The Uruguay Report
Overview |History | Geography | Economy | People | Current Event
Star Player | World Cup Information | Links | Sources
Overview
(yoo´regwa, gwi, Span. ooroogwi´, ooroowi´)
Officially Oriental Republic of Uruguay, republic (1995
est. pop. 3,223,000), 68,536 sq mi (177,508 sq km), SE South America. The
second smallest country (after Suriname) in South America, Uruguay extends
from a short Atlantic coastline along the north bank of the Río
de la Plata to the Uruguay River, which separates it on the west from Argentina.
To the north is Brazil. The capital and largest city is Montevideo .
History
European Involvement and the Struggle for Independence
Although the Río de la Plata was explored as early as 1515, it was
not until 1624 that the Spanish established the first permanent settlement,
at Soriano in SW Uruguay. The Portuguese founded (1680) a short-lived settlement
at Colonia, and in 1717 they fortified a hill on the site of Montevideo.
Fearing encroachment and competition, the Spanish drove them out (1724)
and from then until the wars of independence controlled the Banda Oriental.
Uruguay's position between Spanish and Portuguese settlements, and later
between Argentina and Brazil, helped determine the emergence of Uruguay
as an independent state. On the pampas stock raising spread; gradually
the unbounded range gave way to huge estancias (cattle ranches)
and small settlements concentrated about the ranch buildings.
It was the rough and hardy gaucho
who fought for independence, and the traditions, personal loyalties, and
rivalries of the gauchos helped to keep the nation in almost continual
strife for three quarters of a century after independence was won. When
the revolutionary banner was raised in the Argentine in 1810, the leaders
of the Banda Oriental, notably Artigas
, accepted the cause, but in 1814 Artigas broke with the military junta
of Buenos Aires and began a struggle for Uruguayan independence that lasted
until the Brazilian occupation of Montevideo in 1820. Five years later
a small group, known as the Thirty-three Immortals, under the guidance
of Lavalleja
, declared Uruguay independent.
| Independence and War |
Oribe was driven out in 1838, but later with the
aid of Rosas returned to begin the long siege of Montevideo. The Italian
patriot Garibaldi fought in the Uruguayan wars from 1842 to 1846. In 1851
the Argentine general Urquiza
drove out Rosas and brought an end to the Uruguayan civil war. When in
1864 Brazil presented a claim for damages to property and nationals during
the civil wars, Uruguay refused to accept it. Brazil invaded and, aided
by the Uruguayan general Vanancio Flores (a Colorado), overthrew the Blanco
president. Paraguay, under Francisco Solano López
, came to the assistance of the Blancos, whereupon Argentina, Brazil, and
Uruguay formed a tripartite alliance against Paraguay (see Triple
Alliance, War of the ). During the 19th and 20th cent. waves of immigration,
chiefly from Europe, augmented the Uruguayan population.
| Government Reforms |
Batlle's influence on Uruguayan political practice
did not end with his death; concerned lest the country again fall prey
to dictatorial caudillos, he had advocated the creation of an executive
governing council. This reform, inspired by the Swiss multiple-executive
system of government, was adopted in 1951; the office of president was
abolished and replaced by a nine-man council with a president, chosen from
the majority party, to act as titular head of state. The plural executive,
however, proved ineffectual; factionalism and apathy within the council
hindered action on social and economic problems, which became pressing
in the mid-1950s and acute during the 60s.
| Civil Strife in Modern Uruguay |
In 1967 a new constitution abolished the plural executive and reinstated a powerful president. That same year the Colorado party returned to power, with Oscar Gestido as president. Gestido died after several months in office and was succeeded by his vice president, Jorge Pacheco. Pacheco and his hand-picked successor, José María Bordaberry (who was elected in 1972), ruled with increasingly dictatorial powers. As the Tupamaros increased their terrorist activities, kidnapping foreign diplomats and assassinating high officials, the army assumed tremendous power, even pressuring President Bordaberry (June, 1973) to dissolve the congress. The military, which made Aparicio Méndez president in 1976, ruled Uruguay with brutal force, regularly disregarding human rights by kidnapping, imprisoning, torturing, or murdering citizens.
