Valen Iricibar 
For the second night in a row, Argentines took to the streets on Thursday, banging pots and pans as part of a nationwide cacerolazo against President Javier Milei’s megadecree. Five were arrested, including a journalist from the Enfant Terrible cooperative, and several were reportedly injured in Córdoba City during a police crackdown. More protests are planned for Friday and next week.
Córdoba saw fierce clashes with police outside the Patio Olmos shopping mall, with videos on social media capturing officers beating demonstrators and firing tear gas.
Protesters who attended the cacerolazo reported rubber bullet wounds and hospitalizations to the Herald, although the province’s judiciary website only cites minor injuries to one woman and four police officers.
According to posts on Enfant Terrible’s social media, the cacerolazo continued outside the station where they were being held. Córdoba police told the cooperative media outlet’s lawyers that the detained protesters — Juan Celli, Santiago Cabral, Rodrigo Savoretti, Agustín Savoretti, and Maximiliano Ciambrella — were in good health.
Prosecutor Ernesto de Aragón told the Herald that the police crackdown was ordered “after an hour of attempted negotiations” and said the new government’s controversial security protocol was not implemented. He did not give updates regarding their detention but said he was confident they would be released by the end of the day.
In Buenos Aires, demonstrators once again descended on Congress, although there were reportedly fewer protesters than on Wednesday night when thousands spontaneously took to the streets to voice their disgust with Milei’s mammoth executive order overturning multiple laws without congressional approval. A list including dozens of meeting points across the city was shared widely via WhatsApp.
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More to come
More protests are planned throughout the day, including one at 11 a.m. at the Obelisco by multiple organizations affiliated with the Argentina Workers’ Central (CTA, by its Spanish acronym). Then, at 1 p.m., the State Workers Association union (ATE, for its Spanish acronym) will march to the Cabinet of Ministers on Belgrano Avenue and Diagonal Julio A. Roca.
Meanwhile, the General Confederation of Labor (CGT) has announced that it will mobilize on Wednesday, December 27, at midday in Tribunales. It aims to present legal complaints against the DNU to the judiciary to “get a ruling that supports our claim of unconstitutionality.” CGT leadership has called for a meeting the next day to assess what comes next.
During the cacerolazos, people across the country have demanded a general strike from the CGT, with cries of paro general and a chant of “¿A dónde está, que no se ve, esa famosa CGT?” (“Where is the famous CGT, which is nowhere to be seen”). Should the CGT comply and call for a general strike, it would be its first since 1988.
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