York Times Company