ARGENTINA

History

In 1501 Italian Amerigo Vespucci sailed to South America. A map published in 1507 named the continent America after him. Spanish navigator Juan Diaz de Solis stoped at what is now Argentina in 1516. It was in 1536 when Spanish Pedro de Mendoza founded "Puerto de Santa Maria del Buen Aires" a colony on the location of Buenos Aires, but had to be abandoned in 1537. On June 11th 1580, Spanish Juan de Garay finally founded the city of "De la Santisima Trinidad", but the people continued calling the place as "Puerto de los Buenos Aires". In addition, Spain attached the territory into their empire succeeding the founding of the Vice-Royalty of Rio de la Plata in 1776, and Buenos Aires became a thriving port.

On May 25th 1810, the South America colonies established their own government. In 1813, a General Assembly abolished Slavism. After had leading the country to officially declared independence from Spain on July 9, 1816, Gen. Jose de San Martin contributed to the national independence in Chile and Peru.

Following the independence, centralist and federalist groups engaged in a drawn-out discord to settle the future structure of the nation. National unity was established and the constitution declared in 1853.

The introduction of modern agricultural techniques and the integration of Argentina into the world economy brought together the modern Argentine nation late in the 19th century. Foreign investment and immigration from Europe helped this economic revolution. The investment, principally British, came in such areas as railroads and ports. The migrants who labored to develop Argentina's resources came from throughout Europe, but mostly from Italy and Spain.

Political Views

In the half century following 1880, Argentina made remarkable economic and social progress. During the first decade of the 20th century the country emerged as one of the leading nations of South America. It began to figure prominently in hemispheric affairs and, in 1914, helped to mediate a serious dispute between the United States and Mexico. Argentina remained neutral during World War I (1914-1918) but played a major role as supplier of foodstuffs to the Allies.

Conservative forces commanded Argentine politics until 1916, when their traditional opponent, the Radical Party, won the elections. The Argentine military forced aged Radical President Hipolito Yrigoyen from power in 1930 and lead in another decade of Conservative rule.

Economic conditions improved substantially during the administration of General Augustín Justo, but political turbulence intensified, culminating in an unsuccessful Radical uprising in 1933 and 1934. In May 1936, the Argentine right-wing parties united in a so-called National Front. This organization, successfully supported the finance minister, Roberto M. Ortiz, for the presidency, who took vigorous steps to strengthen democracy in Argentina. President Ortiz proclaimed neutrality after the outbreak of World War II in 1939.

Vice President Castillo was removed from office one year later by a military group headed by General Arturo Rawson. On the eve of his assumption of office as provisional president, however, Rawson was forced to resign. The provisional presidency went to General Pedro Ramírez. In January 1944, his government broke diplomatic relations with Japan and Germany.

On March 27, 1945, the country declared war on Germany and Japan. In the following month the government signed the Act of Chapultepec, a compact among American nations for mutual aid against aggressors. Argentina, with U.S. sponsorship, became a charter member of the United Nations in June. Shortly afterward, it was announced that elections would be held early in 1946.

Revival of political activity in Argentina was marked by the appearance of a new political group formally organized as the Labor Party, with Juan D. Perón as its candidate for the presidency.

In October 1945, Perón married Eva Duarte. As first lady of Argentina, Eva Perón managed labor relations and social services for her husband’s government until her death in 1952.

On June 16, 1955, dissident elements launched a rebellion in Buenos Aires. Three years later, when general elections were held in February 1958, Frondizi won the presidency. Representative government was restored on May 1.

In 1972, however, the country became increasingly torn by violence. During this period, extremists on the left carried out terrorist acts in relative numbers that impended public order. The government resorted to a number of emergency decrees, including the implementation of special executive authority to deal with violence.

On March 11, 1973, Argentina held general elections for the first time in 10 years. Peron was prevented from running, but voters elected his stand-in, Dr. Hector J. Campora, to the presidency. Peron's followers also established secure majorities in both houses of the National Congress, which assumed office on May 25, 1973. Campora resigned in July 1973. Vice President Raul Lastiri, called for new elections. Peron won a victory and reestablished as President in October 1973 with his third wife, Maria Estela Isabel Martinez de Peron, as Vice President.

