The Military Dictatorship in Brazil –
1964 to 1985
The Military Dictatorship in Brazil was an authoritarian regime that began with the military coup on
March 31, 1964, with the deposition of President João Goulart.
The military regime lasted 21 years (1964-1985), established press censorship, restricted political rights,
and persecuted regime opponents.
The Coup of March 31, 1964
The military coup of March 31, 1964 aimed to prevent the advance of popular organizations of João
Goulart's government, accused of being communist.
The starting point was the resignation of President Jânio Quadros on August 25, 1961. The National
Congress temporarily sworn in the President of the Chamber, Deputy Ranieri Mazzilli, as the Vice
President was on a trip to China.
While João Goulart was starting his journey back, the military ministers issued a veto to Jango's
assumption of office, as they argued that he supported leftist ideas.
The impeachment violated the Constitution and was not accepted by various segments of the nation,
which began to mobilize. Protests and strikes have spread across the country.
Faced with the threat of civil war, a proposal for Constitutional Amendment No. 4 was made in Congress,
composed mostly of opposition to Jango, establishing the parliamentary regime in Brazil.
In this way, Goulart would be president, but with limited powers. Jango accepted the reduction of his
powers, hoping to regain them at an opportune moment.
The agreement with Jango also stipulated that in 1965, at the end of his term, there would be a
plebiscite to consult the population on whether or not to return to presidentialism.
The Congress voted in favor of the measure and Goulart took office on September 7, 1961. To occupy the
position of prime minister, Deputy Tancredo Neves was appointed.
Parliamentarism lasted until January 1963. This year, João Goulart managed to bring forward the
plebiscite. The Brazilian population decided thus for the end of parliamentarism and the return to
presidentialism.
Government of João Goulart
In 1964, now with more power in his hands, Jango decides to launch the "Base Reforms" in order to
change the country. Thus, the president announced:
• Land expropriations;
• nationalization of oil refineries
• electoral reform guaranteeing the vote for illiterates
• university reform, among others.
Inflation reached 73.5% in 1963. The president demanded a new constitution that would end the
"archaic structures" of Brazilian society.
Jango was supported by university students who acted through their organizations, and one of the main
ones was the National Union of Students. (UNE).
Likewise, communists of various tendencies were engaged in intense work of organization and popular
mobilization, despite operating illegally.
Goulart was viewed with dissatisfaction by both sides: while liberals and conservatives criticized him for
claiming to be a president who could bring communism to Brazil, the left saw the important actions to
tackle the country's social inequality, such as agrarian reform, happening at a very slow pace.
In the face of the growing unrest, the government's opponents hastened the execution of the coup.
On March 31, 1964, President João Goulart was overthrown by the military, and Jango sought refuge in
Uruguay. Those who tried to resist the coup suffered harsh repression.
To fill the power vacuum, a military junta took control of the country. On April 9, Institutional Act No. 1
was decreed, granting the Congress the power to elect the new president.
The chosen one was General Humberto de Alencar Castelo Branco, who had been the chief of the Army
General Staff. This was just the beginning of military interference in the political management of Brazilian
society.
The concentration of power
After the 1964 coup, the political model established aimed to strengthen the executive power. Seventeen
institutional acts were imposed on Brazilian society.
With Institutional Act No. 2, the old political parties were closed and bipartisanship was adopted. Thus,
the following emerged:
• the National Renewal Alliance (Arena), which supported the government;
• the Brazilian Democratic Movement (MDB), representing the opponents, but surrounded by narrow
limits of action.
The government, through the creation of the National Information Service (SNI), set up a strong control
system that made resistance to the regime difficult. Led by General Golbery do Couto e Silva, this body
investigated all those suspected of conspiring against the regime, from businessmen to students.
In economic terms, the military tried to restore the country's credibility with foreign capital. Thus, the
following measures were taken:
• wage and labor rights restraint;
• increase in public service tariffs;
• credit restriction
• government spending cuts
• decrease in inflation, which was around 90% per year.
Among the military, however, there was disagreement. The more radical group, known as the "hardline,"
pressured Castelo Branco's group to not tolerate any signs of dissatisfaction and to keep civilians away
from the core of political decision-making.
