Buenos Aires mayor Mauricio Macri. (Photo: Wikipedia)

The Constitutional Affairs Committee of the Buenos Aires legislature signed a majority opinion on a new bill that will replace the decree on ‘defence of press freedom’, issued last week by Buenos Aires Mayor Mauricio Macri. The initiative was supported by opposition parties Proyecto Sur and Coalición Cívica.

The bill introduces some modifications to the text of the decree, which were proposed by Julio Raffo from Proyecto Sur and Fernando Sánchez of the Coalición Cívica.

Today’s meeting was held in the office of legislator Alejandro García (PRO) where amendments to articles 25 and 26 were negotiated, both referring to the creation of a competent jurisdiction on issues related to press freedom.

The changes were proposed after a Buenos Aires judge partially suspended the decree based on an injunction presented by Nuevo Encuentro legislators Gabriela Cerruti, Delia Bisutti, and Edgardo Form. They argued that the articles that stated that “freedom of press and expression of the media in the City of Buenos Aires can not be restricted, and neither can the right to free access to information of the people of the City through indirect routes, the imposition of tariffs, taxes, regulation or recurring charges for the production or importing of print paper, equipment, supplies, and machines used for the distribution of expression, information, opinions or ideas through any medium or form” were unconstitutional, as the city government cannot legislate on tax-related matters

The bill will be debated next Thursday, when it is expected that it could be passed.

The repressive behaviour of police has once again been condemned following violent clashes between protestors and the city’s Metropolitan police force at Borda hospital on 26th April. In the most recent chapter of ‘unnecessary’ police brutality, over 50 people were injured when rubber bullets and tear gas were fired in an attempt to suppress those campaigning against the demolition of a rehabilitation workshop, Protected Workshop number 19. The events reminded many of those that unfolded at Parque Indoamericano in December 2010, which left three people dead, resulting in the public condemnation of Mauricio Macri and his ministers.

The Metropolitan Police force may be young, having only been created in 2008, but since it began operations in 2010 a number of incidents have married its reputation and many believe it has much to answer for given its aggressive handling of evictions and protests.

Borda Bedlam

Patricio Tejedor, a journalist working for La Tribu radio station, was injured during the protests and was shocked by the attitude and uncompromising actions of the Metropolitan police. “The protesters were standing in a line facing the police who were positioned opposite. They seemed hostile from the onset, before anything had even happened. I was filming the events with my crew and then suddenly and without warning the police started firing into the crowd. They just kept on firing relentlessly. As a journalist I thought I would be safe but I was hit by five rubber bullets no more than ten metres away,” he says. Tejedor required medical treatment after taking the projectiles in the side of his body. “I was dragged away and treated by an ambulance on the scene,” he adds.

Video of the repression in El Borda hospital, filmed by the La Tribu journalists. 

Dr. Luis Herbst, Secretary of the Argentine Psychiatrists’ Association, works at Borda hospital and witnessed the action first hand shortly after arriving on that Friday morning. He was shocked by the aggressive nature of the police, especially as they gave no apparent warning before opening fire. Columns of smoke rising into the sky, from burning car tires, was the first thing Dr. Herbst noticed.

“Something was different that morning,” he says. “I saw the smoke and a police motorcycle blocking the entrance of the hospital. I heard the drums of the protesters, they came face to face with the Metropolitan police and I heard a series of loud bangs. Surprisingly there was no warning before the police started firing rubber bullets into the crowds of protesters made up of doctors, nurses, and patient’s families. Many were wounded, including journalists.” Many of Dr. Herbst’s colleagues and friends were injured but the thing that struck him most was the relentless barrage of bullets that rained down on the protesters. “It all happened so quickly. The police continued firing, it was terrible,” he adds.

Metropolitan Police officers claim to have acted in self-defence after being attacked by protestors at Borda, and Buenos Aires City Deputy Mayor, Maria Eugenia Vidal, ratified this at a press conference shortly after the conflict, defending the eviction. Vidal said that the police acted in the interests of the patients, protecting them after the crowds resisted police orders. Security Minister Guillermo Montengero also backed the operation saying that officers “follow an action protocol to stop crime.” However, he did say the events were to be “audited” and the officer’s performance “evaluated”.

Parque Indoamericano: The First Scandal

The repression at Borda Hospital last month is but one example of the police’s excessive use of force. This year alone, the evictions of protesters at Parque Centenario and Sala Alberdi have raised complaints about the violence with which the Metropolitan police has acted. However, the worst example of recent excesses in the use of force in the city can be found in the Parque Indoamericano incidents in late 2010. In that case, the Federal police was also involved.