Perón died on July 1, 1974, and his wife succeeded him. After repeated cabinet crises and terrorist activities a military junta led by the army commander, Lieutenant General Jorge Rafael Videla, seized power on March 24, 1976. The junta dissolved the legislature and imposed martial law.

For the first few months after the military takeover, terrorism remained rampant, but it waned somewhat after the Videla government launched its campaign against the opponents.

Mayor economic-political problems, joined to discredit and discourage the military regime. This inspired a period of progressive transition and led the country toward democratic rule. Acting under public pressure, the junta lifted bans on political parties and restored other basic political liberties. Argentina undergone a generally successful and peaceful return to democracy.

On October 30, 1983, Argentines went to the polls to choose a president; vice president; a national, provincial, and local officials in elections international observers found to be fair, open, and honest. The country returned to constitutional rule after Raul Alfonsin, candidate of the Radical Civic Union (UCR), received 52% of the popular vote for president. he began a six-year term of office on December 10, 1983. During his presidency the country was lead to a strong and vigorous democratic system.

In 1989 Peronist Party candidate, Carlos Saul Menem won the election and became President. During his presidency significant economic measures leaded the country into a era of sustained economic growth. In 1991 Finance Minister Domingo Cavallo formulated a new monetary plan and on the same year the Federal Congress passed the Convertibility Law establishing the currency tied to a dollar ($1 peso = $1 US dollar) and the concomitant obligation to maintain an specific relationship between the monetary base and the international reserves. A broad series of reforms accompanied the plan, including market deregulation, liberalization of international trade restrictions, profound financial reforms and privatization of state-owned companies.

On 1994 the Constitution was revised including the presidential reelection.

On December 10th, 1999 an union of forces between the Radical Party and the Frepaso Party won the Presidential election and Fernando de la Rua became President. On October 6th, 2000, the Vice president presented his resignation. On December 19th, 2002, Mr. de la Rua resigned the Presidency. Mr. Federico Puerta, the Vice president of the Senate took office until December 22nd, when the Honorable Congress appointed Mr. Adolfo Rodriguez Saa, who resigned on December 31st. The President of the House of Representatives took office until January 1st, 2003. The Honorable Congress then elected Eduardo Duhalde, who became President until December 2003, when a Presidential election was scheduled. Mr. Duahlde however, announced his decision to call for presidential elections to be held on April 27th 2003..

Results of the presidential primary of 27 April 2003: Carlos Saul Menem 24.3%, Nestor Kirchner 22%, Ricardo Lopez Murphy 16.4%, Adolfo Rodriguez Saa 14.4%, Elisa Carrio 14.2%, other 8.7%; the subsequent runoff election slated for 25 May 2003 was awarded to Kirchner by default after Menem withdrew his candidacy on the eve of the election.

On May 25th, Mr Nestor Carlos Kirchner became President. Vice President Daniel SCIOLI

GEOGRAPHY AND CLIMATE

Location

Argentina or Argentine Republic, federal republic in southern South America, bounded on the north by Bolivia and Paraguay; on the east by Brazil, Uruguay, and the Atlantic Ocean; on the south by the Atlantic Ocean and Chile; and on the west by Chile.

Area

The length of Argentina in a northern to southern direction is about 3330 km (about 2070 mi); its extreme width is about 1384 km (about 860 mi). The country includes the Tierra del Fuego territory, which comprises the eastern half of the Isla Grande de Tierra del Fuego and a number of adjacent islands to the east, including Isla de los Estados. The area of Argentina is 2,766,889 sq km (1,068,302 sq mi); it is the second largest South American country, Brazil ranking first in area. Argentina, however, claims a total of 2,808,602 sq km (1,084,120 sq mi), including the Islas Malvinas, and other sparsely settled southern Atlantic islands.,The Argentine coastline measures about 5000 km (about 3100 mi) in length. Argentina is the 8th largest country in the world.

