MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Kirchner accuses La Nation of embracing dictatorships

Argentine president Nestor Kirchner accused Buenos Aires daily La Nacion of having encouraged in 1976 the military coup which gave birth to the country's last dictatorship extending until 1983.

"Only yesterday they protected (former Conservative president) De la Rúa (1999/2001), today they are defending (right wing candidate) Lopez Murphy and in 1976 they called for the military dictatorship", blasted president Kirchner during a rally in the southern province of Neuquen.

Fernando De la Rua from the Radical Party was ousted in December 2001 following a popular rebellion when the Argentine people took to the streets. The Argentine economy virtually melted, the Argentine government defaulted and the political crisis extended until the institutional normalization of May 2003 when Mr. Kirchner won the election after former president Carlos Menem (1989/1999) abdicated from the run off.

"More criticisms for La Nacion", published the Buenos Aires daily pointing out that President Kirchner had directly accused La Nacion of attacking his administration. "We're not for confrontation, but the time of truth has come and we must point out those who hide behind a mask of independence but are really an opposition newspaper", said President Kirchner.

The Argentine president underlined he has not intention of attacking the press, merely "dissenting".

"It doesn't bother me that people think differently; on the contrary it makes me feel happy, satisfied. What really bothers me is that they hide behind masks. Let everybody assume responsibility, and if they are on one side or the other, just say so", added Mr. Kirchner who is touring Argentina campaigning for the October mid term elections when all the Lower House and a third of the Senate will be renewed.

"I'm not scared of them because I'm fully committed to this Argentina. They can keep attacking us because we will always have the fortitude to keep working for a different, new Argentina".

More specifically President Kirchner pointed to Deputy Director (Jose Claudio) Escribano "who said about the person who now rules Argentina that he wouldn't last six months in office. And is was said by a gentleman, Mr. Escribano, who openly embraced Argentina's dictatorships and now can't support seeing that human rights are being respected and it's the end of impunity".

La Nacion has repeatedly attacked what it considers Mr. Kirchner's over politicized activities, populist measures and distraction from more urging affairs such as foreign relations and the fragility of the current economic recovery.

Mr. Kirchner is involved in a full confrontation with the old leadership of the ruling Peronist party (namely former president Eduardo Duhalde) for the control of the party's structure, particularly in the main electoral circuits of Buenos Aires city and Buenos Aires province.

La Nacion with over 125 years of existence is no follower of Mr. Duhalde or Mr. Kirchner or the Justicialista Party.