From 10 in the morning this Wednesday, the exhibitions began in person at the Public Hearing for the reform of the Glacier Law what are you looking for make protection more flexible so that mining projects advance -especially copper- in the mountain provinces. There is great rejection in the population and socio-environmental organizations throughout the country that will mobilize from 5 p.m. outside Congress in water defense.
The day was marked from early on by new restrictions by the government that make the audience less and less “public.” Congress dawned fully militarized for several blocks, a few hours from the 50th anniversary of the genocidal coup. So that no one can approach the palace that intends to sanction a law that will affect access to water throughout the country. “I had to pass 7 controls” denounced the environmental lawyer Enrique Viale. To make matters worse, the deputy Nicolás Mayoraz of La Libertad Avanza announced at the beginning that they decided unilaterally reduce exposure time from 5 to 4 minutes and caused widespread booing in the room. When the Mileist deputy José Peluc opened the Court, he omitted how many registered there were and the Left Front deputy Nicolás del Caño He came out at the intersection. “Say there are more than 100,000 registered and 99.5% will not be able to speak” he shouted in the room and aroused applause from those present.
The “public hearing” for the reform of the glacier law began in Deputies. @NicolasdelCano He shouts that they are not saying that there were more than 102,000 registered and that 99.5% will not be able to speak pic.twitter.com/tf82BFTRL0
— Jesica Calcagno (@Jesi_mc) March 25, 2026
Another scandal occurred one hour before the start when The hearing was interrupted because the authorities of the Chamber of Deputies They did not allow exhibitors to enter and they sought to directly eliminate them as speakers. “There are 15 people who are at the door, who have the confirmation email as speakers and they do not let them in because they say they are not on the list” they explained in the room. Paula Penacca of Unión por la Patria, and Del Caño of the left went to complain to Mayoraz and Pelu and a stir arose. It was added that the ruling party prohibited entry to television channels.
The public hearing for the glacier law was stopped. They report that there are 15 people at the door of Deputies who have been confirmed as exhibitors, many of them traveled, and they are not allowed to enter because “they are not on the list.” Another restriction https://t.co/DO1Y69kLlW pic.twitter.com/VCajWB2bN0
— Jesica Calcagno (@Jesi_mc) March 25, 2026
It is expected that this Wednesday 196 exhibitors spoke and ended around midnight. Thursday the 26th will be the second and last hearing, but only virtually. The treatment in the Chamber of Deputies will have a difficult path, and is surrounded by court filings and challenges of socio-environmental organizations and legislators who reject the reform.
The reform to the Glacier Law was presented by the government of Javier Mileiand has the endorsement of several governors such as that of the PJ of Catamarca, Raúl Jalil, that of Salta, Gustavo Sáenz, or the radical of Mendoza, Alfredo Cornejo. It already obtained half-sanction from the Senate in February, during the extraordinary period, practically without debate and with an express procedure.
The mileista government, for fear of it being declared unconstitutional the reform, is trying to give it a floor of legality in the treatment in the Chamber of Deputies. That is why he had to agree to hold a Public Hearing, as established by the Environmental Law and the Escazú Agreement. But he did in the libertarian way: imposing restrictions, arbitrary criteria, militarizing Congress, limiting the time of presentations and refusing to extend the days of Public Hearing after the registration of more than 102,000 people or organizations. Something that is going to cause problems.
Among the exhibitors of the day are Marta Maffeiauthor of the Glacier Law, Adolfo Pérez EsquivelNobel Peace Prize winner, and socio-environmental leaders from all over the country.
Las legal challenges to declare unconstitutional The reform of the glacier law is based, on the one hand, on the article 41 of the National Constitution which establishes two key issues that will be attacked if the changes promoted by the ruling party with the mining companies advance. “All inhabitants enjoy the right to a healthy, balanced environment, suitable for human development”; and later that “it is up to the Nation to dictate the regulations that contain the minimum protection budgets, and to the provinces, those necessary to complement them, without them altering local jurisdictions.” The half-sanction that seeks to make glacier protection more flexible seeks that the provinces be the ones to define whether the periglacial environment should be protected or not according to their consideration of whether it is a strategic water reserve or not. In this way, the provinces would be above Congress and would eliminate common criteria (minimum budgets). In one province one criterion may govern, in another another.
The unconstitutionality of the reform is also based on the Escazú Agreementwhich legally has a higher rank than the laws. That treaty establishes the non-regression principlewhich means that States cannot go back on their current environmental regulations, and are only allowed to advance in the protection of the environment.
The Escazú Agreement also establishes the obligation of public participation through hearings in environmental matters. Therefore, another of the points for which the reform is questioned is the restrictive characteristics that La Libertad Avanza imposed for the development of the Hearings. It is added that The Senate gave the half sanction with express treatment and violating all regulations.
The next step for the ruling party is to convene the plenary session of commissions so that the deputies dictate the text and leave it ready to take to the venue. Martín Menem is evaluating whether it is or the March 31 or April 7and their plan is to call a session as quickly as possible. Although the hearings are not binding, the Escazú text establishes that the deputies will have to give the reasons and foundations for their decision, and explain how they took into account the statements made in the Public Hearing.
The irregularities are endless. in society rejection of the reform gains weight and it is being expressed throughout the country. Water is defended against the voracity of mining companies that pollute, dry up rivers, take profits abroad and leave environmental liabilities behind. There is social rejection because the glacier that is lost will not be recovered.
Source: www.laizquierdadiario.com
