Javier Milei: Happy holidays, and be careful not to become a communist

Javier Milei, the president of Argentina, has warned those celebrating Christmas to “be careful not to become a communist” in a bizarre seasonal message to his followers.

Mr Milei, who took office earlier this month after winning the October elections on a promise to take a chainsaw to public spending.

The Libertarian former rock singer appears brandishing a truncheon in an image shared on his social media account, accompanied by the caption: “Happy holidays, and be careful not to become a communist.”

It is not the first time that the 52-year-old, a self-described “tantric sex instructor,” has taken aim at communism.

During his campaign, he regularly criticised China and Brazil, saying he won’t deal with “communists”.

Argentina’s government has scheduled emergency sessions of parliament beginning this week to address Mr Milei’s package of controversial economic reforms.

In one of his first acts as president, Mr Milei issued a sweeping decree that changes or scraps more than 350 economic regulations in a country that has grown accustomed to heavy government intervention in the market.

Among the reforms, the text repeals the law on rents, which would abolish the established price ceiling. It also eliminates some worker protections and laws that shield consumers from abusive price increases, at a time when inflation exceeds 160 per cent per year and the poverty level has surpassed 40 per cent.

Mr Milei’s “chainsaw plan” to cut state spending – he waved around a working chainsaw while on the campaign trail this year – triggered a series of street protests against the government over the past week.

Other aspects of the decree include an end to automatic pension increases, restrictions on the right to strike, and the easing away from price caps for private health services.

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