ARGENTINA: PHYSICALLY AND MENTALLY CHALLENGED ARGENTINES ACCUSE PRIVATE BANKERS OF SKIMMING MULTI-MILLION DOLLAR HEALTH SERVICE FUND

Record ID: 448963

  • Title: ARGENTINA: PHYSICALLY AND MENTALLY CHALLENGED ARGENTINES ACCUSE PRIVATE BANKERS OF SKIMMING MULTI-MILLION DOLLAR HEALTH SERVICE FUND
  • Date: 23rd October 2002
  • Summary: BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA (OCTOBER 22, 2002) (REUTERS) 1. SLV PROTESTERS GATHERED IN FRONT OF CONGRESS; MV SIGN LANGUAGE INTERPRETER INFORMING DEAF PEOPLE OF SPEECH; MV HANDICAPPED PEOPLE LISTENING (6 SHOTS) 0.29 2. (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) PABLO MOLERO, LEADER OF HANDICAPPED DEFENCE GROUP, SAYING "Cancelling the way of raising money, which was the fees imposed for bad checks, we were left with nothing. But the banks kept charging the fees as a 'commission' and we are demanding access to those funds" 0.41 3. MV HANDICAPPED PEOPLE DANCING AND BIG DOLLS REPRESENTING THE BANKERS; MV MEMBERS OF CONGRESS SUPPORTING THE DEMAND; MV DOLL WITH SIGN READING "I MAKE 1,000,000 PESOS" (263,00 USD) (5 SHOTS) 1.09 4. (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) SENATOR MARTHA RASO, SAYING "Through this committee we want to investigate what really happened. Once we have the results, we will file a law suit and, of course, we will try to recover the money." 1.23 5. MV YOUNG MAN ADDRESSING THE PROTESTERS; MV PROTESTERS APPLAUDING (3 SHOTS) 1.37 6. SCU HANDICAPPED PERSON WITH SIGN READING "WITHOUT WHEELCHAIR 1.42 Initials Script is copyright Reuters Limited. All rights reserved
  • Embargoed: 7th November 2002 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA
  • Country: Argentina
  • Reuters ID: LVA1VQ3WK6SFTPDYV7XIK7S6WIL7
  • Story Text: Physically and mentally challenged Argentines have
    accused private bankers of skimming a multi-million dollar
    fund intended for the country's health services.

    Hundreds of protesting physically and mentally
    challenged Argentines demanded on Tuesday (October 22, 2002) the
    restitution of a multi-million dollar fund originally destined
    to finance their special needs, but allegedly skimmed by
    private bankers.

    The group Foro Pro, dedicated to the defense of
    handicapped rights, demanded the restitution of the fund that
    up until recently was financed with the penalties assessed to
    people that write bad checks. The fund was destined to pay for
    special facilities for people with some form of handicap.

    Handicapped people and their families demonstrated in
    front of Congress with music bands and effigies, some of them
    reaching 1.5 meters tall and representing "the bankers feast"
    with the people's money.

    The group accuses the bankers of illegally cashing and
    using for other purposes more than 800 million Argentine pesos
    (about 210.5 million U.S. dollars) from the fund destined to
    pay for the special needs of physically and mentally
    challenged Argentines.

    According to Pablo Molero, the leader of the Foro Pro,
    the bankers cashed illegally up to a million pesos a day, that
    should be used to cover the costs of servicing the needs of
    the handicapped.

    A federal law known as "The Check Law" had established
    that all banking proceeds from penalties assessed to their
    customers writing bad checks would be deposited into a special
    account to finance programmes for the handicapped.

    But the Central Bank, according to the handicapped group,
    never received those funds from the private banks and neither
    exercised the authority received under the law to that effect.

    The lower house of Congress has approved a bill to gather
    information to determine how the banks continue to charge
    "commissions" for bad checks without depositing those funds in
    the handicapped account.


  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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