Transition Towards Democracy
The last military president, João Figueiredo signed a general amnesty into law and turned Geisel's distensão into a gradual abertura (the "opening" of the political system), saying that his goal was "to make this country a democracy.
The process of transition towards democracy, that culminated in the end of the military regime in 1985 and the adoption of a new, democratic, Constitution in 1988, was, however, troubled.
The hard-liners reacted to the opening with a series of terrorist bombings. An April 1981 bombing incident confirmed direct military involvement in terrorism, but Figueiredo proved too weak to punish the guilty. The incident and the regime's inaction strengthened the public's resolve to end military rule. Moreover, Figueiredo faced other significant problems, such as soaring inflation, declining productivity, and a mounting foreign debt.
Read more about this topic: History Of Brazil Since 1985
Famous quotes containing the words transition and/or democracy:
“There is not any present moment that is unconnected with some future one. The life of every man is a continued chain of incidents, each link of which hangs upon the former. The transition from cause to effect, from event to event, is often carried on by secret steps, which our foresight cannot divine, and our sagacity is unable to trace. Evil may at some future period bring forth good; and good may bring forth evil, both equally unexpected.”
—Joseph Addison (1672–1719)
“It is not enough to merely defend democracy. To defend it may be to lose it; to extend it is to strengthen it. Democracy is not property; it is an idea.”
—Hubert H. Humphrey (1911–1978)