She described the ongoing legal process as a ‘judicial spectacle.’

On Thursday, Argentina’s Federal Criminal Court No. 7 began a virtual trial against former President Cristina Fernandez on charges of alleged illicit association and bribery in the awarding of public works contracts between 2003 and 2015.

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The first hearing in the so-called “Bribes Notebooks” case opened with the participation of Fernandez and 86 other defendants, including 21 former officials and 65 businesspeople.

Minutes before the virtual hearing began, Fernandez—who has been under house arrest in another case since June 17—said the new trial was part of a media operation with political aims.

“Today another judicial spectacle begins… Apparently it wasn’t enough for them to imprison me and ban me for life in the Roadworks Case. They need to keep this judicial charade alive to continue exerting pressure and, above all, to distract attention,” she said.

Fernandez argued that the case was reactivated precisely as far-right President Javier Milei seeks to push through reforms harmful to Argentine workers and retirees.

The text reads, “Day 140 of activism for Cristina’s third presidency. ‘The NO to the FTAA marked a stage of liberation. Now, the judicial persecution, such as the unjust imprisonment of our sister Cristina Fernández, is a form of imperial intervention.'” The video shows former Bolivian president Evo Morales speaking.

She described the current trial as “a scandalous judicial farce built on fake notebooks rewritten 1,500 times.” Fernandez also cited statements by current Justice Minister Mariano Cuneo, who, when he was the defense attorney for one of the accused businessmen, said detainees were pressured to implicate public officials.

“I am not afraid. I know that history, as always, will set things right,” the former Argentine president stresssed.

At the end of the investigation phase, Prosecutor Carlos Stornelli argued that Fernandez and her late husband, former President Nestor Kirchner, created an illegal fundraising system that involved officials at various levels.

According to the indictment, Fernandez allegedly participated in the awarding of railway and road concessions through bribes, gifts to officials in exchange for government favors, and illicit agreements among construction companies to inflate public works bids.

The authenticity of the alleged evidence was challenged by Fernandez’s defense attorneys, Carlos Beraldi and Ariel Llernovoy, who in August 2023 requested that the case be dismissed based on two expert reports—by the Federal Police and the University of Buenos Aires—showing that the notebooks had been tampered with.

The new judicial proceeding against Fernandez, which could last up to three years, comes despite the fact that the leftist leader is not mentioned in any of the notebooks and no witness has identified her as receiving money.

The foundation of the case has been questioned from the outset. The first piece of evidence—the notebooks themselves—was controversial: although former driver Oscar Centeno said he burned them in a grill, they reappeared almost intact a year and a half later. Expert analyses further indicated that the handwriting came from more than one person, with crossed-out passages and numerous alterations.

The second piece of evidence consists of statements by “repentant” businessmen and former officials who were extorted into implicating Fernandez under threat of imprisonment.

teleSUR/ JF

Sources: EFE – teleSUR

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