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Mario Abdo Benítez (; born 10 November 1971) is a Paraguayan politician who served as the 51st
president of Paraguay The president of Paraguay (), officially known as the president of the Republic of Paraguay (), is the head of the executive branch of the government of Paraguay, serving as both head of state and head of government according to the Constitu ...
from 2018 to 2023. He was previously a
senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or Legislative chamber, chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the Ancient Rome, ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior ...
and served as president of the Senate of Paraguay from 2015 to 2016.


Early life and education

Abdo Benítez was born in
Asunción Asunción (, ) is the capital and the largest city of Paraguay. The city stands on the eastern bank of the Paraguay River, almost at the confluence of this river with the Pilcomayo River. The Paraguay River and the Bay of Asunción in the north ...
on 10 November 1971 and is the son of Ruth Benítez Perrier and Mario Abdo Benítez Sr. His father's ancestry is Lebanese. His father was a member of the so-called " Cuatrinomio de Oro", four of the politicians who were deemed to be closest to then-President
Alfredo Stroessner Alfredo Stroessner Matiauda (; 3 November 1912 – 16 August 2006) was a Paraguayan politician, army general and Military dictatorship, military dictator who ruled as the 42nd president of Paraguay from 15 August 1954 until his overthrow in 19 ...
, who ruled Paraguay for 35 years. At 16 years old, Abdo Benítez moved to the
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
. He then completed his university studies at Teikyo Post University in
Waterbury Waterbury is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut. Waterbury had a population of 114,403 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 Census. The city is southwest of Hartford, Connecticut, Hartford and northeast of New York City. Waterbury i ...
,
Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...
, obtaining a degree in marketing. Upon completion of his secondary schooling in 1989 he joined the Paraguayan Armed Forces, obtaining the rank of Second Lieutenant of Reserve Aviation and in turn was appointed by the Air Force Command as a
paratrooper A paratrooper or military parachutist is a soldier trained to conduct military operations by parachuting directly into an area of operations, usually as part of a large airborne forces unit. Traditionally paratroopers fight only as light infa ...
.


Early political career

His first steps in politics were in 2005 as a member of the Republican National Reconstruction movement. He was later a member of the Peace and Progress movement and won the Vice Presidency of the Colorado Party in 2005. In June 2015, he was elected president of the
Senate of Paraguay The Chamber of Senators of Paraguay (''Cámara de Senadores''), the upper house of the National Congress, has 45 members, elected for a five-year term by proportional representation. The Paraguayan bicameral legislature, which included the Sena ...
. Abdo Benítez has faced criticism for his relationship with the
military dictatorship A military dictatorship, or a military regime, is a type of dictatorship in which Power (social and political), power is held by one or more military officers. Military dictatorships are led by either a single military dictator, known as a Polit ...
of
Alfredo Stroessner Alfredo Stroessner Matiauda (; 3 November 1912 – 16 August 2006) was a Paraguayan politician, army general and Military dictatorship, military dictator who ruled as the 42nd president of Paraguay from 15 August 1954 until his overthrow in 19 ...
, as his father was Stroessner's private secretary. When Stroessner died in 2006, Abdo Benítez was one of the pallbearers at his funeral in
Brasília Brasília ( ; ) is the capital city, capital of Brazil and Federal District (Brazil), Federal District. Located in the Brazilian highlands in the country's Central-West Region, Brazil, Central-West region, it was founded by President Juscelino ...
, and Abdo Benítez later proposed that the Governing Board of the Colorado Party pay tribute to Stroessner. The fortune Abdo Benítez owns was inherited from his father, who after the fall of the dictatorship was prosecuted for illicit enrichment, but the case was eventually dismissed. Abdo Benítez has stated that while he believes that Stroessner "did a lot for the country", he also clarified that he does not condone the violations of human rights, torture and persecution committed during the regime.


Presidency


Election

In December 2017, Abdo Benítez won the Colorado Party presidential primaries by defeating former Minister of Finance
Santiago Peña Santiago Peña Palacios (; born 16 November 1978) is a Paraguayan politician and economist who is the 52nd and current president of Paraguay since 2023. In addition to his political career, Peña has served on leadership boards for the Central ...
with 564,811 votes (50.93%) to 480,114 (43.29%). In April 2018, Abdo Benítez won the 2018 elections by defeating Efraín Alegre, with 46.46% of the votes to Alegre's 42.73%. At 46 years of age Benítez became, by a mere month's margin to Nicanor Duarte, the youngest President of Paraguay since Alfredo Stroessner, at 41, assumed power in 1954. Abdo Benítez was inaugurated as president on August 15, 2018. His predecessor
Horacio Cartes Horacio Manuel Cartes Jara (; born 5 July 1956) is a Paraguayan politician and businessman who is serving as president of the Colorado Party (Paraguay), Colorado Party since 2023, having previously served as president of Paraguay from 2013 to 2 ...
, with whom he was in conflict, was not present at the ceremony.


