Paraguay: Information on the current status of the Partido Liberal Radical Auténtico (PLRA)
| Publisher | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada |
| Author | Research Directorate, Immigration and Refugee Board, Canada |
| Publication Date | 1 November 1992 |
| Citation / Document Symbol | PRY12405 |
| Cite as | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, Paraguay: Information on the current status of the Partido Liberal Radical Auténtico (PLRA), 1 November 1992, PRY12405, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/3ae6ab8a34.html [accessed 4 June 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
Please find attached a copy of Responses PRY10271 and PRY10269, both of 27 February 1992, which refer in their texts and attachments to the Partido Liberal Radical Auténtico (PLRA). In addition to these documents, please find attached some recent articles from the Southern Cone Report (listed below), which contain the most detailed reports on political affairs in Paraguay currently available to the DIRB.
According to the attached Southern Cone Reports, the PLRA backed media owners in their opposition to a constitutional article providing for regulation of journalistic activities (28 May 1992, 7). Manuel Benítez Florentín is reported to have been the PLRA's president, although Domingo Laíno was reportedly declared a "pre-candidate" for the PLRA's presidential nomination by the party's majority faction (2 July 1992, 6).
The PLRA, in anticipation of the May 1993 general elections, was reported to have agreed in its early-August 1992 convention to form an alliance with the independent movements Asunción Para Todos (ATP), Paraguay Para Todos (PPT) and factions of of the Partido Revolucionario Febrerista (PRF) and the Christian Democrat Party (10 Sept. 1992, 7).
The October 1992 article in the Southern Cone Report is attached to provide some background information on an attempt against the life of lawyer Hermes Saquier, a leading member of of the PLRA, which is reported in the attached November 1992 article. Hermes Saquier was reportedly acting for a colonel who was removed from his post for his role in uncovering a ring of car thefts, smuggling and drug-trafficking involving other military officers (19 Nov. 1992, 3). The attempt against Saquier's life apparently involved at least one of the high-ranking officers accused of participating in the crime ring (Ibid.).
The home of another PRLA figure, deputy Francisco de Vargas, was reportedly attacked in March 1991 (Amnesty International 27 Mar. 1991). Francisco de Vargas has been vice-president of the Human Rights Commission of the Congressional Chamber of Deputies and a lawyer of the Comité de Iglesias para Ayudas de Emergencia (CIPAE). According to Amnesty International, the attack against the home of de Vargas may have been linked to his representation of relatives of victims of human rights violations under the former government of General Alfredo Stroessner (Ibid.).
Also attached, for your information, please find a Southern Cone Report article on human rights abuses in Paraguay (19 Nov. 1992, 8).
References
Amnesty International. 27 March 1991. Urgent Action. (AI Index: AMR 45/02/91). London: Amnesty International.
Latin American Newsletters. 19 November 1992. Latin American Regional Reports: Southern Cone Report. "Paraguay: Rights Abuses Continue" and "Army Chief Goes as Scandal Escalates." London: Latin American Newsletters.
. 10 September 1992. Latin American Regional Reports: Southern Cone Report. "`Traditionalists' Top in Colorado Polls."
. 2 July 1992. Latin American Regional Reports: Southern Cone Report. "Assembly Refuses to Toe the Line."
. 28 May 1992. Latin American Regional Reports: Southern Cone Report. "Final Draft of New Charter Approved."
Attachments
Amnesty International. 27 March 1991. Urgent Action. (AI Index: AMR 45/02/91). London: Amnesty International.
Latin American Newsletters. 19 November 1992. Latin American Regional Reports: Southern Cone Report. "Paraguay: Rights Abuses Continue" and "Army Chief Goes as Scandal Escalates." London: Latin American Newsletters.
. 15 October 1992. Latin American Regional Reports: Southern Cone Report. "General Elections Set For Next May."
. 10 September 1992. Latin American Regional Reports: Southern Cone Report. "`Traditionalists' Top in Colorado Polls."
. 2 July 1992. Latin American Regional Reports: Southern Cone Report. "Assembly Refuses to Toe the Line."
. 28 May 1992. Latin American Regional Reports: Southern Cone Report. "Final Draft of New Charter Approved."
Immigration and Refugee Board Documentation Centre (IRBDC), Ottawa. 27 February 1992. Response to Information Request PRY10271.
. 27 February 1992. Response to Information Request PRY10269.
