La Cámpora

Members of "La Cámpora" during a demonstration.

La Cámpora is an Argentine political youth organization supporting the governments of Néstor Kirchner and Cristina Fernández de Kirchner. It is named after former peronist president Héctor José Cámpora. Although it was established in 2003, it became politically influential after the death and state funeral of Néstor Kirchner.

History

La Cámpora was created by Máximo Kirchner, son of Néstor Kirchner and Cristina Fernández.[1] Its origins can be traced to the 2003 Argentine general election, in order to support Néstor Kirchner, and has extended said support to Cristina Fernández de Kirchner during the 2008 Argentine government conflict with the agricultural sector, to counter the opposing demonstrations.[1]

The group vindicates the actions of the guerilla group Montoneros, and thus was named after Héctor José Cámpora, who had favored them.[2] However, most members are too young to possess first-hand knowledge about the 1970 conflicts in Argentina, Cámpora's actual actions during his tenure.[2] La Cámpora's methodology bears no similarity to Montoneros, aiming instead to confront the discourse implemented by the political right through what it perceives as their dominance of the Argentine media that opposes any and all changes implemented by the Kirchner administration. Using new technologies, including blogs, Facebook, Twitter and other social networks on the internet,[3] La Cámpora confronts the media conglomerates that, in its view, control the vast majority of Argentine media and work to undermine the Kirchner administration.[2]

Initially, the group had the usual low profile of most youth wings. After the death of Néstor Kirchner in 2010, the organization became one of the three factions struggling for power within the Kirchner administration, the others being the General Confederation of Labour and the traditional structures of the Justicialist Party.[4] Cristina Fernández instructed that the lists of candidates for provincial legislators included at least two or three members of the Cámpora among the first eight.[4]

In the aftermath of the 2013 Argentina floods, the group sent 1,500 members into the affected areas of La Plata to participate in relief efforts.[5] A violent clash broke out between the group's members and those of the construction workers union UOCRA.[6]

See also

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 "La Cámpora gana espacio en el entorno kirchnerista". La Nación (in Spanish). 31 August 2010.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 "La Cámpora". La Nación (in Spanish). 27 March 2011.
  3. ↑ "Secretos de la "peronosfera K"" (in Spanish). 22 October 2010.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 "La Cámpora avanza en las listas del oficialismo de todo el país" (in Spanish). 22 May 2011.
  5. ↑ "Original Spanish text: La militancia junto al pueblo". lacamproa.org. La Cámpora. Retrieved 18 April 2013.
  6. ↑ Tarbuck, Emily. "La Plata Union Demands Release of Members Following Violent Clashes". The Argentina Independent. Retrieved 18 April 2013.

External links

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