Dictatorship of Alfredo Stroessner
The dictatorship of Alfredo Stroessner, colloquially known as Stronismo or Stronato, was the period of almost 35 years in the history of Paraguay in which army general Alfredo Stroessner ruled the country as a de facto one-party state under an authoritarian military dictatorship, from 15 August 1954 to 3 February 1989.
Friendship Bridge between Paraguay and Brazil, 1965
Itaipu Dam
Alfredo Stroessner Matiauda was a Paraguayan army officer, politician and statesman who served as President of Paraguay from 15 August 1954 to 3 February 1989. Stroessner led a coup d'état on 4 May 1954 with the support of the army and the Colorado Party, with which he was affiliated. After a brief provisional government headed by Tomás Romero Pereira, he was the Colorado Party's presidential candidate for the 1954 general election, and was elected unopposed since all other parties were banned from 1947 to 1962.
Official portrait, 1983
Image: Firma de Alfredo Stroessner
Stroessner with Juscelino Kubitschek in Brasília, 1958
Stroessner (right) greets Brazilian President Humberto de Alencar Castelo Branco during the opening ceremonies of the Friendship Bridge, connecting Brazil and Paraguay, 27 March 1965