Ángel Borlenghi
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Ángel Borlenghi (February 1, 1904 – August 6, 1962) was an
Argentine Argentines, Argentinians or Argentineans are people from Argentina. This connection may be residential, legal, historical, or cultural. For most Argentines, several (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their ...
labour leader and politician closely associated with the
Peronist Peronism, also known as justicialism, is an Argentine ideology and movement based on the ideas, doctrine and legacy of Juan Perón (1895–1974). It has been an influential movement in 20th- and 21st-century Argentine politics. Since 1946, Pe ...
movement.


Life and times


Early life and the labor movement

Ángel Gabriel Borlenghi was born in
Buenos Aires Buenos Aires, controlled by the government of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Argentina. It is located on the southwest of the Río de la Plata. Buenos Aires is classified as an Alpha− glob ...
to Italian immigrants, in 1904. Becoming a retail clerk by profession, Borlenghi's
socialist Socialism is an economic ideology, economic and political philosophy encompassing diverse Economic system, economic and social systems characterised by social ownership of the means of production, as opposed to private ownership. It describes ...
ideology soon led him to join the Commercial Employees' Federation (FEC). His position in the union rose after his fellow socialists advanced the 1926 formation of the Argentine Workers' Confederation (COA), and Borlenghi was named Secretary General of the FEC when the COA fused with another, leftist union (the Union of Argentine Syndicates, or USA) to become the CGT (still the nation's preeminent labor union), in 1930.Historia del Movimiento Obrero
/ref> Borlengh was named director of the Interunion Committee, and thus given the twin responsibilities of coordinating policy among the myriad unions in the CGT, as well as resolving conflict as it appeared. The CGT presented its first platform in 1931, drafting a program calling for a guaranteed freedom to organize, greater pay and benefits, and a formal say in public policy, among other reforms. Sparing use of
strike action Strike action, also called labor strike, labour strike in British English, or simply strike, is a work stoppage caused by the mass refusal of employees to Working class, work. A strike usually takes place in response to employee grievances. Str ...
s and intense lobbying, particularly on Borlenghi's part as the Interunion Committee head, resulted in
Congressional A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ad ...
passage of the landmark Law 11729 (formalizing
labor contract An employment contract or contract of employment is a kind of contract used in labour law to attribute rights and responsibilities between parties to a bargain. The contract is between an "employee" and an "employer". It has arisen out of the old m ...
s in the service sector), in 1936. This success arrived during a period of growing divisions in the CGT, however. As head of the largest sector within the CGT at the time, Borlenghi helped separate the more socialist sectors from the rest in 1936, leaving them to reconstitute the smaller USA union. Further contention led to Borlenghi's joining municipal workers' leader Francisco Pérez Leirós into a "CGT Number 2," in 1942. The following June, however, conservative President Ramón Castillo was deposed in a nationalist
coup d'état A coup d'état (; ; ), or simply a coup , is typically an illegal and overt attempt by a military organization or other government elites to unseat an incumbent leadership. A self-coup is said to take place when a leader, having come to powe ...
. The removal of the
mercantilist Mercantilism is a nationalist economic policy that is designed to maximize the exports and minimize the imports of an economy. It seeks to maximize the accumulation of resources within the country and use those resources for one-sided trade. ...
and politically fraudulent Castillo regime elicited initial, positive reactions from both CGTs, and Borlenghi engaged in policy discussions with Alberto Gilbert, the new Interior Minister (a position overseeing domestic security policy, at the time). Gilbert, however, promptly allied the new regime with the less combative "CGT Number 1," ordering the dissolution of the CGT-2.


A new alliance

The decision did not permanently divide the labor movement, however, because one of the coup's leaders, Lt. Col. Domingo Mercante, was tied through family connections to the railway workers' union. Its leader, José Domenech, was also the Secretary General of the CGT-1. The Railway Union's chief counsel, Juan Atilio Bramuglia, seized this opening to create a close alliance with the government, and was joined in these talks by Borlenghi and Pérez Leirós (whose banned CGT-2 was larger). The negotiations were soon joined by the Secretary of Labor and personal friend of Mercante's: Col.
Juan Perón Juan Domingo Perón (, , ; 8 October 1895 – 1 July 1974) was an Argentine military officer and Statesman (politician), statesman who served as the History of Argentina (1946-1955), 29th president of Argentina from 1946 to Revolución Libertad ...
.Potash, Robert. ''The Army and Politics in Argentina.'' Stanford University Press, 1996. Union representatives found in Perón a sympathetic and charismatic voice through whom they could be a strong influence in government policy. Only around 10 percent of Argentina's labor force was unionized at the time, and many union leaders saw a unique opportunity in Perón, who obtained their support for his request to the president that the Labor Secretariat by made into a cabinet-level ministry. Others supported the idea of backing Perón in a Labor Party ticket, outright. Borlenghi was initially opposed to such a mutually-binding endorsement, though by 1945, the Labor Minister's record had won him over, as well as much of the now-reunified CGT. Perón rise to prominence fed rivalries within the regime, which had him resign as Vice President and arrested on October 9. Convinced that he had been permanently sidelined, a meeting of 24 union leaders resolved to create their Labor Party, and to proceed with or without Perón. There were two abstentions, however: telecommunications workers' leader Luis Gay and Borlenghi. They joined Perón's mistress, Eva Duarte, in organizing mass demonstrations for his release and by October 17, they had also obtained most other unions' support for the measure. The successful mobilization led to the charter of the Labor Party on October 24 - with Perón as its candidate. Borlenghi, still affiliated to the Socialist Party of Argentina, resigned his membership in it when the party joined an opposition alliance, the Democratic Union.