Incidents at Parque Indoamericano in 2010 (photo by Kate Sedgwick)

In December 2010, Federal and Metropolitan police attempted to forcibly evacuate 200 settlers from Parque Indoamericano, a large green area in the south of the city, as the result of a court ruling. By the end of the day two people had been killed and dozens more injured. After the police pulled out, local armed mobs began attacking the camp, killing one more. The Federal police insisted only rubber bullets were used and denied any wrongdoing; the Metropolitan force took the same standpoint. Following an investigation, Judge Eliseo Otero cleared the 44 police officers involved, 11 of which were members of the Federal police, of all charges. Judge Maria Cristina Nazar, who ordered the eviction of the settlers, was also cleared. However, a tribunal annulled their dismissal and the investigation remains ongoing following the removal of Otero.

The national government has admitted that during the initial stages of the eviction Federal police acted without political direction, which suggests that they were initially able to act as they pleased, which may or may not have involved the shooting of lead bullets. Then-Cabinet Chief, Aníbal Fernández, said, “The conflict began with the Metropolitan police entering a certain area, and when it turned violent the Federal police interceded without any political instruction.” He also said that the bullets found in the two victims were from a shotgun and could have been fired from “a police, civilian, or home-made” weapon.

It must be noted that not every eviction involving the Metropolitan police can be distinguished by a hailstorm of rubber and lead. Take the eviction that happened in Bajo Flores in May 2011 as an example. Up to 120 squatters were calmly ushered from housing complexes after two hours with the help of social workers and negotiators. There was an element of trouble when a small group of protesters set five houses on fire but the flames were quickly put out. Only one arrest was made. The use of social workers and negotiators seems apt and a more measured approach – protocol followed correctly.

Vague Protocol

The evidence seen thus far would suggest police protocol involves the use of rubber ammunition, tear gas, and extreme force. Certainly those who have come under fire from the Metropolitan police in recent months will testify to the use of severe violence. Even lead bullets, reportedly fired by police, have injured members of the public, including a journalist and photographer who were wounded while reporting on the protest at San Martín Cultural Centre on 13th March.

“I was hit by a lead bullet that perforated my thigh, by a Metropolitan police officer who shot me at the intersection of Corrientes and Paraná,” said the journalist who was reporting for the Alternative Media Network. Initially the authorities denied using lead bullets, although Montenegro later admitted that two people were hit a few blocks away from where the original conflict occurred. The investigation is ongoing.

Montenegro, Vidal, and Chief of Cabinet Horacio Rodríguez Larreta give a press conference after the Borda incidents (photo courtesy of Buenos Aires City Government)

When Montenegro was interviewed live on Radio 10 shortly after events at Borda it became clear that the definition of an ‘action protocol’ was not particularly clear. Despite stating that “protocol was perfectly fulfilled” during the protests, Montenegro was only able to refer to a general protocol document used by police, nothing that was specific to protests and demonstrations.

He continually referred to the protocol relevant to cases of hazardous materials, explosion, fire, and building collapse yet nothing aimed at protest situations. “It is a general protocol but there is no criteria for action in the event of demonstrations,” Diego Fleitas, a consultant specialising in security issues, told Chequeado.com. Fleitas also said that as the general protocol was only a formal document, it was vital that it be supported by the supervision of political and judicial authorities while being carried out.

The Public Safety Act of Buenos Aires (law 2,894), however, outlines a number of measures which should be employed by police on duty. Article 27 states that physical force must only be used as a last resort, and that police personnel “must prioritise preventive and dissuasive tasks and procedures”. The article also explains that police must respect five principles at all times, which include approaching situations in a controlled and measured way. The use of firearms is discussed in article 28 of the same act, which reads, “(firearms) are only legitimate in the case of self-defence or situations of emergency and serious danger.”

City legislator Rafael Gentili, speaking after the Borda incidents, denounced that the actions of the Metropolitan police at the psychiatric hospital not only violated law 2,894, but did not meet the standards set out in the ‘National Protocol on the Use of Security Forces during Public Manifestations’, a protocol that most provinces subscribe to, except for the City of Buenos Aires, Santa Fe, and Córdoba. Such guidelines mention that police must keep a minimum distance of 50m if firing weapons and keep  a reasonable distance from the protestors at all times, must point their guns to the ground -not at people-, must identify themselves, must engage in dialogue and negotiations with the protestors, and cannot arrest journalists, among other prescriptions. Gentili stated that none of these rules were followed, and that the Metropolitan police was “out of control and [acted] outside of the national protocols for security forces.”

Surrounded by Scandal

Controversy has followed the Metropolitan police since its creation in 2008, something that was made possible after then-President Néstor Kirchner and Mayor Aníbal Ibarra agreed to modify article 7 of the ‘Ley Cafiero’, a law that limited the autonomy the City of Buenos Aires was granted under the 1994 constitution in issues such as safety, justice, and transport.

