Argentina announces Cabinet reshuffle

By Bala Chambers

LONDON (AA) - Argentina's President Alberto Fernandez announced a Cabinet reshuffle on Monday, appointing women to head the labor, social development and women's ministries.

According to a press release from the Casa Rosada, the presidential palace in Buenos Aires, Fernandez has called on "three women of different ages, geographical origin and extensive experience" to form part of his Cabinet and "to deepen the breadth of views and efficiency" within the Peronist administration.

The new ministers will be Victoria Tolosa Paz in the Ministry of Social Development, Ayelen Mazzina in the Ministry of Women, Gender and Diversity, and Raquel Olmos in the Ministry of Labor, according to the press release.

Tolosa Paz replaces Juan Zabaleta, Mazzina takes over from Elizabeth Gomez Alcorta and Olmos replaces Claudio Moroni -- who have all tendered their resignations in recent days.

Tolosa Paz, a Buenos Aires province deputy and close ally of Fernandez, was on the ticket for the 2021 legislative elections. According to the press release, she brings vital experience to the role, having been involved with social policies for more than 20 years.

Ayelen Mazzina was the secretary of Women, Diversity and Equality in San Luis province. She has similar experience, having organized the 35th Plurinational Meeting of Women, Lesbians, Trans, Transvestites, Bisexuals, Intersexuals and Non-Binaries in the Huarpe, Comechingon and Ranquel territory. She has previously acted as councilor for the City of San Luis and is a professor of political science.

Olmos is an economist and was vice-president of the Bank for Investment and Foreign Trade (BICE) and has served as a councilor and legislator for the City of Buenos Aires. Between 2007-2009, she was Argentina's secretary of municipal affairs.

Last Friday, Gomez Alcorta's resignation was accepted by Fernandez after she denounced alleged human rights abuses following the contentious eviction of Indigenous Mapuche people, insisting that the eviction ordered against the Lof Lafken Winkul Mapu community, in which women and children were detained with the participation of federal forces, “seemed to me incompatible with the values that I defend.”

Fernandez’s Cabinet reshuffle comes after long deliberations from the president and his close advisers over the weekend, bringing the total number of ministers changed during his tenure to 18, according to local news agency Telam.