Interior Minister

Handily elected in February 1946, Perón rewarded Borlenghi's tested support and organizational skill with an appointment as Interior and Justice Ministry. The post would give him purview over the courts, law enforcement and vetting power over most political strategy. He moved quickly to advance the president's agenda by organizing a Labor Party convention for the purpose of re-chartering it as the Peronist Party, in 1947, and ordered the purchase of a majority stake in
Haynes Publishing Haynes Owner's Workshop Manuals (commonly known as Haynes Manuals) is a series of manuals from the British and American publisher Haynes Group Limited. The series focuses primarily on the maintenance and repair of vehicles. The manuals are aim ...
, from which ''El Laborista'', ''Mundo Peronista'' and an array of other magazines were published as government mouthpieces.Page, Joseph A. ''Perón: A Biography.'' New York: Random House, 1983. Through his control of the nation's largest police department, the 25,000-man "Policía Federal," Borlenghi had numerous opposition figures jailed. Some of the most intransigent were taken to a basement in the newly expanded Ramos Mejía Hospital (one of Buenos Aires' largest), where torture became routine. The president's confidence in Borlenghi was buttressed by the creation of the Federal Security Council in 1951, which included transferring the National Gendarmery and the Naval Prefecture (akin to the
Coast Guard A coast guard or coastguard is a Maritime Security Regimes, maritime security organization of a particular country. The term embraces wide range of responsibilities in different countries, from being a heavily armed military force with cust ...
) from
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control. Faced with such measures, some among the opposition began making conciliatory overtures to the powerful Interior Minister; a June 1953 meeting with a delegation from the conservative Democratic Party, for instance, led to the release of former Finance Minister
Federico Pinedo Federico Pinedo (; born 29 December 1955) is an Argentina, Argentine politician, provisional president of the Argentine Senate between 2015 and 2019. He was in charge of the executive branch on 10 December 2015 until the assumption of Mauricio Mac ...
and others in their leadership. Others soon followed, though the Peronists' main opposition, the centrist UCR, refused this approach, leading Borlenghi to publicly blame them for the continuation of the
state of siege ''State of Siege'' () is a 1972 French–Italian–West German political thriller film directed by Costa-Gavras starring Yves Montand and Renato Salvatori. The story is based on an actual incident in 1970, when U.S. official Dan Mitrione was k ...
declared in April. Flush with electoral and economic successes during 1954, Perón began to dispense with his hitherto warm relations with the Catholic Church by confronting "Catholic Action," a youth organization within the church. Borlenghi initially opposed confrontation with the powerful Church, though once the decision had been made, he contributed to the fracas by shuttering ''El Pueblo'', the leading Catholic periodical, in December - an affront followed by the president's December 22 legalization of divorce and prostitution. His lack of enthusiasm for what he saw as a gratuitous fight did not protect him from Catholic scorn, once the die had been cast by Perón. A practicing Catholic himself, Borlenghi's wife, Carla, was
Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...
, encouraging more reactionary Catholics to focus blame on him not only for his role as the nation's chief law enforcement officer; but also for his wife's allegedly hostile influence on him. Ultimately, as Borlenghi had warned, Perón's struggle with his country's chief religious institution destroyed military loyalty for his administration. The June 16, 1955,
bombing of Plaza de Mayo On 16 June 1955, 30 aircraft from the Argentine Navy and Argentine Air Force, Air Force bombed and strafed Plaza de Mayo, the main square of the Argentina, Argentine capital Buenos Aires. The attack targeted the adjacent Casa Rosada, the seat of ...
during a Peronist rally by the
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(killing 364 - including a bus-full of children) brutally illustrated this crisis and on June 29, the president attempted to regain control by lifting the 1953 state of siege and replacing Borlenghi and others. Subsequent shifts in strategy and rhetoric were to no avail: Perón was overthrown three months later.


Later life and legacy

Borlenghi, who was in
Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...
at the time of the coup, had his home ransacked by troops - an incident which destroyed a great volume of documentation pertaining to his role in Peronism. He remained among the less-well understood figures inside the movement, despite being the second-most powerful. Borlenghi never abandoned the idea of Perón's return to power, and in early 1961, he held informal discussions with
Che Guevara Ernesto "Che" Guevara (14th May 1928 – 9 October 1967) was an Argentines, Argentine Communist revolution, Marxist revolutionary, physician, author, Guerrilla warfare, guerrilla leader, diplomat, and Military theory, military theorist. A majo ...
on the possibility of an alliance between
Fidel Castro Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz (13 August 1926 – 25 November 2016) was a Cuban politician and revolutionary who was the leader of Cuba from 1959 to 2008, serving as the prime minister of Cuba from 1959 to 1976 and President of Cuba, president ...
's new regime and the Peronist movement. Borlenghi died suddenly in Italy in 1962, at age 58.''Río Negro Online''
/ref>


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Borlenghi, Angel 1904 births 1962 deaths Politicians from Buenos Aires Argentine people of Italian descent Socialist Party (Argentina) politicians Justicialist Party politicians Members of the General Confederation of Labour (Argentina) Burials at La Chacarita Cemetery Ministers of internal affairs of Argentina