The government's repressive tactics caused a massive emigration of Uruguayans, mostly to Argentina. After a 1980 plebiscite to continue de facto military rule was voted down by the populace, the military government steadily lost power. In 1985, Julio María Sanguinetti of the centrist Colorado party became president, restoring civilian government but also granting amnesty (1986) to former leaders accused of human-rights violations. Luis Alberto Lacalle Herrera of the Blanco party became president in 1990. He was forced to form a coalition government in order to secure a parliamentary majority, and his attempts to introduce free-market reforms were obstructed. Sanguinetti was returned to the presidency by a slim margin in the 1994 elections, and also had to form a coalition; he sought cutbacks in Uruguay's bankrupt social security program and modest amounts of privatization. In 1999, Jorge Batlle Ibañez, also of the Colorado party, was elected president; during the election, he faced a strong challenge on the left from the Broad Front's Tabaré Vázquez, the former mayor of Montevideo.
Independence Movement in Ghana
In 1957, Ghana gained its independence and was awarded 200 million
British pounds. This was not easily won. After World War II,
Ghanaian leaders sought more direct control over their own country.
The most important people involved in this were Kwame Nkrumah and Dr. J.
B. Danquah. In 1947, Danquah formed the United Gold Coast Conversion
to transform Ghana into an independent country. Nkrumah was selected
as the UGCC's general secretary. But rivalries developed, and Nkrumah
split off to form the Convention Peoples' Party in 1949. Their slogan
was "Self Government Now." Nkrumah was jailed for protests when his
party won 34 seats in the first general election (1951); the UGCC won 3
seats. Nkrumah was released, and became Prime Minister in 1952.
Baffour Akoto, a linguist, formed the National Liberation Movement, which became the chief political rival to the CPP. The NLM's main leader was Danquah. The two parties both wanted independence, however, and in 1957, the country was free. In their first elections, Nkrumah was chosen as the country's first President. Also, as a new country, Ghana created its first national soccer team, and named it the Black Stars, after the black star on the country's new flag. Another political party that was created in the 1950s was the Northern Peoples' Party. The NPP is currently lead by Ghana's President Kuffour, elected in 2001.
15-64 years: 62.61% (male 1,038,785; female 1,064,891)
65 years and over: 13% (male 180,130; female 256,762) (2001 est.)
Sex
ratio: at birth:
1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female
total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2001 est.)
Ethnic groups: white 88%, mestizo 8%, black 4%, Amerindian, practically
nonexistent
Religions:
Roman Catholic 66% (less than one-half of the adult population attends
church regularly), Protestant 2%, Jewish 1%, nonprofessing or other 31%
Languages:
Spanish, Portunol, or Brazilero (Portuguese-Spanish mix on the Brazilian
frontier)
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 97.3%
male: 96.9%
female: 97.7% (1995 est.)
The pint-sized giant is back
The "Celeste" have only qualified for two of the last six FIFA World Cups (1986 and 1990), a sad statistic in this football-crazy nation. But they are now back among the big boys and coach Victor Pua can look forward to pitting stars like Alvaro Recoba, Dario Silva, Paolo Montero and Fabian Carini against the world's best.
Uruguay's weakness could be their lack of experience in this kind of competition. Though most of the squad play in Europe none of them have ever played in the final stages of a FIFA World Cup before. Their star and playmaker Recoba was only 14 when Uruguay last played in the finals in Italy 90.
When the draw was made on 1 December, Uruguay were handed a difficult task in Group A. Their first match will be against Denmark, who humiliated them in 1986 with a 6-1 thrashing inspired by Michael Laudrup. But if Uruguay's first match is tough, what can we say about the next one? Reigning champions France, who are strongly fancied to repeat their 1998 triumph, await the Uruguayans on 6 June. In contrast, their final match against Senegal would, on paper at least, appear to be an easier task.
Seven of the ten teams involved in the South American qualifying
group changed coaches during the tournament and Uruguay were no exception.
Former Argentine captain Daniel Passarella started in charge but he surprisingly
resigned after ten matches. Victor Pua took over and he made very few changes
in the squad and in the style of play.
Inconsistency continued to be a problem, but they held on to the fifth
place they had reached under Passarella. Having lost 1-0 to Australia in
the first leg of the play off, Uruguay finally booked their passage to
Asia with a resounding 3-0 home victory. Once again it was their character
and commitment rather than their stylish football that saw them through.
But with some very talented players and a fervent desire to prove themselves,
they may well surprise a few people in Korea/Japan
Achievements:
-- FIFA World Cup™ winners 1930, 1950
-- Olympic champions 1924, 1928
-- Copa America winners 1916, 1917, 1920, 1923, 1924, 1926, 1935, 1942,
1956, 1959, 1967, 1983, 1987, 1995
Visit the official website of the 2002 World Cup
Star Player: Paolo Montero