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| Argentinians protest against their government, corruption and crime | |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| Angry about inflation, crime and corruption, people of all ages jammed the streets of Buenos Aires for nearly four hours to protest against President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner in Argentina's biggest anti-government demonstration in years. | |
| In a Thursday night march organised on social media, demonstrators filled the Plaza de Mayo in front of the presidential palace and crowded into the square around the city's obelisk, chanting: "We're not afraid." | |
| In a peaceful protest, toddlers in pushchairs and grandparents in wheelchairs joined the masses that marched through downtown Buenos Aires until nearly midnight. | In a peaceful protest, toddlers in pushchairs and grandparents in wheelchairs joined the masses that marched through downtown Buenos Aires until nearly midnight. |
| People banged on pots, whistled and waved the Argentinian flag. They held banners that read: "Stop the wave of Argentinians killed by crime, enough with corruption and say no to constitutional reform." | People banged on pots, whistled and waved the Argentinian flag. They held banners that read: "Stop the wave of Argentinians killed by crime, enough with corruption and say no to constitutional reform." |
| Fernández's critics are angry over the country's high inflation, violent crime and high-profile corruption, and many worry the president will try to hold on to power by ending constitutional term limits. | |
| "I came to protest everything that I don't like about this government and I don't like a single thing starting with [the president's] arrogance," said Marta Morosini, 74. "They're killing policemen like dogs, and the president doesn't even open her mouth. This government is just a bunch of hooligans and corrupters." | |
| Police officials said the crowd numbered at least 30,000, while local media opposed to Fernández estimated hundreds of thousands turned out. | |
| Other demonstrations were held across Argentina, in major cities including Córdoba, Mendoza and La Plata, while protesters massed outside Argentinian embassies and consulates from Chile to Australia. In Rome, expats held a noisy protest outside the consulate on Via Veneto. Among the slogans being shouted was "Cristina, go away." | |
| About 200 demonstrators braved rain in Madrid to bang pots outside the Argentinian consulate. | About 200 demonstrators braved rain in Madrid to bang pots outside the Argentinian consulate. |
| "In Argentina, there's no separation of power and it cannot be considered a democracy," said Marcelo Gimenez, a 40-year-old from Buenos Aires who has been living in Spain for two years. "Cristina is not respecting the constitution. The presidency is not a blank cheque and she must govern for those who are for her and against her." | |
| The protests hold deep symbolism for Argentinians, who recall the country's economic debacle of a decade ago. The "throw them all out" chants of that era's pot-banging marches forced presidents from office and left Argentina practically ungovernable until Fernández's late husband, Néstor Kirchner, assumed the presidency in 2003. | |
| "We came here because we don't want Cristina," said Shirley Brener, a 12-year-old student who protested in Buenos Aires with her mother, Monica, a 48-year-old school director. | "We came here because we don't want Cristina," said Shirley Brener, a 12-year-old student who protested in Buenos Aires with her mother, Monica, a 48-year-old school director. |
| The president's supporters paid little attention to two earlier protests this year, but when the size of this week's demonstrations became clear, her loyalists spoke out in her defence. They dismissed the protesters as being part of the wealthy elite or beholden to discredited opposition parties. | The president's supporters paid little attention to two earlier protests this year, but when the size of this week's demonstrations became clear, her loyalists spoke out in her defence. They dismissed the protesters as being part of the wealthy elite or beholden to discredited opposition parties. |
| Fernández did not directly refer to the protest in a speech on Thursday, but she defended her policies, saying they helped rescue Argentina from its worst economic crisis a decade ago and kept it afloat during the 2009 world financial downturn. | |
| "During boom times it's easy to run a country but try running when it's crumbling down," Fernández said, while urging Argentinians to support her and pledging never to give up as her late husband had taught her. | |
| "Never let go, not even in the worst moments," she said. "Because it's in the worst moments when the true colours of a leader of a country comes out." | "Never let go, not even in the worst moments," she said. "Because it's in the worst moments when the true colours of a leader of a country comes out." |
| The Buenos Aires mayor, Mauricio Macri, a member of the opposition and a fervent Fernández critic, praised the protest via Twitter. "People are being heard nationwide joined by a single flag," he said. | |
| Polls suggest neither side has a firm grip on Argentinians' sympathies. | Polls suggest neither side has a firm grip on Argentinians' sympathies. |
| Fernández easily won re-election just a year ago with 54% of the vote but saw her approval rating fall to 31%in a nationwide survey in September by the firm Management & Fit. The poll of 2,259 people, which had an error margin of about two percentage points, also said 65% of respondents disapproved of her opponents' performance. | |
| Crime is the biggest concern for many of her critics. | Crime is the biggest concern for many of her critics. |
| Newspapers and television programmes provide a daily diet of stories about increasingly bold home robberies, in which armed bands tie up families until victims hand over the cash that many Argentinians have kept at home since the government froze savings accounts and devalued the currency in 2002. The vast majority of the crimes are never solved, while the death toll is rising. | Newspapers and television programmes provide a daily diet of stories about increasingly bold home robberies, in which armed bands tie up families until victims hand over the cash that many Argentinians have kept at home since the government froze savings accounts and devalued the currency in 2002. The vast majority of the crimes are never solved, while the death toll is rising. |
| Inflation also upsets many. The government's much-criticised index puts annual inflation at about 10%, but private economists say prices are rising about three times faster than that. Real estate transactions have slowed to a standstill because of the difficulty in estimating future values, and unions that won 25% pay rises only a few months ago are threatening to strike again unless the government comes up with more. | Inflation also upsets many. The government's much-criticised index puts annual inflation at about 10%, but private economists say prices are rising about three times faster than that. Real estate transactions have slowed to a standstill because of the difficulty in estimating future values, and unions that won 25% pay rises only a few months ago are threatening to strike again unless the government comes up with more. |
| The phrase "Cristina or nothing" was stencilled on to buildings surrounding the Plaza de Mayo in the capital. Demonstrators held up signs accusing the president of arrogance. While some featured a lengthy list of demands, others simply said "basta": enough. |