translated from Spanish: Macri reappeared: “Government tried to advance free speech”

Former President Mauricio Macri returned to the public scene in an interview by journalist Alvaro Vargas Llosa and referred to the global and regional situation generated by the coronavirus. Macri said that during the pandemic, “some governments saw a good opportunity to advance soft totalitarianisms” and noted that these processes may end “in dictatorships like Venezuela.”

“We have seen a government that tried in the pandemic to advance on freedom of expression, justice, independence of powers, private property. But it generated an active and strong reaction from society, which mobilized to express itself against these advances” pic.twitter.com/w8ZanUNgmH — Mauricio Macri (@mauriciomacri)
July 8, 2020

With few references to Argentina in particular, the former representative stated that the government “tried in the pandemic to advance on freedom of expression, justice, the independence of powers and private property”, although he also highlighted the “strong and active” response of society. Asked by Vargas Llosa, his friend several years ago, about how he would have handled the pandemic, Macri said he would have sought a “balance” with great confidence in society.

“There has to be a balance between health prevention and mental and work health,” said Macri, who also called for “not to be carried away by fear.” When asked about his role in the opposition, the former president explained, “I am closer than ever to argentines, trying to give the government the space to put into play what they think.” But he warned that he is trying to “raise his hand” when some government actions ‘advance on our freedoms’: “Do things within the institutional framework that we have set ourselves, which unfortunately are not doing so.”

Original source in Spanish