MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Federal Judge says Argentine government must guarantee “free circulation”

Pickets protesting the Botnia pulp mill said they will resist any removal

An Argentine federal Judge confirmed that the government should “guarantee the free circulation” of the bridge that links the Argentine city of Gualeguaychú with the Uruguayan city Fray Bentos.

Judge Gustavo Pimentel said that route 136 must be guaranteed to free circulation and highlighted that there is “a previous judicial order” to use as many measures as needed to guarantee “the normal circulation of vehicles from the national routes to the bridges that link the country with Uruguay, and to watch over the protesters and other people's security.”

“Taking into account the current situation and in order to guarantee the constitutional right of free-transit, the Interior Ministry should send an order to apply the judicial mandate,” said Judge Pimentel after approving the decision of prosecutor María de los Milagros Squivo.

However given the Gualeguaychú activists willingness to resist any zone request clearance, if it is filed, Cabinet Chief Aníbal Fernández ratified that the Government is not going to “repress any demonstrations in the area”.

The Gualeguaychú activists have been blocking the bridge that links the place with Uruguayan city Fray Bentos for over four years as a way of showing discontent towards the building of Botnia pulp mill, which allegedly was ‘highly contaminating’.

An International Court of Justice ruling last April denied that was the case; on the contrary it praised the environment protection measures undertaken by Uruguay.

“President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner's administration is to act as it has always acted in this matter. It will not repress the block and will not force anyone to leave”, making a reference to the rumours specifying that Uruguayan Judiciary is to ask for the Assembly Members to evacuate the zone.

“I'm not willing or interested in threatening anyone. We will act as we are supposed to do and we will not use the force to hurt anybody,” Fernández concluded.

Earlier, Gualeguaychú Assembly Legal Advisor Ana Angelini spoke on the controversy surrounding the fact that a clear-the-zone order is to be filed to the Assembly Members for them to evacuate the area they are currently blocking.

Angelini assured they are to “withstand the order.”

“A decision has been made and that is to continue with the block,” the Legal Advisor expressed, making a strong reference to the way of protesting against Botnia pulp mill the people from Gualeguaychú has been posting since 2006.

Nevertheless Argentine Interior Minister Florencio Randazzo pointed out the government will comply with the court order “without repression”. He added “we will notify the activists and if they don’t comply, we will identify those who are refusing and have them reported to Justice”.

Judge Pimentel recalled in the ruling that the Ministry of Interior was responsible for the implementation of his decision, which had been ordered in 2006 and 2007, and insisted that “free circulation rights” in the region must be enforced.

The ruling follows a presentation last May by a group of Mobilized Citizens who appealed to Article 194 of Argentina’s criminal code that punishes with three months to two years in prison for anybody who impedes or interrupts the normal operations of transport and communications.