The leftist Ecuadorian student Leonardo Arias stated during an interview with the media La Nación, that the government of Javier Milei is a dictatorship and accused him of creating a supposed "Gestapo".
His reprehensible statements came after the publication of Decree of Necessity and Urgency (DNU) 681/2026 signed by the Argentine president, which introduces modifications to current regulations to restrict the entry or order the expulsion of foreigners who promote hate messages against Argentina or attack the country.
During the interview, Arias stated: “They are creating a Gestapo of public opinion, that is what Milei is really doing.”
In that same vein, despite the fact that the president was democratically elected, the Ecuadorian maintained that the country is going through a process comparable to authoritarian regimes. “Processes can take new forms. We have neo-Nazism, just as Nazism once existed,” he expressed.
The decree of Javier Milei
The outrageous statements were in response to the specific content of Milei's decree, which aims to regulate situations related to security and social coexistence. The DNU 681/2026 establishes as grounds for prohibition of entry or cancellation of residence for foreigners the incitement to violence or the dissemination of hate messages against Argentina, its citizens, or its national symbols.
Leonardo Arias
The government emphasized that the regulation does not affect the right to free expression nor seeks to limit political or academic debate. In fact, the official text specifies that the measure does not encompass ideological dissent or political, academic, or journalistic opinions that are protected by freedom of expression.
In this context, the President's Office argued that the decision responds to hostile manifestations recently recorded by foreigners and that its main objective is to safeguard public order and the integrity of the Argentine Republic.
The comparisons made by Arias with historically extreme episodes are completely out of place, especially in a context where the measure represents a concrete action to reinforce national unity, without infringing on fundamental rights.
