Former president Mauricio Macri questioned “autocratic” politicians that propose a quick fix in his opening speech at the 2nd Meeting of the Freedom and Democracy Group, a forum attended by right-wing leaders from Latin America and Spain in the Buenos Aires City Legislature. 

“We live in a world with increasing political instability, where there are more and more unsatisfied citizens […] This is a breeding ground for autocratic [politicians], dominated by populisms that say, ‘give me all the power, and I’ll give you a fantastic present’,” said the Juntos por el Cambio (JxC) leader, in what seemed to be a reference to La Libertad Avanza’s presidential candidate Javier Milei. 

Among other things, Milei has proposed a dollarization plan and eliminating its central bank as solutions to the country’s inflation-riddled finances.

The former president, who has been accused of secretly backing Javier Milei, said that such proposals are implemented “at the cost of destroying the future, based on a powerful narrative, exploiting resentment, and attacking the culture of labor and meritocracy.” 

He also considered that right-wing forces must build “a narrative of their own on the issues of security, human rights, and the economy.”

The 2nd Meeting of the Freedom and Democracy Group is taking place Friday and Saturday. Titled “A new narrative for political change,” the meeting is comprised of talks and round tables around topics such as worldwide populism, drug trafficking, economic frredom, climate change and education.

The speaker list includes JxC presidential candidate Patricia Bullrich and Paraguayan president Santiago Peña. Also in attendance are former presidents Sebastián Piñera (Chile), Mario Abdo (Paraguay), Vicente Fox (Mexico), Guillermo Lasso (Ecuador), Iván Duque, Andrés Pastrana (Colombia), as fell as ex Spanish Prime Ministers José María Aznar and Mariano Rajoy.

– with information from Télam