Macri and Montenegro during the official presentation of the Metropolitan police in 2010 (photo courtesy of Buenos Aires City Government)

The force’s track record is fairly poor and many people have not been surprised by the scandal unleashed by their actions at Borda, especially given the other incidents of repression -mentioned earlier- in which they have been involved.

There have been suggestions that the aggressive nature of the police during protests may be related to the fact that a number of ex-Federal police officers have joined the Metropolitan police in recent years, bringing along with them the bad habits that in many cases caused their dismissal from the federal force.

Furthermore, legislator Julio Raffo of Proyecto Sur compiled a report in which he traces the origin of many Metropolitan police officers back to the military, something which is prohibited by law 2,894. He said, “5% (186 members) of the Metropolitan are, or were, part of the military. Of these, 76% (142 members) come from the Navy.” A decree, pushed through by Macri’s government, meant that ex-armed forces personnel were able to join if they occupied managerial positions. However, according to Raffo, 72% of these officers are in “operational positions”, ie., in the lowest ranks. The Metropolitan police has therefore been accused of roping in former soldiers whose military background and training may be incompatible with the principles outlined in the law. “Most of these men trained for war and for exterminating the enemy are now officers in contact with the neighbours in the street. In other words, Macri signed a decree that violates the Public Safety Law and doesn’t even respect his own decree,” said Raffo.

However, much of the police’s behaviour has to do with the directions they follow, rather than with individual conduct. In this sense, the leadership of the Metropolitan police has also been questioned. The first head of the Metropolitan force appointed by Macri was Jorge ‘Fino’ Palacios, who in 2001 was prosecuted for playing a role in the violent repression and murder of protesters, although later acquitted, and who is currently being prosecuted for his alleged involvement in a cover-up operation and for abuse of authority in the AMIA case.

Perhaps the greatest stain on his record though, was his involvement in the wire-tapping scandal that rocked the Metropolitan force. In 2009 Sergio Burstein, family member of an AMIA victim, stated in court that that the police were spying on him. Burstein was one of the leaders of the Jewish community who had campaigned against the promotion of ‘Fino’ Palacios to Chief of Police due to the accusations against him in the AMIA case.

Macri, Montenegro, and Giménez during the latter’s appointment as chief of police (photo courtesy of Mauricio Macri)

The resulting investigation concluded with Palacios, Deputy Police Chief Osvaldo Chamorro, and Ciro James, a Federal police lawyer working for the city’s Ministry of Education, prosecuted not only for allegedly spying on Burstein, but also on different members of the opposition (Macri himself is prosecuted for the latter). The government has vehemently denied the existence of a spy network, and Macri perceived the scandal as an attempt to discredit both the new police force as well as his 2011 bid for the Casa Rosada.

After Palacios was forced to resign, a civilian, Eugenio Burzaco, took charge of the Metropolitan police. However, Burzaco was removed in 2011 and again a former Federal police officer was named chief of the force. Horacio Giménez was forced to retire from the Federal police in 2011, after a purge of the force’s senior officers carried out by national Security Minister Nilda Garré following the Parque Indoamericano incidents.

These well-documented scandals together with the apparent lack of a specific protest and demonstration protocol do little to increase the popularity of the Metropolitan police force. The fact that the force, and its political leaders, refuses to recognise the need for a more measured approach may indicate that the brutal repression of demonstrations that have occurred in recent years looks set to continue.

What do porteños think of their police force and their recent intervention at Borda? Click here to find out.

Criticisms continued over the weekend for the actions of the City of Buenos Aires’ police force, the Metropolitan Police, during Friday’s confrontation at Hospital Borda that left eight people arrested and approximately 50 injured.

Metropolitan Police
(Photo: commons.wikimedia.org)

According to the city’s Security Ministry, the presence of the Metropolitan Police at the psychiatric hospital last week was meant to support and oversee city employees in their advancement of the construction project of a civic centre that allegedly falls close to, but not technically on the grounds of, the hospital.

The legality of the project is itself controversial, but the current outcry instead centres on police intervention in the case and the use of excessive force. Testimonies from witnesses and journalists indicate that shortly after arriving on the scene last Friday, officers began using unnecessary force against protesters opposing the advancement of the construction project, including using batons, tear gas, and firing rubber bullets.

In the face of the outcry that has erupted in response to Friday’s incident, Justice and Security Minister Guillermo Montenegro and Buenos Aires Mayor Mauricio Macri are defending the police action.

In an interview with Radio 10, Montenegro stated that in Borda’s case: “The protocol for action was perfectly upheld,” and “no officers carried arms loaded with lead bullets (…) no metal bullets were shot at all.” The security minister also assured that the officers present at the Borda operation would be audited to ensure that no illicit action had occurred.

