Ex-bishop sworn in as Paraguay’s new leftwing president
AFP
Published: Friday August 15, 2008
An ex-bishop who ended 61 years of one-party conservative rule in Paraguay, Fernando Lugo, was sworn in on Friday as the impoverished South American nation’s president.
Fellow leftwing leaders, including Venezuela’s Hugo Chavez, Brazil’s Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, Argentina’s Cristina Kirchner, Chile’s Michele Bachelet, Bolivia’s Evo Morales and Ecuador’s Rafael Correa, attended the ceremony in Asuncion.
“I swear to obey and to guarantee obedience of the constitution,” said Lugo, wearing sandals and a simple white shirt, as he took over from outgoing president Nicanor Duarte.
Lugo, who in April’s election bested Duarte’s Colorado Party which had held power since 1947, has sworn to combat the poverty that afflicts much of Paraguay’s six-million strong population.
The 57-year-old former priest told media before his investiture that he did not plan to marry during his five-year term.
His sister Mercedes told the Argentine daily Clarin: “I’m virtually convinced that, when Fernando Lugo finishes his term, he will return to religious life.”
