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Argentina: Defeats and victories of president Cristina

Olga Lopez, Caracas
August 7, 2008
Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner
After four months of protests of agricultural products producers the president of Argentina Cristina Fernandez has annulled the governmental decree to increase export duties for grain crops.

While taking over the presidential post in December 2007 Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner marked the basic outlines of her social-economic program that added up to continuation of the previous government course of her husband – Nestor Kirchner. For four years of his presidency he managed to drag the country out of the deepest economic crisis, which came as a result of the neo-liberal policy carried out by governments in 80-90s. As a result – in the traditionally successful Argentina, which supplied meat and wheat to half the world, children started to starve to death. All this lead to an unprecedented hike of social tension.

Under Kirchner, rise of GDP was 8-9% per year. The number of unemployed has considerably reduced. Minimum wage, pensions and hardship allowances have been increased. It is not by chance that Cristina and her "Front for the Victory" (Frente para la Victoria) uniting Peronists, radicals and former socialists received the comprehensive support of poor layers of population and workers, whose life has radically improved during the presidency of Kirchner.

The doctrine of justicialismo that Cristina Fernandez adheres to, supposes building up of a just society of the "third way" - between capitalism and socialism. That is why the accent in her program was made on necessity of more active setting up of work places and improvement of living standards of the population.

Fernandez has immediately warned the country that the world stands on the brink of energy and food crises that will inevitably touch upon Argentina and will be its main problems to be tackled by her government.

Really, end of the last year was marked by rapid price hike for energy resources, the prices for which have increased in Argentina by 50% since October. That is why in January 2008 the Argentine government banned to export petrol and diesel fuel.

Export ban will last until the oil companies have brought down the prices for oil products up the level of October 2007. As the Argentine authorities think the export ban will also enable to do away with fuel deficiency, which appeared in the country.

Another disputable measure of Cristina Fernandez government has become the increase of tax rate for export of soya, wheat and corn. The growth of prices for food in the world resulted in the fact that Argentine land owners started to sell practically complete harvest abroad. The food prices have automatically grown up inside Argentina. To stop price hike the government decides to make agricultural products producers leave more products for home market. So, the increased export duties should have become such a constraint. Argentina used to practise such taxes before that enabled to hold back a little growth of prices in the home market.

In March the government of Fernandez took up a decision to introduce a "sliding" system of export duties that depend upon changes of prices at foreign market. The export duties for agricultural products have actually increased from 35 to 44%. Implementation of this measure would additionally have given the treasury 330 million euros, which the government planned to direct to financing of social programs.

As is known the key source of profits of Argentina is export-oriented agriculture. In 2007 the country exported the agricultural products for 24 billion dollars. Presently Argentina occupies the third place in the world in production and export of soya, second in production and export of corn and is among the first five of the largest wheat exporters of the world.

Naturally, when the price hike for food is at full swing, the increase of duties leaves the producers without their huge superprofits. The Argentine agricultural confederation has immediately stated that increase of duties is an unnecessary and irrational measure that "deprives them from means for expansion and modernisation of production".

In response Cristina Fernandez has said that the interests of the country are above the interests of any industry and interests of private persons and that increase of duties will help to distribute the national wealth in the interests of the whole population more fairly and will keep the farmers from changing the speciality of their production to export cultures, which damages the home market.

Agricultural "barons" have risen up, blocked interstate roads, practically paralyzed the transport system of the country, stopped supplies of products to city shops that immediately lead to shortage of provisions and to even more rise in prices. That was an outright blackmail.

Cristina Fernandez didn't conceal her indignation and, as usual, was sincere in her assessments, having called the strike a "clownery". If, in 2001 – 2003 the roads were picketed by the poorest, who asked for work not to starve to death, then today the roads are blocked by satisfied and rich.

The fashion of strikes was set by 4 largest agricultural complexes, among the owners of which prevailed the representatives of ultra right forces of Argentina and "favourites" of military dictatorship. Newspapers and TV screens carried screaming pictures of poured on the road milk and deliberately thrown products on the curb of the roads. Several times the negotiations between the government and "agrarians" started and fruitlessly finished. The strike of land owners has become the longest one not only in the short period of presidency of Cristina Fernandez, but in the last three decades.

The strike of "agricultural workers", skilfully interpreted by mass media, found its support among certain layers of urban population. They organised marches in support with empty cookers on the streets of cities including the capital.

Supporters of the government of Cristina Fernandez have also carried out manifestations in support of their leader. In the middle of June Cristina, as they call her in Argentina, addressed her supporters at the meeting at the presidential palace on Plaza de Mayo. In her speech she's pointed out that the decision to increase the duties was taken "so that all Argentinians could live much better", so that the "profits should be fairly distributed", and that "there was no intention to harm anybody". She called upon the opposition to clear the roads and let the Argentinians live and work normally. "We should learn to solve our disagreements in democratic way," - she said. "Because of its own prejudices the middle class often ends up in acting against its own interests. The interests of the middle class are the same as of all workers, it is necessary to learn to see beyond what is shown to us", - by saying this she meant participants of cookers march and other similar actions of the opposition.

