Argentina's Vice President Kirchner wants to go home when a man pulls a pistol in front of her face - but no shot is fired. Outrage gripped the country, tens of thousands took to the streets in support of the left-wing Peronist.
A day after the attempted assassination of Argentine Vice President Cristina Kirchner, tens of thousands of her supporters took to the streets in solidarity with the former head of state. Members of left-wing parties, trade unions and social movements gathered on Friday afternoon for the rally in the Plaza de Mayo in front of the seat of government in Buenos Aires. President Alberto Fernández had previously visited the Vice President at home. Their supporters also demonstrated in other cities in the South American country.
"In the face of the attempted assassination of the country's most important politician, no one who defends the republic can remain silent or put their ideological differences above unanimous rejection," said a joint statement read by the President of the Actors' Association, Alejandra Darín. "For years, a small circle of politicians and the media have repeated a discourse of hatred, slander, stigmatization and criminalization of any grassroots politician or supporter of Peronism."
The previous evening, the former head of state had narrowly escaped an assassination attempt, according to government sources. As Kirchner greeted her supporters in front of her apartment in the elegant Recoleta district of Buenos Aires, a man pointed a gun at her from point-blank range. According to witnesses, he pulled the trigger at least once but did not fire a shot. He was then struck down by Kirchner's supporters and arrested by the police. The assassin is said to be a neo-Nazi. President Alberto Fernández spoke of the most serious political incident since the end of the military dictatorship in Argentina from 1976 to 1983. He ordered a day off to protest the violence.
Vice President Kirchner is considered by many to be a key figure in Argentina's government because of her popularity and past presidency. Numerous ministers belong to their camp within the Peronist coalition "Frente de Todos". The 69-year-old is worshiped almost religiously by her supporters and hated by her opponents. In a corruption case at the end of August, the public prosecutor's office demanded that Kirchner be imprisoned for twelve years. As a result, their thousands of supporters occupied the streets around their apartment, and there were clashes with the police.
The attempted assassination is now another negative climax of the public legal conflict surrounding the Vice President. Kirchner is said to have awarded an ally a large number of government construction contracts during her presidency. According to the prosecutor's request, many thousands of people made their way to their place of residence every day.
The police in the city, which is ruled by the opposition, used tear gas and water cannons against Kirchner's supporters, and the vice president's son was involved in a scuffle and verbally abused by the police. The local residents felt disturbed by the noise and "parrilladas", the barbecues on the open street, the police justified their action. Especially among lower-income sections of the population, left-wing and feminist movements, Kirchner is an icon because of her focus on social politics. The demands of the public prosecutor's office and the actions of the police in their elegant residential area were therefore highly symbolic.
A senator from the government coalition said after the scandal surrounding the actions of the police: "You have stepped into the anthill of Peronism." Some members of the opposition suspect that the attempted assassination was staged in order to mobilize further support for Kirchner and the politically weakened Peronist government. Argentina is fighting against high inflation, and the population's fears for the future are great.
