Argentina: Mass Protests in Defence of Public Universities

Latin America Correspondent Jon Bonfiglio looks at the battle for the soul of Argentina which is now focusing on its public universities. 

Transcript

Every country has its emblems, what it considers sacred. Argentina has its fair share: football; mate; asado; of course; Diego Armando Maradona; Eva Peron; talking about politics in minute detail. But there’s also another one, perhaps lesser known to outsiders: its public universities. And Javier Milei’s administration has generated a flashpoint over these, as it considers them the enemy, specifically the enemy that generates leftist thinking which Milei is intent on removing from the current and future iterations of Argentina. Although Congress last year passed a law to fund universities’ operational costs and raise teacher salaries in line with inflation, the government has not implemented the financial support as it undertakes a series of court challenges over the legislation. As a result, and in the general expectation that Milei is planning to de-fund universities and/or attack them in ongoing ways, tens of thousands took to the streets of Buenos Aires on Tuesday to defend the institutions which they cherish, and which as well as having been free at point of delivery to students since 1949, has also been responsible for educating a remarkable 5 Nobel laureates. 

The public anger was roundly focused on defending the universities, but other topics necessarily crept in, including economic stagnation, a collapse in the purchasing power of wages (in fact, university professors have seen the purchasing capacity of their salaries reduce by a third since Milei took office), climbing unemployment, and an ongoing chain of corruption scandals which have angered society. Really, the attacks on universities - which are ongoingly verbal as well as financial - are another straw on the bent-backed camel, but it is a staggering statistic that nearly 600 professors have left the public university system and moved into industry or private education since 2023. The protests were organized by the universities, teachers’ unions, and student bodies, with the focus being in the capital but also being reproduced in cities across the country. Organizers say that 1.5 million people took part.

According to the National Interuniversity Council, a body which looks at issues shared across universities, budgets for public third sector education have dropped by nearly 50% since Milei came to power, and inflation continues to reach crippling levels. There’s a battle for the soul of Argentina taking place, little doubt, a battle that Javier Milei is intent on having, and winning, as he reshapes foundational aspects of the country. As of earlier this month, May 2026, Milei's approval rating has fallen to 35%, with a disapproval rating of over 60%. These are his worst figures since he came to power. But he seems to revel in these figures, wearing them with pride. Nothing is off the table for Milei in Argentina. More than a government, it’s a crusade.