Argentine Protesters Give Voice to Disgust

Tens of thousands of Argentines demanding food and jobs marched past shuttered shops and hordes of riot police Friday on the first anniversary of deadly protests that ousted the elected government.

In the demonstration marking last year’s riots, in which 36 people died, jobless people, students and left-wing militants peacefully rallied outside the pink presidential palace to protest the country’s worst economic depression.

“Get Rid of Them All!” read a massive banner hung near the palace, alluding to politicians of every hue blamed for a severe economic contraction.

One of Latin America’s largest economies and a model of market reform in the 1990s, Argentina crashed this year amid a debt default and a massive currency devaluation.

Thousands from the jobless ranks, who make up nearly a quarter of the work force, protested from northern Andean provinces to Atlantic seaside resorts in a nation the size of India and home to 38 million people. It was a second and final day of protests.

Before dawn, bombs broke windows and spewed pamphlets criticizing the International Monetary Fund. The explosions occurred near a branch of Citibank and Spanish-run Telefonica 18 miles from the capital.

Some shopkeepers openly carried guns to deter a repeat of looting a year ago that sparked chaos as Congress appointed four presidents in two weeks. The last, Eduardo Duhalde, has said he will resign before completing his term. Elections are scheduled for April.

Half of all Argentines live below the poverty line. Malnourished children are dying in the impoverished north, in a nation that produces enough food to feed the United States.