Human Rights Watch criticised the decrees: "Abusive" by Milei and "serious attack" against the independence of the Court

The human rights organization Human Rights Watch warned on Tuesday that the appointment by decree of Judge Ariel Lijo and academic Manuel García Mansilla to the highest court is “an outrage” by President Javier Milei and that it is “ one of the most serious attacks against the independence of the Argentine Supreme Court since the return of democracy.”

The director for the Americas of the US-based organization, Juanita Goebertus, criticized President Milei’s decision shortly after it was announced. “The appointment by decree of Lijo and García-Mansilla represents one of the most serious attacks against the independence of the Supreme Court in Argentina since the return of democracy,” she said.

He added that "President Milei cannot pretend to evade institutional mechanisms simply because he has not obtained the necessary votes in the Senate to name his candidates."

"Now, it is the responsibility of the other branches of government, especially the Senate and the Supreme Court, to rise to the occasion and stop this outrage by President Milei," he said.

The organization, which investigates and reports abuses of institutions and human rights around the world, had already warned several times about the appointment of these judges by decree, especially the nomination of Lijo.

In its annual report released in January, HRW had said there were “signs of institutional deterioration” in Milei’s government. “The president has shown himself intolerant of criticism, has promoted excessive regulations on protests, and with the nomination of Lijo he threatens the independence of the Supreme Court.”

In May of last year, the organization had already explicitly expressed its concern, especially regarding Lijo's background. Regarding this judge, it said at the time that "numerous human rights organizations, citizens, business associations and academics have formally expressed their concern about the nominations, in particular regarding Lijo's background as a federal judge."

“Argentina needs to strengthen judicial independence, the rule of law and efforts to combat corruption. To do so, the Government must seriously consider the serious concerns raised about Judge Lijo and ensure that all nominees to the Supreme Court have the highest integrity and qualifications,” he added.

They then detailed that Lijo has three pending disciplinary investigations in the Council of the Judiciary, the body in charge of investigating and removing federal judges. In addition, “he has faced another 29 disciplinary proceedings that were archived, including 16 in limine, that is, without any analysis, according to a study by the human rights organization Asociación Civil por la Igualdad y la Justicia (ACIJ). Some proceedings were based on accusations that Lijo delayed or manipulated investigations into corruption,” it said.

In addition, HRW noted, “a 2016 report by a bar association identified apparently “anomalous” delays, sometimes lasting more than a decade, in at least 28 corruption investigations handled by Lijo’s court.”