Argentina: Milei Regime Increases Pressure on Polo Obrero and Leader Belliboni with Bogus Cases! Strengthen International Revolutionary Solidarity Against Offences!

The Milei regime continues to target Polo Obrero and leader Eduardo Belliboni in Argentina. The court recently stripped Belliboni and 12 other Polo Obrero members of their right to present their defense. The court also rejected the prosecuted revolutionaries’ request to see the evidence used against them. This leaves no doubt about the political aims of the case. 

The court’s allegations center on Polo Obrero’s use of state provided resources to purchase food from Rumbos Publishing House, an alleged zombie company associated with Partido Obrero, for the neighborhood kitchens where poor workers were supplied and that Partido Obrero’s political activities were financed in this way. The demands of the prosecuted Polo Obrero members to examine all account transactions, purchases certified by notaries and to take into account the publishing activities of Rumbos Publishing House, an alleged “zombie company,” as well as the publications and brochures published by Polo Obrero through the publishing house, were not met by the court. The aim is to bring Rumbos Publishing House due to their political preferences, as well as Polo Obrero, under suspicion and criminalize them in the eyes of the masses. 

Contrary to the court’s claims, Polo Obrero continues all of its activities transparently, while providing food to countless poor workers through neighborhood kitchens. These kitchens are open to all kinds of visits and solidarity, and their activities can be followed on social media accounts. In addition to providing food, they organize educational activities for the working classes; striving to provide vocational skills in many areas, from textiles to graphic design. 

Last June, a delegation on behalf of SEP had the chance to observe Polo Obrero’s work in the poor areas of Buenos Aires on site and shared their experiences. Here it was observed that Polo Obrero was not just a solidarity organization, but also a revolutionary alternative for workers in the face of the deep inequality imposed by capitalism. The logic of the Milei regime’s attempt to wear down Polo Obrero with lawsuits lies here. These lawsuits are accompanied by smear campaigns against Polo Obrero and the revolutionaries at almost every opportunity, not only through laws but also through right-wing national press such as La Nacion. 

The most important reason why Polo Obrero, one of the most important subjects of the piquetero (unemployed) movement that rose after the 2001 rebellion in Argentina, and his leader Belliboni are being brought to court with phony lawsuits is the desire to take away the capacity of the lower classes of society to resist the austerity packages that the far-right Milei regime wants to implement. 

The offences are not limited to Belliboni and Polo Obrero. As a staunch supporter of Zionism, the Milei regime is also able to consider the raising of the Palestinian flag and the sharing of messages of solidarity with the Palestinian people as “anti-Semitism” and use this as a justification for trials. 

In a period when class inequalities are increasing all over the world, wars and conflicts are becoming more common and far-right figures like Milei are climbing the ladder of power, it is clear that an international revolutionary alternative needs to be created. Let's increase international solidarity with the Argentine revolutionaries who are being attacked by the Milei regime with Polo Obrero and Belliboni at the forefront! 

You can also support the signature campaign opened in solidarity with Polo Obrero via the link below. 

https://po.org.ar/solidaridad-con-el-po-y-los-luchadores-populares/