Macri Ignores Riots, Denounces Venezuela for Rights Abuse

Argentine president Mauricio Macri expressed his support for political prisoners in Venezuela following a brief address at the 51st Mercosur Summit Thursday.

RELATED:
Argentine Police Injure and Detain Anti-Austerity Protesters

"I did not want to stop sending a message of solidarity and accompaniment to the Venezuelan people," Macri said to the assembly of Mercosur Heads of State in Brasilia, Brazil.

"From the Mercosur we call to respect human rights and the freedom of political prisoners and early adoption of an electoral calendar that is capable of ensuring an open and transparent process" in Venezuela, the president added.

His statement immediately followed harsh criticism from his Venezuelan counterpart, Nicolas Maduro, who said the country’s recently approved pension reforms were a “crime against the Argentine people.”

Maduro went on to accuse Macri of allowing the International Monetary Fund was controlling the system, once again.

Macri’s call for respect for human rights and political prisoners takes on a hypocritical tone in light of the week’s numerous arrests in Buenos Aires following the protests which erupted after the Chamber’s approval of pension plan reforms.

Human rights activists, politicians, and international organizations have denounced the administration’s failure to boost the economy as well as its handling of various human rights cases such as political prisoner Milagro Sala, the mysterious disappearance and death of activist Santiago Maldonado, the repression of Mapuche indigenous groups, the administration's failure to conduct proper investigations into the missing Argentine submarine lost with its crew of 44 in November, and police aggression against other protesting sectors this year.

RELATED: 'Political Violence Unethical': Argentinian Culture Minister

"A country like ours, with the history we have, the flirtation with political violence is directly criminal, it is unethical, it is authoritarian," Cultural Minister Pablo Avelluto denounced Tuesday adding that the recent riots resulted in 60 arrests and over 160 injured.

The government is attempting to undermine their human rights and eliminate social privileges in a struggle to supersede the changes which have shaken Latin America over recent years, said Adan Chavez, vice president of the International Affairs of the United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV), offering his support for Argentine victims.

Over the last week, Argentina has received severe criticism from its southern neighbors in Venezuela with some saying this level of repression has not been seen since the 1980s’.