Marcos Pérez Jiménez
From Freepedia
Marcos Pérez Jiménez (April 25, 1914 – September 20, 2001) was president of Venezuela from 1952 to 1958.
He was born in Michelena, Táchira State. His father was a farmer and his mother a schoolteacher. Perez Jiménez attended school in his home town and in Colombia; he then entered the Military Academy of Venezuela and graduated at the top of his class in 1934; then went to study at military colleges in Peru.
In 1945, he participated in a coup that helped install the democratic government of Rómulo Gallegos (from the Democratic Action party) and became Minister of Defence. Later in 1948 he led another coup that ousted Gallegos. From 1948 until 1952 the country was ruled by a military junta headed by Lieutenant Colonel Carlos Delgado Chalbaud, and that included Perez Jimenez and Germán Suárez Flamerich. On November 13, 1950, Delgado Chalbaud was murdered. The junta elected Suárez Flamerich as provisional president, but the real power behind him was Perez Jiménez.
The junta called an election for 1952. When early results showed that the opposition leader was ahead and would win, the junta suspended the election and made Perez Jiménez president.
Pérez Jiménez changed the name of the country, which had been United States of Venezuela since 1864, to Republic of Venezuela. This name would remain until the current president Hugo Chávez changed it to the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela (Spanish: República Bolivariana de Venezuela.)
During his government, Pérez Jiménez undertook many infraestructure projects; mostly construction of roads, bridges, government buildings, and large public housing complexes.
Like most dictators, Pérez Jiménez was not open to tolerate criticism and his government ruthlessly pursued and suppressed the opposition.
While Pérez Jiménez was president of Venezuela, the government of the United States awarded him the U.S. Legion of Merit.
In December 1957, the government held a plebiscite which Pérez Jiménez won by a wide margin. Few people trusted the official results.
In January 1958, there was a general uprising and with people rioting in the streets, Perez Jimenez left the country. He moved to the United States where he lived until 1963 when he was extradited to Venezuela on charges of embezzling some $200 million during his presidential tenure. He was sent to jail until 1968 when he was released. He moved and exiled to Spain. In 1968 he was elected senator but his election was thrown out on a technicality.
He died in Madrid, Spain at the age of 87.
See also
| Image:Flag of Venezuela.svg | Presidents of Venezuela | Image:Presidential Flag of Venezuela (army standard).jpg |
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| Páez | Vargas | Navarte | Carreño | Soublette | Páez | Soublette | J.T. Monagas | J.G. Monagas | J.T. Monagas | Gual | J. Castro | Gual | Tovar | Gual | Páez | Falcón | Bruzual | Villegas | J.R. Monagas | Villegas | Blanco | Alcántara | Varela | Blanco | Crespo | Blanco | López | Paúl | Palacios | Villegas | Crespo | Andrade | C. Castro | Gómez | Bustillos | Gómez | Pérez | Gómez | Contreras | Angarita | Betancourt | Gallegos | Chalbaud | Flamerich | Jiménez | Larrazábal | Sanabria | Betancourt | Leoni | Caldera | Pérez | Campins | Lusinchi | Pérez | Velásquez | Caldera | Chávez | Carmona | Cabello | Chávez
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Categories: Politician stubs | Venezuelan people stubs | Presidents of Venezuela | 1914 births | 2001 deaths | Leaders by coup
