As economic chaos deepens
Mass protess shake Argentina
By Bill Hackwell and Alicia Jrapko
Buenos Aires, Argentina
The ongoing political struggle in Argentina continues to
escalate with mass protests in Cordoba, Mendoza, Buenos Aires
and other cities. This wave of protests came on the 26th
anniversary of the military coup that had resulted in the
disappearance of 30,000 people and ushered in an escalation of
imperialist penetration into the country.
In Cordoba, the second-largest city in Argentina, 20,000
people gathered on March 22 in the busy intersection of Avenida
Colon and General Paz and marched to the Government House. The
march was called by HIJOS and by Abuelas de Plaza de Mayo.
These organizations are made up of the children and
grandmothers of the disappeared.
A significant number of trade unions brought out large
contingents of their ranks. They included Light and Power (Luz
y Fuerza), United Union of Municipal Employees, Union of
Graphic Workers, Provincial Union of Sanitary Workers, the
Confederation of Argentinean Workers and others.
The struggle against privatization has energized the union
movement in an attempt to preserve their jobs. Transnational
corporations own almost all basic industries in Argentina.
Foreign corporations own even the highways. Road tolls are a
most outrageous act of everyday robbery.
High school and university students and grassroots
organizations from the popular assemblies also participated in
the demonstrations. Popular assemblies are new neighborhood
political organizations that surfaced during December 2000 and
are independent of the government.
Also present were left political parties, including the
United Left, Free Homeland, Workers' Party, Party of Liberation
and others.
As the march passed the most hated bank in Argentina--the
Bank of Boston--a group of young protesters broke windows,
spray painted the walls, disabled an ATM machine and set fire
to the front lawn of the bank.
Protesters fill streets of Buenos Aires
The largest protest took place in Buenos Aires. Some 250,000
people filled the Avenida de Mayo from the Congress to the
Plaza de Mayo across the street from the Casa Rosada--the
presidential palace.
In addition to recalling the reactionary coup 26 years ago
and the demand for justice for the disappeared, the
demonstration was also a struggle against the current Duhalde
government, seen by most as a servant of imperialism.
Feeder marches came down side streets with large contingents
representing most districts of Buenos Aires. Significant was
the presence of many from the Movement of Unemployed Workers
(MTD). Members of this group, commonly referred to as
piqueteros, have conducted nationwide blockades of highways,
sit- downs in work places that are about to be closed, and
spontaneous unannounced protests against transnational
targets.
What also made this mass march different from previous
protests was the participation of established national
capitalist parties, including the Radical Party, the
Intransigent Party and even large elements of Duhalde's own
Peronist Party.
The pots and pans that were common in previous protests have
now been replaced by large sections of drummers that accompany
each contingent. High-powered firecrackers also punctuated the
deafening sound along this major street where the political
power of Argentina resides.
The main organizers of this event were the Mothers of Plaza
de Mayo. Hebe Bonafini, their president, gave a revolutionary
speech before the march began in front of the presidential
palace. She called for prosecution of the corrupt politicians
who have robbed this country and have allowed the International
Monetary Fund and the World Bank to plunder Argentina. She
said, "It is a bigger crime to open a bank than to rob one."
Bonafini began and ended her speech by singing the
revolutionary anthem, the "International."
On March 25, the political focus had shifted to the economic
crisis that is spiraling out of control. Here in the capital,
all along San Martin street, the banks and currency exchange
offices have long lines of people desperately trying to buy
U.S. dollars because of fear that the peso--now exchanged at
three per dollar--could jump as high as 20 per dollar.
Most of these people, from the middle class, have kept cash
in their homes. The peso that was once kept artificially pegged
one-to-one with the dollar through IMF loans is now beginning
to float. That's because IMF officials refused to allow the
$141 billion Argentinean debt to increase.
There appears to be a question as to whether the
imperialists want to keep Duhalde in power. While giving in to
most of their demands for austerity, he has refused to go along
on some issues, including making the provinces stop printing
their own money on worthless local bonds. The reason Duhalde
has been reluctant to do this is because it's the only way the
25 provinces can pay government workers.
It is a situation where it is impossible to satisfy the
banks and the aspirations of the workers. It remains to be seen
who will win out, but the mass protests and the impending
economic failure may be a harbinger of a possible revolutionary
period in Argentina.
Reprinted from the April 4, 2002, issue of
Workers World newspaper
This article is copyright under a Creative
Commons License.
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