Argentina’s Provincial Commission for Memory (CPM, in Spanish) filed a criminal complaint Monday against national government officials over the police operation that left more than 550 people injured during the fifth federal university march in Buenos Aires.

---

The complaint, submitted to the Federal Court led by Judge Sebastián Ramos, calls for an investigation into both the officers who took part in the operation and the political authorities who ordered the security deployment during the day of protest.

A report prepared by the autonomous body found that the police intervention stretched on for more than three hours.

RELATED: Repression at Argentina’s University March: Over 30 Detained

Security forces fired rubber bullets horizontally at the bodies of demonstrators, deployed water cannons at high pressure and launched more than 120 tear gas grenades in what the report described as a disproportionate use of force.

The formal filing also stated that the attacks reached medical assistance teams, press workers and human rights observers. At the same time, the National Committee for the Prevention of Torture monitored the street actions and warned of an abusive use of force that led to the detention of four adults and two teenagers.

Ver esta publicación en Instagram

Una publicación compartida de teleSUR English (@telesurenglish)

Over 550 Injured

The figure of more than 550 people affected or injured gives the operation a scale recorded in Argentine protests. The Argentine Provincial Commission for Memory report documented the trajectory of the rubber bullets, the intensity of the water cannons and the volume of chemical agents deployed against a crowd that included students, teachers and ordinary citizens.

The fifth federal university march brought thousands of people into the streets across the country to demand that President Javier Milei enforce the University Financing Law. The legislation, approved by the National Congress and reaffirmed after being vetoed by the executive branch, has the backing of the judiciary to guarantee the budget of the public education system.

Human rights organizations demanded the urgent delimitation of criminal and institutional responsibilities in the face of the reported escalation of violence. Torture prevention bodies stressed that the use of less lethal weapons requires strict protocols to protect the integrity of those exercising their constitutional right to protest.

Ver esta publicación en Instagram

Una publicación compartida de Comisión por la Memoria (@cpmemoria)

Judicial Action Advances

The advance of the legal actions keeps the conduct of the Ministry of Security and the management of social conflict in the Argentine capital at the center of national debate. The complaint before Judge Ramos seeks to establish who ordered the deployment and who allowed the operation to continue for hours despite the growing number of injuries.

University communities announced that they will maintain institutional and street actions to demand the budget allocation that the law grants to higher education institutions. The protest movement shows no sign of retreat, even as the judicial process begins to examine the events of the march.

The Provincial Commission for Memory (CPM, in Spanish), an autonomous body with a long record of documenting state violence, placed the operation within a broader pattern of concern. Its report argues that the use of force crossed the line separating legitimate public order maintenance from punishment aimed at those who dissent.

The case now rests with the Federal Court, which must decide whether to summon the security agents and the political officials identified in the filing. The outcome will shape how Argentina addresses the use of force against social protest, a question that has divided the country since the march left its toll of injured demonstrators on the streets of the capital.

The fifth Federal University March is taking place this Thursday, October 15, across Argentina. Participants are mobilizing toward the National Congress to demand compliance with the University Financing Law (No. 27.795), the restoration of salaries for both academic and non-academic staff, and the definitive rejection of the Javier Milei administration’s Emergency Decree (DNU) 70/23.

RELATED:

Argentina’s Basic Basket Costs Outpace Inflation as Poverty Line Climbs

Under the slogan Without funding, there is no science or education, the university community is calling for the immediate implementation of regulations that mandate the adjustment of operating funds, salaries, and scholarships in line with inflation. The protest was organized by the National Interuniversity Council (CIN), the Argentine University Federation (FUA), and the National Universities Trade Union Front.

Organizers report that academic and non-academic staff have seen their purchasing power decline by more than 32 percent so far this year. This action follows a judicial ruling that upheld injunctions and imposed financial penalties on the national government for failing to adjust funds and wages as required by law.

In the City of Buenos Aires, the main contingent—led by the University of Buenos Aires (UBA)—will gather at 1:00 p.m. at Plaza Houssay (at the intersection of Córdoba and Junín streets). Labor unions and social movements will begin assembling at 1:30 p.m. in the vicinity of the National Congress.

At 2:00 p.m., the march will proceed along Avenida Córdoba to Callao, then continue via Corrientes and Cerrito toward the parliamentary district. At 4:00 p.m., a joint statement from rectors, students, and labor unions will be read at Plaza del Congreso.

[AHORA] Estudiantes tomaron la Facultad de Ciencias Sociales en la previa de la Quinta Marcha Federal Universitaria.

Sumate a 'Diario de la noche' con @analiaargento, @eduardoprensa_ y @cotyvile 👉https://t.co/A3pv6QUv5q pic.twitter.com/H07gWnXj2U

— Argentina|12 (@argentina12ok) October 15, 2026

The text reads, “[NOW] Students took over the Faculty of Social Sciences ahead of the Fifth Federal University March.”

The protest coincides with a debate in the Chamber of Deputies regarding Emergency Decree (DNU) 70/23—a measure that has already been rejected by the Senate. The organizing groups aim to exert pressure to ensure the Lower House rejects the measure definitively.

The decree—viewed by the organizers as a cornerstone of the government’s ultraliberal agenda—impacts numerous sectors beyond education. Although the Supreme Court reversed its position, leaving the Land Law in effect following legal back-and-forth regarding its Article 154, universities have maintained their call to action due to the broad scope of the regulation.

Consequently, the day’s events bring together social, labor, political, and student organizations. The initiative also has the backing of the CGT, both branches of the CTA, ATE, and various scientific organizations—representing a coalition of workers and students united in defense of public education.

