Carlos Saavedra Lamas
Saavedra Lamas Carlos
Introduction to Carlos Saavedra Lamas
Carlos Saavedra Lamas (1878-1959), Argentine statesman best known for his successful efforts to end the Chaco War (1932-1935) between Bolivia and Paraguay. Born in Buenos Aires, Saavedra Lamas earned a law degree from the University of Buenos Aires in 1903. He taught law at the University of La Plata and later at the University of Buenos Aires, where his primary interests were labor reform and international law.
Saavedra Lamas spent most of his career in the Argentine government. He began working for the government in 1906 as the nation’s public credit director. Beginning in 1908, he served two terms as a member of parliament and became minister of justice and education. He then advised Argentina’s parliament and foreign ministry on treaties and foreign policy. In 1932 President Agustín Justo appointed Saavedra Lamas as Argentina’s foreign minister.
Shortly after Saavedra Lamas’s appointment, simmering tensions between nearby Bolivia and Paraguay erupted into the Chaco War. The conflict, which centered on the low-lying border region of Chaco, threatened to undermine the economies of both countries. Although Argentina was not directly involved, Saavedra Lamas set out to end the war. In 1932 he crafted a peace proposal called the Declaration of August 3. Most South American countries agreed to the accord, which called for their refusal to recognize boundaries created through aggression. Soon afterward, he wrote the South American Antiwar Pact. Nations who signed the pact agreed to stop using military force to resolve disputes. In the event that war did break out, the pact called for other countries to impose sanctions (peaceful pressures) on the warring countries, and to help them reach a negotiated settlement. Every country in South America signed the agreement.
While working for peace, Saavedra Lamas became known as a strong supporter of the League of Nations. In 1933 he convinced Argentina to rejoin the League, which it had quit in 1920. He presented the South American Antiwar Pact to the League in 1934, and 11 European nations agreed to abide by its principles.
Despite signing the nonaggression pact, Bolivia and Paraguay continued to fight into 1935. Undeterred, Saavedra Lamas helped establish a mediation panel consisting of the United States and five South American nations. The peace efforts produced a truce in June 1935 that ended the war, which had taken more than 80,000 lives.
Saavedra Lamas’s success in ending the Chaco War won him widespread international acclaim. In recognition of his achievements, the Assembly of the League of Nations elected Saavedra Lamas as its president in 1936. Although a tireless worker for international peace, he did not oppose war in all cases. He supported the right of invaded nations to fight off the aggressors and regain their liberty. Saavedra Lamas retired from government service in 1938. He served as the president of the University of Buenos Aires from 1941 to 1943, and then taught there until 1946.” (1)
Resources
Notes and References
- Information about Carlos Saavedra Lamas in the Encarta Online Encyclopedia
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