Protests and Marches, a Part of the Daily Life in Buenos Aires

In Buenos Aires (as in the rest of Argentina) you will find that protests and marches are a frequent way people use to express disappointment with the government policies (of the past and of today). In fact, protest actions happen quite often and you will probably notice at least one during your stay, since Buenos Aires, being the political centre of the nation, is also a meeting point for all kind of people that want to show their unhappiness.

A part of the daily life of the city. The most popular places to gather are Plaza de Mayo (map) and Plaza Congreso (map), where most government offices are located. Nowadays we are experiencing a series of strikes by diferent sectors such as school teachers, subway employees, factory workers and more who are in dispute with the city or the federal government.

Sometimes you will notice that roads are cut, vehicles are not allowed to transit, people can´t get to work. Sometimes food gets scarce. There is very little meat and dairy products, and people begin to suffer the consequences. I always say this is a very cyclical country on its way to development, and now we are going trough one of those rough phases…

One of the most important, touching and enduring protest action is the one Mothers of Plaza de Mayo perform every week at Plaza de Mayo as well as every 24 of March (anniversary of the military coup). Here is a summary of events to explain what happen… Following Peron’s death, his third wife, Isabel, became South America’s first woman president. She had no experience in government. The country was torn by extreme inflation (300 percent) and terrorism. In 1976 military leaders arrested Isabel Peron and took control of the government (the coup). They dissolved the Congress, outlawed political parties, banned worker strikes, and eliminated free press. The military then focused its attentions on the dissidents and guerrilla groups,  beginning a “dirty war”. The military were able to destroy the power of their enemies with a violent campaign of kidnapping and killing, mostly young people killed for their political beliefs. It’s estimated that 30,000 people disappeared, most of them never being found. Their mothers started gathering on Plaza de Mayo (they have been doing so since 1977) hoping to find out where their sons are. This is how the walks or marches around the Plaza de Mayo originated. In order to be identified and recognized, the Mothers began to use a white handkerchief around the head that eventually turned into their symbol. They began as a small group that grew up to being 300 to 400 Mothers and little by little they were joined by fathers, brothers, wives, children and grandsons of the disappeared and others who wanted to participate.

The Mothers and Abuelas of Plaza of Mayo continue with their marches every Thursday around the Plaza de Mayo at 3.30 pm, to bring those responsible to justice, to find out the fate of their children. If you want to know more about this organization, you can stop by the Asociación Madres de Plaza de Mayo, steps from Plaza Congreso (Hipólito Yrigoyen 1584 (map) or go to http://www.madres.org/ , or visit http://www.abuelas.gov.ar/

Photo credit: Martín Santarelli on Flickr