December 12, 2003
Kirchnerismo
By Marie Trigona
"The [30,000] dissappeared gave their lives for this
nation and it seems to us that the President [Nestor Kirchner] is
aligning himself with that project, he shares our project and that
of our children. We know that the President is not socialist or
revolutionary, but I believe that he is doing things that others
that claim they are revolutionaries don't do. We are happy and thankful,"
writes Hebe di Bonafini, President of the Mothers of Plaza de Mayo
in an editorial published in October.
This editorial from historically one of Argentina's most radical
human rights organizations, Mothers of Plaza de Mayo reflects a
recent phenomenon plaguing national discourse, Kirchnerismo. In
the six months since Nestor Kirchner took office, he has been celebrated
as a progressive prototype by the media (from the far right to alternative
media).
U.S. progressive media has been no exception applauding Kirchner's
seemingly progressive measures and attempts to restore human rights.
Most alarming is that many sectors from Argentina's "explosion
in autonomous activism" has quickly forgotten what doing politics
outside of traditional politics means, replacing the method of the
road blockade with photo-ops and table side negotiations with the
President and setting a repressive trap for those organizations
rejecting state fascism and continuing to struggle.
Kirchner's administration has successfully manifested a social-democratic
discourse --appearing more as Brazil's Lula or Venezuela's Chavez
than his predecessor Eduardo Duhalde. In his first weeks as President,
Kirchner realized a series of progressive gestures--replacing military
generals, reforming Federal Police, meeting with human rights organizations,
and expressing hesitance to align himself with U.S. interests in
the region (Free Trade Agreement of the Americas). The media has
applauded these acts, reporting that he is a man willing to negotiate
with "hard line" piqueteros and having good will in respecting
human rights.
Nearly everyday Argentina's national news fills with a contradictory
discourse--celebrating President Nestor Kirchner's progressive act
of the day while re-launching an offensive attack against the unemployed
workers movement. Just this week Clarin, Argentina's largest
daily published the headline, "Hardline piqueteros create chaos
in the capital's center by protesters demanding more unemployment
subsidies."
Radio and television talk-shows have dedicated substantial time
to establish that piqueteros are lazy, extorting a salary from the
government while sitting at home watching TV instead of working and
that they are against work because they are impeding workers from
arriving to work (meaning the middle class that drive to work in
their cars).
This attack heightened October 22 after organizations (MUP 20,
Frutradeyo, Tendencia Clasista) protested in front of the Government
Labor Ministry to demand 3,000 unemployment plans, fresh food
including meat and dairy and infrastructure support for the
community kitchens. The organizations were told to come back at a
later date and officials hoped to ignore demands through
procrastinating meetings for negotiations.
Carlos Tomada, Labor Minister claimed that protestors stayed outside,
putting chains and locks along police fences to block
his exit from the government building until 4 a.m.. The government
responded opening a criminal case against the organizations, accusing,
the illegitimate holding of freedom. President Kirchner,
has had a seemingly soft discourse in using police to control social
protests but he used the action as an opportunity to take a firm
stance stating, we are not going to tolerate these type of
actions.
Kirchner has contingent plans to end unemployment by fighting piqueterismo.
The $150 peso (about $50) monthly unemployment plans have been forever
used as a way for the state to keep unemployed worker organizations
in check and distinguish between the good piqueteros willing to
negotiate and the hardliners who continue to block roads and demand
structural changes.
Newspapers have reported that the new governments plan to
disarticulate piqueteros is to benefit certain friendly organizations
with subsidies and to isolate ideological piqueteros. Those
ideological piqueteros are those who go out and demand more than
minimal subsidies, such as genuine work, free trade, transnational
corporations accountability, and an end to poverty.
We are worried about the piqueteros who continue to go out
into the street, who block the subways, making these type of demands
without realizing that another moment has arrived. The President
has asked that they [the piqueteros] take on different projects.
I believe that there are some piqueteros that have taken another
form of struggling like Pepino Fernández, de
General Mosconi, or MTD Aníbal Verón. They are demanding
justice, but without mixing requests for food and unemployment subsidies
with the request for justice, states Hebe di Bonafini in the
same editorial.
What has happened that the most autonomous and radical sectors
have converted themselves into progressives and accept social democracy
as a solution rather than seeking social revolution? This is something
that has been happening for some time since Argentinas popular
rebellion December 19 and 20, 2001 failed. One of the most notable
changes is the movements bureaucracies approach to direct
actions, security and negotiating with the government. Many movement
leaders have adapted the discourse that it is necessary to give
Kirchner time and that he is good intentioned.
