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WORLD NEWSFriday 11 December 2015

Sleepy days over for Venezuela congress Argentina’s new president Macri
vows major changes and honesty
HANNAH DREIER government workers in so- ity reports and economic
Associated Press cialist red T-shirts patrolling figures the body is sup- PETER PRENGAMAN
CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) the palm-tree-lined Na- posed to receive annually VICENTE PANETTA
— Venezuela’s socialist tional Assembly compound have morphed into docu- Associated Press
lawmakers vowed Thurs- say the body will be unrec- ments that read more like BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) — Mauricio Macri was
day to pass laws and make ognizable come next year. celebratory press releases sworn in as Argentina’s president Thursday, inheriting
appointments until the last “It’s going to be more work, or that have stopped com- myriad economic problems from the often-divisive
possible minute to protect less singing,” said Jimmy ing in altogether. outgoing leader Cristina Fernandez, who skipped the
their revolution before the Toval, who has handled lo- While lawmakers have inauguration in a final sign of confrontation that un-
opposition takes over con- gistics in the legislature for sometimes promised to in- derscored deep polarization in the South American
gress next month on prom- 15 years. “The new guys are vestigate major scandals, nation.
Macri, the former mayor of Buenos Aires who hails
Pedestrians walk in front of the National Assembly building in Caracas, Venezuela, Thursday, Dec. from one of Argentina’s richest families, took the oath
10, 2015. Venezuela’s ruling socialist party is set to rush through a series of appointments before of office in Congress in front of legislators, several Lat-
the opposition takes over congress next month with promises to revive what it calls a moribund in- in American heads of state and other dignitaries, in-
stitution. The legislature was expected to name 12 Supreme Court justices Thursday during a final cluding former Spanish King Juan Carlos I.
session, filling vacancies left by a group of judges who requested early retirement. “Today a dream is being achieved,” Macri said as
he took the oath 15 minutes ahead of schedule,
(AP Photo/Fernando Llano) surprising commentators who noted Argentina isn’t
known for such punctuality. The new president then
ises to revive an institution coming in to write laws.” like a 2013 prison riot in launched into a speech that was both a long list of
they say has been subservi- During 15 years of socialist promises and a frank, if not brutal, assessment of how
ent to the presidency. control, Venezuela’s con- which dozens of inmates he sees Argentina, a country rich in natural resources
At the first session since the gress has met infrequently were shot to death, they that has also suffered several major economic melt-
opposition won a landslide to rubber-stamp the presi- rarely present conclusions. downs. Macri said that the nation of 41 million people
victory in Sunday’s legisla- dent’s agenda, reducing On Thursday, lawmakers entered the 21st century behind in its development
tive election, lawmakers its schedule to just one day gave a promotion to the and that its education system needs to be modern-
heard performances of pa- a week. judge who earlier this year ized at all levels. He said that “lying about and hiding”
triotic songs and promised The public is not allowed in convicted opposition lead- the state of the economy had tarnished Argentina’s
to never cooperate with at all and reporters are cor- er Leopoldo Lopez to more reputation worldwide, a clear dig at the Fernandez
the “bourgeoisie” lead- ralled into a room far from than a decade in prison for administration, which often put out suspect figures on
ers who will take control the floor where they watch his role leading anti-gov- inflation, poverty rates and gross domestic product.
of the legislature Jan. 5. proceedings on a televi- ernment street protests in “I will always be honest with you,” Macri told the na-
The election has created sion with an inconsistent 2014. Human rights groups tion. “And being honest means telling you that the
a divided government for signal. That televised view consider Lopez the region’s challenges in front of us are enormous.”
the first time since the late drew derision in 2013 when highest-profile political pris- The 56-year-old ran on promises to usher in an era of
President Hugo Chavez the camera averted its oner, and the opposition more civil discourse and roll back much of the Fer-
launched his socialist gov- gaze from a fight on the as- has vowed to pass a law nandez administration spending that many econo-
ernment here in 1998. sembly floor that sent high- that would free him. mists say has brought Argentina to the brink of an-
“We will never change our profile opposition leader The legislature is expected other financial crisis.
position, no matter what Maria Corina Machado to to appoint a series of Su- One thing standing in his way is the continued, hostile
kind of blackmail or ma- the hospital. It broadcast a preme Court judges next influence of Fernandez, whose party still controls the
nipulation they throw our shot of the ceiling instead. week who would in theory Senate and has the largest bloc in the lower house.
way,” outgoing National Last month, lawmakers be able to nullify the oppo- Throughout his campaign, Macri argued that mea-
Assembly President Diosda- approved the president’s sition’s laws by finding them sured free-market reforms would overhaul the strug-
do Cabello said. “We will budget proposal with mini- unconstitutional. Human gling economy. He also promised to be a leader
be here until midnight on mal debate, as they have Rights Watch has called “who listens more and talks less,” a clear contrast with
January 4. for years. At other times, this plan undemocratic. Fernandez, who frequently blasted opponents during
The refusal to negotiate they have danced around If the Supreme Court be- hours-long speeches.
probably won’t matter, the chamber to drums and gan overturning laws, the In his Thursday address, Macri promised to fight the
given the opposition’s two- held sing-alongs. opposition would likely try nation’s growing drug trade “as no president has be-
third majority. Even the The detailed accountabil- to impeach those judges fore.” He also said he would make good on his aim
or pack the court with their to achieve “zero poverty” and be ruthless in cracking
own picks.q down on corruption.
Fernandez and her late husband and predeces-
sor, Nestor Kirchner, dominated Argentina’s politi-
cal landscape the past 12 years. The power couple
sharply increased spending on social welfare pro-
grams while raising tariffs in attempts to protect local
industries and aligning the country with leftist leaders
like late Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez and Bo-
livian President Evo Morales.
Macri has promised to undo many of those policies
and improve relations with the United States.
“Finally, the day of change has come,” said Nelly Lo-
pez, a 58-year-old waving Argentine and Venezuelan
flags outside of Congress. “This (economic) model is
ending, just like it is in Venezuela.
Lopez, one of tens of thousands in the streets, said
she and her three daughters immigrated to Argen-
tina from Venezuela several years ago because of
frustration with Chavez.q