Well the agrarian sector of Argentina continues to be at war with Argentine President Christina Kirshner and her government for considerably raising the export taxes on agrarian products. Strikes and route cutting continue to be the methods used by producers in resistance to the tax increase. The exportation of grains has been the principle economic motor for Argentina since their economic crisis in 2001, and to date Argentina is the 3rd largest producer of soy, but as of now, no one is benefiting from the fertile lands of Argentina, and as the people of Argentina begin to feel the stress of the global food-crisis, they aren’t sitting idyll.
The pictures above are from an anti-government rally prompted by farmers and landowners that was supported by many middle and upper class Argentines that have ultimately been affected by the conflict. The same day a demonstration was held in front of the La Casa Rosada (the pink house) in favor of the government. Out numbering the government supporters, this manifestation had as many as 250,000 people, waving Argentine flags, and sporting t-shirts that said, “I’m for the farmers”.
Support is split among Argentines and fingers are being pointed in all sorts of economic and political directions casting blame. However, if a resolution can't be made, both sides will be to blame for the thousands of people who have found themselves starving and unable to feed their families due to inflated prices and food scarcity. I guess I just don't see the value of dumping gallons of milk in the river to limit milk supplies in the supermarket or stopping produce trucks from bringing food supplies to the city as a form of protest, while thousands of kids are being deprived of the nutrition they need to survive. As the whole world has entered into a food crisis it’s hard to stomach watching the destruction of food products in a political showdown knowing that somewhere a mother is trying to explain to her kids why there won’t be dinner again tonight.
