In December of 2011, a law was voted on by the Buenos Aires City legislative body for a substantial new commercial and cultural centre to be built in bohemian San Telmo. Heralded as a necessary modernisation of a derelict neighbourhood, the Feria del Sur project is to include a mixture of shops, restaurants, bars, a [...]

In 2002, Marita Verón disappeared. She was 23-years old at the time, and it is strongly suspected that she was abducted by women traffickers, and subsequently forced into prostitution. Her mother, Susana Trimarco, has been instrumental in raising awareness of the case, as well as the issue of trafficking of women. Almost ten years later, [...]

Since the fatal Once train crash on 22 February, which left 51 dead and more than 700 injured, train operator Trains of Buenos Aires (TBA) has come under severe media scrutiny. The company, whose infrastructure has been called “obsolete”, has admitted to serious oversights in its system. At the same time, it has pointed to [...]

Mega-mining has been a hot topic in Argentina in recent months. Between the announcement of a national mining organisation and protests in La Rioja, Catamarca, and Buenos Aires, local media have kept busy writing endless stories about the industry and its relationship with human rights and the environment. The Argentina Independent hit the streets to [...]

The debate over access to over-the-counter medicines has resurfaced in Buenos Aires recently, as mayor Mauricio Macri blocked a law banning the sale of medications in kiosks and places other than pharmacies. The Argentina Independent put soles to pavement, asking people if they felt the need for more control on the sale of medicines and [...]

How do Argentina’s unions affect the average porteño? With CGT leader Hugo Moyano’s relationship with the government under strain, and steady stream of blockades on the streets of the capital, most Argentines have strong opinions about the country’s labour unions in one way or another. The Argentina Independent asked people around Plaza de Mayo what [...]

After the global digital uproar against the controversial US Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and the FBI shutdown of Megaupload and Megavideo, The Argentina Independent hit the street of Buenos Aires to find out what locals think about online piracy and internet freedom. Barbara Isabel Esquivel, 25, geography student, Moreno I download stuff very rarely, [...]

Should older buildings in Buenos Aires be torn down, or should they be preserved for their historical and aesthetic value? As an ongoing construction boom changes the face of Buenos Aires, a new law states that any building built before 1941 in the capital will be protected from demolition, while also establishing that the city [...]

Like most developing countries, Argentina is becoming more of a consumer of electronic waste, and what to do with these products when they end their natural life cycle is a growing burden. The vast majority is currently left in landfills or on rubbish dumps, taking hundreds of years to decompose and releasing heaving metals and [...]

Since the creation of the Security Ministry in December last year, government sources have stated drastic changes and much progress in fighting crime in the country – especially in the region of Buenos Aires. The new ministry has Nilda Garré, former minister of defense, as its head and it is administrated simultaneously by the national [...]