2023 was, without a doubt, the year of scandals in Uruguay, especially for the government—and the National Party, in particular—which was shaken by several events. The cases marset and Astesian were the most resonant due to their implications, but others such as the designations in Big Jump They generated discord at the political and institutional level.
The year began marked by controversy surrounding the president’s former security chief Luis Lacalle Pou, Alejandro Astesiano, whose plot expanded with each passing day of investigation. The custodian was sentenced to four years and six months in prison, a fine of 100 Adjustable Units (UR) and special disqualification from holding public office in an abbreviated trial in the case of forging passports for Russian citizens.
However, this was not the only crime for which he was investigated; the court discovered that Astesiano used the security systems of the hospital on a large number of occasions. Ministry of Interior to follow, monitor and spy on different people—among them, the Broad Front senators Mario Bergara and Charles Carrera; the president of PIT-CNT, Marcelo Abdala; and even high school students.
The case was described as corruption and even reached the president, who denied knowing anything about the illegal activities carried out by the head of his security. Even the newspaper Financial Times of USA pointed out the scandal as an event that affected the reputation of Uruguay and its institutional and democratic credibility.
Marset, three resignations and institutional crisis
Although at that time this seemed to be the government’s biggest problem, in parallel the Marset case, for the delivery of the Uruguayan passport to the drug trafficker Sebastian Marset. The first official to present her resignation due to its implications in the issuance of the official document – in the midst of the controversy over the State’s contribution to a criminal wanted by Interpol being able to escape in 2021 – was the vice chancellor. Carolina Ache, who assumed political responsibility and made it possible for the impact on the government cabinet to be minimal.
At the end of October, meanwhile, the scandal exploded into even more important dimensions when audio recordings of the then chancellor were released. Francisco Bustillo suggesting the elimination of evidence regarding knowledge in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs about who Marset was and his situation with international justice. The event led to the government’s biggest institutional crisis, and to the resignation of three other officials: Bustillo, the Minister of the Interior Luis Alberto Heberand the Undersecretary of the Interior Guillermo Maciel. Roberto Lafluf, main presidential advisor, also had to resign.
Lacalle Pou himself was involved when Ache declared before the Prosecutor’s Office that she had been summoned to the meeting in which she was also told to eliminate evidence of the passport process by apparent order of the president. The president’s response, as by then seemed to be his usual crisis management, was that he was not aware of the movement within his government cabinet.
Penadés, the “monster” in Parliament
At the end of March, meanwhile, the drama began in which the senator and head of the caucus of the National Party, Gustavo Penadés. With the first complaint for sexual abuse of minors against the legislator by the nationalist militant Romina Celeste Papassoa door was opened to an unknown part of the white leader.
Penadés denied all the accusations against him—as more and more complaints were added—and even went so far as to denounce the creation of a “plot” to dirty him. Likewise, and at first, there were many coreligionists who defended his innocence; even President Lacalle Pou, who publicly affirmed his trust and support in someone who, in addition to being an important figure in his government in the Senate, was also his friend.
As the investigation progressed, Penadés ended up renouncing both the National Party as well as his seat in the Senate – after processing his violation so that it could be investigated – and he was finally charged with 22 sexual crimes on October 10. The scandal, meanwhile, was seen by society as a lack of personal character, without directly relating it to the government despite the fact that many of its key officials had defended the former senator, although they later strongly repudiated his actions.
Salto Grande and Katoen Natie
The alleged irregularities in the extension of the contract between the Belgian company Katoen Natie and the government for Cuenca del Plata Terminal (TCP) Until 2081, it was another of the key conflicts of the year, despite the fact that it did not have the impact on the media that the Astesiano and Marset cases did, for example.
In May, the court dropped the case at the request of the Broad Front, kept since November 2022 in a drawer after the prosecutor for Economic and Complex Crimes, Gilberto Rodríguez, considered that it was not “abuse of arbitrary power” with a “predetermined intention to cause harm (to the administration or third parties) or generate a benefit to individuals,” as the accusations indicated. From the left coalition they pointed out that the agreement had not even gone through the review of the board of directors of the National Ports Administration (ANP).
However, in November the case was archived again, this time by order of the prosecutor. Silvia Porteiro, who assured to share Rodríguez’s conclusions.
Another case of controversy was the 36 direct appointments in the Uruguayan delegation of the Joint Technical Commission (CTM) of Big Jumpwhich ended with the resignation of the president of the organization, the nationalist Carlos Albisu. From the opposition they pointed out that the actions in the hiring were clientelist – since those hired were white councilors – and that the government had political responsibility for them.
At the time, President Lacalle Pou maintained that he would not hesitate to make decisions if the reported irregularities were proven, but nothing else of relevance happened after Albisu stepped aside and Parliament questioned the still Chancellor Bustillo and the Minister of Economy and Finance (MEF), Azucena Arbeleche.
Source: Ambito
