International
Luis Brunetto from the Workers’ Party (PO) in Argentina spoke to Socialist Worker
By Frankie Murden
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Wednesday 19 March 2025
Issue 2947
On the streets of Argentina
Anger at far right president Javier Milei has erupted onto the streets of Argentina.
Mass demonstrations rocked the country on Wednesday in the face of police repression—and a general strike is planned for 8 April. It comes a week after tens of thousands took to the streets of the capital Buenos Aires against Milei’s austerity drive.
The demonstrations were called by the CGT trade union federation.
The state responded with violence to the protests last week. It deployed over 1,000 riot police who fired water cannons, rubber bullets and tear gas and drove motorbikes through the crowd.
A young photographer, Pablo Grillo, is in a critical condition after police fired a tear gas canister at him. He suffered severe head trauma, with several skull fractures and loss of brain mass.
Football fans from infamous rival clubs Boca Junior and River Plate came together to back pensioners against the police.
Protesters, surrounded by the police, chanted, “Don’t touch the elderly.”
The demonstrators stood their ground against the police for hours, resulting in hundreds of injuries and over 114 people being detained.
The arrested included two boys, 12 and 14 years old, who were returning home from school. They were held for hours and kept on the ground with their hands bound as neighbours and onlookers tried to help.
Luis Brunetto from the Workers’ Party (PO) slammed the state’s “savage repression that may even cost the life of Pablo Grillo”.
“We have several very intense weeks ahead from the point of view of the class struggle,” he told Socialist Worker.
Milei is trying to push through a decree to secure funding from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
These demonstrations come against the backdrop of divisions inside Milei’s government.
A brawl broke out in parliament last week during a debate over a crypto currency scandal that Milei is embroiled in.
Milei took to X last month promoting the cryptocurrency $Libra, stating that it was “dedicated to boosting the growth of the Argentinian economy”. The currency’s value grew massively before plunging back down.
He is being called out as a scammer and facing possible criminal charges—not the first time he’s been accused of fraud.
These divisions are an opportunity for the movement on the streets.
There has been consistent action since Milei’s election in 2023, but this has dipped recently. Most recently, pensions demanding an increase in pensions and the restorations of free medications have been at the forefront of protests.
Numbers soared last week when a video of an elderly woman being beaten in the head till she bled was shared on social media.
Luis said, “The street movement is being reactivated as shown by the mobilisation of pensioners on 12 March.”
He said it’s been “revitalised” with “now with the call of soccer fans and unions and the workers who are occupying the Morvillo factory”.
Workers occupied the Morvillo printing plant to defend their jobs after bosses declared it bankrupt.
Luis highlighted the anniversary of the 1976 coup on 24 March as “a very important mobilisation”.
It is known as the Day of Remembrance for Truth and Justice and commemorates the victims of the dictatorship. It will take on new meaning after the police repression and Milei’s authoritarianism.
Luis added, “We will see how events continue to develop, surely the repression ordered by minister Patricia Bullrich will once again be savage.
“But undoubtedly this street movement weakens Milei and is the key to defeat him.”