Thousands of people have marched against the government in the southern Argentinian city of Rio Gallegos. They represented several different sectors of society and were led by a local Roman Catholic bishop. The demonstrators demands include higher wages and the demilitarization of the province. The government will worry that the protests are taking place in President Nestor Kirchner’s home town just two months before national elections.
The Argentine economy is growing and, according to opinion polls, President Kirchner’s wife, Cristina, is almost certain to replace him after elections at the end of October. But in his home province of Santa Cruz, the protest movement against him is growing and increasingly angry.
