Tuesday, March 19, 2024
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ARGENTINA | 09-12-2019 13:35

Fences removed from Plaza de Mayo ahead of Fernández's inauguration

After years of debate around the barriers near the Casa Rosada, city workers removed them overnight Sunday ahead of Peronist leader's swearing-in.

Workers hired by the City of Buenos Aires worked through dawn on Monday to remove the metal bars that previously encircled Plaza de Mayo, blocking off access to the Casa Rosada.

The work started Sunday night around 10pm and was agreed upon Friday during a meeting between Horacio Rodríguez Larreta and Alberto Fernández on Friday in Puerto Madero. 

Fernández had asked the City mayor to allow their removal ahead of his inauguration on Tuesday. 

The bars have been a point of great contention over the last few years in the capital. In 2018, the Buenos Aires City government, then led by Rodríguez Larreta, carried out a series of renovations in the Plaza.

Among them, they replaced the fencing that had covered half the courtyard near the Casa Rosada since 2002. In its place, the government put a permanent fence with more formidable structure and aesthetic, with portals that could be opened or closed to allow pedestrians or vehicles to enter. 

In January 2019, the Judiciary ruled against the installation, which had been part of a renovation works plan for the venue which lasted six months. The judge ruled it violated a City code about urban accessibility to the Plaza. 

Six months later, in June, the City Legislature approved a measure that modified the code to make the fencing legal. 

The Transition 

Festivities on Tuesday will take place near the Casa Rosada when Fernández officially takes office. After the president- and vice president-elect take their oaths, Fernández will speak to Congress and then the actual transfer of power will take place outside the Casa Rosada, where a stage is being erected near the residence's exterior. 

There, the standard protocol with foreign ministers and 17 cabinet members will take place. Meanwhile, there will be music acts and celebrations in Plaza de Mayo as revelers wait for the official greeting of their new Executive. 

– TIMES/PERFIL

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