The internal disagreements among the military influenced the choice of the new general president.
On March 15, 1967, General Arthur da Costa e Silva, associated with the radicals, took power. The new
Constitution of 1967 had already been approved by the National Congress.
The institutional acts promulgated during the governments of Generals Castelo Branco (1964-1967) and
Arthur da Costa e Silva (1967-1969), in practice, ended the rule of law and the democratic institutions of
the country.
Despite all the repression, the new president faced difficulties. The Broad Front was formed to oppose
the government, with journalist Carlos Lacerda and former president Juscelino Kubitschek as its leaders.
The resistance of society
Society reacted to the government's arbitrary actions. In the world of arts, in 1965, the play "Liberdade,
Liberdade," by Millôr Fernandes and Flávio Rangel, was staged, which criticized the military government.
The Brazilian music festivals were important venues for the composers' performances, who wrote
protest songs.
The Catholic Church was divided: the more traditional groups supported the government, while the
more progressive ones criticized the National Security Doctrine.
The workers' strikes demanded an end to wage repression and wanted freedom to structure their
unions. The students were holding marches denouncing the lack of political freedom.
With the increase in repression and the difficulty of mobilizing the population, some leftist leaders
organized armed groups to fight against the dictatorship. Among the various leftist organizations were
the National Liberation Action (ALN) and the October 8 Revolutionary Movement. (MR-8).
The strong atmosphere of tension was exacerbated by the speech of Deputy Márcio Moreira Alves, who
urged the people not to attend the September 7th celebrations as a form of protest against the Regime.
To contain the opposition protests, General Costa e Silva decreed Institutional Act No. 5 in December
1968. This suspended the activities of Congress and authorized the persecution of opponents.
In August 1969, President Costa e Silva suffered a stroke, and the one who took over was Vice President
Pedro Aleixo, a civil politician from Minas Gerais.
In October 1969, 240 general officers nominated General Emílio Garrastazu Médici (1969-1974), former
head of the National Intelligence Service, for president. (SNI). In January 1970, a decree-law made prior
censorship of the press stricter.
To fight against leftist groups, the Army created the Information Operations Detachment - Internal
Defense Operations Center. (DOI-CODI).
The activities of the repressive bodies dismantled the urban and rural guerrilla organizations, which led
to the deaths of dozens of leftist militants.
Economic growth
With a strong repressive scheme in place, Médici governed, trying to convey the image that the country
had found the path to economic development. Combined with the triump in the 1970 World Cup, this
ended up creating a climate of euphoria in the country.
The loss of political freedoms was compensated by increasing modernization. The oil, wheat, and
fertilizers, which Brazil imported in large quantities, were cheap. They were incorporated into the export
agenda, soybeans, minerals, and fruits.
The sector that grew the most was durable goods, household appliances, cars, trucks, and buses. The
construction industry has grown.
More than 1 million new homes, financed by the National Housing Bank (BNH), were built in ten years of
military government. They spoke of the "Brazilian miracle" or the "economic miracle."
In 1973, the "miracle" suffered its first major blow, as the international crisis abruptly raised the price of
oil, making exports more expensive.
The increase in interest rates in the international financial system has raised the interest on Brazil's
external debt. This forced the government to take new loans, further increasing the debt.
Moreover, this economic growth did not reach the poorest layers of society, leading to an increase in
social inequalities in the country.
The Redemocratization
On March 15, 1974, Médici was succeeded in the Presidency by General Ernesto Geisel. (1974-1979). He
took office promising to resume economic growth and restore democracy.
Even slow and controlled, the political opening was beginning, which allowed the growth of the
oppositions.
The Geisel government increased the state's participation in the economy. Several infrastructure projects
continued, including the Steel Railway in Minas Gerais, the construction of the Tucuruí hydroelectric
plant on the Tocantins River, and the Carajás Project.
Diversified Brazil's diplomatic and commercial relations, seeking to attract new investments.
In the 1974 elections, the opposition, which until then had been united in the MDB, achieved a broad
victory. In response, Geisel sought to contain this advance by limiting electoral propaganda during the
1976 elections through the creation of the Falcão Law, which restricted the candidates' screen time in
political advertisements.