Land and Resources

Argentina comprises a diverse territory of mountains, upland areas, and plains. The western boundaries of the country fall entirely within the Andes, the great mountain system of the South American continent. The Patagonian Andes, which form a natural boundary between Argentina and Chile, are one of the lesser ranges, seldom exceeding about 3600 m (about 12,000 ft) in elevation. From the northern extremity of this range to the Bolivian frontier, the western part of Argentina is occupied by the main Andean cordillera, with a number of peaks above about 6400 m (about 21,000 ft). Aconcagua (6960 m/22,834 ft), the highest of these peaks, is the greatest elevation in the world outside Central Asia.

Eastward from the base of the Andean system, the terrain of Argentina consists almost entirely of a flat or gently undulating plain. The Pampas, treeless plains that include the most productive agricultural sections of the country, extend about 1600 km (about 1000 mi) south from the Gran Chaco. In Patagonia, south of the Pampas, the terrain consist of numerous lakes, particularly among the foothills of the Patagonian Andes. The best known are those in the alpine lake country around the resort town of San Carlos de Bariloche (Bariloche).

The main rivers are Paraná, which traverses the north central portion of the country; the Uruguay, which forms part of the boundary with Uruguay; and the Río de la Plata, the great estuary formed by the confluence of the Paraná and the Uruguay rivers. The Paraná-Uruguay system is navigable for about 3000 km (about 2000 mi).

Natural resources.

The traditional wealth of Argentina lies in the vast Pampas, which are used for extensive grazing and grain production. However, Argentine mineral resources, lead, zinc, tin, copper, iron ore, manganese, petroleum, uranium , especially offshore deposits of petroleum and natural gas, have assumed increasing importance in recent decades.

Land use

The soils of Argentina vary greatly in fertility and suitability for agriculture, The Pampas, which are largely made up of a fine sand, clay, and silt almost wholly free from pebbles and rocks, are ideal for the cultivation of cereal. The natural grasslands of this region are used primarily as pasture for cattle. In part of the Chaco an unusually saline soil is believed to be responsible for the abundance of the tannin-rich quebracho trees.

Of Argentina’s land area of about 280 million hectares (about 692 million acres), about 52% is used for pasturing cattle and sheep herds, about 22% for woodland, and about 4% for permanent crops; about 9% of the country’s land area is arable.

arable land: 9% permanent crops: 4%
meadows and pastures: 52%
forest and woodland: 22% other: 13%
irrigated land: 17,600 sq km (1989 est.)

Climate

Temperate climatic conditions prevail throughout most of Argentina, except for a small tropical area in the northeast and the subtropical Chaco in the north. In Buenos Aires the average temperature range is 17° to 29° C (63° to 85° F) in January and 6° to 14° C (42° to 57° F) in July. In Mendoza, in the foothills of the Andes to the west, the average temperature range is 16° to 32° C (60° to 90° F) in January and 2° to 15° C (35° to 59° F) in July. Considerably higher temperatures prevail near the tropic of Capricorn in the north, where extremes as high as 45° C (113° F) are occasionally recorded. Climatic conditions are generally cold in the higher Andes, Patagonia, and Tierra del Fuego. In the western section of Patagonia winter temperatures average about 0° C (32° F). In most coastal areas, however, the ocean exerts a moderating influence on temperatures.

Environment preservation

Twenty-two national parks preserve large areas of these varied environments and protect wildlife (much of it unique) such as the caiman (or Yacare), puma, guanaco (a lowland relative of the upper-Andean Ilama), rhea (similar to an ostrich), Andean condor, flamingo, various marine mammals and unusual seabirds such as Magellanic penguins. Thorn forests, virgin rain forests, flowering cacti, extensive forests of monkey-puzzle trees and southern beech are also protected.

international agreement

party to:

Antarctic-Environmental Protocol
Antarctic Treaty
Biodiversity
Climate Change
Endangered Species
Environmental Modification
Hazardous Wastes
Marine Dumping
Nuclear Test Ban
Ozone Layer Protection
Ship Pollution
Wetlands
Whaling

GOVERNMENT

Organization

Argentina is a Federal Republic made up of 23 Provinces (States) and the autonomous city of Buenos Aires (Capital City). The Constitution establishes the division of central government into three branches.