Police Buenos Aires (Photo from Alejandro Bodart official page facebook)

City legislator Alejandro Bodart, who was injured in last week’s clash, will file an official complaint today against Macri’s supervision of the city police. Bodart’s report will also implicate Montenegro, Urban Development Minister Daniel Chaín, as well as high ranking officers within the Metropolitan Police force itself. Among other charges, Bodart claims that the men in question have abused their positions of power and have failed to comply with public service duties.

Bodart said: “The public employees are going to have to respond; they are going to have to go to the legislature, and those who have never gone before will have to respond to the justice system and (…) will have to have their political responsibilities judged.”

According to Bodart’s website, the legislator is to present these claims at court this afternoon, and he will later introduce a request for impeachment against Macri at the legislature.

Meanwhile, the State Workers’ Association (ATE) has called for a national strike and will march from Av. de Mayo and 9 de Julio to the city government’s offices tomorrow.

The accusations against the police are especially controversial after January’s violent scenes at a protest in Parque Centenario and set within a broader recent history of police violence in Argentina.

Nearly one month after record flooding struck Buenos Aires and La Plata, the water is receding but outrage and confusion remains. The storms that caused at least 59 deaths and damaged countless homes have left many citizens to wonder how the ordinary occurrence of rain escalated to such tragedy.

Although April’s disaster was one of the worst in the last century, floods in Buenos Aires are not infrequent, and people are now demanding investigation into the structural and environmental factors that cause the effects to be so severe.

Severe flooding in La Plata as seen from space (Photo courtesy NASA/GSFC/METI/ERSDAC/JAROS, and U.S./Japan ASTER Science Team.)

The Flood

On the night of 2nd April, more than 400 millimetres of rain fell in the province of Buenos Aires in just two hours, causing severe flooding in at least 21 towns. La Plata, the capital city, was the most affected, with at least 48 of the deaths, including a member of Abuelas de Plaza de Mayo. Here, water reached heights of over 1.5 metres and many people were trapped on rooftops overnight, waiting to be rescued.

In the days following the storm, more than 2,500 residents were evacuated from their homes, and the city remained in chaos with very little drinkable water and 600,000 people without power. After problems with looting arose, 400 extra police officers were placed in the city.

However, citizens feel the response was a failure.

“In our neighbourhood, where 700 families live, the police never came,” Sandro Barrios, from the Los Hornos neighborhood in La Plata told newspaper Perfil.com. Meanwhile, in Buenos Aires, on 17th April, hundreds of residents of Coghlan, Mitre, Villa Urquiza, Saavedra, Parque Chas, Villa Cerini, Nuñez, and Villa Pueyrredón gathered in front of the local governments’ headquarters to protest.

“We are tired of living in fear. Every time the clouds come, we expect the worst,” said one protestor. “[The government] knows where we are and we want answers.”

Citizens, experts, and government officials are all working to determine contributing factors to what some call a “constructed flood”, and attempting to move forward as the water recedes.

Rushing water in the streets of Buenos Aires (Photo: Beatrice Murch)

A City Made for Mishap

The metropolitan area of Buenos Aires, as well as the city of La Plata, are built on part of a large natural region called the ‘Pampa’ lowlands, with a climate distinct from other parts of Argentina. The temperature, atmospheric pressure, humidity and wind speed, and amount of precipitation are all specific to this region, and experts say that urbanisation has exacerbated the already intense climate, which experiences higher levels of humidity, rain, and flooding.

As economist Antonio Brailovsky explains in his book ‘Buenos Aires, ciudad inundable’ (‘Buenos Aires, a floodable City’), the Buenos Aires city faces unique climate challenges, as it has become what is called an “urban heat island”.

“Because of the materials the city is made of, it is capable of conducting heat three times faster than outside the city,” he says. “The cement absorbs and reflects heat much more efficiently than in natural land.”

This condition is worsened when smog keeps the air from escaping through the atmosphere above the city, increasing the heat and humidity. Water particles easily stick to the solid microparticles in the polluted air, causing levels of precipitation to be 10% higher in Buenos Aires than in the countryside.

“Without a doubt, this tendency to produce more precipitation is clearly associated with human-made modifications to the urban atmosphere,” Brailovsky says.

Many believe environmental disasters that are aggravated by urban development will worsen with global warming. Buenos Aires Mayor Mauricio Macri cited this hypothesis in his response to the flooding, telling channel TN: “What is happening now is the product of climate change. Now more than ever we have to commit to a green agenda with a view to reducing [greenhouse] gas emissions.”

2007 Nobel Peace Prize winner Osvaldo Canziani, who is on the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, told publication La Prensa that recent studies support this theory.

“The urban heat island has changed the environment and can influence rain in the area. The city is filled with cars, most of the new buildings function without gas, and air conditioning is used more and more,” he said. “All of this uses electric energy and the combustion increases temperature, condensation, and causes more intense rains.”

“Buenos Aires is adopting qualities of a tropical city,” he added.

Canziani says another contributing factor to flooding is the reduction of the number of green spaces that naturally absorb the rain.

