The police of the city of Buenos Aires repressed this Wednesday a group of residents of the Buenos Aires neighborhood of Villa Lugano who were protesting after having suffered four days without electricity in the midst of extremely high temperatures, in an operation that ended with one detainee and caused problems in the traffic of vehicles towards the center of the capital and the international airport of Ezeiza.
Several protesters, in statements later endorsed by leaders of the Frente de Todos (FdT), denounced that the police officers fired rubber or thunder bullets and charged the neighbors with their motorcyclesalthough no injuries were reported during the operation.
One of the protesters was detained this afternoon by agents of the City Policewithin the framework of a situation of tension and confrontations on the Dellepiane Highway, at the height of the Buenos Aires neighborhood of Villa Lugano.
The protest – which began last Monday and continued on Tuesday afternoon – was resumed this Wednesday at 6 o’clock by a group of neighbors who interrupted traffic in both directions of that highway at the height of Escalada Avenue.
Shortly before 10 o’clock, members of the City Police arrived to evict the residents and enable circulation on the highway, but then The demonstrators threw stones at the security agents and the traffic in La Mano was again blocked towards the center of Buenos Aires.
Minutes before a car had caught fire, which complicated circulation in the place.
After withdrawing from the highway trace, The neighbors had also cut off the traffic on the collector streets.
Villa Lugano was this Wednesday morning the neighborhood with the most users affected by the interruption of the electricity supply in the area of the City of Buenos Aires that falls under the orbit of the Edesur concessionaire, according to a report by the National Electricity Regulatory Entity (ENRE).
According to the part of the Enre de las 15, 18,173 users were without power supply in CABA and the suburbs, of which 640 live in Villa Lugano.
According to the testimonies, the light returned in several buildings, but not in the area where most of the shops are located.
“We have been without power for four days,” protesters complained before the television channels, after remembering the oppressive heat that was experienced in that period.
Cristian, another of the neighbors, maintained that “The only way for them to see you is this” and recalled that “it is a very big cut and there is no one from Edesur here to solve it.”
Juan, a resident of the Samoré neighborhood, on one side of La Dellepiane, remarked that “We need water and electricity because there are very old people and children here.”
After 2:00 p.m., the situation had calmed down and the residents continued their protest sitting on the highway, 50 meters from the police officers.
“In the neighboring part of the Samoré neighborhood, all the businesses are without electricity,” Mariela told Télam.
He added that “those who have more emergencies put a generator. Not only does it hurt us, but all those people are losing money.”
“There are older people who cannot be going up and down stairs” in the monoblocks that they have nine floors, he maintained and complained: “We did not get an answer. The community member did not appear here in Commune 8 either,” he maintained.
Pablo told Télam that “the situation is a constant during the summers. Our struggle is to get the light; It’s a struggle going up to an apartment with a bucket of water, throwing away food. We don’t have a salary to waste food. Older people are suffering.”
“They repressed us. The motorcycles entered the neighborhood at an inconceivable speed, shooting rubber bullets. They arrested a boy,” counted.
“They increase our light and where are the improvements and investments. Nobody controls the company,” he protested.
Felisa, in turn, pointed out that “They repressed us having big people, little ones” and said that when they communicate with “Edesur, a machine will take care of you.”
Meanwhile, Marilina explained that she and her partner are disabled and said that “she does not have water.” “I have merchandise, but I can’t cook. I shower with mineral water,” she added.
“I am immunosuppressed and I have a drug that has to have a cold chain and I cannot maintain it. The only thing we receive is the indifference of Enre and Edesur,” she protested.
For his part, The Buenos Aires Front of All repudiated this Wednesday the eviction operation of the Dellepiane highway and pointed out that the repression of the local Police evidence of the “contempt” of Horacio Rodríguez Larreta “for the south of the City” of Buenos Aires.
Edesur maintained that a historical record of energy demand was registered and assured that “the operator of the high voltage system of Greater Buenos Aires (Sacme) asked Edesur to make cuts to customersafter informing that the generation of energy for the southern zone of the Buenos Aires suburbs was insufficient”
On this point, the ENRE explained that “Cammesa, the operator of the Argentine Interconnection System (SADI), confirmed that it did not request any cut in any of the areas or regions of the country since the peak was operated with optimal reserves”.
At 5:30 p.m. this Tuesday, Elizabeth told this agency that the highway closure continues “because, although the City Government brought us a generator that produces electricity for several buildings, it does not cover the sector of the little houses, where The neighbors and neighbors continue without light “
And he added: “in addition, the generator, they brought it for just two hours, so that we can have water again and collect what we can, but it is not the solution that we are demanding; therefore we are going to continue with the cut”.
Sources from the city police told Télam that the route has been released, recovering vehicular circulation, leaving 40 residents on the side of the avenue.
In addition, the person held at the 9 Remedios de Escalada police station was released.
Whilechronicler Alejandro Pueblas, a Crónica TV worker, and photojournalist Leandro Teysseire were attacked by the police.
Teysseire told Télam that “he is fine” after being attacked by the police cordon despite identifying himself as a press worker.
“They wanted to hit me with a pineapple and they kicked my husband in the rib,” a neighbor said in turn to Crónica Tv’s cell phone after the police repression.
“We repudiate the repression carried out by the City Police in the framework of a protest due to lack of light. We stand in solidarity with the repressed men and women neighbors and with our colleagues from Crónica TV, IP and Página/12 who were also beaten while They were doing their job,” the Buenos Aires Press Union (SiPreBA) expressed through social networks.
According to the latest Edesur report, the neighborhoods of Flores maintains 183 users without electricity service, while the Parque Avellaneda area continues with 2,265 affected, being the estimated hour of restoration of the service for the midnight.
Meanwhile, the Buenos Aires chief of staff, Felipe Miguel told TN that from the city they assisted “with electricity generators and water tanks to the neighbors when Edesur did not give them answers.”
“We have had an understanding of the anger of the neighbors who have not had electricity for days, with all that that means in this hot time of year and running out of water, For this reason, in addition to empathy, we try to free the blocked road through dialogue,” he said.
The Ombudsman of the city of Buenos Aires (CABA), María Rosa Muiños, demanded this Wednesday that the company Edesur “urgently” restore the electric power service in all affected areas and avoid future cuts, especially in the Villa Lugano neighborhood.
As they indicated, the CABA Ombudsman’s Office continues to receive complaints through its service channel ([email protected]) “in order to provide personalized support to residents, to advise and channel complaints, initiate pertinent actions and manage the process until its final resolution”.
