ARGENTINA 2008/9

 

The Middle East conflict was the principal trigger for antisemitic manifestations in Argentina in 2008. However, up until the start of the war in Gaza, the incidence of antisemitism was relatively low compared to previous years. The period of the Gaza war was marked by many virulently antisemitic expressions, mostly emanating from extreme left groups.

 

THE JEWISH COMMUNITY

The Jewish community of Argentina, numbering about 180,000 out of a total population of 37 million, has been declining since the 1960s. Some 80 percent live in Buenos Aires city and the Greater Buenos Aires area. Other cities with a large Jewish presence include Rosario, Córdoba, San Miguel de Tucumán, Mendoza, Bahía Blanca, La Plata and Santa Fe.

            The Jewish community maintains many educational, cultural and religious institutions, including a Hebrew and a Yiddish press, publishing houses and an educational system from kindergarten through university. The leading Jewish organization is the DAIA (Delegación de Asociaciones Israelitas Argentinas), which represents communities and organizations to the authorities and is responsible for safeguarding the rights of members. AMIA (Asociación Mutual Israelita Argentina) is the main community organization. The Vaad ha-Kehilot is the umbrella organization of all the communities in the provinces.

            The organized Jewish community, such as the DAIA and AMIA, maintain good relations with the Muslim community in Argentina, with both sides trying to play down the Middle East conflict as an issue for dispute in the public arena. Nevertheless, Muslims were active participants among the groups demonstrating outside the Israeli embassy in January 2009 (see below).

 

ANTISEMITIC activity

Neither the local political situation nor the 2008 global economic crisis had a major impact on antisemitism in Argentina in 2008/early 2009, but the conflict in the Middle East was a major trigger for antisemitic events.

            A relatively low incidence of antisemitic was reported in 2008 compared to previous years − about 310 − until the start of the war in Gaza. Most − 190 − were graffiti sightings on street walls; 6 were desecrations of Jewish cemeteries. Two incidents caused material damage; 70 were verbal antisemitic insults directed at individuals, including 10 at the work place; 20 were threats; and there were 2 reports of the sale of Nazi literature.

 

Vandalism

The Jewish cemeteries of Algarrobos and Berazategui (Province of Buenos Aires), Ubajau (province of Entre Rios) and Ceres (province of Santa Fe) were desecrated. In addition, on July 6, plaques from 28 tombs were removed from the cemetery of La Tablada, Buenos Aires city. Seven of them belonged to the victims of the attack on the AMIA community building in July 1994.

            Other incidents of vandalism included red paint sprayed on a synagogue in November and the desecration of a mezuzah on the house of a Jewish citizen, both in Buenos Aires.

            As noted, graffiti and daubings constituted the main expression of antisemitism. Most appeared in the streets of cities, but some were drawn near Jewish institutions (such as the Museum of the Holocaust, Buenos Aires, on February 27). The city of Buenos Aires witnessed new graffiti daubed almost every week. Most were swastikas (on March 5 alone, 40 swastikas appeared) but some were slogans such as "Kill a Jew"' or Dirty Jew." Others were more specific, such as on January 23 “Argentina is for Christ, not for the Jews," or five days later, "On behalf of your country and against the Jews taking advantage of others," bordered by a swastika and a crossed-out Star of David.

           

Verbal and Physical Attacks

Arguments between neighbors sometimes developed into antisemitic incidents. For example, on February 13, a Jewish woman was physically and verbally attacked by her neighbor, who shouted: "I will kill you, you dirty Jewess."

            Phone calls and mail threatening Jewish citizens were also common. For example, on February 19, a Jewish resident of Buenos Aires claimed he received a call telling him: "Dirty Jew… we will break you. We will silence you for ever. We don't want any more dirty Jews here."

            Buenos Aires University was the site of several antisemitic threats. On May 8, a notice appeared in the Faculty of Exact and Natural Sciences saying: "Leave, because we’re blowing this place up. Let all Jews be killed in the name of Allah."

            There were also several complaints of in-your-face abuse. When the director of police security at Ezeiza International Airport in the province of Buenos Aires checked the identification of a person who had complained, on April 3, of bad service, and saw his Jewish name, he shouted: "Dirty Jew, why don’t you go to a kibbutz!"

             There were ten complaints of antisemitic insults in the work place. On April 14, for instance, a teacher at a municipal school in Buenos Aires was accused by one of the mothers that she was not doing her job properly because she was a Jewess.

In general, the DAIA deals with cases in schools providing information from its reports on antisemitism to staff and pupils.

 

The Gaza War

The impact of the Gaza war was strongly felt in Argentina, with many virulently antisemitic expressions, mostly emanating from extreme left groups. During the two months of January and February, 240 complaints were received by the DAIA, equivalent to the average amount received over eight months in other years. These included 72 verbal antisemitic expressions, ten threat incidents, one physical attack and one antisemitic incident in the workplace.

There were many cases of individual citizens and groups blaming Jewish individuals, neighbors or workplace colleagues for Israel’s actions. A demonstration was held in January at the Intercontinental Hotel, owned by Jewish businessman Eduardo Elsztain. Elsztain was accused of financing Zionism and being responsible for the deaths in Gaza. Among the participant groups were the Workers Party (Partido Obrero), Coalition of the Left (Convergencia de Izquierda) and Federation of Earth, Home and Habitat (Federacion de tierra, vivienda, y habitat) (see below).

            During January and February, the Workers Party posted virulently anti-Israel material. In a proclamation read in front of the Israeli embassy on January 22, they claimed: "The Palestinian Holocaust in Gaza [was perpetrated] during 20 days of bombing by the military forces of the genocidal state of Israel, and their governors who maintained that there is nothing immoral in the massacre of an entire people because of the immorality of a few… The perpetrators want to be seen as victims."

            The Coalition of the Left published a communication on January 29, stating: “We support the Palestinian people against the Nazi-Zionist state of Israel… we are against using the Holocaust perpetrated by the Nazis to perpetrate another Holocaust against the Palestinians and using the suffering of the Jewish people to imitate the methods of the Nazis and fascists against the Palestinians.” Coalition leader Juan Carlos Beica repudiated the State of Israel and all those who supported it.

            Luis D'Elia of the Federation of Earth, Home and Habitat used menacing language against Israel and the Jewish community in Argentina in January and February. He described Israel as a Nazi state and accused the local Jewish community of employing "the methodology of war propaganda used by Goebbels."

            There were 160 cases of graffiti in various cities. Much of it featured the Star of David equated with the swastika, accusations that Israel was a “genocidal state,” denial of the Holocaust and the hope that Israel would be wiped off the face of the map. With the end of the conflict, antisemitic manifestations diminished gradually in quantity and tone.