“Sixty years ago the topography of Buenos Aires was characterised by cobblestone streets and houses with gardens. When it rained, the ground absorbed nearly 40% of the water. But the construction of buildings makes the ground impermeable” he says. “Water runs off the roads leading to the sidewalk and into the street,” he says, adding that poor construction “compounds the situation”.

Brailovsky told La Prensa that the floods were “a slowly constructed tragedy.”

“We cannot point to a specific politician for what happened, but to decades of corruption where politicians knew certain zones were susceptible to flooding, but still permitted houses and buildings to be built there,” he said.

Flooding in the neighborhood of Belgrano during a severe storm. (Photo: Beatrice Murch)

He referenced neighbourhoods like Villa Crespo, which is built close to waterway Arroyo Maldonado, and floods year after year. He said that to avoid these problems, many countries have developed rules against construction in flooding-susceptible areas. For example, France prohibits construction in areas with more than 75% chance of flooding.

Brailovsky said Buenos Aires, whether through poor planning or government corruption, was unable to keep up with the enormous population growth of the early 20th century, and is unprepared for flooding, despite its frequency.

“The government needs to face this problem from a very basic level, like by changing the urban planning code, marking the zones of risk and from here, factoring in factors like climate change,” he said. “It’s crucial that the people outraged by the floods turn that anger into an effort to work together and call officials’ attention urban policies. It is not too late.”

Political Implications

Following the floods, politicians quickly scrambled to point fingers at one another, and with 98% of the population reportedly saying the government, not nature, was responsible for the extent of the flooding, there was plenty of blame to go around.

Mayor Macri implied that President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner’s administration was to blame, citing the halting of a US$120m World Bank loan that would have been used to channel one of three underground rivers in the capital. Federal planning minister Julio de Vido accused Macri of not sufficiently preparing the city for the storm, which was forecast by the national weather service 48 hours in advance.

Leandro Bullor, an analyst at the University of Buenos Aires, told Christian Science Monitor “the city government’s bad management is a grave problem.” According to reports, the city government had US$45 million budgeted towards flood prevention works last year, but only spent 5% of that. In 2013, that budget was cut even more, from US$45 million to US$5 million.

Macri was criticised for being in Brazil on holidays when the storm struck and for taking several days to return to the water-damaged city of Buenos Aires. La Plata mayor Pablo Bruera, who was also in Brazil at the time, angered citizens by tweeting that he was “checking on evacuation centres” in La Plata when in reality, he had not yet returned from vacation.

When officials came to survey the damage -including Buenos Aires governor Daniel Scioli, social development minister Alicia Kirchner, president Fernández, Macri, and Bruera – they were booed and ushered away. “Go away” and “You came too late!” the crowd yelled.

Many politicians are now hurrying to appease constituents with talks of reform, but it is unclear if this is a legitimate promise.

Looking Forward

Volunteers at Universidad Nacional de La Plata work to make alcohol gel to help keep people clean (Photo: Patricio Lorente)

While politicians bicker over what is to be done, plenty of volunteer citizen groups are working hard to get victims back to a semblance of normal daily life.

In both La Plata and Buenos Aires, people are struggling to recuperate the estimated 55,716 homes affected by the flood. More than 22,500 tons of trash was collected, and people in the area say that a large quantity of trash remains in the streets. Abandoned vehicles rest throughout the city, unclaimed. As a precautionary measure, 60,000 people were given anti-flu and other vaccines following the floods. The government is offering subsidies for items lost in the disaster, but it isn’t enough. In one of the more touching events following the disaster, 20 pets lost in the flood were reunited with their owners last week.

Citizens are on the way back to their standard daily routines, but will Argentina ever find a permanent fix to its flooding problem?

Although it seems some government entities are stepping up to change the system that caused this tragedy, angry citizens remain unconvinced reforms will stick. As Martín Lousteau, a former economy minister, said in La Nación: “With every new tragedy, we forget about the last one.”

In the recent anti-government protests, the floods were a hot topic, with many signs reading “Corruption kills!” towering over the crowds. Scioli has asked that municipalities revise their urban planning codes, and various government entities under investigation to find who is ultimately responsible for the effects of the April floods. With inevitably more rain to come in the next few months, Argentines are skeptical, but hopeful, for change.

What do porteños think about the way the flooding was handled? Click here to find out.

Cacerolazo in September 2012 at Plaza de Mayo (Photo:Beatrice Murch)

Thousands of anti-government protesters are taking to the streets of Buenos Aires today to rally against the government of Cristina Fernández de Kirchner as part of the 18A movement.

On Thursday evening, there will be a large gathering at the Obelisk in Buenos Aires on Av. 9 de Julio. Protests are also expected at the intersections of Avs. Santa Fe and Callao, Avs. Corrientes and Pueyrredón and at Plaza de Mayo.

