Thursday, September 27, 2012

CFK at Harvard: 'Constitutional reform is not this President's wish'

During her last day at the US, President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner lectured at Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government, where she answered to students' questions. The Head of State renewed her critics to the international organizations and also mentioned the "re-reelection" issue for the first time.

"A constitutional reform is not the wish of this president," Fernández de Kirchner assured when she was asked by Harvard students about the re-reelection.

"It's not about what I want, but what I can or must do," the president said regarding the chance to make a constitutional reform would allow her to run for a third consecutive election.

Besides, she reminded that the 1994 amendment of the Constitution was not boosted by "one party," but it had reached political consensus. Nevertheless, she limited her answer by saying that "it does not depend on me" and that it "is beyond my wishes."

The president referred to the current economic crisis that the developed countries are living in, and affirmed that "the economic conflict has turned political."

Fernández de Kirchner spoke about the world's current situation and stated that "the core of the international crisis was that they went from a production economy to believe that money could be reproduce by money."

Regarding the 2008 financial crisis of the United States, the Head of State reminded that "the investment banks had built a series of economic derivatives that led to the collapse of banking institutions."

The head of state returned to New York on Thursday night from Washington DC, where she inaugurated the Argentine Chair at Georgetown University, had an exchange with a group of students from the University and met with Luis Alberto Montes, the head of the Inter American Development Bank (IADB).

Before heading to Boston, Fernández de Kirchner’s received the president of the Exxon Mobile Corporation, Rex Tillerson. Following the meeting, the President flew to Boston.

Fernández de Kirchner will fly back to Buenos Aires from Boston, and she is expected to be in Buenos Aires by Friday morning.

On Wednesday, during her visit to Washington DC, the President had a broad exchange with a group of students at Georgetown University where she answered questions about the world economic situation, her Government’s programs and policies, Argentina’s discrepancies with the International Monetary Fund, as well as the upcoming elections in Venezuela.

Her five day visit began on Monday. On Tuesday, Fernández de Kirchner spoke before the General Assembly of the United Nations.