The repression on Wednesday, March 12, outside the National Congress was premeditated. The Minister of National Security, Patricia Bullrich, had warned of the crackdown the day before the mobilization took place. The operation was massive, involving all federal security forces as well as the Buenos Aires City Police, and was exceptionally violent. The excessive nature of the response was evident from the outset when only elderly individuals were present, and others were just beginning to arrive in support of the protest. Many participants were attending a demonstration for the first time.
An hour before the scheduled rally, which was set for 5:00 p.m., officers from the Gendarmerie (Gendarmería), Coast Guard (Prefectura), Federal Police, Airport Security Police, and Buenos Aires City Police began using pepper spray to disperse the people gathering on the sidewalk and the street in front of the Congress. Within 30 minutes, they escalated to using tear gas, water cannons, and rubber bullets. What was initially framed as a measure to prevent street blockages quickly turned into an effort to forcibly dissolve the protest.
The government’s objective was to prevent the demonstration from gaining momentum and to intimidate potential participants with a show of force, discouraging them from joining at the scheduled time. Later, the administration used the “coup attempt” narrative to justify the escalation of police violence. Additionally, authorities sought to delegitimize the growing public support for the pensioners’ demands by equating football club supporters at the protest with violent hooligans.
Arbitrary Detentions
After 5:30 p.m. and continuing into the night, the five deployed security forces began detaining people —demonstrators, onlookers and passersby. By early morning, Judge Karina Andrade ordered the release of 114 detainees. In her ruling, she stated that the police reports justifying their arrests contained serious flaws, lacking details about the time, location, or specific charges. These were arbitrary detentions.
None of the detainees were charged with offenses against democratic order. Nevertheless, Minister Bullrich announced plans to prosecute them for sedition, aggravated damage, attacks on authorities, and resisting arrest. She also declared that foreign nationals who participated in the protest would be expelled from the country. This scenario mirrors what occurred with the detentions on June 12, 2024, when 33 people were arbitrarily arrested. The national government criminalized them by leveling serious charges, including “terrorism” and attempting to disrupt the legislative process.
This time, officials claimed protesters were attempting to “seize Congress,” despite the operation itself disproving such a possibility. None of the Minister’s statements over the past 24 hours have been substantiated by evidence presented to the judiciary.
People injured
At least 20 people were hospitalized, having sustained the most severe injuries. Beatriz Bianco, 87, was near Congress at around 4:30 p.m. when she approached the police cordon. An officer from the Federal Police pushed her, causing her head to strike the pavement. Police at the scene did not assist her; she was helped by demonstrators and taken to Argerich Hospital.
Pablo Grillo, 35, is fighting for his life. A freelance photographer who regularly covers protests, he was hit in the head by a tear gas canister fired by a gas-launching gun banned until 2023, resulting in a skull fracture and loss of brain mass. His condition is critical.
Around 5:00 p.m., as schoolchildren were being dismissed, several were affected by tear gas. The operation left many people wounded by rubber bullets, suffering head and leg injuries, as well as facial wounds. The Buenos Aires Press Union recorded more than 20 press workers affected by the crackdown.
That evening, as doctors operated on Pablo Grillo, the Ministry of Security released a statement praising the crackdown as a success, asserting that it had “minimized the impact on traffic circulation.” However, it was the security forces that had blocked the entire area around Congress and closed off Plaza de Mayo. Meanwhile, Cabinet Chief Guillermo Francos accused the opposition of encouraging an attempted coup and dismissed the attack on Grillo as an “unintended accident” and “an unfortunate consequence of these events.”
We have reported these incidents and the actions of the security forces to the IACHR and the UN.
The use of weapons
So-called “less-lethal weapons”, like those used during this protest, kill. The impact of a tear gas cartridge to Pablo Grillo’s head is a direct consequence of the implementation of Anti-Picketing Protocol 943/23, which reintroduced the use of dangerous weapons in law enforcement operations against public demonstrations. After lethal incidents in the December 2001 and 2002 protests, as well as the 2007 killing of teacher Carlos Fuentealba, these weapons were prohibited—until the current administration reversed those policies, representing a significant setback in the protection of demonstrators’ physical safety.
The repression on Wednesday was not an improvised response; it was a premeditated decision. The authorization of lethal weapons, the coordinated deployment of all federal security forces, and the government’s militarized rhetoric indicate that the intent was to prevent the March 12 protest at all costs.
Despite the massive police deployment, pensioners will march again next Wednesday.