The protests are expected to be peaceful and there are no known plans for an official pro-government counter-protest.

Senator Aníbal Fernández stood up for the protesters on the radio show La Red, saying that not everyone who protests is a golpista, meaning one that is attempting to overthrow the government.

“I have seen in other protests some golpistas saying nonsense, but these protestors are not all golpistas,” Fernández said. He referred to the protests as an “exercise of freedom”.

Many of the president’s opponents are angered by her current push for judicial reform.

City mayor Mauricio Macri has been calling on his supporters to get involved with the 18A protest.

“We want an independent justice (system) that does not have impunity, that respects and listens, that lowers the level of intolerance and aggression,” Macri tweeted.

Despite supporting the protest, Macri said he will not attend, because he has “always felt that it is a self-summoned march”.

Los Incas Subte station (Photo: Beatrice Murch)

A Buenos Aires court ratified its injunction against the subte fare hikes that Mayor Mauricio Macri announced at the beginning of March, formally blocking the increase.

Macri’s administration had announced that from 15th March, subte fares would increase from the current price of $2.50 per ticket to $3.50 per ticket. A city court stepped in on 14th March and prevented the increase after an appeal filed by Proyecto Sur and MST legislator Alejandro Bodart.

Yesterday Judge Pablo Mantaras ratified that temporary injunction, preventing the fare increase until the city government can justify why it is “fair and reasonable” and implement a “social fare” to keep the service accessible to its most vulnerable users.

The deputy head of Buenos Aires government, María Eugenia Vidal, defended the fare hikes in an interview with TN this morning, saying the money is necessary for maintenance of the lines.

“The national government, ever since we took charge of the subte on 1st January, took all the subsidies and left us with a subte that’s in disarray,” she said.

She warned that the city government will have to make changes to get the money from elsewhere.

“It will be the people of Buenos Aires and neighbours of the city who have to pay,” she said. “We are evaluating which parts of the budget to rearrange to make up for the money that was going to come from the tariff.”

She implied the injunction was a political move, saying “I believe this is a ruling that is looking to please the commuters, but it’s going to cost residents more than a million pesos a day to not increase this fare. I would hope the judge would do what’s right, not what’s popular.”

The Buenos Aires government will be appealing the ruling, Vidal added.

Los Incas Subte (Photo by Beatrice Murch)

A Buenos Aires court has put a stop to the subte price hikes that would have increased ticket prices from $2.50 to $3.50 tomorrow.

Judge Pablo Mantaras ordered the Buenos Aires government to suspend the new law until the injunction is lifted. The 40% fare increase agreed by City Mayor Mauricio Macri’s administration was originally due to come into effect on Friday, and was postponed after an appeal filed by Proyecto Sur and MST legislator Alejandro Bodart.

“The increase in the subte prices is a severe financial blow to workers who take public transport,” the secretary of transportation, Alejandro Ramos, said in an official press release. He believes that more than 25% of commuters who use the subte would start driving to work if faced with such an increase in fares.

Queues of people formed outside the subte stations in Buenos Aires yesterday to buy travel cards in preparation for the price hikes; stations confirmed that they sold around 40 cards per person, totalling $100 each. However, the demand for subte passes was not as high as in January 2012 when fares rose from $1.10 to $2.50, marking an 127% increase.

The 9 de Julio works. (Photo: Madeleine Decker)

Judge Guillermo Scheibler ruled that construction for the Metrobus project proposed by Mauricio Macri, head of the city government of Buenos Aires, can continue, albeit with some modifications. The project was halted in mid-February because of an injunction filed by former legislator Facundo Di Filippo, among others.

The ruling states that the Metrobus project cannot result in the reduction of green spaces on the historic Avenida 9 de Julio. The project would create a bus-only corridor in the middle of the so-called ‘World’s Widest Avenue’.

Scheibler ruled that the city government must provide details regarding the specific species of trees that will be added to the avenue’s medians and that the project must not alter the street’s symbolic and cultural legacy. According to the city’s deputy secretary of transport, Guillermo Dietrich, Macri’s government is expected to present the requested information on Thursday.

The ruling was interpreted differently by both sides of the issue. Some have read it as a win for environmentalists because the original proposal included the removal of some green spaces and, therefore, the gameplan must be altered. However, the city government argues that in the end, green spaces were going to be conserved, and even added, in the first place.

“The ruling does not modify the project,” Dietrich said. “Yes, elements that were not within the Metrobus project will now be incorporated, but it is still going to be located in the axis of 9 de Julio. There are many plazas that had more cement and will now be green.”

Mauricio Macri. (Photo courtesy of Gobierno de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires)

Mauricio Macri, head of the city government of Buenos Aires, opened the 16th period of municipal legislative sessions today with criticisms of the health and education systems in the province and of Governor Daniel Scioli.

