by Juan Cruz Esquivel
The interactions between the state and religious institutions in Argentina are expressed on the municipal, provincial, and national levels, in the sphere of legislation and public policy, and in a wide range of undefined informal relationships. Politics and religion have historically been intertwined, and their relationship can be described as subsidiary laicism, in which the recognition of civil rights coexists with significant intervention of the Church in the implementation of public policy and in which state support of religion at an intermediate level is considered legitimate. Religious institutions and convictions influence votes in the Congress on laws expanding sexual and reproductive rights, and under such influence provincial and municipal governments delay the implementation of those laws.
