Argentina’s president fails to mind her Ps and Qs
Print Edition
ARGENTINA’S President Cristina Kirchner was under attack at home and abroad yesterday after a tweet during a state visit to China in which she appeared to poke fun at Asian difficulties with the letters L and R.
Kirchner, on a mission to China to expand trade and political ties, tweeted in Spanish on the number of people attending one of her events in Beijing, asking: “Are they all with La Campola?”
She was referring to La Campora, her party’s youth organization, led by her son.
“Or, are they only there for the lice (rice) and petloleum (petroleum)?” she added.
It was a play on a political joke from home. Kirchner’s detractors say her supporters only attend party events so they can get a free sandwich and a soda.
After the tweets triggered criticism and accusations of racism, she followed up with another saying: “Sorry. You know what? There is too, too much craziness and absurdity, only humor can get you through it.”
The Argentine president is already under the spotlight at home after the suspicious death of a prosecutor.
Her tweet was prominently covered in Argentine and international media, with one reader of the Buenos Aires daily La Nacion describing her comment as more teenage than presidential, adding: “It’s really unpleasant to see how our president behaves.”
Posters on Chinese social media sites were similarly disdainful, with some pointing out that Kirchner was referring to more of a Japanese tendency than a Chinese one.
“How about you say two sentences in Chinese so I can hear your pronunciation?” asked one.
Another online comment on Sina Weibo added: “Amazing she has the courage to beg for investment while at the same time ridiculing Chinese people.”
President Xi Jinping visited Argentina in July and the two countries announced Chinese plans for investments totalling US$7 billion, in industries including hydroelectric power, shipbuilding, railways and a deal to help Argentina build its fourth nuclear plant.
China will contribute US$4.4 billion toward the construction of two hydroelectric dams in Argentina’s southern Santa Cruz province, and put US$2.1 billion into rail transport.
Kirchner, 61, Argentina’s first elected female president, is a lawyer and former lawmaker who succeeded her husband, the late president Nestor Kirchner.
She met Chinese Premier Li Keqiang yesterday, with neither referring to the gaffe.
Kirchner walked without assistance, a boot on a fractured ankle, and thanked Li for his welcome, saying: “It’s a warmth I’ve felt since the moment I set foot here, from both the highest authorities but also the people of China.”
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