At the beginning of his statements made today, Macri suggested, “Each day more people come into our health and education systems, many from other districts, principally from the province of Buenos Aires that is becoming weaker every day, especially at the hour of providing a response.”

The mayor’s speech also detailed a series of eight basic objectives for this year, with a focus on public works, development of the transportation system, and improving the health and education systems.

In his statements made before the municipal legislature today, Macri also extended an invitation to President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner to attend the upcoming reopening of the subte línea A, a line that Macri’s government renovated after debates over control of the subte system. He emphasised that he and supporters would be waiting for the president at the system’s re-inauguration next week. He added that despite conflicts in the past, “we will assume the role of working for our neighbours.”

Macri also defended the increase in the subte fare, which is to jump from $2.5 to $3.5, stating, “We are not counting on the subsidy of the national government and we have to make an effort between the subte users and the rest of our neighbours, with an increase in rates.”

Macri’s opening speech today was his sixth in front of the city government during his time in office. His opening statements today before the city legislature were paralleled by today’s address to Congress made by President Fernandez at the start of the national body’s regular sessions for this year. Both Macri and President Fernandez make announcement today to start a critical year in which congressional elections will be held and will be definitive for political progression.

Cristina Fernández de Kirchner (courtesy of Casa Rosada)

Politicians the world over are an unending source of both frustration and, thankfully, humour. While they may often infuriate us with their incompetence, ignorance, or foolhardiness, sometimes you just have to throw up your hands and try to laugh about it (as a North American, I’ve had lots of practice – how else do you think we survived eight years of Bush, Jr. without going mad?).

But let’s face facts – the antics of some country’s politicians are just slightly more off-the-charts than others. A Silvio Berlusconi, for example, is more entertaining to the passive observer than a Fredrik Reinfeldt (Prime Minister of Sweden, described as “gentle”, “pensive”, and “soft-spoken”). The United States’ Tea Party is more likely to provide comic relief and/or forehead-slapping anger than, say, the pragmatic Green Party of New Zealand.

Argentina’s politicians, I think it’s safe to say, regularly cross over into the realm of the absurd, forcing us all to scratch our heads and ask ourselves “…Really?” Left, right, centre, or so vague as to encompass characteristics of all three, politicians of all stripes and ideologies ensure this country’s news cycle is never boring. From Socialist governor Hermes Binner confiding to Perfil reporters that he sleeps in the buff, to city legislator Gabriela Cerruti tweeting photos of her marijuana plant, 2012 was replete with ‘WTF’ moments; these are just a few.

Some are humorous, some controversial – all are quite ridiculous. In chronological order, we present the Top 5 Argentine Political Gaffes of 2012.

Cristina Fernández de Kirchner vs. Teachers (March)

When provincial teachers throughout the country jeopardised the start of classes in March for being unable to agree on salary demands, President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner expressed her displeasure.

“How is it possible”, she asked legislators, “that we only talk about salaries, but we don’t talk about the children who are missing class?”

A reasonable question. But her following statement was one that, the world over, grates on teacher’s ears like chalk on a squeaky blackboard. “I mean, they only work four hours a day and get three months holidays every year!”

Cries of anger and injured pride rang out from faculty lounges across Argentina. If there’s one thing teachers hate, it’s the ‘three month holiday’ charge.

“I’m…unpleasantly surprised by the president’s comments”, said a deeply hurt Roberto Baradel, leader of the Suteba teacher’s union. The unions then called for a 48-hour strike, exacerbating the problem and bringing joy to schoolchildren throughout the province.

By kicking off the legislative year alienating an entire profession in a matter of seconds, this presidential gaffe makes the list. Were there other, more controversial Fernández moments in 2012? Probably. Share your favourites in the comments section.

¿Y Macri Dónde Está? (April)

Buenos Aires Mayor Mauricio Macri of the Propuesta Republicana (PRO), the hope of the Argentine Right, “good old boy” and potential presidential candidate, is no stranger to gaffes and controversy. Whether he’s destroying sculptures at the ArteBA festival, or teasing porteños with access to legal abortion (in cases of rape or life endangerment) only to veto the measure mere days later with little explanation, the man is always up to something.

A recurring theme, though, is Macri’s tendency to disappear at inopportune moments. Football matches in Córdoba and KISS concerts at the River Plate stadium have all lured Mauricio away from his downtown office, like a rebellious teenager skipping class for something more exciting – except “class”, in this case, is the governance of Buenos Aires.

San Martín de los Andes from Arrayán vista (by pablodf, on Flickr)

The most infamous example came during Easter Week when a massive storm hit the capital and surrounding area, causing major flooding, power outages, property damage, and leaving 17 people dead. Macri’s whereabouts throughout the debacle remained unknown, until celebrity magazine ‘Hola!’ published photos of the mayor and his family vacationing in the lakeside town of San Martín de Los Andes, far from the chaos affecting the city and suburbs.