Provincial constitutions establish their own forms of government within their own jurisdictions, and these are in general similar to those of the Nation.

Cabinet ministers are appointed by the president.

The constitutional system included the creation of a senior coordinating minister to serve under the president and the popular election of the mayor of the city of Buenos Aires.

Executive Branch.

This branch is led by the President of the Republic, chosen directly by the popular vote. The revised 1994 constitution reduced the presidential term to four years, allowed the president to seek a second consecutive term, allowed the president for executive participation in drawing up legislation, as well as the execution of laws and assigned some formerly presidential powers to the legislature. The president serves as the commander-in-chief of the armed forces.

Legislative Branch.

The organization of the legislature of Argentina is similar to that of the United States. The National Congress consists of a lower chamber, the 257-member House of Representatives, and an upper chamber, the 72-member Senate. Representatives are elected directly to four-year terms by a system of proportional representation. Each province elects three senators to six-year terms. Two of these senators are directly elected and the third represents the province’s largest minority party. Three senators represent the city of Buenos Aires.

Judicial Branch.

Federal courts include the Supreme Court, 17 appellate courts, and district and territorial courts on the local levels. The provincial court systems are similarly organized, comprising supreme, appellate, and lower courts.

The president appoints members of the Supreme Court with the consent of the Senate. Other federal judges are appointed by a special judicial commission. The Supreme Court has the power, first asserted in 1854, to declare legislative acts unconstitutional.

DEMOGRAPHICS

Population 1997 est. 35,672,997

Age structure. (July 1995, est.)

0-14 years: 25%
15-64 years: 62%
65 years and over: 10%

Population growth rate: (1995 est.) 1.11%

Birth rate: 19.52 births/1,000 population

Death rate : 8.62 deaths/1,000 population

Infant mortality rate : 28.8 deaths/1,000 live births

Total fertility rate : 2.65 children born/women

Life expectancy at birth.

total population: 71.51 years
male: 68.22 years
female: 74.97 years

The main causes of death are heart disease, brain strokes and malign tumors.

Education

Public education is free from pre-primary to university level and compulsory at primary level (ages 5 to 12)

According to the latest census in 1991:

6,8 million students were enrolled in pre-primary schools

2,2 million in secondary levels
over one million attending universities or tertiary level education
Argentina’s literacy rate of about 95 percent is one of the highest in Latin America.

Argentina has 25 national universities and many private universities. The principal institution is the University of Buenos Aires (1821). Other major national universities are the Catholic University of Argentina (1958), National Technological University (1959), National University of Córdoba (1613), and other universities located in Bahía Blanca (1956), La Plata (1905), Mendoza (1939), San Miguel de Tucumán (1914), and Rosario (1968).

Employment

In the early 1990s the total labor force numbered about 12.3 million. Most of Argentina’s 1100 labor unions are affiliated with the Confederación General del Trabajo (General Labor Confederation), known as the CGT. The labor force participation, measured in twenty-five urban centers, reached 40.2% in October 1992.

BUSINESS- OFFICE HOURS

Office hours are generally from 9am to 6pm, Monday through Friday. Banking hours are from 10am to 3pm, Monday through Friday.

A prior appointment for a business call is usually necessary and considered a courtesy. Negotiations are based on personal contacts. Spanish is the official language.

Holidays

Holidays are generally opportunities for family gathering. Some of them are transferred to the following Monday in order to have a longer weekend. The most important holidays are not transferred and are: Christmas (December 25) and New Year, Good Friday, Labor Day (May 1), Independence Day (May 25), Proclamation Day (July 9) and Immaculate Conception's Day (December 8).

Other holidays move to the following Monday and are: Malvinas Island's Day (June 10), Flag Day (June 20), Death of General Jose de San Martin (August 17) and Columbus day (October 12). The best months for business travel are April through November.

Source: http://www.consuladoargentino-losangeles.org/