Leopoldo Galtieri

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Leopoldo Fortunato Galtieri
De facto President of Argentina
In office December 22, 1981 – June 18, 1982
Preceded by	Carlos Lacoste
Succeeded by	Alfredo Saint-Jean
Born	July 15, 1926 Buenos Aires
Died	January 12, 2003 (aged 76) Buenos Aires
Profession	Military

Leopoldo Fortunato Galtieri Castelli (July 15, 1926 - January 12, 2003) was an Argentinian general and the de facto President of Argentina from 22 December 1981 to 18 June 1982, during the last military dictatorship.

Galtieri was the child of working class parents who were themselves children of poor Italian immigrants. At 17 he enrolled in the Argentine military academy to study civil engineering, and his early military career was as an officer in the engineering branch. It has been said that even in his teens he was already keen to see Argentina resolve disputes over territory with force.

In 1975, after more than 25 years as a combat engineer, he became commander of the Argentine engineering corps. He was an enthusiastic supporter of the military coup that started the self-styled National Reorganization Process in 1976 and rose further, becoming a major general in 1977 and commander-in-chief in 1980 with the rank of lieutenant general.

During the junta's rule, parliament was suspended, unions, political parties and provincial governments were banned, and in what became known as the "Dirty War" between 9,000 and 30,000 people deemed left-wing "subversives" disappeared from society. Torture and mass executions were both commonplace. The economy, which had been in dire condition prior to the coup, recovered for a short time, then deteriorated further.

In early 1981 Galtieri visited the United States and was warmly received, as the Reagan administration viewed his regime as a bulwark against communism. National Security Advisor Richard V. Allen described him as a "majestic general." Galtieri's strength was sufficient to allow him to remove a number of rival generals and, in December 1981, he rose to the presidency of Argentina by means of a coup, ousting interim President Roberto Viola.

Galtieri retained direct control of the army and did not appoint a new commander-in-chief. He attempted to repair the economy by slashing spending, selling off remaining government-owned industries, squeezing money supply and freezing salaries. He instituted limited political reforms which allowed the expression of dissent, and anti-junta demonstrations soon became common, as did agitation for a return to democracy.

After four months in office and with his popularity low, Galtieri's forces invaded the weakly-defended British Falkland Islands in April 1982, and he declared the "Malvinas" a province of Argentina — as they had been according to Argentina from 1820 to 1833, before Britain re-gained control over them. Argentina with freshly-declared independence was claiming the islands by continuation of a Spanish claim. Britain, the United Nations, and many other countries around the world condemned the annexation (the US eventually joined the chorus after initially equivocating), yet in Argentina it was wildly popular. The anti-junta demonstrations were replaced by patriotic demonstrations in support of Galtieri. In the morning of April 2nd, 1982, the first day of the invasion, a small group of people gathered in the historic Plaza de Mayo, across from the Casa Rosada, the government site. After a while Galtieri showed up on one of the balconies (not the same used by Perón but one located to the left of it) and raised his hands to cheer the small group of supporters. A few minutes later a siren was heard and many bystanders started to flee in panic, reminiscent of the tough repression that happened just a few days before in the same place, on March 30th.

Galtieri and many observers thought that, in the post World War II world, the armed forces of the United Kingdom no longer had the resources necessary to contest the invasion. However, after diplomatic pressure and negotiations led nowhere, the UK government, led by prime minister Margaret Thatcher, decided to re-take the islands and deployed naval task forces to do so. The Falklands War was over within two months. Superior training and technology, including some of the most advanced weapons systems to date, and satellite imaging provided by the US, made up for the numerical and geographic advantages of Argentina.

Stanley was retaken in June 1982 and within days General Galtieri was removed from power. He spent the next 18 months at a well-protected country retreat while "democracy" was restored to Argentina. Along with other members of the former junta, he was arrested in late 1983 and charged in a military court with human rights violations during the Dirty War, and with mismanagement of the Falklands war.

He was cleared of the civil rights charges in December 1985 but (together with the Air Force and Navy commanders-in-chief) found guilty of mishandling the war in May 1986 and sentenced to jail. All three appealed (this time in a civil court) while the prosecution appealed for heavier sentences. In November 1988 the original sentences were confirmed and all three commanders were stripped of their rank. Galtieri served five years in jail before receiving President Carlos Menem's pardon in 1991.

In July 2002 new civil charges were brought concerning the kidnapping and disappearance of 18 leftist sympathizers in the late 1970s (while Galtieri was commander of the Second Army Corps), and the disappearance or death of three Spanish citizens at about the same time. Galtieri was placed under house-arrest. With his health declining, he was admitted to hospital in Buenos Aires to be treated for cancer of the pancreas, where he died of a heart attack at the age of 76.

Preceded by Carlos Lacoste

President of Argentina De facto – 1981-1982

Succeeded by Alfredo Saint-Jean