With Peña's Fall, Paraguay Accumulates Two Impeachments Since the End of the Dictatorship
In 2012, Fernando Lugo was removed from the presidency after a massacre that left 11 peasants and six police officers dead.
TL;DR
- President Santiago Peña of Paraguay has been impeached.
- The impeachment is a result of a scandal involving Ueno Bank.
- Peña presented his resignation, but it was rejected by the legislature.
- As a consequence of the impeachment, Peña loses his right to become a senator for life and his parliamentary immunity.
- The impeachment vote was overwhelmingly in favor, with 78 votes in the Chamber and 44 in the Senate.
- This is Paraguay's second presidential impeachment since the end of the dictatorship.
- Fernando Lugo was impeached in 2012 after a massacre that resulted in 11 peasant deaths and six police deaths.
- Lugo, elected in 2008, was known for his support of landless peasants through the Tekojoja movement.
- Lugo considered his impeachment a coup, although he accepted the verdict.
- Vice-president Federico Franco assumed the presidency on the same day as Lugo's impeachment.
- The article notes this impeachment is another blow to the South American right, following Lula's recent electoral victory in Brazil.