Macri’s new lie: official data shows there was no massive Argentinian “exodus”

The difference in departures of Argentines or foreigners with Argentinian papers abroad has been reduced during the pandemic by no less than 26 million people in 15 months, count all border crossings. This emerges from the comparison made by the National Directorate of Migration before the virus was known -from March 2018 to June 2019- then -from March 2020 to June 2021-, after the initial establishment of the quarantine. Meanwhile, President Alberto Fernández must determine how the return measures continue to the country, which until Friday were set at 600 daily passengers with the aim of delaying the arrival of the Delta variant of the coronavirus as much as possible.

With these official data, the fake news of former President Mauricio Macri, who from Spain assured that the country is experiencing an “exodus” as “never before” in history. Likewise, the data serve to contrast the lack of success of the campaign of certain media which seek to sow discouragement in society and which suggest the idea that the way out for the country and for young people is to go abroad. .

In Migrations, they also indicated that it was necessary to take into account not only the drastic reduction of exits abroad, but also the authorized passages which went from 240 to only three: the airports of Ezeiza and San Fernando and the Buquebús terminal. Already renovated, the metropolitan airport has also been reinstated, bringing the total to four. These are passengers because international trade was allowed to transit through border crossings, respecting the protocols.

In short, during the 15 months of the pre-pandemic, 26,738,357 Argentines and foreigners with Argentinian papers left the country. During the same period during the pandemic, only 729,386 did so, which marks a difference of 25,998,971 people, a conclusive 97%. This despite the fact that for many months there was no starting restriction, only the official recommendation that it was best not to. But the population mostly preferred to take care of themselves and only a few continued to travel.

Even so, the overwhelming drop hasn’t stopped the virus from entering and spreading across the country, already surpassing 4,613,000 infections. It only remains to imagine what could have happened if people had traveled to the same extent as before and moved unchecked, as part of the opposition still claims.

The president decides

It is only recently that quotas have been established for the arrival of Argentines, in order to prevent the circulation of new strains for which a single dose of vaccine – as a good part of the population today – seems. not be effective. The decision was to dose the arrival of the foreigner and during this time to accelerate the vaccination campaign, by placing the two doses at over 40 years. With the measures in force until June 25, two thousand daily arrivals were authorized, but with the last DNU this quota was lowered to 600 people.

This measure, in effect until Friday July 9, was used by the opposition and related media to campaign. “‘The homeland is the other’ they nurture all the time, but they leave thousands and thousands of Argentines who cannot return to their homeland,” PRO bloc leader Cristian Ritondo said during the presentation of the Chief of Staff, Santiago Cafiero, to the Chamber of Deputies. One of the many who have touched on the subject.

At the Casa Rosada, they reported that President Alberto Fernández is studying the possibility of extending the arrival of the Argentines a little further, as long as he can continue to guarantee that they will respect the quarantine and care policies. Although according to the latest report from the Pan American Health Organization, the Delta strain is not widely distributed in the region, it is already dominant in many countries where Argentines who wish to return are found, such as the United States.