MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

US Congress to discuss devastating report on Cristina Fernandez administration

There seems to be no limit to the Argentine president authoritarianism and disdain for the rule of the law

“Under the corrupt populist government of President Cristina Fernandez Argentina is back on the road to ruin” is the kick off for an extremely critical report to be discussed by the US Congress and which was drafted by Douglas Farah, senior research fellow at the International Assessment and Strategy Centre under the heading of “Back to the future”.

The 64 pages Farah report dates from last February and enumerates some of the most controversial issues of Cristina Fernandez administration: relations with the Teheran regime; change of position regarding the AMIA attack despite the findings from Prosecutor Alberto Nisman which are reproduced in the report; expansion of organized crime, particularly referred to drugs traffic; the shady relations with business people friends of the Kirchner family and power or crony capitalism with special reference to the energy sector, plus attacks on freedom of expression and freedom of the press such as stigmatizing the media and journalists, the use of official publicity and intervening in the newsprint market.

According to the Farah report Cristina Fernandez domestically faces a raft of crises. Inflation has ballooned to an estimated annualized 28%, the highest in Latinamerica. Unemployment is climbing, the flight of capital is accelerating, official corruption is very much extended, the dollar clamp has eroded business opportunities and dozens of international corporations have been forced to abandon Argentina.

The report however is previous to the advance of the Argentine Executive on the Justice branch and system, and the latest major corruption case which has a businessman close to the family and alleged ‘front man’ for former president Nestor Kirchner, exposed as probably the main public works contractor in Patagonia (with a monopoly of different companies) and involved in money laundering to Belize, Caribbean, Panama and Switzerland.

“The government of Cristina Fernandez is facing multiple political and economic crises and has further strengthened her alliances with the US and the region’s democracy major antagonists: Venezuela and Iran”.

Likewise the report states that the growing authoritarianism of Cristina Fernandez and her growing disdain for the rule of law both nationally and internationally puts Argentina on the path to international default and isolation from its most democratic traditional partners, including the US, Brazil, Chile and Colombia.