Bolivian former president Evo Morales arrived in Buenos Aires on Thursday as an asylum seeker and will receive refugee status, two days after President Alberto Fernández took office in Argentina.
Morales arrived in Buenos Aires from Cuba with total secrecy, along with his former Vice President Álvaro García Linera, former Foreign Minister Diego Pary, former Health Minister Gabriela Montaño and the former Ambassador of Bolivia to the OAS, José Alberto Gonzales. They were all isolated in Mexico.
We want Evo’s commitment not to make political statements in Argentina. It is a condition that we ask,”
said Solá.
The members of the delegation requested asylum from Argentina, which was granted on Wednesday night by the Foreign Ministry. Upon entering Buenos Aires on Thursday, they presented the request for refuge, which must be granted by the Ministry of Interior and for which they must meet requirements such as living in the country.
Unlike the political asylum that is granted by a government in a short time without justifying it, the refugee status is broader, the reasons for granting it must be justified and the person has greater rights and obligations, according to Argentine immigration regulations.
Daniel Catalano, general secretary of ATE (Association of State Workers) capital, one of the members of the delegation that received Evo Morales, said the former president is fine and “in one piece”.