Occupiers are refusing to leave the terrain in Villa Lugano (Photo: Gustavo Amarellee/Télam/lz)
No Agreement in Lugano Terrain Occupation: A terrain in the Buenos Aires neighbourhood of Villa Lugano continues to be occupied by some 200 people who moved onto the plot in the early hours of Tuesday morning, in a tense occupation that led to a 30-year-old man being shot and killed. Osvaldo Soto was buried today, as negotiations continued between the city government, law enforcement, and the occupiers. However, the talks have so far been fruitless, and the City Government’s Social Development Minister, Carolina Stanley, said that the government would not “negotiate with those who break the law”, and dismissed out of hand the possibility of economic assistance to those who had taken over the plot of land, which is close to Parque Indoamericano and next to Villa 20, in the south of the city. The settlers are demanding land to build property, claiming the city government has failed to deliver on promises of social housing. So far the government has refused to use force to evict the settlers, perhaps as a similiar stand-off in Parque Indoamericano, when 5,000 settlers occupied the park in December 2010, led to violent clashes in which three were killed. Negotiations are set to resume tomorrow.
Despegar.com Offices Closed for Tax Evasion: The government has announced the closure of the offices of Despegar.com travel website for alleged tax evasion. The announcement comes after a raid on the offices by AFIP tax agency officials and police yesterday afternoon. According to AFIP the company is under investigation for not paying taxes on profits made and for using a group company with offices in the United States for various transactions, taking advantage of a tax loophole for foreign non-residents of Argentina. In a statement, head of AFIP Ricardo Echegaray said: “Countries who undertake activity in Argentina should know that they have to pay taxes in our country … We know that the G-20 are deciding what to do with large multinationals which hide their activities in off-shore companies, and we are taking concrete action against those who are dodging their taxes.” However, Despegar.com today won an injunction which will allow the website to continue to function from Argentina whilst the investigation continues, although all transactions must be done online, as the travel agency’s offices will remain closed.
Russian Gay Couple Seek Refugee Status: A gay couple from Russia who got married in Buenos Aires today have officially asked for political refugee status, as they fear persecution if they return to their homeland. Alex and Dimitri, from Sochi, which recently hosted the Winter Olympics, left Russia as a result of the homophobic persecution which has become a policy of current president Vladimir Putin’s administration. A few months ago, María Rachid, a national deputy known for her LGBT activism, called on the government to offer asylum to those who were persecuted for their sexual orientation, specifically mentioning Russia. In July 2010, Argentina became the first country in Latin America to fully legalise same-sex marriage.