BUENOS AIRES, Argentina — Former Argentine President Raul Alfonsin, who was given credit for restoring democracy to his country after years of coups, dictators and “dirty war,” died Tuesday at his home there of lung cancer. He was 82.

A human rights attorney before entering politics, Alfonsin took a courageous stand by criticizing the junta that ruled Argentina from 1976 to 1983. In the so-called dirty war against dissidents, military officers ordered the torture and murder of thousands of victims.

After the junta fell in the wake of Argentina’s defeat in the Falklands War, Alfonsin won the 1983 presidential election with 52 percent of the vote. Standard bearer of the Radical Civic Union Party, he remained in office until 1989.

Alfonsin’s cultured approach, oratorical skills and embrace of democratic values were a marked contrast from the thuggish behavior of the junta. Analysts say he restored some international respectability to a nation that had done much to earn its pariah status.

He won widespread acclaim for putting military officers on trial for alleged dirty war crimes. The high point came in November 1985, when a civil tribunal convicted five high-ranking military officers of repression, including former presidents Jorge Rafael Videla and Roberto Viola.

Some human rights groups estimated the number of dead and disappeared junta victims at 11,000. Alfonsin’s administration survived several coup attempts during his term.

In addition to human rights, Alfonsin was also a strong advocate of Mercosur, the Latin American trade bloc, and backed a law legalizing divorce.