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C O N F I D E N T I A L BUENOS AIRES 000465 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/10/2017 
TAGS: PGOV PREL ASEC AR VZ CU BO UR
SUBJECT: ARGENTINA:  CHAVEZ'S ANTI-BUSH RALLY 
 
Classified By: Ambassador E. Anthony Wayne for Reasons 1.4(b) and (d). 
 
¶1.  (U) SUMMARY:  Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez led an 
inflammatory anti-Bush, anti-imperialism rally on March 9 in 
Buenos Aires in which he called President Bush a "political 
cadaver."  Argentine President Nestor Kirchner allowed the 
rally to take place but was careful to distance himself from 
the actual event, saying nothing about it to the press, 
sending no high-level GOA officials, and attending a film 
festival out of Buenos Aires during the rally itself.  The 
four-hour rally capped a day of protests at the Uruguayan 
Embassy, the American Club, and the U.S. Embassy in Buenos 
Aires.  Argentine press coverage noted Kirchner's mixed 
message of allowing Chavez's visit to take place while 
remaining distant from the event itself, but has also focused 
on a fair amount of objective coverage of Bush's visit.  END 
SUMMARY. 
 
--------- 
The Rally 
--------- 
 
¶2.  (C)  Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez led an anti-Bush 
anti-imperialism rally on March 9 in Buenos Aires with a 
crowd of approximately 20,000 to 30,000 supporters.  Chavez's 
rhetoric was predictably an inflammatory criticism of 
President Bush and U.S. policies that dragged on for about 
two hours.  He called Bush a "political cadaver" and 
ridiculed U.S. offers of foreign aid in the region.  He also 
used Bush's comments about sharing a common heritage as sons 
of liberators (George Washington and Simon Bolivar) to allude 
to what kind of "son" he thinks Bush is.  Chavez praised 
Kirchner several times in his speech and said that Argentina 
and Venezuela are working on strengthening the bilateral 
"union" between them, something that Kirchner has never 
mentioned.  He highlighted his meeting earlier in the day 
with Kirchner and the many accords they signed to bring the 
two countries closer.  Chavez claimed that his visit to 
Argentina was not motivated by "sabotaging" Bush's Latin 
American tour and that it was mere coincidence that he 
happened to be visiting Buenos Aires during Bush's visit to 
Uruguay. 
 
¶3.  (C)  Chavez financed the four-hour event, which capped a 
day of protests at the Uruguayan Embassy, the American Club, 
and the U.S. Embassy in Buenos Aries. According to Embassy 
sources, 200 Venezuelan troops accompanied Chavez to Buenos 
Aires, reportedly without the required Argentine 
Congressional approval for the ingress of foreign troops or 
their weapons.  The crowd was composed of various anti-U.S. 
and leftist groups, not all of which are pro-Kirchner, and 
was organized by the Argentine organization Madres de Plaza 
de Mayo headed by Hebe de Bonafini.  The crowd could be heard 
chanting and singing during Chavez's speech, so loudly that 
it forced Chavez to pause at least twice.  (COMMENT:  The 
chanting was sometimes in response to Chavez' speech, but 
sometimes indicated a party-like atmosphere that perhaps 
distracted the crowd from the speech itself.  END COMMENT.) 
Politicians and other prominent figures in attendance 
included: Congressmen Rafael Bielsa, Edgardo Depetri, and 
Miguel Bonasso CTA Union leaders Hugo Yasky, Claudio Lozano, 
and Victor de Gennaro; and piquetero leader Luis D'Elia. 
 
------------------------ 
Kirchner and Chavez Meet 
------------------------ 
 
¶4.  (C)  Argentine President Nestor Kirchner allowed the 
rally but was careful to distance himself from the actual 
event, saying nothing about it to the press, sending no 
high-level GOA officials, and attending a film festival out 
of Buenos Aires during the rally itself.  He received Chavez 
at his residence in Buenos Aires, where the two agreed to 
allow other countries to join their 'Bank of the South' and 
signed 11 agreements, including the formation of a Gas 
Producer Nations organization along the lines of OPEC.  In 
the photos taken after the meeting, Chavez and Cristina and 
Nestor Kirchner are shown smiling and laughing, which were 
viewed by some analysts here as early campaign photos for 
Cristina, who is rumored to be the Kirchner candidate for the 
 
presidential elections this October.  Embassy sources have 
reported that Cristina Kirchner specifically chose to attend 
the film festival on March 9 so she would be out of the city 
during Chavez's rally. 
 
----------------- 
TV/Press Coverage 
----------------- 
 
¶5.  (U)  Argentine press coverage gave a lot of attention to 
Chavez and the rally, but has also focused on a fair amount 
of objective coverage of Bush's visit. Several Argentine 
 
television stations covered Chavez's speech, but interrupted 
coverage for Cristina Kirchner's speech at a film festival in 
Mar del Plata.  None of the stations covering the rally 
returned to uninterrupted coverage of Chavez's speech after 
that, broadcasting instead small clips in between headline 
recaps, horse races, the lottery, and commercials.  Even 
Bush's arrival in Uruguay trumped coverage of Chavez' speech. 
 
¶6.  (U)  The two major papers both covered Chavez's visit on 
the front page.  Clarin ran a pro-Chavez piece on the front 
page and then offered strong criticisms of Chavez inside.  La 
Nacion focused on the Argentina-Venezuela agreements signed 
yesterday on the front page, but also ran a piece that 
claimed Kirchner had taken a step back in U.S.-Argentine 
relations.  Coverage of Bush's message has been objective and 
steady, with many of his key points being covered in the 
newspapers here. 
 
----------------------- 
Protest at U.S. Embassy 
----------------------- 
 
¶7.  (U)  About 450 to 500 protesters demonstrated in front of 
the Embassy on March 9 for approximately 35 minutes.  The 
protest was peaceful, with demonstrators displaying large 
banners, playing music, and blocking traffic.  Participants 
included: Izquierda Socialista, Movimiento Socialista de los 
Trabajadores (MST), Movimiento Teresa Rodriguez, 12 de Abril, 
Partido Comunista de Peru (PCP), and Partido Obrero.  The 
banners said "Fuera Bush de Uruguay" (Bush--Get out of 
Uruguay).  According to RSO, Argentine Federal Police support 
to the Embassy was excellent, providing about 200 uniformed 
officers and riot police to guard the Embassy and the near-by 
Ambassador's Residence. 
 
¶8.  (U)  Earlier in the day, protesters demonstrated at the 
Embassy of Uruguay where they burned a U.S. flag and 
spray-painted the street.  the ultra-radical piquetero group, 
Quebracho, rallied in the city center at the obelisk and 
marched to the American Club, where about 40 to 50 masked 
protesters burned effigies of President Bush and U.S. flags, 
and sprayed graffiti on near-by buildings.  No injuries were 
reported in any of the protests. 
 
------- 
Comment 
------- 
 
¶9.  (C)  President Kirchner seems to have tried to display 
positive relations with Chavez for the official part of the 
trip to Buenos Aires, and then to appear uninvolved with 
Chavez's rally and anti-U.S. rhetoric.  However, allowing the 
rally was enough to earn the criticism of several political 
analysts and politicians, who feel Chavez's rally violated 
the sovereignty of Argentina and that Kirchner's permission 
for the event shows he is beholden to Chavez for the purchase 
of bonds.  Several opposition politicians from various 
parties criticized in the press Kirchner's acquiescence to 
Chavez, indicating that Argentine society may be starting to 
see the relationship with Chavez as more compromising than 
beneficial.  END COMMENT. 
WAYNE