Juan Isidro Jiménez

Juan Isidro Jiménez

Juan Isidro Jiménez Pereyra (* 1846 in Santo Domingo , † 1919 in Santo Domingo) was a Dominican politician and President of the Dominican Republic .

biography

Presidency 1899-1902

Jiménez was a successful businessman who, like Horacio Vásquez, became increasingly politically active as a supporter of Buenaventura Báez ("Baecista") during the dictatorship of Ulises Heureaux , which is why he was temporarily in exile .

After the death of Lilís Heureaux on July 26, 1899 and the brief transitional governments of Juan Wanceslao Figuereo and Vásquez, he became President of the Dominican Republic on November 19, 1899 and held this office until his overthrow by his own Vice-Presidents Vasquez and Ramón Cacéres on November 2 May 1902, after which the “forced connection” established by the common opposition to Heureaux between the supporters of Jiménez (“Jiminista”) and those of Vásquez (“Horacista”) had failed. He also campaigned for a rule based on the constitution introduced by Heureaux in 1896 . During his tenure, he tried to negotiate with European and US lenders to reduce the huge budget deficit. However, this poor financial situation as well as the continuous new indebtedness policy of Heureaux prevented a stabilization of his government and led to governments of Caudillos in the following period. This also led to the US increasingly looking into the situation in the Dominican Republic in support of American companies. In this climate of tense negotiations to restore the country's viability and regain economic sovereignty, internal political tensions between Jiménez and Vásquez increasingly followed, resulting in Jiménez residing in Santo Domingo , while Vásquez took office in Santiago de los Caballeros . After his fall, he went into exile on May 2, 1902 . Later there was a split of his supporters into a group led by him ("Bolos Patas Blancas") and one chaired by Desiderio Arias ("Bolos Patas Prietas").

Presidency 1914 to 1916

On December 5, 1914, he succeeded Ramón Báez as president with his second term, but had to resign on May 7, 1916 under pressure from US President Woodrow Wilson . In the presidential election in October 1914, he received 337 electoral votes, far more than his main rival Vásquez, while the other two candidates, former finance minister Federico Velázquez and Vidal, were knocked out.

At the beginning of his term of office there were not only the strong foreign policy tensions with the USA but also the internal political differences between his followers and the supporters of Desiderio Arias and the group around Velázquez. This situation finally came to a head during the First World War , which led the US government to issue Diplomatic Note No. 14. Through this diplomatic note , the US demanded the following:

• Appointment of a financial expert to oversee tariffs and public spending
• Dissolution of the armed forces
• Establishment of a National Guard under the authority of American officers

Jiménez was a sharp opponent of this note, but could not prevent the emerging revolt of Arias against his government in April 1916 . This tense domestic political crisis eventually led to the US occupation of the country on May 16, 1916, nine days after Jiménez's resignation. Ultimately, after two brief transitional governments from the Council of State Secretaries and from Francisco Henríquez y Carvajal, the United States Army intervened on November 29, 1916 and Rear Admiral Harry Shepard Knapp was appointed as US governor.

Despite his brief tenure, he was one of the leading and most influential politicians in the Dominican Republic alongside Horacio Vásquez between 1899 and his death in 1919.

swell

• Homepage of the Ministry of Culture (National Archives)
• WIKIDOMINICANA
• BIOGRAFÍAS Y VIDAS
• Dominican Republic: RENEWED CONFLICT, 1899-1916

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Ideas y Sandeces Juan Isidro Jimenes, 1914-1916
2. ↑ Ralph Dietl: USA and Central America: the foreign policy of William J. Bryan, 1913-1915 (=  contributions to colonial and overseas history . Volume 67 ). Franz Steiner Verlag, 1996, ISBN 3-515-06914-3 , ISSN  0522-6848 , p. 182 (496 p., Limited preview in Google Book search).
3. ^ Dominican Republic. 1848 to 1986 Presidential Election Results
4. ↑ Edward S. Kaplan: US Imperialism in Latin America: Bryan's Challenges and Contributions, 1900-1920 (=  Contributions in comparative colonial studies . No. 35 ). 1st edition. Greenwood Publishing Group, 1998, ISBN 0-313-30489-0 , ISSN  0163-3813 , pp. 76 (English, 164 p., Limited preview in Google book search).
5. ↑ Schoenrich, Otto: “Santo Domingo. A Country With A Future ”, 1918, p. 83

predecessor	Office	successor
Horacio Vásquez	President of the Dominican Republic 1899–1902	Horacio Vásquez
Ramón Báez	President of the Dominican Republic 1914–1916	Council of State Secretaries