MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Milei’s Davos speech triggers political and social uproar

In his 30-minute speech, the Argentine president said he had a much bigger task than reforming the chronically crisis-ridden South American country.

Argentine President Javier Milei generated a wave of criticism after his statements at the World Economic Forum in Davos, where he linked homosexuality with pedophilia. His words triggered the call for an “anti-fascist” march, which is expected to be massive in Buenos Aires and other cities of the country

The rejection of his remarks was not limited to the political opposition or human rights groups, but was also echoed in the business world. “The CEO of the world's largest investment fund was outraged,” said sources close to the event. While tycoon Elon Musk was one of the few who came out in his defense, assuring: “I love Javier Milei”.

From the ruling party, some sectors fear that this could strengthen the construction of an opposition block with greater cohesion. “An axis against Milei is emerging, not so much for his economic policies, but for his attacks on individual liberties”, analyzed consultant Hugo Haime. However, political scientist Marcos Novaro warned that labeling Milei as a “fascist” could be a strategic mistake: “Exaggerated reactions only strengthen him, as happened with Trump in the United States.”

In his 30-minute speech, he said he had a much bigger task than reforming the chronically crisis-ridden South American country. He explained that he had to go into detail to make some things clear about the importance of global cultural change. He described the woke ideology as the great epidemic of our time that must be cured, as a 'cancer we must get rid of'. The term woke is used by right-wing politicians like Milei to criticize many Western societies' attempts to implement social justice, diversity and anti-discrimination policies.

The applause after this ideological coup was muted. The night before, things had been very different. At a roundtable organized by Bloomberg, Milei had been enthusiastically celebrated as a successful reformist president.”

Milei's speech not only outraged Larry Fink, CEO of BlackRock, the world's largest investment fund, but also provoked a call for an “anti-fascist” march in downtown Buenos Aires and other cities in the country for next Saturday.

For analyst Mariel Fornoni, the political impact of the controversy will be limited as long as the economic situation remains stable. “I don't see this affecting his popularity too much, except in certain collectives that were already critical”, she explained.