The protesters want public higher education in the country to remain free. However, this has been made impossible by Milei’s new budget, which includes significant cuts in higher education. Public universities say they are in a “budgetary emergency” since the government announced that it will maintain the same budget for the 2024 academic year, which started in March, as in 2023, despite annual inflation of 288 percent.
Several universities have already taken emergency measures. At the prestigious UBA, common areas are not illuminated, the use of elevators is limited and the opening hours of the libraries are limited. Universities say they will only be able to function for a few months, because the money will then simply run out. According to a recent survey, about 2.2 million people study in the country’s public universities.
According to the police, about 100,000 people turned out in the capital Buenos Aires alone, while organizers estimated the number as high as half a million. A teachers union reported a million demonstrators across the country. Trade unions, opposition parties and private universities supported the protests in Buenos Aires and other major cities such as Cordoba.
60 percent below poverty line
It was one of the largest demonstrations yet against the austerity measures introduced since Milei came to power in December. His government has cut subsidies for transport, fuel and energy, among other things, causing Argentines to lose a fifth of their purchasing power. Thousands of civil servants have lost their jobs. Nearly 60 percent of the population now lives below the poverty line.
Tags: Argentinians revolting masse harsh cuts Milei government education
