Complete Thesis_double spaced abstract.pdf

Democracy in Guatemala: Juan Jose Arévalo 1945
The small middle class in Guatemala was pushing for a more inclusive government, a
more democratic or “participatory system” where citizens would be able to vote and influence
state policies (REMHI, 1999, 184). In 1945 Juan Jose Arévalo was elected president of
Guatemala and a new constitution was created and disseminated throughout Guatemala
(Skidmore and Smith, 2005, 348). There were many challenges facing the new democracy in
Guatemala; military, social, and economic factors weighed heavily on the Arévalo presidency.
The military overtly challenged the presidency, with “no less than twenty-seven coups d’état
against his civilian government”; the social and economic ills facing the country presented less
clear and contained challenges (Perera, 1995, 282). One of the chief reforms of the new
presidency was the enacting of new labor codes; abolishing the vagrancy laws, allowing for
collective bargaining, the right to strike, and the formation of unions. Furthermore, President
Arévalo began the movement toward land reform, established a pension system, allowed for
freedom of expression, and instituted literacy programs targeting the entire population (Burnett,
1989, 207, 211). While the Arévalo presidency began with broad support from the middle
classes, business owners and the more junior officers in the military, these groups grew
increasingly disenchanted with the Arévalo administration. By the end of his term he was forced
to rely increasingly on the support of the leftist factions of the country and his administration
(Burnett, 1989, 213).
Historical Summary
By the beginning of the 1950s Guatemala had a clear history of rule by a small oligarchy.
The ruling oligarchy had been composed of hereditary Mayan rulers and religious leaders,
Spanish colonizers, and most recently criollo elite families and the military. Similar to the ruling
structure, the economic structures in Guatemala are a vestige of particular types of Mayan
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