Vargas Llosa thanks Argentina’s president for opposing speech ban

Nobel Prize-winning author Mario Vargas Llosa thanked Argentina’s president last week for preventing some of the country’s intellectuals from blocking his keynote address at the nation’s annual book fair. President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner had stepped in to prevent a move to bar the Peruvian writer, known for his liberal views and criticism of the left, from the event.

Vargas Llosa said he hoped the Fernández's insistence on freedom of expression would be "contagious" in Argentina, and that her followers would also respect the right of everyone to share ideas, including opposition newspapers that feel threatened by her Peronist government. Vargas Llosa has criticized the policies and alleged corruption of the Fernández government.

The presence of the author of The Feast of the Goat at the fair had been opposed by intellectuals close to the government as well as administration officials unhappy with Vargas Llosa's criticisms. Before Fernández's intervention, organizers were under pressure to withdraw his invitation.

In his speech on April 21, Vargas Llosa said books "have always brought out jealousy among enemies of freedom, who believe they are owners of absolute truth," adding that "Nazis, fascists, communists, military and civilian strongmen blinded by the owners of absolute truth have tried to tame the critical spirit that has always been the engine of change. Fortunately they have always failed, but they have left victims along the way."

Argentineans are asking themselves whether private media corporations or government-supported media pose the bigger threat to free speech. Relations between Grupo Clarín, the nation's largest media conglomerate, and the Fernández de Kirchner government have long been antagonistic. The government has accused Clarín and other private media of biased coverage while Clarín has been subjected to official harassment. In August last year, Fernández presented the findings of an official investigation into the history and economic activities of newsprint manufacturer Papel Prensa alleging that the Clarín and La Nación newspapers conspired with military dictators to gain control of the company, then leveraged their newsprint ownership to drive other publications out of business.

During his stay in the Argentinean capital Vargas Llosa was named “an honored guest of Buenos Aires,” by the City Legislature. “I am very thankful for this homage from my beloved Buenos Aires. I am very moved and I receive this honor with modesty and humility. I know of the convictions and principles that come with this award. Principles that we all defend: love for freedom, for an ample and tolerant society in which different ideas and beliefs can co-exist civilly, without triggering violence, that so much harm has made throughout history,” he told his audience.