At the end of her speech she said that for hundred years Argentina had been considered a leading producer and exporter of meat and wheat, and for all these hundred years there were Argentinians, who starve to death. She hoped that the coming century would be different.

Naturally, months long protest actions had a negative effect on the country's economy. The press, playing up to big business, calculated the damages, pictured dire future for the country and openly intimidated: "Protests in Argentina have caused the growth of world prices for soya beans. Mainly Brazilian and American agricultural products producers are enjoying the fruit of this price hike. Certain importing countries start looking for an alternative to Argentinian grain crops. Thus, China already declared Argentina an unreliable partner and started to increase the volume of purchases in the USA".

After the Senate failed to support the government and voted against increase of duties, Cristina Fernandez annulled the decree, thus having put the end to a four-month long conflict. It is worth mentioning that actually votes in the Senate were equal – 36:36, and the decisive vote belonged to a vice president of the country Julio Cobos. The presidential team has cracked.

So, with every day it becomes more evident that the "strikes" of land owners and cattle-breeders are not just an economic struggle around taxes. "The only obstacle on the road to economic flourishing and happiness of the people is our government", - such statement was pronounced on May 25, at the Independence day of Argentina, at the meeting held by the opposition.

Political confrontation in Argentina is growing with every passing day. It is not by chance that the name of its president is more often mentioned in the same line of names of Rafael Correa, Evo Morales and especially Hugo Chavez – main targets of informational warfare carried out by right-conservative mass media. Big business does not want to share its profits! Social programs planned by the government of Fernandez also cause irritation. Her opponents know no rest because of threat of nationalisation of the privatized in the 90s enterprises. Support to investigations of military dictatorship crimes, rendered by the present government, urge even more intolerance and hatred.

The government of Nestor Kirchner annulled two laws on amnesty to criminals of military regime, which allowed to open dozens of new cases and accuse top military leaders of that period. Taking her post Cristina promised that she would do all her best so that the justice, that was delayed by 30 years, was finally administered and so that all responsible for the worst genocide in the history of the country were accused. That is why somebody still lives in constant fear waiting for exposure and seeing their salvation in changing of power.

Regular reports about sentences for 30 year old crimes keep on coming from Argentina. Eight high-ranking officers, who were admitted guilty in torture and murders of members of left opposition, got long terms of conviction this year. Among the convicts is an 80 year old retired general, who got 25 years and his seven subordinates. Two police officers that participated in mass murder of 30 people got life terms.

Search for children taken away from their parents during those years of "dirty war" does not allow to forget about the crimes either. Recently, "Grandmothers of the May Plaza (Abuelas de Plaza de Mayo) (that is the present name of movement "Mothers of the May Plaza («Madres de Plaza de Mayo")) have reported that DNA test identified the personalities of two more people, who were taken away by the military clique from those arrested and later killed parents. Totally they found 92 "vanished children" out of almost 500 children, who were deprived of their parents during the dictatorship.

During the rule of Nestor Kirchner a process of return under the governmental control of separate strategically important enterprises began to get shape. Especially there was too much noise about the governmental decision to break up the contract with the company "Aguas Argentinas" (Waters of Argentina) that was privatized in 1993 by a joint European company. For the past years the company carried out "optimisation of its activity" that resulted in increased tariffs for water and reduction of work places from 8700 to 3700. Kirchner accused the foreigners in taking out of the country profits worth of millions: "They take out million of dollars, and we, the Argentinians have to beg a drop of water from them". In March of 2006 the government returned its control over the water supply.

Under Cristina the "Aerolineas Argentinas" (Argentinian airlines) that after privatisation belonged to the Spanish company "Marsans", was returned to the government control.

Despite the defeat in the conflict with agricultural business tycoons, Cristina Fernandez feels very comfortable and, as she stated herself, even stronger. She is going to completely carry out her program and is not afraid of accusations in populism. At the end of June Cristina took part in opening in Buenos Aires of new micro-district with "social houses", that, the so called "populist" governments in Latin America actively build for the most needy citizens. According to the federal program of housing construction, launched by Cristina Fernandez, fifteen hundred houses out of 2200 have already been built, the rest are going to be built soon, as well as two schools, primary and high schools as well as trade center. Housing construction enabled to open hundreds of new work places that is also a part of the tasks solved by the government. Speaking on the meeting Cristina said that she dreamt of the time when it was not the state but the Argentinians themselves would use their own earned money to build houses for themselves, but so far not all had such an opportunity and the state had to take the responsibility for provision of the nation with houses.

In early August Cristina together with visiting Argentina Hugo Chavez took part in launching another social program on construction of residences and kindergartens in the poorest districts of the country. This program, which is called "Sueños Compartidos" (Common dream), together with the government is patronized by "Abuelas de Plaza de Mayo".

The day before in Buenos Aires a trilateral meeting of presidents of Brazil, Venezuela and Argentina, on which Chavez, Lula and Cristina discussed strategic problems of integration and once more demonstrated its unity in solution of common problems to the whole world.

Russian mass media pay little attention to the processes that go on in Argentina, possibly, because that practically all activity of Cristina government is directed to overcome the consequences of destructive period of active "neo-liberal reforms" in the country. Hence are the attempts of biased and sometimes even openly deceitful interpretation of her activity on the presidential post.
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