Argentina | House arrest or prison

Cristina Kirchner must go to prison. The Supreme Court in Buenos Aires upheld the prison sentence for corruption against the former president (2007-2015) on Tuesday in the final instance. She must report to the judicial authorities within five working days to begin her sentence. The public prosecutor's office has requested her immediate arrest.

"Being imprisoned is almost a confirmation of historical, political, and personal dignity," Kirchner commented on the verdict. The 72-year-old is expected to request house arrest, which is usually granted from the age of 70. Until the potential request is decided, she may still have to go to prison.

It has been decided that Cristina Kirchner can no longer run as a candidate in elections. Last week, she announced that she would run in the congressional elections in Buenos Aires Province on September 7. Buenos Aires Province is her political stronghold. According to polls, Kirchner's support ratings are as high as 30 percent.

Unanimous judgment in the final instance

She and her supporters describe the Supreme Court ruling as a ban on running for office. Cristina Kirchner was sentenced to six years in prison by a federal court in December 2022. The court also imposed a lifetime ban on holding public office. In November 2024, the ruling was upheld by an appeals court on appeal.

The trial concerned 51 road construction projects in the province of Santa Cruz, which had been awarded between 2003 and 2015 by the Kirchner governments, primarily to the construction company Austral Construciones, owned by businessman Lázaro Báez. The sum at stake amounts to the equivalent of almost one billion euros. Eight of the twelve co-defendants were sentenced to prison terms of between four and six years. Four were acquitted. These verdicts also became final on Tuesday.

In a unanimous ruling, the three Supreme Court judges now dismissed Kirchner's appeal against the previous proceedings. "The right to due process was upheld, and the complainant received a lawful judgment," the reasons for the ruling state. The unanimity was necessary because two of the five judgeships have been vacant for some time, and three approvals are required.

The verdict is now final and binding in the final instance. Cristina Kirchner attended the announcement of the verdict at the headquarters of the Peronist Party, of which she is the chairwoman. Numerous supporters gathered in front of the building. After the verdict was announced to her supporters, she criticized it as a "curtailment of the will of the people" and described the three judges as "puppets" who were controlled from above. By this, Kirchner was referring to the economically powerful in the country. During the trial, personal entanglements between the judiciary and the political opponents of the former president became known: One of the judges is said to have shared a soccer team with one of the prosecutors. Their games took place, among other places, on the grounds of the weekend home of Mauricio Macri, president from 2015 to 2019 and Kirchner's close enemy.

Nationwide protests

Protests took place nationwide, called by the Peronist Party, as well as trade unions and left-wing parties. Major arterial roads in Buenos Aires were briefly blocked. In the evening, a large crowd gathered for a vigil in front of Kirchner's home in the capital, where they displayed their supporters on the balcony. Rallies of support were also reported in Córdoba, Bariloche, and Mar del Plata.

The verdict brings to an end a 17-year legal battle that began in 2008 with a corruption complaint. "It's the end of a long phase," explained Paula Oliveto, who co-filed the complaint as a lawyer. "It was a difficult time; we were threatened and insulted, but we remained calm because we always knew we were doing the right thing," Oliveto said, welcoming the verdict.