{"id":1935978,"date":"2025-06-10T02:19:31","date_gmt":"2025-06-10T00:19:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pre.efe.com\/?p=1935978"},"modified":"2025-06-10T02:38:24","modified_gmt":"2025-06-10T00:38:24","slug":"cristina-fernandez-supreme-court-corruption-verdict-argetina","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pre.efe.com\/en\/latest-news\/2025-06-10\/cristina-fernandez-supreme-court-corruption-verdict-argetina\/","title":{"rendered":"Fern\u00e1ndez faces possible arrest as Argentina\u2019s Supreme Court weighs corruption verdict"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

International Desk, (EFE).- Top leaders of Argentina\u2019s Peronist movement gathered Monday at the Justicialist Party (PJ) headquarters in Buenos Aires in anticipation of a potential Supreme Court ruling that could trigger the immediate arrest of former President Cristina Fern\u00e1ndez de Kirchner (2007-2015).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The high court is expected to rule this week on whether to uphold a six-year prison sentence and lifetime political disqualification against Fern\u00e1ndez for alleged fraudulent administration during her time in office. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The case, known as the Vialidad case, centered on the awarding of 51 public works projects in the southern province of Santa Cruz to businessman L\u00e1zaro B\u00e1ez, a close associate of Fern\u00e1ndez and her late husband, former President N\u00e9stor Kirchner. <\/p>\n\n\n

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The projects were awarded during their consecutive administrations between 2003 and 2015. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

While Fern\u00e1ndez was convicted in 2022<\/a>, her sentencing has not been enforced due to legal appeals and her then-parliamentary immunity.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\u201cWe are here not just to support Cristina but to send a clear message to the government, the judiciary, and economic powers that the Peronist movement will resist any attempt to criminalize our leader,\u201d said former congresswoman Victoria Dodna, who attended the emergency meeting. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

By late afternoon, supporters carrying PJ flags and labor union banners had begun gathering outside the party\u2019s central office. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Their message: if Fern\u00e1ndez is jailed, massive mobilization will follow. \u201cThey\u2019ve persecuted us since the 1950s. If they touch her, they touch all of us,\u201d added Donda, referencing Argentina\u2019s long history of political repression against Peronists. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The decision is expected to come just months before crucial legislative elections in Buenos Aires province, where Fern\u00e1ndez recently announced her candidacy. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

If the ruling stands, she would be barred from running, fueling accusations of political persecution from her allies. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Trade unions threaten national strike<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Argentina\u2019s most powerful labor unions have warned of immediate mobilizations and a nationwide strike should the Supreme Court confirm Cristina Fern\u00e1ndez\u2019s conviction. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The threat marks an escalation in the country’s political tensions, as Fern\u00e1ndez remains a central figure in opposition to the right-wing government of President Javier Milei.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe judicial system has become a tool of persecution,\u201d said Abel Furl\u00e1n, head of the influential metalworkers union UOM. \u201cWe won\u2019t stand idly by while democracy is put at risk.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

He confirmed that labor leaders would join political figures and social organizations in crafting a joint response during Monday\u2019s emergency summit at PJ headquarters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Other unions, including the powerful SMATA (mechanics), ATE (public workers), APL (legislative staff), and the national banking union, echoed similar sentiments. <\/p>\n\n\n

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SMATA deputy and national lawmaker Mario Manrique told local radio, \u201cWhat they can\u2019t win at the ballot box, they are trying to accomplish through the courts.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The unions see Fern\u00e1ndez not only as a symbol of resistance but also as a direct challenge to what they describe as an emboldened alliance between Argentina\u2019s judiciary and economic elites.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis is lawfare, plain and simple,\u201d said Daniel Catalano, head of ATE Capital, invoking the term used to describe politically motivated legal persecution in Latin America.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The unions\u2019 statements coincided with a public address by Fern\u00e1ndez, who warned during a rally in Corrientes province over the weekend, \u201cThey want me imprisoned or dead.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

She claimed that her recent announcement to run in the September elections had unleashed a wave of hostile media and judicial pressure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n