ARGENTINA: ARGENTINA'S TOP COURT HAS OVERRULED DEPOSIT DEVALUATION, PAVING THE WAY FOR THOUSANDS OF SAVERS TO RECLAIM THEIR FUNDS

Record ID: 645781

  • Title: ARGENTINA: ARGENTINA'S TOP COURT HAS OVERRULED DEPOSIT DEVALUATION, PAVING THE WAY FOR THOUSANDS OF SAVERS TO RECLAIM THEIR FUNDS
  • Date: 5th March 2003
  • Summary: (EU) BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA (MARCH 5, 2003) (REUTERS) LV/SV/CU OF SAVERS CELEBRATING OUTSIDE SUPREME COURT WITH POSTERS DEMANDING 'JUSTICE' (5 SHOTS) MCU (Spanish) DEMONSTRATOR FANNY SANABRIA SAYING: "It is a victory for justice, for respect for the constitution, for judicial security, for private property." SV/CU OF SAVERS DEMONSTRATING WITH POSTERS (2 SHOTS) SV SATIRIST EUGENIO NITO ARTAZA, WHO HAS EMERGED AS A LEADER IN THE MOVEMENT TO REIMBURSE DEPOSITORS, WITH CROWD OF DEPOSITORS SV OF DEMONSTRATORS APPLAUDING DECISION (2 SHOTS) MCU (Spanish) ARTAZA SAYING: "Today is a (day of) great victory for the Argentine people and the national constitution." CU/SV OF SAVERS APPLAUDING AND CHEERING (2 SHOTS) MCU (Spanish) GOVERNOR OF SAN LUIS AND PLAINTIFF IN THE CASE, ALICIA LEMME, SAYING: "This decision, not only favours the province of San Luis, but it helps savers across the country." SLV/SV OF SAVERS CELEBRATING AND DANCING (2 SHOTS)
  • Embargoed: 20th March 2003 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA
  • Country: Argentina
  • Topics: General,Politics
  • Reuters ID: LVADP7SQ14DZ3GXFY80SO5IXCN44
  • Story Text: Argentina's top court has overruled deposit devaluation, paving the way for thousands of savers to reclaim their funds.
    Hundreds of demonstrators gathered outside the Argentine Supreme Court awaiting the high court's decision celebrated and shouted 'justice' as news of the decision spread quickly.
    Chanting and banging on pots and pans, they cheered the announcement by a court official that Argentina's top court on Wednesday (March 5) ruled that last year's devaluation of a bank deposit was unconstitutional, a precedent-setting ruling that could force the government to pay back billions of dollars to depositors.
    It's welcome news to thousands of Argentines who have suffered through hard times as they watched their savings erode since January of 2002 when the government froze deposits then free-floated the currency.
    "Today is a (day of) great victory for the Argentine people and the national constitution," said Satirist Eugenio Nito Artaza who has emerged as a leader in the movement to claim reimbursement for depositors.
    The Supreme Court ruled that a $247 million fixed-term deposit held by the province of San Luis, which was converted into devalued pesos at the height of Argentina's economic crisis, must be changed back into dollars, the source said.
    The demonstrators, many of whom have suits pending, hope the ruling could pave the way for further rulings in favour of depositors, thus returning to them their lost funds.
    A wave of copycat suits could undermine an aid pact sealed with the International Monetary Fund in January, but analysts and constitutional lawyers say it will take time for such cases to wend through the judicial system.
    That means the winner of April 27 presidential elections may have to deal with fallout from the high court ruling.
    Experts say the government would likely issue bonds to pay back investors. It was not clear how the government must pay back San Luis province.
    The government converted all dollar deposits into pesos in January 2002. Since then, the peso has shed around 70 per cent of its value against the dollar.
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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