Javier Milei’s ultra-liberal policies have doubled the prices of medicines and essential services, with a sharp decline in the value of pensions

~ Rob Latchford ~

A demonstration by pensioners, supported by football fans and social organisations, in Argentina on Wednesday 12 March ended in violent clashes with the police, the arrest of at least 103 people and 20 injured, one of them seriously.

The protest—the most violent in the country since the ultra-liberal Javier Milei took office in December 2023—was the latest in a series of public demonstrations that have been taking place for many years every Wednesday in defence of pensioners who have been suffering a sharp decline in their income and purchasing power.

In recent months, the pensioners’ protests have been repressed by the police with tear gas and physical violence.

Violent clashes

The number of participants in the Wednesday protests increased exponentially with the support of organised supporters of thirty soccer teams.

The soccer fans adopted a phrase from Argentinian great Diego Maradona in their march – “How could I not defend pensioners? You’d have to be a real coward to not defend pensioners.”

Milei has slashed pension payouts as part of a government spending overhaul meant to damp down rampant inflation.

But that has come to the detriment of Argentina’s most vulnerable.

The riots began in the middle of the afternoon when the protesters, along with social and union organisations, challenged the police lines that were trying to clear the area in front of Congress and Plaza de Mayo in Buenos Aires.

The police used rubber bullets, tear gas and water cannons against the protesters, many of whom wore their team’s shirts and flags.

One white-haired woman held up a shirt that read, “Don’t hit us, we are your parents!”

Some threw paving stones and fireworks, while a large police line advanced through the streets. A police car and a motorcycle were set on fire, and another seven vehicles from the Buenos Aires Security Secretariat were vandalised. A photojournalist was hit by a projectile while recording the confrontation.

According to data from the Security Secretariat, the local police arrested 89 people, while another 14 were arrested by various federal forces.

Bullrich, on Argentina’s hard right, represents the hardest and most right-wing sector of the Together For Change coalition and the Republican Proposal party during both the 2023 Argentine primary and general elections as presidential candidate. Following her defeat in the first round of the general election, she decided to personally support Milei on the second round.

Among the 20 injured, at least 10 are police officers with minor injuries, and the rest are civilians, including a man in a serious condition, who suffered a fractured skull as a result of the impact of a tear gas canister thrown in the square in front of the Congress headquarters.

Marcela Salto, a student present at the incident, said, “I saw an elderly women being beaten and falling to the ground… people convulsing [due to tear gas] and fainting. What do they want? For someone to die? As a society it is a disgrace.”

Rising poverty sparks outrage

On Wednesday night, after the incidents in Congress and Plaza de Mayo had ended, protesters banged pots and pans in various parts of Buenos Aires, and hundreds of protesters marched again to the government headquarters.

In its first year, Milei’s government reduced inflation from 211.4% in 2023 to 117.8% in 2024 and achieved a fiscal surplus, but the adjustment resulted in the loss of 200,000 jobs, the paralysis of public works and an increase in poverty and extreme poverty rates in Argentina

Milei’s policy of liberalising prices doubled the cost of medicines and essential services in one year. Almost 60% of pensioners receive the minimum pension, equivalent to around R$1,970. Last year, the government froze a bonus of approximately R$406 for pensioners.

As the Milei regime faces increasing opposition from ordinary Argentinians the question is how far will the state go in its willingness to attack Argentinian society?