March Inflation Revealed: Inflation for March, as informed yesterday by Economy Minister Axel Kicillof, was of 2.6%. This number, measured by the new Consumer Price Index (IPC-Nu), brings the total for the year so far to 9.7%. Compared to January’s 3.7% and February’s 3.4%, Kicillof stated that March’s inflation “implies a considerable slowdown” in the inflation rate. The minister explained that “the slowdown can be seen in all items, except in Clothing and Education, where there’s a seasonal variation,” and that the increase in prices is mostly due to this year’s peso devaluation and its impact on the prices of machinery, imported supplies, and fuel and transport. The numbers, published by statistics office Indec, were lower than those estimated by private consulting firms, though the latter also reflected a declining inflation rate. The IPC for March published by the opposition in Congress showed a price increase of 3.3%, whilst others ranged from 3.2 to 3.8%. Kicillof doubted the reliability of these alternative indices, “because we don’t know absolutely anything about the methodology they use.”
New Bill to Regulate Street Protests: Pro-government deputies introduced a bill in Congress today which seeks to regulate street protests and pickets. The 34-article bill states that protests must be notified 48 hours in advance, and can only be cleared out after civilian mediation. However, security forces can dissolve demonstrations that are deemed to be “illegitimate”. It also states that police officers in direct contact with protesters cannot carry firearms, and that they must be wearing uniforms and badges at all times. With regards to other kinds of weapons, it says that “weapons that are not firearms can be used for the defence of authorities if they are in imminent danger, but never as a way to dissolve a protest.” The bill comes after president Cristina Fernández de Kirchner mentioned the need to regulate street protests in her State of the Nation address before Congress on 1st March. The authors of the bill said that “Against other solutions that seek to restrict [people's] rights, using the Criminal Code to increase penalties or creating new crimes, we propose to guarantee and to strengthen rights.”
Ex-Policeman Arrested Over Crimes Against Humanity: A former police officer accused of killing 19 people and kidnapping and torturing another 285 during the last military dictatorship was arrested on Monday. The man, Gerardo Jorge Arráez, had been a fugitive from justice for over two years and was using fake identification documents when caught. Witnesses have stated that Arráez, aka Nito, displayed an “excessive fondness” for Catholicism, placing a small chapel with an image of the Virgin within the Olimpo detention centre, and that he used to photograph victims after they were tortured. He is being prosecuted by judge Daniel Rafecas, who is investigating crimes against humanity committed in the ‘Banco’ and ‘Olimpo’ clandestine detention centres.
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