Kirchners progressive measures have had superficial impactovershadowing
the fact that he has made no fundamental structural change, but
has adopted policies that directly hurt the poor and in favor of
U.S. interests. His style has been to adopt one progressive gesture
for a conservative measure. While urging Congress to nullify impunity
laws, he has passed laws allowing private utilities to be raised
and supported U.S. troop military exercises in Argentina. One of
his campaign promises was to not pay the IMF at the cost of
the nations poor. In September he paid 2.9 billion dollars
to the IMF while 58% of the population live below the poverty line
and children continue to die of hunger.
He attacks unemployed workers organizations for politicizing and
extorting unemployment subsidies, meanwhile unemployment has swelled
to a historical high of over 20%. Of the Economically Active Population
(EAP), there are some 2.2 million with unemployment subsidies. Only
10% of those receiving unemployment subsidies are participating
in unemployed worker organizations. The rest of those with subsidies
are working for political lackeys aligned with Peronism or providing
the state with extremely cheap labor, unemployed working as janitors
in municipal buildings and cooks in public schools for a 150 peso
subsidy.
In order to appear willing to negotiate, sectors from the MTD-Anibal
Veron organization (one of the most autonomous and hard unemployed
worker organizations that existed) have over time abandoned tools
for liberation like the road blockade and security measures like
covering faces and carrying sticks. On many occasions, MTDs
bureaucracy and spokespersons have had meetings with Kirchner. Photos
later appeared in newspapers with captions like, hardliners
willing to negotiate. Rather than doing direct actions, the
popular bakery has become the central act of resistance. One of
the criticisms that has generated is that while organizations permanently
negotiate to make immediate demands heard (food and subsidies),
organizations are unable to build tools for liberation.
Meanwhile, Kichner continues to implement symbolic progressive
gestures to reinforce his legitimacy and justify repression, many
sectors from Argentinas social movements have reinforced his
fascist discourse disguised as progressivism. Ironically, these
government and media attacks against the unemployed workers are
un-discriminatoryhomogenizing all piquetero organizations
as the same. There are some 3,000 criminal cases open against activists.
As in any transition to social democracy, repressive forces must
also make a transition from brutal force to adapting to utilizing
bourgeois judicial system to limit social protests. Kirchner has
adapted the soften rhetoric in response to growing protests, no
to police beatings but yes to incarceration. These recent
attacks have sprouted fear for organizations to be marked as violent.
In response they have adopted self-censorship (embracing symbolic
acts rather than direct actions).
During the recent FTAA actions in Miami, resistance in the U.S.
was by far stronger than here in Argentina. In April, 2001 during
actions against the FTAA in Buenos Aires banks were burnt and there
were thousands in the streets. This past week, organizations including
the MTD brought only a few hundred to Plaza de Mayo to display a
symbolic flag resisting the FTAA and C.T.A. state syndicalist
union coordinator and leftist political parties organized a popular
census vote against the FTAA.
The National Governments soft discourse against social protests
does not mean that it is not willing to use brutal force. Its
a facade to buy time and build legitimacy to re-launch the use of
state violence, but this time the violent protestors
will be clearly marked and more easy to target. This past week in
the southern province of Neuquen there were protests that ended
with state repression. There were over 22 injured 10 from
lead bullet wounds. Pedro Alveal, 20-years old from MTD and worker
of occupied ceramics factory Zanon was injured with over 64 impacts
from rubber bullets. He was held for over 8 hours by police without
medical attention while he was tortured. He lost his left eye.
In the face of this criticism, the good news is that protests is
growing. With levels of poverty and misery continuing to swell,
protest is inevitable. There are still organizations and compañeros
still out in the streets using hard-line tactics. We need to be
careful not to legitimate progressive characters like
Nestor Kirchnerwho represents the same government as Eduardo
Duhalde, Fernando de La Rua, Carlos Menem and the military dictatorship.
The same security forces are patrolling Argentinas streets,
but now they have a remodeled social democracy to justify state
terrorism. Reformist measures and politics that Kirchner, Lula and
Chavez promote do not benefit the working class and exploited sectors.
Our purpose is not to make capitalism better, but to end with systems
of exploitation.
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