Buenos Aires city Judge Elena Liberatori visited the park yesterday — which is now surrounded by agents of the Border Guard while the Coast Guard patrols the surroundings — and considered “everything is calm.”
Cabinet Chief Aníbal Fernández released a statement yesterday expressing his vision of the conflict — during which at least three people were killed and several others were wounded or injured — and blamed Buenos Aires city Mayor Mauricio Macri for the incidents.
Liberatori said her presence at the park aimed to generate the necessary “climate” to “arbitrate” and “reach consensus between opposite interests.”
At least three people were killed and several others were injured during the violent clashes that broke out following the occupation of the park last week when police tried to evict squatters from the park.
Squatters received food and medical assistance yesterday while authorities of the federal and city Social Development ministries began to take the census of the people who had taken over the 130-hectare park.
City Social Development Minister María Eugenia Vidal said the census aims to determine “who took advantage of the situation” and added several of the squatters are residents from Buenos Aires province. Therefore, Vidal urged Buenos Aires Governor Daniel Scioli to “come to Soldati” to see “what the situation is.”
“It would be interesting that the Buenos Aires government could participate in the solution (of the conflict),” said Vidal.
Meanwhile, the political row between the national government and the city administration continued yesterday as Cabinet Chief Aníbal Fernández blamed City Mayor Mauricio Macri for the occupation of the park and the incidents.
Fernández said Macri instigated “the escalation of violence” in the area and aimed to evict the squatters “without caring about the blood, injuries or deaths” it could generate.
In an article posted by the Cabinet Chief at his personal blog, Fernández insisted the administration of President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner “does not allow the occupation of any public space” and claimed “the solution to the conflict has to be political,” but he stated Macri “refused to negotiate with the squatters”
The Cabinet Chief insisted the “xenophobic statements” of the City Mayor led to the “violent escalation” of the conflict and claimed the national government “had no choice but to intervene (in the conflict) to avoid an escalation without limits.”
Incidents at the Indo-American park broke out last Tuesday following the decision of the city government to evict the squatters from the park. Two people were killed during the violent clashes that night and another was shot dead on Thursday when squatters and Vi-lla Soldati residents clashed after the police left the area. More incidents broke out on Friday as residents entered the park and tried to evict the squatters, beating them up and burning their tents.
A fourth victim was reported that night by SAME emergency service director Alberto Crescenti, which was later denied by city authorities and the police, alleging the man Crescenti referred to was hospitalized in critical condition.
No further incidents were reported yesterday, although press reports said a minor group of demonstrators — not clear if they were residents or political activists — had clashed with Coast Guard officers outside the park. However, the situation was reportedly calm at press time.
