E/CN.4/2004/3/Add.3 page 6 13. Federal legislation on human rights and fundamental freedoms appears to be well developed and sufficiently coordinated. During its visit, the Working Group concluded that the main shortcomings in the application of human rights lie in the failure of some domestic laws to comply with international standards and in certain long-standing practices, particularly at the provincial level. 14. The Working Group also observed that other factors have a negative effect on the population’s enjoyment of human rights: (a) First, the poverty level has increased considerably as a result of the recession that has affected Argentina for the past four years and the economic collapse that occurred in December 2001. The economic crisis at that time was so serious that it threatened to destroy the social fabric of the country. Today, over 50 per cent of the population is living below the poverty line; in some provinces, this percentage is as high as 80 per cent. This means that the impoverished segment of the population cannot afford the basic food basket. Some officials told the delegation that the average income of the population was 512 pesos a month (about US$ 150). In 1955, 52 per cent of the population were from the middle class; today that figure is only 27 per cent; (b) In Salta, poverty affects 70 per cent of the population, and in the province of Buenos Aires 60 per cent (over 6 million people). There are at least 10 million destitute people in the country who subsist on a dollar a day; 23 per cent of the economically active population is unemployed. Poverty has led to a considerable rise in crime, greater public insecurity and a series of social protests led by the unemployed; the protests mainly involve the occupation of public buildings and the blockading of roads. Previous Governments reacted by suppressing such actions, which led some NGOs that the Working Group met during its visit to refer to the “criminalization of poverty” and a “policy of zero tolerance” towards public displays of protest and discontent. The fact that the repressive measures were enforced by persons associated with the military dictatorship or by methods similar to those employed at that time has increased the feeling of insecurity and fear among the population, especially in certain provinces; (c) Secondly, the federal structure of the State makes it more difficult to bring domestic legislation into line with the country’s international obligations. Argentina is a federal State, consisting of the Federal Capital and 23 provinces. Legislative power is divided between the federation and the provinces: (i) The national Constitution gives the provinces the power to legislate in all matters that fall outside the competence of the federation. This power extends to laws that affect the freedom of citizens, such as codes of criminal procedure. Although in substantive matters authority lies with the federation and there is therefore one criminal code for the whole country, the same cannot be said of procedural matters. There are provincial police forces that depend on the government of the respective province. Provincial legislation has given these forces a number of powers; for example, they can detain individuals for misdemeanours or minor offences;