Former Argentinian President Eduardo Duhalde, who ruled the country from 2002 to 2003, has delivered an ominous message that hints at the possibility of a military coup amid political and economic turmoil in the country.
Duhalde said that midterm elections next year may not take place if the economy continues to decline and public opposition to the government grows. While he did not refer to a military coup, he did concede that Argentina is a ‘champion’ of military dictatorships.
In a television appearance on Monday, he said, “From 1939 to 1983, we had fourteen military governments, people are fed up, when the pandemic is over, the country will be devastated, so yes we could end up in a military coup. Opinion polls are showing the institution most respected by the Argentines are the armed force, and we are the champs of military dictatorships.”
When other members on the panel of the show disagreed with him and said that the people would be opposed to that he said he was “completely convinced” of the possibility, pointing to the rise of ‘militarism’ in the Latin American region at large. He said, “Brazil is a co-government of the military with a civilian president, Venezuela, Bolivia, even in Chile, the institutions standing for the country are the Carabineros and the Army.”
Current officials in the Alberto Fernández-led administration have denounced the former President’s comments. Defense Minister Agustin Rossi, for instance, said, “Duhalde’s statements are a slander. I have daily contact with the military forces' reality and it is impossible that a situation like that occurs.”
His comments were echoed by Malvinas Islands Affairs’ Secretary Daniel Filmus, who sought to reassure the public that democracy was very much safe in the country, saying that the military is an ‘ally’ of Argentina’s democratic system as the country had “conquered democracy forever” 1983.
Republican Proposal Party (PR) member Laura Alonso said that Duhalde’s comments “do not resemble our reality”, adding that “Argentina is embracing its Constitution and its democracy today more than ever before. Likewise, another opposition party, the Civil Coalition-ARI, called his suggestions “irresponsible”.
Tengo un trato diario con la realidad militar y es imposible que un escenario de estas características tenga lugar en la Argentina de hoy.
— Agustín Rossi (@RossiAgustinOk) August 25, 2020
Hay un fuerte compromiso con la Democracia y con la Constitución Nacional.
At the turn of the year, Argentina reported that its inflation rate in 2019 was 53.8%, the highest such figure since 1991, and the second-highest in Latin America after only crisis-torn Venezuela, demonstrating the sheer magnitude of the situation. The cost of living has increased by close to 4%, and prices in the health, communications, home maintenance equipment, and food industries have sky-rocketed as well. Despite the tight monetary programs implemented in late 2018 after a currency crisis, Argentina has not only failed to reduce inflation but has also deepened the country’s recession.
This calamitous situation has not gone unnoticed by the public, and just last week, thousands of people in the capital Buenos Aires took to the streets to protest President Alberto Fernandez’s decision to extend coronavirus containment measures until August 30. At the same time, demonstrators are opposed to a reform of the judiciary that will increase the number of federal courts and Supreme Court magistrates, in a move that the government claims is to reduce the impact of politically-motivated decisions.