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BUENOS AIRES, Argentina. The Chamber of Deputies' Committee on Women and Diversity convened representatives from various sectors to discuss the growing violence against women and diverse groups in politics and journalism.

During the meeting, draft declarations were approved against "the political violence that the judiciary and sectors of the ruling party are exercising against Cristina Fernández de Kirchner," and others focused on the violence perpetrated by Congressman José Luis Espert against Florencia Kirchner and against the Kirchnerist activists arrested after a public outcry against the libertarian.

Bills were also passed against the persecution and harassment of critical journalists and LGBTIQ+ figures. These included Congressman Esteban Paulón, who was the victim of homophobic attacks by members of the program "La Misa," which airs on the streaming channel Carajo.

Also participating in the Commission meeting as speakers were journalists Julia Mengolini and Nancy Pazos; Leila Linhares Barsted, Lucía Portos, Eva Pietravallo (Alesia Abaigar's mother), Melisa García, Pedro Paradiso Sottile, María Rachid, Guadalupe Bargiela, Marcela Romero, and Luci Cavallero. National representatives from the Union for the Homeland, Federal Encounter, Left Front, and Civic Coalition parties were also present.

In defense of democratic debate

In an interview with Agencia Presentes, Representative Esteban Paulón addressed the events he experienced in recent weeks. “The attacks are more virulent and have already surpassed those on social media. That's why it's so important that there has been such a strong and cross-cutting response. Beyond whether there is still pending debate in terms of legislation or whether some legal instrument is missing, I believe that if we want to prioritize and protect democratic debate and the public space for democratic debate, we have to speak out and fight to sustain it.”

He explained that these operational groups are degrading democratic public debate. "They skew everything to personal issues, defamation, fake news, harassment, and bullying. We are convinced that this is not the way public debate should be. It should be a debate of ideas, where all ideas are obviously included. It's not a problem that libertarian ideas are part of the debate; on the contrary, they should be part of the debate, but a debate that contributes something to society," he told Presentes.

No cultural battle can overcome visibility.

To overcome the hatred and violence the government seeks to impose on us, we must engage in democratic debate, fighting for our rights with pride. pic.twitter.com/q28GF66tdH

— Esteban Paulón 🌈 (@EstebanPaulon) July 16, 2025

Discipline and silencing

Among other things, Representative Paulón stated, "These are very basic intellectual attacks. From linking homosexuality, pedophilia, and AIDS, as was the case in my case, to the ABCs of the fascist idiot. The strategy is partly to hit your self-esteem, but above all, it's to discipline you," he said.

This "disciplining strategy," Paulón describes, is unleashed on voices critical of the government. He recalled that he was the first congressman to publicly oppose Decree 70, in December 2023. "It's also because I voted against many of the ruling party's issues and because I am presenting an agenda in Congress that seeks to expose and reveal the entire espionage plot, trumped-up charges, Santiago Caputo, and all the delusions the president's office has going on."

"I gained a certain visibility because I'm part of the LGBT community, the 'woke cause' they attack. That agenda is also part of my agenda because it's my political identity."

From the meeting, which lasted just over three hours, the congressman emphasized that solidarity was presented across the board. "This cross-party solidarity serves to test how willing we are to give up certain issues in the name of supposed economic stability. From the PRO (Progressive Party of the Left) to the Frente de Izquierda (Left Front), all the blocs except La Libertad Avanza signed a declaration and said, 'Well, this is a red line we won't cross.'"

An injured democracy

Commission president Mónica Macha stated: “The government commits acts of violence against many populations and is particularly cruel to women and people of color. There is systematic persecution in the digital environment, but also in coordination with the judiciary. We must protect spaces like Congress because we live in a deeply damaged democracy.”

During the meeting, journalist Julia Mengolini recounted the various attacks she's experienced in recent weeks using fake videos. The condemnation of this violence also garnered support from all political sectors.

“Everything we experience represents a personal cost that those of us in politics are willing to bear. But it's also a tremendous opportunity to debate and reclaim the role of public debate in a democratic society. It's worth continuing to try to improve democratic debate, and we must isolate all these sectors, give them public debate, and not give them the common ground. Because when they have it, they degrade it, deteriorate it, and make it meaningless,” Paulón concluded.

The attack on the LGBT agenda

“I come to speak from a place that, unfortunately, feels familiar. A place where commitment to human rights is met with insults, harassment, and threats. A place where activism becomes a target of hate,” said María Rachid, head of the Institute Against Discrimination of the Buenos Aires City Ombudsman's Office and a member of the Argentine Federation of Gays, Lesbians, Bisexuals, and Transvestites.

Rachid addressed the attacks Paulón suffered on social media. “Every day I open social media knowing that there's probably someone wishing us dead. And I'm not exaggerating; they've told us so with those words. And this isn't the opinion of a random troll; these are organized, repeated campaigns fueled by political and media sectors that stir up hatred as a strategy,” he said.

He added: "This is about political violence, about disciplining, about telling us 'if you don't hide, we'll make you pay the price.' I have bad news for those groups: our community has paid the price many times throughout history, and they have never silenced us. They have created a social climate that has become increasingly permissive of hate. The attacks aren't personal, they're political; they're aimed at erasing our entire community." He also explained that the FALGBT community also suffers constant attacks.

For his part, Pedro Paradiso Sotile, lawyer and president of the Equality Foundation, said: "We are in a very difficult, very complex, and very dangerous moment. This systematic plan, which some call a plan of extermination, is being implemented against populations like ours."

The transfeminist organization as a main objective

Among the speakers was Luci Cavallero, a leader of Ni Una Menos (Not One Less). “We have to ask ourselves if it's not time to expand what we call political violence at this moment. It's not just about partisan political participation, as in the cases of Eva, Alexia, and Cristina, but this government is trying to criminalize solidarity and dismantle political organizations,” said Luci Cavallero. She added that this is clearly evident in the raids on soup kitchens and the persecution of workers fighting their layoffs.

“As part of the feminist movement, we feel particularly attacked, not only by the statements and the dismantling of public policies, but also because the government is relentlessly trying to dismantle feminist political organizations and the politicization they are undergoing. We find women raided and persecuted in the soup kitchens where political conversation begins for many women in this country . We also find women who are promoting the struggles of Mapuche workers and women against extractivism ,” Cavallero emphasized.

A strategy to annihilate

Former Supreme Court Justice Eugenio Raúl Zaffaroni analyzed political violence against opposition leaders and journalists and referred to the conviction of Cristina Fernández de Kirchner as a common case of lawfare.

Regarding "hate speech," the former judge of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights from 2016 to 2022 said that, as a criminologist, he is concerned that politics has transformed during the Javier Milei administration into "a tactic by which one must choose the enemy to annihilate and consequently operate according to the friend-enemy scheme." He also warned that this is "a moment of institutional and political crisis. This lifts our spirits and strengthens our resolve to continue fighting and resisting in the midst of this colonialist situation imposed on us."

In addition to draft declarations against "the political violence that the judiciary and sectors of the ruling party are exercising against Cristina Fernández de Kirchner," drafts were also passed that focus on the violence perpetrated by Congressman José Luis Espert against Florencia Kirchner and against the Kirchnerist activists arrested after a public outcry against the libertarian.

Projects against the persecution and harassment of critical journalists and LGBTIQ+ leaders were also ruled on.