Page 7 - aruba-today-20220603

A7
WORLD NEWS Friday 3 June 2022
In Argentina, groups keep lid on simmering social conflict

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina and other soup kitchens,
(AP) — Holding an empty some opened during the
tote bag, Bahiano Aréva- pandemic, her three chil-
lo waits impatiently for his dren, mother and partner
turn at the Little Lions soup would not have enough
kitchen outside Argentina’s food to survive at a time of
capital. A few moments lat- 58% annual inflation, which
er, the 7-year-old receives economists say could grow
some milk and cake. to 70 percent, or higher, by
He takes it to his mother, Ev- the end of the year.
elin Benítez, who is waiting “Everything we obtained
for him near the entrance was because we fought,
to the humble brick home because we blocked
that serves as the soup streets,” said Cabral of
kitchen in the poverty- the Darío Santillán Popular
stricken Carmen de Alvear Front, which was one of the
neighborhood. movements that camped
“I come here because I out for days recently on
have three children and one of the main Buenos
everything helps,” said Aires avenues demanding
Benítez, a street sweeper more welfare.
who makes 20,000 pesos Demonstrators walk past a monument of former President Julio Roca during a march to the Plaza Such organizations have
($159) per month, less than de Mayo organized by social organizations demanding more jobs and higher wages, in Buenos long been present in Ar-
half the minimum wage Aires, Argentina, Thursday, May 12, 2022. gentina but they grew and
and not enough to live on Associated Press became more powerful at
in a country with one of the end of 2001, when the
the world’s highest inflation and access to work pro- election time. The social evident over the past few country suffered the worst
rates and 37% of its popula- grams. Benitez got her job groups are intermediar- weeks, when social orga- economic collapse in its his-
tion mired in poverty. as a street sweeper though ies with the ministries and nizations held large street tory that plunged half the
Benítez is one of millions one such program. some of their leaders hold protests demanding more population into poverty.
of Argentines who survive These organizations and government posts or have work and higher wages. They continue to hold influ-
largely thanks to soup kitch- assistance programs keep close ties to ruling party of- The life of Benitez, 29, re- ence and people rely on
ens and state welfare pro- a lid on simmering social ficials. volves around such com- them for a myriad of wel-
grams, many of which are unrest in Argentina. Without But they are a double- bative social movements. fare programs to subsist.
funneled through politically them, “everything would edged sword for ruling Now she is part of Barrios de “Three of every 10 homes in
powerful social movements blow up,” said Jorge Ca- President Alberto Fernán- Pie, but last year she was the country are beneficia-
linked to the ruling party. bral, a member of the Fr- dez. On the one hand, they more heavily involved in ries of some kind of welfare
Almost a third of Argentine ente Popular Darío Santil- help the neediest survive Movimiento Evita, another program,” said Eduardo
households are estimated lán, which opened the Lit- day-to-day and prevent organization. Membership Donza, researcher at the
to receive some kind of so- tle Lions soup kitchen. explosive social conflict. But helped her get her job.. Social Debt Observatory of
cial assistance. Critics of the state’s welfare they also pose a threat to “Now I’ll go pick up my the Argentine Catholic Uni-
These social organizations programs ranging from the government because other two children in pre- versity. “If this were not the
do not simply provide food, economists to right-leaning of their ability to organize school and the three will be case, the destitute would
they also have strong ties to politicians say they are a massive protests for more able to drink warm milk,” go from representing the
political leaders which fa- tool used by political lead- assistance, and other de- said a smiling Benítez. current 8% of the popula-
cilitates receiving subsidies ers to assure votes come mands. This power became If Benítez did not go to this tion to 18%.”q

Lack of water in Puerto Rico town sparks federal lawsuit

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) sation, alleging that the ary 2017. The lawsuit ac-
— Puerto Rico’s water and lack of water has caused cuses the water and sewer
sewer company was hit by more than $55 billion in company of blaming the
a federal lawsuit on Thurs- damages. problem on heavy rainfalls,
day demanding that it pro- Maldonado said daily in- power outages, mechani-
vide services to thousands terruptions in water service cal failures and other issues.
of residents who lack pota- have long been a problem “Every day there is an ex-
ble water on a daily basis. in Morovis that grew worse cuse,” it states, adding
The class-action lawsuit was after Hurricane Maria hit in that the company has not
filed by Carmen Maldo- September 2017 as a pow- adjusted the bills and that
nado, mayor of the north- erful Category 4 storm and those suing “have a consti-
ern town of Morovis, who razed the U.S. territory’s tutional right to water ser-
requested that a judge is- electric grid. vice.”
sue an injunction to force The lawsuit states that ev- Daily power outages re-
Puerto Rico’s Aqueducts ery day on average at main common across Puer-
and Sewer Authority to pro- least three wards within the to Rico, with officials saying Jose Luis Gonzalez walks through a ravine known as “La Raja
vide immediate service to municipality have no water that if power generators de Rosa,” where people from Barrio Patron get their water
residents in need. service. are not working, they are supply in Morovis, Puerto Rico, Dec. 22, 2017, three months after
The lawsuit represents near- It also noted that the town unable to pump water. Hurricane Maria hit.
ly 1,600 residents and seeks has spent more than $1 mil- A spokeswoman for the Associated Press
$1,000 for every day spent lion in hiring and deploying water and sewer com-
without water as compen- water trucks since Janu- pany did not immediately respond to a message for comment.q