Domestic policy

He supported the reform of the judicial system, considered
corrupt Corruption is a form of dishonesty or a criminal offense that is undertaken by a person or an organization that is entrusted in a position of authority to acquire illicit benefits or abuse power for one's gain. Corruption may involve activities ...
. Like his opponent at the elections Alegre, he opposes the legalization of
abortion Abortion is the early termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. Abortions that occur without intervention are known as miscarriages or "spontaneous abortions", and occur in roughly 30–40% of all pregnan ...
and
same-sex marriage Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same legal Legal sex and gender, sex. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 38 countries, with a total population of 1.5 ...
, though he stated to be "open" to a "debate" on abortion. In mid-2019, he faced the possibility of an
impeachment Impeachment is a process by which a legislative body or other legally constituted tribunal initiates charges against a public official for misconduct. It may be understood as a unique process involving both political and legal elements. In Eur ...
procedure for having signed an agreement with Brazilian President
Jair Bolsonaro Jair Messias Bolsonaro (; born 21 March 1955) is a Brazilian politician and former military officer who served as the 38th president of Brazil from 2019 to 2023. He previously served as a member of Brazil's Chamber of Deputies (Brazil), Chamb ...
on the
Itaipu Dam The Itaipu Dam ( ; ; ) is a hydroelectric dam on the Paraná River located on the border between Brazil and Paraguay. It is the third largest hydroelectric dam in the world, and holds the 45th largest reservoir in the world. The name "Itai ...
, which was considered to be clearly unfavourable for Paraguay. He finally had this agreement cancelled, defusing the impeachment process. On economic issues, Abdo Benitez's government continues the policy pursued for a century in favor of large landowners. Abdo Benitez's government designed a tax reform that was approved by Congress in September 2019. In 2019, the Paraguayan economy went into recession. One year after taking office, the government has experienced a high rate of disapproval of its management (69.3% in August 2019). As a result, the phrase "Desastre ko Marito" (a mixture of Guarani and
Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...
roughly meaning "Marito is a disaster") became widespread in use, spawning merchandising. Abdo Benítez has jokingly referenced the phrase on occasion. In June 2022, 81% of those polled rated President Mario Abdo Benitez negatively. On the other hand, some 70% of those polled believe that Paraguay "needs profound changes", 19% think that Paraguay needs stability and 9% that the country needs moderate changes.


Foreign policy

In September 2018, he annulled the decision of his predecessor to transfer the Paraguayan embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, stating that he had not been consulted, and declared that he had taken this decision believing it to "contribute to the intensification of regional and international diplomatic efforts in the goal of achieving an enlarged, just and lasting peace in the Middle East". This decision led to tensions with the Israeli government, which responded by closing its embassy in Paraguay. In January 2019, he broke off diplomatic relations with
Venezuela Venezuela, officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many Federal Dependencies of Venezuela, islands and islets in the Caribbean Sea. It com ...
and recognized Venezuelan opposition leader and
National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the repr ...
President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...
Juan Guaidó Juan Gerardo Antonio Guaidó Márquez (born 28 July 1983) is a Venezuelan politician and opposition figure. He belonged to the social-democratic party Popular Will, and was a federal deputy to the National Assembly representing the state of V ...
as President of the country. He received Guaidó at the presidential palace in Asunción.


Personal life

His first marriage was to Fátima María Díaz, with whom he had two sons. Following their divorce, he married Silvana López Moreira, with whom he has one son.


Honours

Benítez was awarded the Order of Brilliant Jade with Grand Cordon by
President of the Republic of China The president of the Republic of China, also known as the president of Taiwan, is the head of state of the Taiwan, Republic of China (Taiwan), as well as the commander-in-chief of the Republic of China Armed Forces. Republic of China (1912– ...
Tsai Ing-wen Tsai Ing-wen (; pinyin: ''Cài Yīngwén''; born 31 August 1956) is a Taiwanese politician and legal scholar who served as the seventh president of the Republic of China (Taiwan) from 2016 to 2024. A member of the Democratic Progressive Party ...
on 8 October 2018. During the ceremony, Tsai mentioned the role that Benítez's father held in the Stroessner government, which established
bilateral relations Bilateralism is the conduct of political, economic, or cultural relations between two sovereign states. It is in contrast to unilateralism or multilateralism, which is activity by a single state or jointly by multiple states, respectively. When ...
. Also he was awarded the
Order of Merit of the Italian Republic The Order of Merit of the Italian Republic () is the most senior Italian order of merit. It was established in 1951 by the second President of Italy, President of the Italian Republic, Luigi Einaudi. The highest-ranking honour of the Republi ...
with Grand Cordon by the President of the Italian Republic on 19 January 2023.


Foreign

* : ** Grand Cordon of the Order of Brilliant Jade - 2018 * : ** Grand Collar of the
Order of the Condor of the Andes The Order of the Condor of the Andes () is a state decoration of the Plurinational State of Bolivia instituted on 12 April 1925. The Order is awarded for exceptional merit, either civil or military, shown by Bolivians or foreign nationals. The ...
- 2019 * : ** Grand Collar of the Order of Boyaca - 2022https://www.ultimahora.com/mario-abdo-recibe-la-maxima-distincion-del-gobierno-colombia-n2998041.html/amp * : ** Knight Grand Cross with Collar of the
Order of Merit of the Italian Republic The Order of Merit of the Italian Republic () is the most senior Italian order of merit. It was established in 1951 by the second President of Italy, President of the Italian Republic, Luigi Einaudi. The highest-ranking honour of the Republi ...
- 2023


References


External links

* (campaign site)
Biography by CIDOB
(in Spanish) * , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Abdo Benitez, Mario 1971 births Living people Politicians from Asunción Paraguayan people of Lebanese descent Paraguayan Roman Catholics Colorado Party (Paraguay) politicians Presidents of Paraguay Presidents of the Senate of Paraguay 21st-century Paraguayan politicians Post University alumni