The following year, in the face of the MDB's refusal to approve the constitutional reform, Congress was
closed and the president's term was extended to six years.
The opposition began to pressure the government, along with civil society. With the growing pressure,
the already reopened Congress approved the repeal of AI-5 in 1979. The Congress could no longer be
closed, nor could the political rights of citizens be revoked.
Geisel chose General João Baptista Figueiredo as his successor, elected indirectly. Figueiredo took office
on March 15, 1979, with the commitment to deepen the process of political opening.
However, the economic crisis continued, with external debt reaching over 100 billion dollars and inflation
hitting 200% per year.
Political reforms continued to be carried out, but the hardliners resorted to terrorism as occurred at
Riocentro in 1981. With the end of the bipartisanship, several parties emerged, including the Social
Democratic Party (PDS) and the Workers' Party. (PT). The Unified Workers' Central was founded. (CUT).
The spaces for the struggle to end the military presence in the central power have been multiplying.
Campaign for direct elections
In the last months of 1983, a nationwide campaign for direct presidential elections, "Diretas Já," began,
uniting various political leaders such as Fernando Henrique Cardoso, Lula, Ulysses Guimarães, among
others.
The movement reached its peak in 1984, when the Dante de Oliveira Amendment was voted on, which
aimed to restore direct presidential elections.
On April 25, the amendment, despite receiving the majority of votes, did not achieve the necessary 2/3
for its approval, frustrating the population, who had taken to the streets in favor of direct voting.
Shortly thereafter, a large part of the opposition forces decided to participate in the indirect presidential
elections. The PMDB nominated Tancredo Neves for president and José Sarney for vice president.
The Electoral College convened, and the majority of the votes went to Tancredo Neves, who defeated
Paulo Maluf, the PDS candidate. Thus, the days of the military dictatorship came to an end.
Presidents during the Military Dictatorship in Brazil
Castle White
Term 04/15/1964 to 03/15/1967
Internal Policy: Creation of the National Information Service.
Economy: Creation of the Cruzeiro and the National Housing Bank (BNH)
Foreign policy: Break in diplomatic relations with Cuba and rapprochement with the USA.
Arthur da Costa e Silva
Mandate 3/15/1967 to 8/31/1969
Domestic Politics: The 1967 Constitution came into effect and the AI-5 was enacted. Creation of Embraer.
Economy Expansion of credit and heavy industrialization.
Foreign Policy: Closer ties with African and Asian countries in international forums. Visit of Queen
Elizabeth II to Brazil.
Provisional Governing Board
Aurélio de Lira Tavares, Minister of the Army;
Augusto Rademaker, Minister of the Navy;
Márcio de Souza e Melo, Minister of Aeronautics.
Term: 08/31/1969 to 10/30/1969
Internal Politics: The Governing Junta only assumed the presidency due to the death of Costa e Silva.
Thus, they only prepared for the election when Médici would be chosen as president.
Emílio Garrastazu Médici
Mandate 10/30/1969 to 3/15/1974
Internal Politics: Defeated the Araguaia Guerrilla and created the Department of Information Operations
Economy: Creation of Embrapa and the beginning of the construction of major projects such as the
Itaipu Hydroelectric Plant
Foreign Policy Agreement with Paraguay and Argentina for the construction of the plant. Visit to the
United States.
Ernesto Geisel
Term 03/15/1974 to 03/15/1979
Domestic Policy: Creation of the state of Mato Grosso do Sul, merger of the state of Guanabara with Rio
de Janeiro, and end of AI-5.
Economy: Increase in external debt and encouragement of foreign capital.
Foreign Policy: Recognition of Angola's independence, agreements on nuclear energy with West
Germany, and the resumption of diplomatic relations with China.
João Baptista Figueiredo
Term 03/15/1979 to 03/15/1985
Domestic Policy: Creation of the state of Rondônia and Political Reopening with the Amnesty Law
Economy: Modernization of agriculture, rising inflation, and IMF loan.
Foreign Policy Visit to the United States.