The protest movement spans the entire country. In Córdoba, the National University has suspended classes and is holding a march through the city center. In Santa Fe and Rosario, demonstrations are planned in response to disruptions in institutional operations, scholarship programs, and research activities. Higher education institutions across all provinces are staging strikes and protests.

This mobilization follows a series of strikes, open-air classes, and awareness-raising events. The organizers maintain that the implementation of Law 27.795 is essential to guarantee the continued operation of universities, sustain scientific research, and restore wages within the education sector.

🇦🇷 Argentine students have occupied the Education Secretariat to demand increased funding for public universities amid growing concerns about the future of higher education.

The student mobilization underscores the struggle to defend public education and secure the resources… pic.twitter.com/VGBlC1pZK0

— teleSUR English (@telesurenglish) October 9, 2026

On Tuesday, Argentine political leaders, workers, students, and social activists will march to the Congress in Buenos Aires to demand compliance with the University Financing Law and urge the Chamber of Deputies to reject Decree of Necessity and Urgency (DNU) 70/23. The gathering is scheduled to take place in front of Parliament, where demands regarding the Land Law and the Rental Law will also be voiced.

RELATED:

Argentine Prosecutors Seek Up to 12 Years in Prison for Doctors Over Maradona’s Death

The mobilization will bring together faculty, non-teaching staff, students, university officials, labor confederations, tenants’ organizations, Malvinas war veterans, and political leaders. Participants will call on the government to implement the University Financing Law and on the Chamber of Deputies to repeal DNU 70/23, which has already been rejected by the Senate.

The protest was decided upon weeks ago, following strikes and public teaching sessions organized by faculty and non-teaching staff unions. The organizations maintain that the law must guarantee the sustainability of national universities and demand that the Executive branch comply with existing regulations.

The Buenos Aires University (UBA) issued a message supporting the call to action: “Let us not normalize non-compliance with the law. Laws must be obeyed. Always.” The university called for participation in the fifth Federal University March to demand adherence to the law and to defend public higher education.

#Argentina | A federal court struck down President Javier Milei’s decree blocking the University Financing Law and ordered the government to immediately release funds for public universities.
The ruling follows more than a year of disputes over university funding.#Education… pic.twitter.com/SbD2Nswu3P

— teleSUR English (@telesurenglish) October 7, 2026

These demands were also voiced last week at the Palacio Pizzurno, the headquarters of the Secretariat of Education. There, student unions from the Buenos Aires Metropolitan Area staged a sit-in and asked the Secretary of Education, Carlos Torrendell, to increase scholarships in accordance with the University Financing Law.

According to the statement regarding the event, the meeting lasted three minutes before authorities forcibly removed the students from the building. Later, the Ministry of Human Capital announced it would file a formal complaint regarding the incident. Buenos Aires Province Governor Axel Kicillof confirmed he would participate in the march.

During an event marking the 150th anniversary of the implementation of Law 988 on Common Education, he stated that the national government does not respect the law and maintained that its representatives would be “in the streets on the 15th, defending public universities.” Kicillof also noted that the 26 national universities located within the province are the responsibility of the federal government.

Meanwhile, students will march in groups organized by student unions or independently, just as they did during the four previous mobilizations. Some university faculties are preparing measures to support the protest. At the UBA’s Faculty of Philosophy and Letters, an assembly voted to occupy the building at Puan 480 from 7:00 PM on Tuesday until Thursday, the day of the mobilization.

Emergency Decree (DNU) 70/23 and the legislative debate

The march also aims to pressure the Chamber of Deputies to reject Emergency Decree (DNU) 70/23, signed by President Javier Milei. The lower house is scheduled to debate the decree, although achieving a quorum to hold the session remains uncertain.

The legislative debate was called after the Supreme Court overturned a ruling that had declared Article 154 of the decree—which concerned the repeal of the Land Law—unconstitutional. As of this writing, that law remains in effect. Nevertheless, the organizers are proceeding with the mobilization, maintaining that the protest should not depend on judicial decisions.

The La Plata Center for Malvinas War Veterans (Cecim), which had filed the legal challenge, confirmed it would be present at Plaza de los Dos Congresos, stating: “The homeland is not for sale. We are marching on the 15th regardless, because DNU 70 is a crime against the people.”

The two CTA labor confederations also announced their participation. The CTA Autónoma announced it would return to the streets to demand that the Chamber of Deputies repeal the decree and move forward with declaring it unconstitutional.

"El decreto 70/23 no es ni más ni menos una forma de LIQUIDAR SOBERANÍA NACIONAL, no hay forma de verlo desde otro lugar"

Hay que impedir que vendan el país entero, porque dejaron en claro que no les importa pic.twitter.com/je4wq44qQD

— 💛🇦🇷 🅟🅐🅜🅟🅐 🇦🇷💙 (@Pampa139) October 11, 2026

Emergency Decree (DNU) 70/23 repealed the Rental Law, which had mandated three-year contracts and six-monthly rent adjustments. Consequently, tenants’ organizations will join the march to demand the decree’s rejection. The group Organized Tenants (Inquilinos Agrupados) called for a gathering outside Congress, declaring: “Down with Decree 70. We will have a rental law.”

Peronist and leftist leaders also confirmed their participation. Gabriel Solano—a former Buenos Aires City legislator representing the Workers’ Party (Partido Obrero) within the Left and Workers’ Front-Unity (FIT-U)—called for intensified mobilization to reject the decree and secure an increase in the university budget.

The rally will thus bring together demands for higher education funding and opposition to the repeals enacted by the decree regarding land and rental regulations. The outcome of the debate on the decree will rest with the deputies, while protesters seek to voice their grievances outside Congress.