MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Argentine farmers and government exchange strong accusations

Hugo Biolcati during his speech at the Rural Show

The head of the Argentine Rural Society (SRA) Hugo Biolcati demanded the government of President Cristina Kirchner “to leave pride aside” and said that they “should open a window of the intolerance wall” because “we are a country thrashed with corruption, exclusion and poverty”.

Biolcati was the main speaker at the official inauguration last Saturday of the 124th Farming Expo in Palermo organized by SRA, one of the most powerful farmers lobby in the country. Contrary to tradition no government official was present at the ceremony, but Mr. Biolcati’s words did not go unnoticed: he came under a barrage of criticisms from different figures of the Kirchner couple bunker.

Biolcati called for the end of poverty, injustice and exclusion, and ratified the unity of the Liaison Committee as a “resistance symbol against fiscal voracity,” referring to the government.

“No one can ever say that we have remained in silence. Every institution that forms the Liaison Committee has worked in order to make the farmers' voice stronger.”

The head of the SRA blasted the non-appearance of Kirchnerite party member, saying “we are waiting for the government to give a noble gesture.”

Biolcati invited the national authorities to imitate the Liaison Committee's “paradigm” which is a “good example of dialogue without disqualifying the other. Only the arrogant and selfish disqualify others to be the main characters on the stage.”

Former president Eduardo Duhalde, Buenos Aires City Mayor Mauricio Macri and lawmaker Francisco de Narváez were some of the opposition members who attended the event.

The inauguration which usually takes place at midday was held during the evening in order to also celebrate the Bicentenary with special shows. Biolcati highlighted that “this is the Rural expo of the Bicentenary.”

Cabinet Chief Aníbal Fernández blasted Biolcati saying that “I feel embarrassed for the members of the Rural Society,” after listening to the head of the SRA.

Fernández stated in his Twitter account that the Rural Society “has lived during the last 200 years looking down on the needs of the Argentines. They talk about poverty but they don't want their pockets to be touched, they talk about dialogue but they feel disturbed by diversity and plurality.”

“Harshly criticising the Democratic government shows that they do not feel comfortable with the system” and said that Biolcati's speech was “horrific.”

Agriculture Minister Julián Domínguez also came across strongly: “listening to Biolcati speaking of poverty and of a spirit of confrontation from our government is like listening to Satan celebrating midnight mass on Good Thursday.”

From India, where he is currently on a trade mission with officials and businessmen, the head of the Agriculture Ministry called to “eradicate the permanent speech of despair.”

“Biolcati forecasted we were to import wheat; false, this year we're going to have a production of more than 12 million tons. We assisted a crop which is to be superior to the 100 million tons of grains and oilseeds,” Domínguez said.

He also said that the farming leader, “when we began the rotating funds for the southwest in order to assist small farmers, he dismissed us.”

“It's a shame that the president of the Rural Society did not recognize that today, the livestock producer has better prices than ever before. With the increase in minimum labour, Argentina is regaining the livestock volume that the territory allows,” he said.

Domínguez said that “in Argentina, there are 13.7 million ha that the agriculture won over from cattle raising and this created a productive structure in the last decade in Argentina where 77% of the soil is in hands of contractor business organizer.”

“What we've tried at the Ministry has been to place in the middle of the discussion what the agricultural subject we must defend is. For us, it’s those who work the land, takes risks, buys and invests; we want more production with more grains and more producers. It's time to end the prophecy of despair,” the minister concluded.