“Tennis, golf, and relaxing with family”, ran the headlines beside photos of Buenos Aires’ first family descending from their private jet. The sheer number of memes spawned by the incident warrants it a place among the top gaffes of the year.

Amado Boudou’s Honda (May)

Poor Vice President Amado Boudou – as if being investigated for influence peddling and illicit enrichment wasn’t enough, the Anti-Corruption Office had to butt in on his divorce proceedings, as well.

Red Honda CR-X del Sol by claude.attard.bezzina, on Flickr

It all began when Boudou listed his red Honda CRX Del Sol as having been purchased in July 1992 – one year before he and ex-wife Daniela Andriuolo were married – thus classifying it as a ‘personal asset’ rather than jointly owned, and its retail value safe from any divorce settlements.

And he would have gotten away with it, too, if not for Authentic Socialist Party (PSA) Secretary Mario Mazzitelli, who apparently had nothing better to do than track down 20 years’ worth of the car’s paperwork. “That car wasn’t even in Argentina in July, 1992”, he pointed out.

Boudou, charged with falsifying his divorce affidavit, was forced to change his story twice before ultimately omitting the troublesome convertible from his assets entirely. The search for the truth about Boudou’s Honda continues.

Aníbal Fernández & Hugo Moyano’s Tweet War (November)

The 20th November national strike, instigated by heavyweight union leaders Hugo Moyano (General Labour Confederation) and Pablo Micheli (Argentine Worker’s Union), brought much of Argentina to a standstill, affecting schools, banks, airports, the subway, hospitals, and just about every other sector necessary for a country to function. Even many of those not participating in the strike were prevented from going to work by strategically placed roadblocks.

On the surface, Buenos Aires seemed like a ghost town. But behind the scenes, some furious tweeting was taking place.

It began innocently enough, with @infocamioneros (the Twitter handle of Moyano’s truck driver’s union) throwing the first punch. “Aníbal’s whipping up some instant coffee over at the Casa Rosada b/c all the waiters joined the #20N national strike”, they tweeted gleefully.

The moustachioed senator and stalwart Kirchnerist lost no time in delivering an eloquent response. “You dumb ass, I work in the Congress”.

Then began the war of words in earnest. The Camioneros proceeded to call Fernández (in all capital letters, mind you) a “servile doormat” to the president, as well as “pajarón” (meaning “stupid” or “ineffectual”; translations differ). Fernández retaliated: “At least I’ll never be a pimp like your boss. Bootlickers of the enemies of the workers!” He then mustered all his adult restraint, and blocked their Twitter account.

But hostilities still did not cease. The Camioneros (who gained over 4,000 online followers that day) began circulating the image of an “Angry Bird” sporting Fernández’s moustache; the hashtag #AngryAnibal took Twitter by storm.

In a press conference the next day, apparently still peeved, Fernández told reporters “We [the Kirchnerists] are not going to change just because the traitor ‘Augusto Timoteo’ Moyano held a strike”, referring to union leader Augusto Timoteo Vandor, assassinated by left-wing forces in 1969. At which point the situation lost all humour. Too far, Aníbal.

Julio Alak’s Insensitive Asado (December)

December in Argentina: a time for family get-togethers and end of the year celebrations before fleeing the cities for summer vacations on the coast. Nothing unusual about throwing a little asado and brindis for your co-workers to celebrate a good year, right?

Coals ready for an asado (Photo: Beatrice Murch)

Wrong, if said asado takes place on the grounds of a former clandestine torture centre and potent psychological symbol of the nation’s darkest chapter of history. The former Naval School of Mechanics (ESMA) operated as a detention and torture centre during the military dictatorship from 1976 to 1983, and during this brief but horrifying time nearly 5,000 people passed away either behind its walls or during notorious “death flights” (not including the tens of thousands murdered elsewhere in the country).

In Justice and Human Rights Minister Julio Alak’s defence, the asado (hosted on 27th December for employees of the Justice Ministry) was welcomed by officials of the ex-ESMA (which now functions as a cultural centre) and defended by such groups as the Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo. Speaking at the asado, Carlos Pisoni of the cultural centre said “Actions like these allow us to redefine this space that, during the years of state terrorism, functioned as a centre of torture and extermination”.

Others, understandably, were more than a little offended by the choice of location, citing insensitivity on Alak’s part and calling for his dismissal. Some likened the event to “baking pan dulce in the ovens at Auschwitz”.

In the end, Alak denied even throwing an asado, saying the Justice Ministry had simply gathered to discuss its 2013-2015 strategy, and that there happened to be food. “What we did was make some sandwiches […] so that people could stay on the property rather than go to some bar”, he explained on the television programme 678. “An asado at the ex-ESMA is a lie.”