Argentine mininster criticises anti-hooligan measure

BUENOS AIRES, Aug 2 (Reuters) Argentine soccer's latest attempt to curb hooliganism was criticised today by Interior Minister Anibal Fernandez.

Fernandez said that a decision to reduce the sale of tickets to visiting fans would not necessarily keep out the troublemakers.

The Argentine Football Association (AFA) ruled on Tuesday that clubs will only be allowed to use 50 percent of the capacity of the away fans' sections unless these are all-seater.

''Nobody can guarantee that the ones who cause trouble will not be in that half,'' said Fernandez in an interview with the radio station America.

''The solution is to find the guilty ones, not deny the fans the chance to watch their team.

''Reducing it by one half is not going to reduce the problem by one half. There aren't thousands of them (troublemakers), there are 30 or 40. If we believe in magical solutions, we're wrong.'' Fernandez said the government had not been consulted over the AFA's decision, taken after a meeting with the Buenos Aires provincial government's agency for safety at sports events.

REUTERS SAM BST0108